sample career goals essay for mba

20 Great MBA Application Essay Samples (With Links)

With elite business schools like Harvard and Stanford boasting acceptance rates as low as 10% and 6% respectively, every aspect of your application counts. While GPA and GMAT scores matter, your essay can be a game-changer. Recognizing its weight, we’ve gathered top-notch MBA essay samples, endorsed by admission committees from premier institutions. Dive in and let’s craft that standout application!

What is an MBA Application Essay?

What admission committee look for in an mba essay.

If you want to learn more, here is the complete guide on how admission committees process MBA applications.

20 Great MBA Applications Essays Samples

Now you have known that what makes a great MBA admission essay, the next step is to write one for yourself. Before writing, check out this list of expert-vetted MBA application essays that secured admissions to top-rated business schools in the world. Admission consultants have shared these samples and they can be helpful if you read and analyze them carefully. If you’re completely unsure about how to get started, there are also custom essay writing services that can help you structure your essay with the help of professional editors.

Sample 1: Leadership-focused MBA application essay

Sample 2: self-focused mba application essay .

If you are asked to write about your strengths, weaknesses, aims, and goals in your application essay, this sample will help you. The applicant who wrote this got accepted to the INSEAD business school. It doesn’t merely describe her strengths and weaknesses, but it presents a complete picture of herself as a person. It highlighted the events and incidents that shaped her personality.

Sample 3: Life-hardships-focused MBA application essay

If you want to explain your life’s hardships and the events that turned you into an ambitious person, this sample is for you. In this application essay, the candidate has defined three phases of his life and how he survived through each adversity. He beautifully explained why the MBA program is important to his future.

Sample 4: Continuous growth and learning-focused MBA application essay

Sample 5: best mba application essay for low scorers.

Have a low GPA? What would you write about academics in an MBA essay to convince the admission committee? Do not overthink! MBA essay is not all about high achievements and sterling background. It is also an opportunity to atone for your past mistakes. This MBA essay was written by a student who obtained very low academic grades, yet got admitted to her desired business school. Her turning point? A powerful application essay.

Sample 6: A guitarist’s application essay for the MBA program

Sample 7: an engineer’s essay for mba application, sample 8: harvard business school mba essay, sample 9: wharton business school mba essay, sample 10: columbia business school mba essay, sample 11: stanford graduate school of business mba essay, sample 12: university of california business school mba essay.

This sample was taken from a pool of successful MBA application essays submitted to the University of California business school. Read it carefully and analyze its structure, words, and substance before you compose your own fantastic MBA essay.

Sample 13: University of OXFORD business school MBA essay

Sample 14: london business school mba essay, sample 15: a goal-oriented mba application essay.

Sometimes the MBA admission portal may demand an essay specifically focused on your future goals. In such a case, you must be very sure about yourself and must convey your goals and future directions based on your experiences and planning. Check out this sample to get an idea of how a successful candidate writes about personal goals.

Sample 16: Executive MBA essay

Sample 17: mba video essay, sample 18: short-answer-based mba application essay.

Some business schools require candidates to respond to short questions to get insights into their personalities and suitability for the MBA program. More or less, most of the questions revolve around the same theme. The key to success is to grasp the intention of the admission committee behind the questions and to stick to your identity . These successful answers submitted to the Tepper School of Business will help you in formulating your answers.

Sample 19: MIT Sloan School of Management

Sample 20:  michigan ross school of business mba program, what should be included in the mba application essay, what makes a great mba application essay.

Do you want more tips? Here is a complete guide to writing a compelling MBA application essay.

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Career Goals for MBA Aspirant in 150 Words

• Updated on  
• Apr 15, 2023

If you are someone who is planning to apply for MBA , you must be well-versed in the fact that you will be expected to produce certain essays that help the university understand your motivations for pursuing that degree. Most universities will expect you to begin your essay with your career goals in 150 words, and while this might seem like an easy task for some, it can be extremely daunting for others there are several things that everyone needs to keep in mind. The career goals you provide will help those reading your application assess if you are motivated enough to pursue the degree and if you have what it takes to successfully pursue it. So, while presenting your career goals for MBA aspirants in 150 words, you must mention your short-term and long-term goals for your MBA essay in an impactful and precise manner. It is normal to feel uncertain about how to make a statement in as little as 150 words so here is all the information you will need while attempting to answer this question.

This Blog Includes:

How to tackle career goals for mba aspirants in 150 words, essentials to include, quintessential details, don’ts, tips for writing short-term and long-term goals for mba, tips for career goals for mba essay.

There are numerous different ways in which you can approach this question. You can choose to be course-specific, industry-specific or position-specific. The trick with every way that you approach the question is that you build your answer in a way that supports your argument of how the specific thing will help you achieve your long-term goals. If you are writing with the specific course you wish to study in mind, it is important to let the university know how that course from their university will help you achieve your short-term and long-term goals for the MBA essay . You can also choose to mention how a specific faculty member from the university can be instrumental in your growth.

If you are being industry-specific or position-specific, those 150 words must comprise why you wish to work in that specific industry or at that specific position and how the college you are choosing will aid that development and how, in the end, all of this will add up to your professional growth and trajectory.

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While drafting career goals for MBA aspirants, there are various essentials that you need to keep in mind which might range from mentioning the chosen industry to creating a career plan. Let’s first understand the basics you must add to your career goals:

• Particular Industry : Write your specific domain and industry emphasizing why you want to work in it.
• Particular Positions : Once you have mentioned your industry, the next thing is to write about the career profile you want to pursue.
• Connection to Your Academic & Professional Records: While writing career goals for MBA aspirants, it is extremely important to link your academic and professional milestones with your aspirations to sketch out your career journey.
• Association with your Career Goals : Connect your mentioned objectives with your career aspirations and explain how you plan to fulfil them through this degree.
• Community Agenda i.e. how the degree will help you in making your contribution towards the community.
• Expected Outgrowth
• Unique Career Plan

Things to Keep in Mind

While the above-mentioned essentials can be a sure-shot guide to writing career goals, there is a host of other stuff that can help you in making an impressive list. Here is a list of the Do’s and dont’s that you must keep in mind while summing up career goals for MBA aspirants in 150 words:

• Keep it specific and personal.
• Highlight your short-term and long-term career goals in the MBA essay
• Carve out your interests and link them with your career goals as well as plans. 
• Make the article succinct and to the point.
• Always write something easy to talk about.
• Must include Education specific content and your ambitions in life in brief.

For instance, why you have chosen a certain business school, why you want to study under your chosen professor and what kind of exposure and outgrowth you are expecting to reach closer to your goals.

• Avoid elaborating on those career goals which don’t resonate with what has been asked in the essay.
• Mentioning activities or educational background not relevant to the career goals.
• Avoid being too vague and ambiguous.
• Do not beat around the bush.
• While mentioning your industry is important, don’t overdo it and keep the essay concise and coherent .
• Why these certain goals?
• When or how they were conceived?
• What past experiences/events make you feel that your set goals are realistic?
• Also, explain the significance of the goals in your life.

This can make your essay more personal and interesting.

As career goals will play an indispensable role in your MBA essay in 150 words, it is essential to know how you can efficiently incorporate them into your answer. Here are some insights into crafting the best short-term and career goals for your MBA essay:

Mention the major career goals you look forward to fulfilling post-MBA

This will include your short-term and long-term career goals post MBA and while drafting these, it is crucial to be precise and put an extra emphasis on showing a career map of what you look forward to. That’s why you should mention the industry you aspire to work in, the job position you want, and how you further aim to climb up the hierarchy accordingly.

Concisely elaborate upon why these goals are important to you

Showing your interest and passion for your short-term and long-term goals in your MBA essay can also help you impress the admission team. Give a unique and interesting reason why you want to pursue a certain industry or job role and connect it with the MBA course you have opted for!

Make it specific to the academic institution

Another imperative pointer to add to your career goals for MBA aspirants in 150 words is to connect your content with the school/college/university you are applying for as it will help the admission committee assess your interest in applying to a certain institution.

Examples of Career Goals for MBA Aspirant in 150 Words

It is always easier to understand how to go about a specific thing by looking at examples of it. Here are free career goals essay samples for MBA aspirants in 150 words:

My long-term goal is to secure the position of a senior (job position) manager in a company that caters to (industry needs). I aspire to create a significant impact in a dynamic and ever-changing industry and to advance the development and growth of such a corporation. I strongly believe that pursuing an MBA degree (specialization if any) from your university will help me develop a skill set that will be instrumental in both my personal and professional growth. I believe that through the duration of the course, I will be provided with ample opportunities to strengthen my leadership and administrative skills and they will help me contribute to the industry. I also believe that pursuing this course at your university will help me realize my long-term goals and over time help me contribute to society’s development as a whole. 

I wish to pursue an MBA in (specialization) from your esteemed institution because I strongly believe that the course taught by (the specific professor) will give me a dynamic learning experience, which will help me become well-versed with the fundamentals emphasized in the course offered by your university. This comprehensive course offered by your university is well-known for providing the essential skill set that will help me become a global leader in the industry. I strongly believe that my previous experience as (job experience) in the industry has equipped me well for pursuing this course and that the environment and exposure provided by your university will help me multiply my network and magnify my potential. My long-term goal is to create a sustainable mark in the industry that aids the overall development of society and that admittance to your university will be a major step on that journey.

