Q) How has the world you come from shaped who you are today? For example, your family, culture, community, all help to shape aspects of your life experiences and perspective. Please use this opportunity to share more about your background. (250 words or less)
Background Information: A consultant reflects the escape from the genocide in Rwanda and the impact the war trauma had in shaping his extra-curricular engagement as a visual storyteller.
Theme: War Trauma, Creativity, Inclusion
Theme (Explained): Reflecting on war trauma and how it has shaped your worldview could be managed in two ways. One as a warning sign for all democracies. The other as a motivation for helping other underrepresented voices find their voice. The best essays transition seamlessly to combine the trauma and lessons into one narrative.
Profile: Consultant
Industry: Consulting
MBA Essay Strategy: Some motivations are deeply rooted in personal trauma. The applicant was only two years old when he escaped the genocide in Rwanda. It defined his life. Without that moment of horror and escaping from the mouths of death, the need to highlight stories of immigrant Africans would have never arisen.
A unique perspective that you have developed can act as fuel to start a new initiative, a non-profit, or a start-up.
For this example, the gap between the horrors of the genocide and the manicured version shown in TV news was the driving force to start a student club.
I have chosen to highlight the applicant’s pro-activeness to take a trauma and use the experience for the betterment of other underrepresented voices.
Opener: The horrors of war without depressing the reader is a tough balancing act. I have captured the ‘near death’ experience in the opener.
Sample MIT Sloan MBA World You Come from Shaped Who You Are Essay – War Trauma (248 Words)
I was two years old when my mother sheltered me to escape the genocide in Rwanda. At one time, we were asked to pick our grave spot before the rebels aimed shots at us.
My relentless crying changed their minds.
When I joined the school, I lived like an American but was unsure of my heritage. On a couple of occasions, I shared our family’s historical trauma. In the 90s, without phone cameras, the truth was often manicured into 15-minute news features ..
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