MIT Sloan seeks students whose personal characteristics demonstrate that they will make the most of the incredible opportunities at MIT, both academic and non-academic. We are on a quest to find those whose presence will enhance the experience of other students. We seek thoughtful leaders with exceptional intellectual abilities and the drive and determination to put their stamp on the world. We welcome people who are independent, authentic, and fearlessly creative — true doers.

Essay: Why Stanford?

Profile: Miss. N

Profile (Background): Miss. N, a Humanitarian Affairs Officer with an impressive record in the UN, pivoted and joined Facebook after getting frustrated with the slow pace of the bureaucracy in the organization. With the changes in Facebook to limit oversight on moderation, she rejoined the UN. The change she noticed at the UN from a leadership-driven to a technology-first culture made her aware that both extremes were not good for serving those affected in disaster-affected areas. 

Essay: Why Stanford?

Profile: Miss NL

Profile (Background): Miss NL, a PE investor, found her calling to enter a general management role while observing an inefficiency in delivery coffee to a customer in a Coffee Chain. Before working in PE, she was also part of the finance team that brought Apple Card to the market. 

Essay: Why Stanford?

Profile: Mr. SK

Profile (Background): Mr. SK, an accounting specialist in M&A, finds himself frustrated with contributing meaningfully to acquisitions and investment decisions. Although his accounting role is limited to due diligence, he witnessed deals that were driven by flawed beliefs of the founder/entrepreneur. 

With a Pivot to PE, Mr. SK wants to bring people-first principles to the PE industry. 

In the fourth part of the INSEAD MBA Analysis, we cover INSEAD MBA's application essay tips. Read the first part - INSEAD MBA Total Cost, second part - INSEAD MBA Curriculum Analysis, and the third part - INSEAD MBA Scholarship, Fellowships and Loans. 

In this in-depth INSEAD MBA Essay Tips, we cover

Background Information: A technologist, responsible for managing a proprietary pricing algorithm, stares at zero sales in the airline and hospitality industry – a once-in-a-lifetime event that motivates him to find a creative solution.

Theme: Leadership, Creativity

Essay: Kellogg leaders are primed to tackle challenges everywhere, from the boardroom to their neighborhoods. Describe a specific professional experience where you had to make a difficult decision. Reflecting on this experience, identify the values that guided your decision-making process and how it impacted your leadership style. 

Background Information: A young technology leader makes one of the toughest decisions in his professional career – to let go of two senior team members.

Theme: Leadership

Essay: Kellogg leaders are primed to tackle challenges everywhere, from the boardroom to their neighborhoods. Describe a specific professional experience where you had to make a difficult decision. Reflecting on this experience, identify the values that guided your decision-making process and how it impacted your leadership style. 

Background Information: A consultant in a non-profit balances short-term value creation with long-term impact by cultivating empathy for the beneficiaries.  

Theme: Leadership, Empathy

Essay: Kellogg leaders are primed to tackle challenges everywhere, from the boardroom to their neighborhoods. Describe a specific professional experience where you had to make a difficult decision. Reflecting on this experience, identify the values that guided your decision-making process and how it impacted your leadership style. 

Background Information: A campaign manager risks losing an account when a star copywriter takes emergency leave.

Theme: Leadership, Authentic Communication

Fast-moving consumer goods manufacturers like Unilever and P&G struggled to find a market in developing economies with traditional American and European-themed promotional strategies. Poking the aspirational class with the hope of a better future or the sparkling smile of the celebrity didn’t help the market share. On the verge of giving up the drive to enter rural markets that represent the lion’s share in developing economies, the executives called on ‘MBA’ consultants, many from reputed universities, for solutions. 

Chicago Booth MBA Essay# An MBA is as much about personal growth as it is about professional development. In addition to sharing your experience and goals in terms of career, we’d like to learn more about you outside of the office.

Chicago Booth MBA Essay# An MBA is as much about personal growth as it is about professional development. In addition to sharing your experience and goals in terms of career, we’d like to learn more about you outside of the office. Use this opportunity to tell us something about who you are… (Minimum 250 words, no maximum)?

Background Information: A technologist narrates the leadership traits he acquired from his entrepreneur father. 

NYU Stern MBA Essay 1: Change: _________ it (350 word maximum, double-spaced, 12-point font)

In today’s global business environment, the only constant is change. Using NYU Stern’s brand call to action, we want to know how you view change. Change: _____ it. Fill in the blank with a word of your choice. Why does this word resonate with you? How will you embrace your own personal tagline while at Stern? Examples:

Background Information: The applicant’s professional journey is not captured in the essay. Instead, I have focused on the person’s change in perspective around diversity and leadership. 

Theme: Diversity, Leadership, Authentic Communication 

Traditional Leadership, where the goal is to establish authority and, through posturing, enforce compliance, works in a large organization with systems, structure, and a clearly defined chain of commands. Although the style works in an environment where the margin for error is high, and the company can absorb losses in the short-term, in a start-up, openness and aligning the team’s incentives with the company’s milestones are crucial for gaining traction. This could be in the form of a vesting period and other bonus structures. The hours are different, and so is the commitment.