My long-term ambition is to enthusiastically enter and be a valuable representative of a Multinational Corporation like Google or Microsoft as a top management consultant after completing the prestigious MBA program from the prestigious university (University Name). I want to learn from a diverse portfolio of client engagements and put all of my theoretical experience into practice in a real-world environment. I’ll work my way up to being a partner, and then I’ll focus on introducing digital and correct business strategies for the industry in the long run. In my position, I will mentor younger generations of aspiring consultants as well as work with clients. I wish to prove myself to be an important asset for the organisation where I will be working in the future.

My long-term goal is to investigate the situation of a senior (work position) Manager in a reputable and renowned company.  My ambition is to have a significant impact in a fast-paced, ever-changing market and the industry, as well as to help my organisation to further improve and develop. I’d like to pursue an MBA in (specialisation) from your reputable institution to gain the necessary insights and knowledge about the current dynamics and trends of the industry, as I am confident that the course taught by (the particular educator) will provide me with a powerful learning experience that will assist me in becoming knowledgeable with the fundamentals emphasised in the course. I also agree and assume that pursuing an MBA degree in (specialisation if any) from your college will assist me in developing a set of skills that will be useful in both my personal and professional growth. Finally, it will help me better grasp my long-term goals and, in the long run, contribute to the development of society as a whole.

Ans. Start with your short-term objectives and work your way up to your long-term objectives. Outline the measures for achieving those objectives in a few sentences. Maintain a laser-like emphasis on your employer and the work you’re applying for, as well as how your objectives would eventually benefit the business.Start with your short-term objectives and work your way up to your long-term objectives. Outline the measures for achieving those objectives in a few sentences. Maintain a laser-like emphasis on your employer and the work you’re applying for, as well as how your objectives would eventually benefit the business.

Ans. A long-term goal is a goal that will be accomplished by a series of smaller goals over a long period, usually five to ten years or more. You might be asked about your long-term objectives and how they fit with the organisation you’re interviewing with during an interview.

Ans. MBA programs instil analytical skills, long-term strategic thinking, networking, and leadership in their students.

Ans. You’ll learn business strategy, preparation, and even financial management in an MBA programme. These abilities will allow you to effectively manage your own business while also contributing to your country’s economic growth.

While we’ve given you an insight on how to go about it, it is normal to feel apprehensive about whether or not what you have written will guarantee you a place in your desired college. But you don’t have to be uncertain about such an important aspect of your application. With the help of the mentors at Leverage Edu , you can write an essay that will meet the university’s expectations and give you an edge over other applicants.

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How to Write a Powerful MBA Essay—With Examples

The MBA essay is critical to your business school application. Read our guide to writing the perfect MBA essay, with successful admit examples.

Posted July 4, 2024

Featuring Matt P.

Planning Your MBA Application

Starting friday, september 6.

12:00 AM UTC · 45 minutes

Table of Contents

What is the mba essay.

The MBA admissions essay.

Those words alone are enough to make most MBA candidates run screaming. Writing in general is hard enough. Writing about why you want an MBA? Your short-term goals and career aspirations? What matters to you most, and why? Forget it.

Of course, you still have to write these essays.

The MBA essay is perhaps the most important part of the business school application. Every other part of the application — your GPA, your test scores, your letters of recommendation — is quantified, cut and dried, or out of your control. The essay is your chance to show up as a fully realized MBA candidate, with hopes, dreams, and vulnerabilities. Admissions committees are not simply assessing your candidacy as a future leader — they're looking to admit human beings. That's where the MBA applicant essays come in.

That being the case, rather than being intimidated by it, treat the MBA essay writing process like the opportunity that it is — the chance for you to highlight your unique, iridescent self; the only moment in the MBA admissions process (prior to the interview) when you can speak directly to admissions officers; the time when you'll show them who you really are. It's not easy to write something that will do that, of course, but with the tips and tricks in this guide, and some help from one of Leland's vetted, world-class admissions coaches, we know you can do it. Give the essay the time, attention, and respect it deserves, and you'll be on your way to an offer of admission at your dream school.

Without further ado, let's dive in!

Ultimate MBA Essay Guide

See the MBA essay prompts, top tips from experts, and real examples from admits with this comprehensive guide.

How Long Will My MBA Essay Take?

First things first: let's talk about timing.

The MBA application is a behemoth; between exams, resumes, gathering your official transcripts, letters of recommendation, and the applications themselves, there's a lot to juggle. That being the case, we suggest you give yourself ample time to draft, write, and revise your essays. The last thing you want is to be rushed to the finish line.

So, give yourself at least three months to write your MBA admission essays. That should allow you enough time to draft, write, and edit. For more information on timing your entire business school application, click here for  A Comprehensive MBA Application Timeline--With Chart .

Now, on to the critical question:

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What Makes a Great MBA Essay?

At the highest level, the answer is the one that is truest to you. The whole point of an MBA application essay is to shine through as an authentic, vibrant human being, so the best essays are the ones that cut through the clutter, and allow you to do that.

Which begs the question — how do you cut through the clutter and shine through as a vibrant human being? Here are four critical tips to follow as you begin thinking about your essays.

1. Answer the Question

This one sounds obvious, but you'd be surprised how many applicants launch into their story, get carried away, and forget to answer the question. Follow the prompt, and answer the question the admissions committee has asked you. Those prompts can actually be very useful when writing MBA essays — it's a great deal harder to write when you have no guidance or guardrails. With these essays, you have a very specific question you need to answer. So answer it!

2. Be Specific

Another mistake some MBA applicants make is to stay at a high level in their essays, keeping their writing abstract and therefore inaccessible to the admissions committee. If at any point, an admissions officer could replace your name with the name of another applicant, then your essay isn't getting deep enough. It's not enough, for instance, to say that you suffered adversity in high school, or that you really, really want a Wharton MBA. You need to explain, in detail, the adversity you faced, and give concrete and unique reasons why you think Wharton is the right program for you. The best essays offer hyper-specific examples and anecdotes, with details and anecdotes that no other candidate could bring to the table. To get those anecdotes, we recommend using the STAR template, as explained below:

• Situation : What was the situation you were facing? Where were you? How old were you? If you were in a professional role during this anecdote, what was the role, and how long had you been in it? If you were volunteering, at what organization? How long had you been volunteering there? Why did you start? Offer all the relevant information that the admissions readers will need to understand your story.
• Task : What was the task at hand? What went wrong? In your professional role, what was the challenge you faced? In that volunteering experience, what were the hurdles you had to overcome? You can't have a good story without conflict or tension, so after you set up the anecdote, explain what that conflict or tension was (and remember, be specific!).
• Action : What was the action you took to resolve the problem? What did you have to do to fix that issue at work? How did you clear that hurdle in your volunteer experience? Again, be specific about how you came through on the other side of that conflict/tension — and while you're doing it, highlight your leadership capabilities as much as possible! Remember that top MBA programs are looking for future leaders who can assess a situation and decisively take action. (We'll say a bit more about this below, in the Personal Statement section.
• Result : What was the result of your action? If you were facing a growth problem at work, were you able to increase sales? If so, by what percentage? If you were advocating for diversity and inclusion at your local charity, what new programs did you implement to help with that effort, and what was the enrollment like in those new programs? Detail what happened in your anecdote with as much specificity as possible — and quantify, quantify, quantify!

If you want to learn more about how to master the STAR Method, read our article How to Nail “Tell Me About a Time…” Interview Questions .

3. Get Vulnerable

Most MBA admissions essay prompts are written with the goal of getting to know as much about you as possible in the shortest number of words. To do that, you're going to have to share real things from your life — to get personal, intimate, and vulnerable. Do not shy away from this. If you're starting to get emotional during the reflection, drafting, and writing process, good — that means you're on the right track. Keep going.

Pro tip: If it’s making you cry, it will make them cry.

Another good rule of thumb is to put something real and true on the table. Admissions officers have to read thousands of applications from thoroughly qualified individuals, some of whom might come from similar roles to yours, with letters of recommendation from equally impressive supervisors. In order to cut through that noise, you'll have to share something honest.

If you're doing it right, this can feel risky. At some point, you’ll likely think to yourself: “Can I say that?” The answer is: “Yes.” Of course, there is a line, you don’t want to be crass or offensive but always err on the side of being open and authentic.

The very worst thing you can do is be overly cautious and write something you think will please the admissions committee. These poor people have to read thousands of essays. If yours is just like everyone else’s, they’ll fall asleep. Don’t let that happen. Wake them up by putting yourself —your true, bright, vibrant, quirky self—on the page.

4. Don't Exaggerate

Finally, do not exaggerate, over-inflate, or lie. This goes without saying, but admissions committees are looking for honest candidates. The surest way to get rejected is to lie about something. (Business schools do a background check on you before you're properly admitted, so they will find out.) Don't be the person who over-inflates on their essays and then has their offer letter rescinded.

The Types of MBA Essays

All right — since we've covered high-level approaches to the MBA essays, it's time to dig into the various types.

There are three general categories of MBA essays you'll see across the board.

1. Personal Statement

These questions ask you to offer up something sincere about yourself. They'll often touch on such things as your values and your character. In these, you'll want to be as authentic as possible, while also highlighting attributes like leadership, intellectual vitality, and teamwork that business schools are looking for.

Here are a few examples of previous personal statement essays:

• As we review your application, what more would you like us to know as we consider your candidacy for the Harvard Business School MBA program? (HBS)
• What matters most to you, and why? (Stanford GSB)

2. Why an MBA/Why This School

In these, schools first want to hear about how an MBA will fit into your career, both short and long term. Top MBA programs are looking for candidates who will: first of all, be gainfully employed upon graduating, second of all, have an illustrious career that will make their institution look good and encourage future generations of applicants to apply, and third, be consistent and generous donors. That being the case, they want to know about your career trajectory, and how an MBA will fit into it.

Pro tip: Here, you want to be ambitious and inspiring in laying out your future career, but not naïve. Walk the line between shooting for the stars and sounding dreamlike and uninformed.

In this set of questions, you'll also encounter questions geared at figuring out why you would want to attend a specific school. MBA programs want to know that you're serious about attending their school — yield, or the percentage of admitted candidates who accept their offers of admission, is an important metric for them — but they also want to envision how you'll contribute to their admitted class. What will you uniquely bring to the table, the things that you'll do that the other candidates wouldn’t be able to offer?

We've heard former deans of business schools say that, in choosing a class, they're curating a world-class dinner party, and that each person invited to the dinner party has to bring something different. What will you bring to the dinner party?

Another Pro tip: To demonstrate that you've done your research, and to help the admissions committee envision you in their program, indicate which classes you might take when earning your MBA and why, which professors you might hope to study with, and in which clubs you might participate.

Here are a few examples of "why MBA / why this school" essays we've seen before:

• How is a Columbia MBA going to help you? (Columbia)
• What do you hope to gain professionally from the Wharton MBA? (Wharton)
• Why Stanford? Describe your aspirations and how your Stanford GSB experience will help you realize them. (Stanford GSB)

3. Behavioral/Other

Finally, most other essays will be behavioral in the sense that they’ll ask you about experiences, traits, strengths, weaknesses, and achievements. There's a wide variety of topics here, but all the guidelines from above apply, with the final note to always prioritize authenticity (as mentioned in the Personal Statement section) and leadership ability (remember, business schools are choosing future leaders).

Here are a few examples of behavioral/other essays from the past:

• Describe the biggest commitment you have ever made. (Yale SOM)
• Tell us about your favorite book, movie, or song and why it resonates with you. (Columbia)
• Think about times you’ve created a positive impact, whether in professional, extracurricular, academic, or other settings. What was your impact? What made it significant to you or to others? (Stanford GSB)

Top MBA Program Essay Prompts (Updated 2024)

To help you get started, we've compiled the required prompts from a few top MBA programs below:

1. Harvard Business School (HBS)

• Business-Minded Essay: Please reflect on how your experiences have influenced your career choices and aspirations and the impact you will have on the businesses, organizations, and communities you plan to serve. (300 words)
• Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped who you are, how you invest in others, and what kind of leader you want to become? (250 words)
• Growth-Oriented Essay: Curiosity can be seen in many ways. Please share an example of how you have demonstrated curiosity and how that has influenced your growth. (250 words)

For more information, visit A Guide to the HBS Essay .

2. Stanford Graduate School of Business

• What matters to you most, and why? (650 words)
• Why Stanford? (400 words)

Read: What Matters Most When Writing the GSB Essays.

• How do you plan to use the Wharton MBA program to help you achieve your future professional goals? You might consider your past experience, short and long-term goals, and resources available at Wharton. (500 words)
• Taking into consideration your background – personal, professional, and/or academic – how do you plan to make specific, meaningful contributions to the Wharton community? (400 words)

For Wharton-specific advice, visit A Guide to the Wharton Essays .

4. Columbia Business School

• Essay 1: Through your resume and recommendation, we have a clear sense of your professional path to date. What are your career goals over the next three to five years and what, in your imagination, would be your long-term dream job? (500 words)
• Essay 2: The Phillips Pathway for Inclusive Leadership (PPIL) is a co-curricular program designed to provide students with the skills and strategies needed to develop as inclusive leaders. Through various resources and programming, students explore and reflect on the following five inclusive leadership skills: Mitigating Bias and Prejudice; Managing Intercultural Dialogue; Addressing Systemic Inequity; Understanding Identity and Perspective Taking; and Creating an Inclusive Environment. Describe a time or situation when you had the need to utilize one of these five skills, and tell us the actions you took and the outcome. (250 words)
• Essay 3: We believe Columbia Business School is a special place with a collaborative learning environment in which students feel a sense of belonging, agency, and partnership--academically, culturally, and professionally. How would you co-create your optimal MBA experience at CBS? Please be specific. (250 words)

If you’re looking for more tips on the CBS essays, read our Guide to the Columbia Business School Essays .

5. Chicago Booth

• How will a Booth MBA help you achieve your immediate and long-term post-MBA career goals? (250-word minimum)
• 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… (250-word minimum)

*Pro tip: Some essay questions such as these will say “no maximum.” While it’s certainly a good thing that you’re allowed to write more, keep in mind to never write too much. Our rule of thumb for things like this is to never go over 200 words past the “minimum” count.

Read more at A Guide to the Booth Essays .

6. Northwestern Kellogg

• Intentionality is a key aspect of what makes our graduates successful Kellogg leaders. Help us understand your journey by articulating your motivations for pursuing an MBA, the specific goals you aim to achieve, and why you believe now is the right moment. Moreover, share why you feel Kellogg is best suited to serve as a catalyst for your career aspirations and what you will contribute to our community of lifelong learners during your time here. (450 words)
• 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. (450 words)

For more on Kellogg’s essays, read How to Nail Your Kellogg MBA Application Essays .

7. MIT Sloan

MIT Sloan doesn’t use traditional essay prompts; instead, applicants are required to submit a cover letter, video, and short answer questions, as well as the other traditional application materials.

Cover Letter

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. We want people who can redefine solutions to conventional problems, and strive to preempt unconventional dilemmas with cutting-edge ideas. We demand integrity, respect, and passion.

Taking the above into consideration, please submit a cover letter seeking a place in the MIT Sloan MBA program. Your letter should conform to standard business correspondence, include one or more professional examples that illustrate why you meet the desired criteria above, and be addressed to the Admissions Committee (300 words or fewer, excluding address and salutation)

Video Question 1

Introduce yourself to your future classmates. Here’s your chance to put a face with a name, let your personality shine through, be conversational, be yourself. We can’t wait to meet you!

Videos should adhere to the following guidelines:

• No more than 1 minute (60 second) in length
• Single take (no editing)
• Speaking directly to the camera
• Do not include background music or subtitles

Note: While we ask you to introduce yourself to your future classmates in this video, the video will not be shared beyond the admissions committee and is for use in the application process only.

Video Question 2

All MBA applicants will be prompted to respond to a randomly generated, open-ended question. The question is designed to help us get to know you better; to see how you express yourself and to assess fit with the MIT Sloan culture. It does not require prior preparation.

Video Essay 2 is part of your required application materials and will appear as a page within the application, once the other parts of your application are completed. Applicants are given 5 seconds to prepare for a 60-second response.

Short Answer Question

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)

For top-notch advice on the MIT Sloan question prompts, read our articles Expert Guide to the MIT Sloan Short Answer Question and MIT Sloan Video Statement: Overview, Advice, & Common Mistakes .

How to Start Writing Your MBA Essay

So you've read about the types of essays, and seen some of the prompts from top MBA programs. Now it's time to actually start diving into the essay.

The very first thing to do, before putting pen to paper, is to look inward .

Why do you want an MBA? What role will this degree play in your professional growth? How do you imagine it will shape your life? What do you want out of your career? What is the most important thing in the world to you?

Yes, these are life’s deep-end questions, but you’ll need to tackle them in these essays, so before you start all of your writing, take the time to think through them. Go for a run, swim some laps, bake a cake—however you get into the flow — and start a dialogue with yourself. Put down your work, turn your phone off, and give your mind permission to go to the places it usually avoids. That’s a good place to start. That’s where the answers are.

Pro tip: The first sentence is the hardest one to write. When you're starting out, it can be intimidating and anxiety-producing. The trick is to simply put anything down — and don't look back. Keep putting one sentence after the other. You can edit later: let whatever comes to you out onto the page. If you’re struggling with self-critique, dim your computer screen until you can’t even see the words you’re typing. Then keep going.

Additional Tips & Tricks

Once you've started your essay, it's a matter of persistence: keep writing, then keep drafting and editing until you have something you're really proud of.

To help you write a successful MBA essay, here are a few more tips and tricks:

Take Breaks

When you hit the wall — and you will hit the wall — stop and take a breather. This is your brain telling you it needs to do something else. Walk your dog. Take a lap around your room. Eat some cheese. Your body needs sleep every night to function; your mind is the same way. That next leap of inspiration will come exactly at the moment when you’re least expecting it.

Read it Out Loud

When you finally have a draft, print it and read it out loud to yourself. Your ear will catch things your eyes miss. Reading out loud is the best way to pick up on spelling errors, clunky transitions, and paragraphs that still need ironing out. It’s also a good way to envision how the admissions committee will experience your essay.

Don’t be precious with your essay. Send it to anyone willing to read it. Solicit as much feedback as you can. If you don’t like what people have to say, you don’t have to incorporate it, but you need an impartial third party to give notes on what they’re seeing, thinking, and feeling. (You’re too close to things to do it for yourself.) This is where a Leland coach comes very much in handy!

Complete Everything Early

This is more of a timing consideration, but you do not want to trip at the finish line because your internet went down the night before the deadline, or your credit card was denied when paying your application fee (it's happened before). Don't let that be you!

Here is another article to get you started, written by an expert essay coach: 7 MBA Essay Tips to Make You Stand Out in 2022 .

Example MBA Essays

Finally, here are two essays to help inspire you. The first, a personal statement essay, was submitted by an admit to Berkeley Haas' Executive MBA program; the second, a career goals / why MBA essay, was submitted by an admit to Chicago Booth's deferred MBA program.

Haas Admit:

A person’s identity is shaped by many different aspects, including family, culture, personal interests, and surrounding environments. Please share a facet of your identity or story that is essential to who you are. (300 words) My upbringing in India, filled with countless myths and legends, had a profound influence on me. The most formative tale was about a sage who prays for years to the goddess of knowledge, but in vain. In the end, the goddess didn’t appear for the sage because he was turning his prayer beads the wrong way! As a child, this story upset me: the sage worked so hard and had the right intentions. As an adult, though, I’ve come to realize that the goddess of knowledge was right: you can’t succeed unless you do things the right way.

Seven years ago, two friends and I started a company, XXXX: a digital health platform that would allow patients to store medical records online and consult doctors remotely. We had early success—we brought on 2,000 patients at XXXX, a gynecology clinic in XXXX—but ultimately we didn’t have the resources to properly scale, and had to shut the company down. Among the many lessons I learned, the most valuable was that ideas and hard work are common; businesses succeed or fail based on execution—on doing things the right way. Two years ago, I relearned this lesson in the most painful way possible: when my marriage ended. My wife and I loved each other, but we weren’t there for each other when it mattered most. Our feelings weren’t enough—we had to back them up with the right actions.

It’s disheartening when you have good intentions but still fall short. When this happens, though, you have to keep trying—because eventually you will do things the right way. I carry the story of the sage with me always, not as a harsh lesson, but as a motivating goal: one that keeps me striving towards doing things the right way.

Booth Admit:

How will the Booth MBA help you achieve your immediate and long-term post-MBA career goals? (250 word minimum)

I want to start a geothermal company that will help lead the energy transition away from fossil fuels and toward renewable energy—by targeting existing oil wells as sites for geothermal plants. Oil fields are close to electric grids and have high nearby subsurface temperatures, making them ideal sites for geothermal plants. By building geothermal infrastructure nearby, my company will produce cleaner, cheaper energy, making it more profitable for operators to switch from oil to geothermal. As oil companies decommission their wells, I’ll negotiate for their land rights, so I can use their existing wells for new geothermal vents. I want my company to prove the case for economically viable, carbon-neutral energy production.

After getting an MBA, I want to start a geothermal company which will help me lead the energy transition away from fossil fuels to renewable energy. I plan to target developed oil fields in Texas, where, in many places, producing wells are flowing enough hot fluid to generate clean energy. Using this geothermal heat, the carbon footprint of oil and gas extraction will decrease as fewer fossil fuels are utilized to power surrounding infrastructure. As the wells approach their economic life, I will negotiate the lease from various operators, saving them millions in plug and abandonment costs, and retrofit the wells for direct geothermal energy production via closed-loop binary fluid systems, bringing emissions to zero. To accomplish this goal, I need to shore up my knowledge of energy economics and entrepreneurial finance, develop a strong sense of leadership, and build a network of like-minded individuals that will help me lead the transition and I believe I can get those things at Chicago Booth.

My immediate career goal is to develop my first co-production site in Shelby County, Texas at the Blanton well site, which produces abnormally heated fluid from the flanks of an active salt dome. Before investing in capital expenditures, developing a strong sense of energy economics and broader markets is necessary to verify financial feasibility. The University of Chicago, through the Graduate-Student-At-Large: Business program, is already allowing me to accomplish this goal with my enrollment in “Microeconomics” with Professor Andrew McClellan. His instruction helped me understand the impact taxes and subsidies have on market equilibrium, an important aspect of renewable energy as green energy tax incentives continue to change on a yearly basis. As my company continues to grow, having a strong finance and accounting foundation is imperative to building and sustaining a healthy company. Electives such as “Accounting for Entrepreneurship: From Start-Up through IPO” will provide the skills I need to be successful by following the life-cycle of a business that originates as a start-up and covers topics such as building an initial accounting infrastructure. I understand that the execution of the business is as important as developing the idea and proof of concept, and Booth is the best place for me to develop financial fluency.

Leading the energy transition will require a strong sense of leadership. Not only will I need to lead those I get to work with over my career, but to lead the energy transition, and reverse the impact fossil fuels have had thus far, I must have the emotional intelligence to inspire others to join me in my journey. The “Interpersonal Dynamics” course at Booth will allow me to develop my communication skills and better understand the emotions and perceptions of my colleagues. These skills, synthesized with leadership development acquired in “Leadership Practicum” will prepare me to act as a relational leader, who understands the needs of others. As a relational leader, I hope to foster an environment which promotes happiness and maximizes efficiency, not only to make our efforts in changing the world more successful, but to excite other people to join our cause.

To find the greatest chance of success in leading the energy transition, I will need a network of like-minded individuals who can provide a diversity of thought. Chicago Booth provides the opportunity to develop that network through different community experiences. The Energy Club’s “Energy Forward” conference, which designates time to topics in oil and gas and renewable energy will allow me to hear from industry leaders, build meaningful relationships with peers, and contribute my sector experience to the public forum as I learn from those around me. Opportunities through the Entrepreneurship and Venture Capital Group such as “SeedCon” will help me connect with successful entrepreneurs and early-stage investors whose ideas and funding might change the course of my venture’s trajectory. Even in the GSALB program, I have had the opportunity to connect with other students in various sectors, including the energy industry. I hope to continue to strengthen those connections and continue building new ones with matriculation into the full time program.

Connect with an Expert for all your MBA Essay Questions

We know that a lot goes into the process of MBA essay writing. Research, planning, and execution all are major stages that take a lot of time. If you’re looking to fast-track your essay writing process while still blowing away the admission committee, try looking at some of our all-star MBA admissions consultants . We have a wide array of experts ready to give you as much help with MBA essays as you need, just check out some of our top-rated coaches below!

FAQs for Writing Your MBA Essay

What is the most important aspect of an MBA essay that admissions committees are looking for?

• The most crucial aspect of an MBA essay is authenticity. Admissions committees want to see the real you, so be honest and genuine in your responses. Highlight your unique experiences, values, and aspirations to stand out.

How long should my MBA essay be?

• The length of your MBA essay will depend on the specific prompts and guidelines provided by each school. Generally, essays range from 500 to 1,000 words. Always adhere to the word limit specified in the prompt. In the event that there’s no limit, we recommend floating within 200-300 words of whatever posted word count there is.

Can I use the same essay for multiple MBA applications?

• You can use similar content, but it’s essential to edit each essay to be about the specific school and prompt. Schools are looking for personalized responses that demonstrate your understanding of their program and how it aligns with your goals.

How do I figure out what to write about?

• Select experiences that showcase your leadership, problem-solving skills, and personal growth. Focus on stories that highlight your unique qualities and align with the values and culture of the MBA program you're applying to.

What should I avoid doing in my essay?

• Avoid clichés, generic statements, and exaggerations. Be specific and detailed in your responses. Also, steer clear of overly technical jargon that might be hard for the admissions committee to understand unless it’s directly relevant to your story.

Who can I ask for feedback on my essay?

• Seeking feedback from trusted friends, family, or mentors can be very helpful. In addition, consider working with one of our admissions coaches who can provide professional insights and help refine your essay to make it more compelling.

What should I do if I don’t have a traditional business background?

• If you don’t have a traditional business background, focus on transferable skills and experiences that highlight your leadership, analytical abilities, and teamwork. Demonstrate how your unique perspective will contribute to the MBA program and your future career.

How do I handle multiple essay prompts for the same school?

• Approach each prompt separately and ensure that each essay provides new insights about you. Avoid repeating the same information across essays. Instead, use each essay to highlight different aspects of your experiences, skills, and aspirations.

Here are several other articles that you may find helpful as you put together your MBA application:

• The Most Frequently Asked Questions on MBA Applications
• How to Answer the "Why an MBA?" Essay Question
• My Top Piece of Advice for MBA Applicants
• How I Nailed My MBA Interview and Gained Admission to Top 10 Business Schools
• 4 Expert Tips on Paying for Business School

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Which program are you applying to?

• Goals Essay

Get Accepted! Speak with an admissions expert today!

• Sample Essays

It is critical in the goals essay found in almost every MBA application to show that you have clear direction and purpose based on experience and planning. Business school is not another opportunity to "find yourself."

8:00 AM. July 1, 2030. The 23rd floor of the Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong. A woman sitting behind the mahogany desk calls a Shanghai trader to buy 200,000 shares of Alibaba stock. Moments later, she dashes into a video conference with Tokyo analysts. When the conference finally concludes two hours later, the woman rushes down the stairs, hails a taxi to the Hong Kong International Airport, catches a flight to Thailand, and ends her day with a meeting with the CFO of Asus Computers.

I look forward to maintaining this busy schedule as a portfolio manager of an international equity fund about ten years after obtaining my MBA. The Top School academic experience can build on my public accounting training and my multi-cultural and multi-lingual background to prepare me for work first as an equity analyst in the mutual fund industry and ultimately as a portfolio manager specializing in Asian Pacific equities.

As a CPA and staff accountant with Big 4 for the past two and a half years, I have developed a solid foundation in teamwork, analytical, and problem-solving skills. As a bilingual associate of the Asia-Pacific Business Group, I specialize in auditing the financial statements of in-bound Asian businesses. However, while Big 4 provides expansive career opportunities in public accounting, I have reached a plateau in developing the analytical and management skills necessary to achieve my ultimate career goal of money management. In public accounting, we measure and examine financial transactions of the past. In contrast, money managers examine the current attributes of securities and attempt to predict their future performance to maximize return for investors. I crave that forward focus and challenge.

Furthermore, an effective manager in the 21st century must be well-versed in international business transactions. Although I have utilized my Chinese language skills in servicing our Asian clients and engaged in comparative technical analysis of U.S. GAAP and French, Taiwanese, and Japanese financial reporting requirements, my exposure to and knowledge of broader transactional issues such as international transfer pricing has been limited. Finally, as our audits focus mainly on the clients' compliance with U.S. GAAP and foreign accounting and reporting requirements, they provide deep dives and narrow windows; I want to learn about the "big picture" of international business.

A background in financial reporting and servicing Asia-Pacific business clients. The ability to converse fluently in Chinese. An understanding of Chinese, Japanese, and American cultures. I will bring these qualities to the Top School program and ultimately to my career in international investment management. As a first step toward achieving my career goals, I have registered to take level one of the CFA examination in June 201X and plan to complete the entire examination series upon graduation from Top Ten. Armed with the CFA certification and Top School's international bent, strength in finance and management training, I will be ready to place that call to the trader in China, conduct the videoconference with Tokyo, and visit the CFO in Thailand.

For information on how Accepted can help you, please see our MBA admissions consulting and application services .

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The Key to Writing Your Best MBA Goals Essay

Understanding what you want to get out of business school plays a larger role in your MBA essay than you may think.

Top MBA programs are looking for applicants who have a clear idea of how a business degree will help shape their future. This is why the MBA goals essay is such an important piece of your business school application.

But how do you write a goals essay if you’re unsure of your post-MBA goals? What if you are changing careers  and know you want to obtain the skills that an MBA program provides , but aren’t sure which career direction you want to pursue after your degree? Should you spend time looking into post-MBA options? Should you try out different jobs or shadow people in different careers, so that you can submit your MBA essay with a secure MBA goal? Or is it better to write your MBA essay with undefined goals?

The role of post-MBA goals in your MBA essay

Your post-MBA goals should guide you in the application process, and at the very least help you decide where to apply. Not only is it worthwhile spending time finalizing a post-MBA direction, it’s required. You need to know why you want to spend a large amount of your time and money before you apply. Not knowing what your post MBA-goals are could turn your MBA investment into a huge debt with no job to pay it off. Think of your goals as a weathervane—if it’s broken, it spins uselessly in the wind, but when working properly, it points you in the right direction.

Still wondering if business school is right for you? Ask yourself these five questions .

Steps to take before writing your MBA essay

When thinking about how to write an MBA essay, you also need to think about how to identify and define your personal MBA goals. Perhaps you already have a good idea of why you want to attend b-school and what it can help you achieve. If not, here are four steps that will help you understand and articulate your post-MBA goals, so you can write an impressive MBA essay:

Determine your likes and dislikes

Think about what you like and dislike about your current and past jobs. Compile a list of what you’d like more of and what you’d like less of. A simple exercise like this will ensure that you’re not just going through the motions, but that your MBA goals will actually bring you satisfaction in your career and life.

Talk to people in careers you want

Talk to people in jobs that appeal to you. Organize informal interviews or email a list of questions to people you know who have positions that you find attractive. While a post-MBA job or career path may seem appealing on paper, you want to ensure you have a full understanding of the positives, negatives, and opportunities that truly exist .

Consider a career counselor

Think about hiring a career counselor. With the right guidance, you can gain a better understanding of what opportunities exist for MBA graduates, and hone your MBA goals so that you can write a more competitive MBA goals essay. This short-term investment will pay off when you are able to get into the b-school you want and land your dream job after graduation.

Establish connections at companies that interest you

Once you have a better idea of your direction, take a look at the career listings for the bigger employers in the field or fields that interest you. Check out profiles of some of the recent MBAs these companies have hired and see if you can arrange to speak to someone in the roles that appeal to you. Talking with people that were once in your position (and who work at a company of interest) is a great way to grow your network and establish connections that can give you the advantage come interview time. However, it’s also a way to learn more about different positions and better define your MBA goals for yourself and your MBA essay.

MBA goals can be flexible

Not having clear goals will leave admissions officers wondering why you’re putting in the time, effort, and money to obtain an MBA. An MBA essay with clearly defined goals, may also concern b-schools that you won’t be able to find an internship, or eventually a full-time job because you don’t know what you want to do. But don’t worry—admissions officers also recognize that your goals may change over the course of your MBA program and that what you say in your MBA essay is somewhat preliminary. It’s okay to be flexible, but not clueless.

Want more advice on MBA programs and applications and an opportunity to meet with admissions directors? Join top b-schools at The MBA Tour's events across the globe .

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Your MBA Career Goals Essay

Top MBA programs know that the career success of their students and graduates is a major selling point. Applicants should know that having a clearly-stated MBA career goals essay in their application is also a screening trigger that MBA programs use when evaluating candidates.  That’s why today we’re focusing on:

• Career Goals in MBA Application Essays
• What an MBA Career Office Does
• Sample Applicant Essays Addressing MBA Career Goals 

“Clarity of goals is extremely important to Wharton, especially as they’ve combined MBA admissions, career management, and student life under the same deputy vice dean,” says Meghan , a former Wharton Admissions Officer on the SBC team.

Applicants usually start with a general idea of their short and long-term career goals when embarking on the MBA application process. We recommend that applicants hone their career goal visions in part by researching the career support available at each program. It’s vital to consider the sectors and industries in which the career center specializes.

MBA aspirants should understand that their MBA career goals essay needs to be compelling. But don’t worry if your path deviates once you’re in school and new opportunities arise. In any case, you will have robust support through the Career Office once you start your MBA program.

Curious about your chances of getting into a top B-school? Contact us to talk strategy with a free 15-minute advising session with an SBC Principal Consultant. 

The Role of an MBA Career Office in Advancing Career Goals

Every MBA program has a Career Management team that plays a pivotal role in an MBA student’s future. Now we’ll delve into the various facets of a typical MBA Career Management Office. That way, MBA applicants know what they can expect to gain in their MBA program.

Each program has a dedicated career management team that provides comprehensive support to students in their job search and career development journey. Because a single solution won’t work for everyone, the team offers a tailored approach based on each student’s chosen industry. Advisors are well-versed in various sectors, offering valuable insights into specific market trends and opportunities.

No matter what background you come from, be it finance, marketing, or tech, the career office can help tailor your educational journey. It considers previous work experience and interests while structuring a plan that best suits individual needs.

Listen to B-Schooled Podcast Episode #107 : The Scoop on Short-and-Long-Term Career Goals

Preterm Advising Session

Students can participate in a preterm advising session before even starting classes, such as UVA Darden’s pre-MBA career course . This early intervention helps them set realistic goals and develop effective strategies for achieving them.

Relationship Managers for Job Placement

Most MBA program career offices employ relationship managers who work closely with companies looking to hire MBAs. They facilitate introductions between students and potential employers, significantly enhancing employment prospects post-graduation.

Career management offices have established relationships with a diverse range of companies that hire MBAs, from large corporations seeking multiple candidates to smaller firms looking for just one.

Summer Internship Experiences

The summer period is a time of exploration and hands-on learning. Students can take part in internship experiences, using their new knowledge in real-world settings across various industries around the world.

Tap Into the Active Alumni Network

The career office also provides access to an extensive alum database. MBA students can tap into this network for advice, mentorship, and potential job opportunities. This serves as an invaluable resource when searching for internships or full-time positions after graduation.  These experienced professionals are always ready to lend a hand in guiding you through your career path.

As you can see, your career goals can be refined optimally through the MBA program experience.  But, in the meantime, let’s check out a few successful career goal essays here because we need you to get admitted first!

Sample MBA Career Goals Essay for Successful MBA Admits

Use these sample essays to inspire your own responses to the classic career goals essay question asked by many business schools.

  Essay Prompt: Define your short-term post-MBA career goals. How are your professional strengths, past experience, and personal attributes aligned with these goals?

One of the things I value most at Company X is the collaboration between teams to advance new technologies. As a Program Manager, I coordinate research and development (R&D) projects for the engineering department. R&D is an exciting field to me because we make quick decisions, progress at lightning speed, and focus on the future. Currently, I am directing a X project that impacts the future of autonomous driving.

Post-MBA, I will join the R&D group for a technology or automotive company as a product manager. I want to own the product lifecycle and effectively shepherd a product from inception to market. Ultimately, I aspire to influence monumental decisions like Porsche’s recent $6B investment in electric cars and electric charging infrastructure.

Product management capitalizes on my strengths: communication, teamwork, leadership, planning and organization. I enjoy the breadth of exposure through this role because successful new product development requires me to leverage resources from all over the company – R&D, finance, marketing, supply chain, and production.

Essay Prompt: What are your short-term and long-term career goals, and how will an MBA from UCLA Anderson specifically help you achieve these goals?

After several years as a Wireline Field Engineer, I am at a crossroads where I will start to define the future of my career. I envision becoming the VP of Strategic Marketing at a technical firm. Unlike most of my fellow engineers, I plan to merge my technical background with a marketing education to put myself in a position where I can be successful in such a career. A marketing position in a technical firm fits my interests and talents perfectly. Cutting-edge technology fascinates me, and with an engineering background, it is a language I speak. Most engineering jobs deal with technology, but few are primarily focused on human interaction, something that is an essential part of my vision.

I enjoy dealing with people; while solving a complex engineering problem can provide great pleasure, it is no match for the satisfaction I derive through team interaction. Similarly, I have always enjoyed coaching others, whether it’s by conducting mock interviews at the high school where I volunteer or teaching nuclear theory to new engineers at a wellsite. The idea of taking a complicated concept and packaging it in such a way that the client clearly understands the benefits is highly appealing.

While my current technical position has many advantages, it is time for a change. I love the challenge of problem solving, and I thrive in such an international role, but I lack a strong business background. As I progress and move into an office job within Schlumberger, I do not see a career path allowing me to follow my goal without taking the initiative to gain further marketing knowledge. I have set my sights on this goal and will devote the necessary time and energy to put myself in a position to be successful.

Anderson is my choice for an MBA program for three reasons.

First, it has excellent access to the Asia Pacific region, a market I am familiar with and would like to do business with in the future. My time spent in Thailand has been phenomenal, and I hope to work with such gracious, hospitable people throughout my career. Second, Anderson has a diverse student body from all over the world, something that is essential if I am to be multi-cultural upon graduation. Finally, Anderson is known to be an excellent all-around program, and being well-rounded is extremely important to me.

With high quality training from Anderson, I am certain that I can succeed in the strategic marketing position I desire. I understand that a career of this nature requires a great deal of work. I embrace the challenge and look forward to a career which combines my professional skills and my enjoyment in working with others, but for the near future I look forward to an MBA program with exposure to the brightest teachers and young professionals from different business sectors across the globe. Learning to solve business problems, not just technical ones, is the next critical step toward a career in which I will thrive for years to come.

Finally, for more MBA essay samples, visit the Hot Topics page and click on the business schools you wish to explore.

Stacy Blackman Consulting offers multiple services to meet your MBA application needs, from our  All-In Partnership to hourly help reviewing your MBA resume.   Contact us today for a  free 15-minute advising session  to talk strategy with a Principal SBC consultant. Meanwhile, here’s a snapshot of the caliber of expertise on our SBC team .

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MBA Career Goals Essay That’ll Help You Succeed in Admissions

EssayEdge > Blog > MBA Career Goals Essay That’ll Help You Succeed in Admissions

Writing a perfect long term goals MBA essay can significantly increase the chances for success during the admissions process. But students are often confused with this issue, as they do not know for sure what to write. As a result, some applicants often just skip this point in their MBA essays, which is a big mistake. 

That’s why we created a guide on writing a long term goals essay and getting accepted to a desired Master’s program.

Table of Contents:

What Do Long Term Goals Mean?

Long term goals are usually career goals for approximately the next ten years. They define your overall target, the peak of a professional path. Imagine that you answer a question like: “Where do you see yourself in 10 years?” The main aim of MBA long term goals is to show the admission committee your motivation and career plans referring to the graduation program.

Thus, the applicant should thoroughly research the industry to choose the companies you want to work in. Finally, the long term goals in your MBA essay should demonstrate that you will have a backup plan if the ideal vision of a career does not work.

List of MBA long term goals main characteristics:

• The time frame is ten or more years;
• Can include both aspirational and inspirational objectives;
• Should explain the motivation supporting the more precise goals;
• Demonstrate the alternative vision of the future plan;
• Correlate with the student’s values;
• Are linked with past experience, MBA, and post MBA intentions.

How to Frame Long Term Career Goals for MBA Students?

Defining perfect long term career goals is 50 percent of success. It is better to apply a SMARTi approach, which helps set up a long term goal easily. This method involves several features of a perfect career goal. Let’s look through them in detail:

• Specific: the goal should be clear and reinforced by strong arguments;
• Measurable: quantify your intentions to evaluate the achievements;
• Attainable: the goals should correlate with your past experience and skills;
• Relevant: your intentions should be linked to a graduate program;
• Time-framed: set up deadlines;
• Informed: it’s also possible to demonstrate the awareness of the chosen industry.

Example: In the nearest 15 years (time-framed), I would like to start my own business (attainable and relevant) and head a prospering consulting firm (specific), which will be in the list of the top 100 best US companies (measurable).

Does Formatting Matter for Long Term Goals MBA Essays?

Formatting is one more important issue to consider. The applicant should know how to organize the long term career essay professionally, as it may affect the overall impression of you as a fitting candidate.

Here are the main requirements for a long term goals MBA essay:

• Choose the 5-paragraph essay format;
• Pay attention to the font (Arial or Times New Roman are the best variants) and its size (11 or 12-point);
• Set one-inch margins to make the document well-organized;
• Make sure that there is a logical linkage between the paragraphs;
• Choose formal style; do not use colloquial language;
• Avoid writing long sentences; they can confuse the reader.

Strong Career Plan: Main Secrets

This table will be helpful in developing a strong career plan that works.

Winning Formula of a Long Term Career Goal

It is possible to compare an essay describing long term goals for MBA students with a personal story of an applicant. What are the main parts of a personal narrative? Right, the description of past, present, and future. The same is in a long term career goals MBA essay.

The important requirement is to make all these experiences/goals/skills linked to the grad school program. So, you can use this formula for writing a winning MBA essay:

One more necessary thing is making a linkage between these components. We recommend structuring your essay this way:

• A paragraph with your past experience;
• Then, a paragraph with your future plans and long term career goals;
• Finally, your aims for the MBA program (implying present).

Click here to see some essays with long-term goals examples for MBA students published in our blog.

Effective Long Term Career Goals Essay Sample

Here is an example of merging and acquisition long term career goals essay MBA by one of the students who applied for the grad program this year.

“My ultimate goal is to finance the expansion of renewable energy sources as a stable and dominant power source for American energy security. There is a huge need for renewable energy sources in the US, and the deregulation of the energy market and potential of offshore wind power are great opportunities if tens of billions USD investment can be realized. I’ll lead this movement as a leader in Atlantic Capital, bringing together the government, power companies and international financial institutions into a global business consortium financing and bringing leading-edge technology to plants.

I’ve gained finance and corporate management skills through 10-years of experience and now I need to learn how to lead a diverse international team bringing finance and technology innovation to American energy industry. 

Through my own experience in the Berkeley short program “Leading High-Impact Teams”, I was impressed with how strongly participants (competent leaders from all over the world) concentrated on how to make the team’s atmosphere collaborative and positive to make a difference. From this I learned that in the Berkeley MBA I can best foster such a collaborative leadership style through intense communication with peers under the collaborative culture the this program respects. 

I am convinced that combined with my professional experience in finance, the Berkeley 1-year opportunities are crucial for my goals as it offers the chance to build the collaborative leadership style needed to unify different organizations, a global perspective and eye for creating and harnessing innovation.”

Need help? Check out EssayEdge editing services:

Let’s analyze this essay to find out why it works. First of all, the author clearly defines the motivation and sets up an ambitious goal to grab the attention of the committee: “My ultimate goal is to finance the expansion of renewable energy sources as a stable and dominant power source for American energy security.”

Next, the applicant highlights the central long term goal: “I’ll lead this movement as a leader in Atlantic Capital, bringing together the government, power companies and international financial institutions into a global business consortium financing and bringing leading-edge technology to plants.”

Finally, the student mentions the correlation between long term goals and the MBA program: “I am convinced that combined with my professional experience in finance, the Berkeley 1-year opportunities are crucial for my goals as it offers the chance to build the collaborative leadership style needed to unify different organizations, a global perspective and eye for creating and harnessing innovation.”

Hence, the writer followed all the necessary steps to write an MBA essay that clarifies career goals.

Tips for Defining Long Term Career Goals

Apart from long term goals examples for MBA students, it will be useful to use several tips for writing a perfect essay. Here are the main ones:

Tip 1: Tell why education is important for achieving your career goals.

As is mentioned above, explaining the scholarship’s importance for your career is a prior aim of the MBA essay. Thus, focus on their linkage to persuade the admission committee that you are the fitting candidate.

Tip 2: If you decide to mention several goals, highlight the central one.

Of course, it’s great to include Plan B. But, if you are writing about multiple goals, emphasize the long term goal you suppose is the central one in your long term career plan.

Tip 3: When you mention challenges, you need to write about them in terms of solutions.

While describing past experiences, you need to show problems themselves and your ability to overcome various challenges on your professional path.

Tip 4. Make sure that you put everything in logical order.

The events should be put in chronological order. Make sure that the sentences and paragraphs are logically connected. For this purpose, proofread the text several times.

Questions to Answer in Long Term Career Goals MBA Essay

Here are several questions that can help you define your career goals in a long term goals for MBA students essay.

• Why did you decide to choose this business school?
• What do you expect after an MBA application?
• Describe your past experience and how it helped to grow as a professional. Why do you believe our graduate program affects your skills and career growth post-MBA?
• How will your long term goals help you build a successful career?
• How is the MBA program related to your career plan?

If you have no idea what to write in each paragraph, ask yourself the question from this list. This way, you will maintain the logical flow of the sentences in each paragraph of your long term goals MBA essay.

MBA Long Term Career Goals Outline

Look through this outline for a long-term goals MBA essay sample, which demonstrates the typical structure of this admission paper.

Outline Sample

1. Introduction.

• Creative methods to grab the attention of the committee;
• A strong statement describing your central goal.

2. Main Body.

• Paragraph 1. Describe what affected your career decisions and plans. Tell about your experience, educational background, and challenges you overcame, and the skills you’ve got.
• Paragraph 2. Write about your career goals in detail. Be as specific as possible.
• Paragraph 3. Describe how the MBA program can help you achieve your career goals.

3. Conclusion.

• Summarize everything and highlight the importance of the graduate program for your career one more time.

Key Takeaway

To conclude, your MBA career goals essay is a chance to apply for your dream university. That’s why you need to put all effort you can to write a perfect sample MBA essay on long term career goals. Here are the main recommendations discussed in this review to achieve this aim:

• Be specific while describing your long term career goals;
• Make connections between your past experience, plans for the future, and the MBA program;
• Consider the structure of your essay;
• Ensure that there is a logical connection between the sentences and paragraphs;
• The events should be put in chronological order;
• Format the MBA essay according to the basic requirements.

In case you still have some questions related to admission essays, you can search for more information on our blog .

Applying for MBA makes sense only if you have a clear career plan and know how this degree can help you achieve your goal. When we do MBA application essay editing, we always pay attention to how students’ career goals are described. Are you sure you sound convincing enough? Let us revise your paper, and we’ll answer you.

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Your MBA Career Goals Essay

Top MBA programs know that the career success of their students and graduates is a major selling point. Applicants should know that having a clearly-stated MBA career goals essay in their application is also a screening trigger that MBA programs use when evaluating candidates.  That’s why today we’re focusing on:

• Career Goals in MBA Application Essays
• What an MBA Career Office Does
• Sample Applicant Essays Addressing MBA Career Goals 

“Clarity of goals is extremely important to Wharton, especially as they’ve combined MBA admissions, career management, and student life under the same deputy vice dean,” says Meghan , a former Wharton Admissions Officer on the SBC team.

Applicants usually start with a general idea of their short and long-term career goals when embarking on the MBA application process. We recommend that applicants hone their career goal visions in part by researching the career support available at each program. It’s vital to consider the sectors and industries in which the career center specializes.

MBA aspirants should understand that their MBA career goals essay needs to be compelling. But don’t worry if your path deviates once you’re in school and new opportunities arise. In any case, you will have robust support through the Career Office once you start your MBA program.

Curious about your chances of getting into a top B-school? Contact us to talk strategy with a free 15-minute advising session with an SBC Principal Consultant. 

The Role of an MBA Career Office in Advancing Career Goals

Every MBA program has a Career Management team that plays a pivotal role in an MBA student’s future. Now we’ll delve into the various facets of a typical MBA Career Management Office. That way, MBA applicants know what they can expect to gain in their MBA program.

Each program has a dedicated career management team that provides comprehensive support to students in their job search and career development journey. Because a single solution won’t work for everyone, the team offers a tailored approach based on each student’s chosen industry. Advisors are well-versed in various sectors, offering valuable insights into specific market trends and opportunities.

No matter what background you come from, be it finance, marketing, or tech, the career office can help tailor your educational journey. It considers previous work experience and interests while structuring a plan that best suits individual needs.

Listen to B-Schooled Podcast Episode #107 : The Scoop on Short-and-Long-Term Career Goals

Preterm Advising Session

Students can participate in a preterm advising session before even starting classes, such as UVA Darden’s pre-MBA career course . This early intervention helps them set realistic goals and develop effective strategies for achieving them.

Relationship Managers for Job Placement

Most MBA program career offices employ relationship managers who work closely with companies looking to hire MBAs. They facilitate introductions between students and potential employers, significantly enhancing employment prospects post-graduation.

Career management offices have established relationships with a diverse range of companies that hire MBAs, from large corporations seeking multiple candidates to smaller firms looking for just one.

Summer Internship Experiences

The summer period is a time of exploration and hands-on learning. Students can take part in internship experiences, using their new knowledge in real-world settings across various industries around the world.

Tap Into the Active Alumni Network

The career office also provides access to an extensive alum database. MBA students can tap into this network for advice, mentorship, and potential job opportunities. This serves as an invaluable resource when searching for internships or full-time positions after graduation.  These experienced professionals are always ready to lend a hand in guiding you through your career path.

As you can see, your career goals can be refined optimally through the MBA program experience.  But, in the meantime, let’s check out a few successful career goal essays here because we need you to get admitted first!

Sample MBA Career Goals Essay for Successful MBA Admits

Use these sample essays to inspire your own responses to the classic career goals essay question asked by many business schools.

  Essay Prompt: Define your short-term post-MBA career goals. How are your professional strengths, past experience, and personal attributes aligned with these goals?

One of the things I value most at Company X is the collaboration between teams to advance new technologies. As a Program Manager, I coordinate research and development (R&D) projects for the engineering department. R&D is an exciting field to me because we make quick decisions, progress at lightning speed, and focus on the future. Currently, I am directing a X project that impacts the future of autonomous driving.

Post-MBA, I will join the R&D group for a technology or automotive company as a product manager. I want to own the product lifecycle and effectively shepherd a product from inception to market. Ultimately, I aspire to influence monumental decisions like Porsche’s recent $6B investment in electric cars and electric charging infrastructure.

Product management capitalizes on my strengths: communication, teamwork, leadership, planning and organization. I enjoy the breadth of exposure through this role because successful new product development requires me to leverage resources from all over the company – R&D, finance, marketing, supply chain, and production.

Essay Prompt: What are your short-term and long-term career goals, and how will an MBA from UCLA Anderson specifically help you achieve these goals?

After several years as a Wireline Field Engineer, I am at a crossroads where I will start to define the future of my career. I envision becoming the VP of Strategic Marketing at a technical firm. Unlike most of my fellow engineers, I plan to merge my technical background with a marketing education to put myself in a position where I can be successful in such a career. A marketing position in a technical firm fits my interests and talents perfectly. Cutting-edge technology fascinates me, and with an engineering background, it is a language I speak. Most engineering jobs deal with technology, but few are primarily focused on human interaction, something that is an essential part of my vision.

I enjoy dealing with people; while solving a complex engineering problem can provide great pleasure, it is no match for the satisfaction I derive through team interaction. Similarly, I have always enjoyed coaching others, whether it’s by conducting mock interviews at the high school where I volunteer or teaching nuclear theory to new engineers at a wellsite. The idea of taking a complicated concept and packaging it in such a way that the client clearly understands the benefits is highly appealing.

While my current technical position has many advantages, it is time for a change. I love the challenge of problem solving, and I thrive in such an international role, but I lack a strong business background. As I progress and move into an office job within Schlumberger, I do not see a career path allowing me to follow my goal without taking the initiative to gain further marketing knowledge. I have set my sights on this goal and will devote the necessary time and energy to put myself in a position to be successful.

Anderson is my choice for an MBA program for three reasons.

First, it has excellent access to the Asia Pacific region, a market I am familiar with and would like to do business with in the future. My time spent in Thailand has been phenomenal, and I hope to work with such gracious, hospitable people throughout my career. Second, Anderson has a diverse student body from all over the world, something that is essential if I am to be multi-cultural upon graduation. Finally, Anderson is known to be an excellent all-around program, and being well-rounded is extremely important to me.

With high quality training from Anderson, I am certain that I can succeed in the strategic marketing position I desire. I understand that a career of this nature requires a great deal of work. I embrace the challenge and look forward to a career which combines my professional skills and my enjoyment in working with others, but for the near future I look forward to an MBA program with exposure to the brightest teachers and young professionals from different business sectors across the globe. Learning to solve business problems, not just technical ones, is the next critical step toward a career in which I will thrive for years to come.

Finally, for more MBA essay samples, visit the Hot Topics page and click on the business schools you wish to explore.

Stacy Blackman Consulting offers multiple services to meet your MBA application needs, from our  All-In Partnership to hourly help reviewing your MBA resume.   Contact us today for a  free 15-minute advising session  to talk strategy with a Principal SBC consultant. Meanwhile, here’s a snapshot of the caliber of expertise on our SBC team .

The post Your MBA Career Goals Essay appeared first on Stacy Blackman Consulting - MBA Admissions Consulting .

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2024-2025 Wharton MBA Essay Tips + An Example

Originally published on July 13, 2023. Updated on July 3, 2024.

The Wharton MBA essay prompts are confirmed for 2024-2025 and they remain unchanged from last year. The questions are direct and allow enough word count to paint a robust picture of who you are and why Wharton is right for you (and vice versa). As such, this application can be a good one to tackle early in the process. The deadlines are also early in each round, which lends additional credence to this approach.

To help you get started, we’re sharing a Wharton MBA essay example as well as some tips to use while crafting your own. 

Wharton MBA Essay Questions

• How do you plan to use the Wharton MBA program to help you achieve your future professional goals? You might consider your past experience, short and long-term goals, and resources available at Wharton. (500 words)
• Taking into consideration your background – personal, professional, and/or academic – how do you plan to make specific, meaningful contributions to the Wharton community? (400 words)

Wharton MBA Essay Advice

While the Wharton essay questions read as fairly straightforward, don’t let them lead you down the path of writing bland essays.  Run of the mill essays do nothing to help you stand out from the sea of applications Wharton receives. Additionally, despite the generous word count, you will absolutely need to be strategic about what you include – and don’t.

Your Career Goals Are the ‘Anchor’ For Essay One

When it comes to the first essay, the critical thing to keep in mind is that all of your content should be ‘anchored’ by your short – and long-term career goals . If you haven’t given robust thought to these and done your due diligence to ensure they are sound, now is the time to do so.

Once you have defined and refined your career goals, you need to think backwards and forwards.

By thinking backwards, we’re encouraging you to think about the formative experiences that led you to your post-MBA career goals. Perhaps in your work as a consultant you were staffed on a healthcare project that opened your eyes to how complex yet exciting the healthcare industry can be. This sparked your interest in shifting to a strategy role within a healthcare company where you can make a lasting impact on the industry and those it touches. Tell the story of that case, focusing on why it was so eye-opening, so the adcom can really feel your passion and the authenticity behind your goals.

By thinking forwards, we’re recommending that you think very specifically about the skills you need to build to be successful in your target career. Then, research and describe the unique elements of Wharton’s program that will help you to build them. If the examples you cite are offered by other business schools, they are not specific enough to make a compelling argument as to why Wharton will best position you for success. Getting this part right takes work and that is exactly why it matters.

Focus Essay Two on Being a ‘Giver’ Not a ‘Taker’

When it comes to the second essay, take a cue from what Wharton professor extraordinaire Adam Grant’s concept of ‘ givers and takers ’. Whereas the ‘why Wharton’ section of the first essay can cover what you will ‘take’ from the experience, this essay should focus on the ways in which you will be a ‘giver’ while at Wharton and even after graduation. A giver ‘…[looks] to help others by making an introduction, giving advice, providing mentoring, or sharing knowledge, without any strings attached.’

To be in a position to ‘give’, you need to have a unique knowledge base, personality trait, or past experience from which others will benefit. This is the crux of the essay. It is, first and foremost, the place to share what distinguishes you from other applicants. Because the first essay is so career focused, we urge clients to write about something personal here.

For example, a past client discussed how she would use the determination that had helped her overcome personal challenges to motivate her peers in Wharton Women in Business. She went on to describe a specific area of programming she would bring to the club that tied in with some of the personal challenges she had conquered.  The essay was strategic, specific, and thoughtful (and it was successful in earning her an acceptance with full scholarship).

Wharton MBA Essay Example

Because it’s often hard to put theory into practice, below is a Wharton MBA essay example from one of our clients who was accepted (with scholarship!).

Wharton MBA Essay Example – Essay 1

My experience advising consumer products companies at [company x] and driving strategic go-to-market decisions at [company y] have sparked a fascination with strategy at the intersection of consumer and technology. Coupled with a Wharton MBA and a post-MBA role at a consumer technology startup, I plan to leverage these experiences to, one day, lead the strategy function of a company that disrupts a previously-established market by understanding and changing consumer behavior, like Airbnb or StitchFix.

In my work to date, I have seen both ends of the innovation spectrum, which has driven home the importance of responding to quickly evolving customer needs. At [company x], while interviewing company executives on a project for a multinational food manufacturer, I was surprised to find that they were focusing investment on legacy products that, while historically lucrative, would not position the company for future success in the face of changing consumer trends. In contrast, [company y] makes every strategic play based on customer needs. When customers became increasingly segmented by industry, we reorganized the sales team into industry verticals. When COVID-19 struck, we released [product], a product that helps customers evaluate how to safely restart operations. Combining my [company x] and [company y] experiences, I see an opportunity to leverage a deep understanding of consumer trends, based in data and analytics, to disrupt a consumer market with technology.

To succeed in this journey, I need to build the core business principles that were not a part of my liberal arts undergraduate education and develop my personal leadership style. At Wharton, a double major in Business Analytics and Strategic Management will provide a deep understanding of business fundamentals while teaching me to be an innovative strategic leader. Classes like Managing the Emerging Enterprise with Exequiel Hernandez will provide hands-on experience analyzing high-growth organizations, teaching me the fundamental principles of managing a disruptive consumer technology firm, from early competitive positioning to organizational structure and the strategic and operational art of expansion.

Further, understanding and developing my personal leadership style will be paramount to my future career. By taking part in the McNulty Leadership Program’s Leadership Ventures, such as the Quantico Intensive, I will apply my existing teamwork skills to a fast-paced problem-solving exercise. As someone who has always found growth in situations outside my comfort zone, I am excited to explore my personal leadership traits in this intense, hands-on environment, which will prepare me for the dynamic pace of the consumer technology industry.

Lastly, a leadership position in the Technology Club will provide access to Wharton’s broad industry resources and alumni base, preparing me to hit the ground running in a post-MBA role at a consumer technology start-up. Joining an existing but early stage company will expose me to the ins and outs of my target industry and, as is the nature with start-ups, provide experience playing multiple roles in a dynamic format. This breadth of experience will provide a holistic perspective on a consumer technology company’s growth levers and industry dynamics, solidifying my preparation to serve as a strategic leader.

Wharton MBA Essay Example – Essay 2

My parents nicknamed me “the quiet giant” because I was always the underdog whose determination surprised those who underestimated me. I grew up smaller than my peers, so when my softball coach told me that my size would prevent me from being competitive, I was crushed by his quick judgment of my size. Rather than letting this criticism deter me, I became resolved to prove him wrong. I persistently practiced my pitching technique and, two years later, was the best pitcher in the league, going on to win the all-star championship. In this pivotal moment, I was overcome with pride and realized that success was possible if I kept my will to persevere and pushed past my ‘limits’.

Throughout my life, I have leveraged this determination to benefit the communities and teams of which I have been a part. At [company y], I led a team of ten to create an automated headcount dataset that saved the strategy organization hundreds of hours of manual work each quarter. While this project required strategic alignment and technical creativity, my biggest contribution was my ability to motivate the team. We hit many roadblocks, but I took on every challenge with an open mind, encouraging my team to think creatively and listening receptively to each person’s perspective. As a result, our solution transformed the way the organization reports on headcount growth.

These same motivating principles and teamwork skills will allow me to make valuable contributions to the Wharton community. I look forward to using my determination to help motivate my learning team when coursework is challenging or the demands of recruiting wear on us. Through core classes like Corporate Finance, the difficulty of which has been emphasized by current students, I will work closely with my learning team and encourage my peers to persevere.

As a leader of WWIB, I look forward to working alongside my female peers to build our confidence in business settings and otherwise. As a woman in the male-dominated field of consulting, I have unfortunately felt the impact of being overlooked. After joining [company y], I attended courses on public speaking for women and was encouraged to voice my opinions. As a result of my determination to grow in this way, my confidence and presentation skills improved, which enabled my promotion to Manager. I look forward to continuing to develop these skills within WWIB alongside my diverse and talented female peers.

We hope you found this Wharton MBA essay example helpful and can apply our essay writing tips to your own personal narrative. We’re here to help if you’re struggling. Click here to request a free consultation . 

Katie is a passionate mentor and coach, helping her clients craft a unique, compelling story by leveraging her experience as a corporate executive, alumni interviewer, and campus recruiter. Before completing her MBA at Kellogg, Katie spent five years in banking where she learned practical finance skills as well as how to operate in a demanding, high pressure environment. She pursued an MBA in order to transition to an industry role where she could utilize her finance knowledge to drive change within an organization. Post-MBA, she worked in finance and strategy for a leading CPG firm, progressing to an executive role leading the finance function for a $2B business segment. Her experience managing diverse teams led to a passion for developing others. In addition to her day-to-day responsibilities, she led her firm’s MBA recruiting efforts and served as an alumni admissions interviewer for Kellogg.

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MBA Essay Examples, Tips, and Analysis

Y our MBA application essays are your best opportunity to share meaningful life experiences that hide in the “white spaces” of the resume and to tell admissions officers not only “what” you have achieved but also “why” those achievements are meaningful to you.

Your MBA application essays are going to be crucial if you are competing for a spot at one of the world’s top business schools.

These resources will show you how to excel in the rigorous MBA essay writing challenges ahead of you, provide you with the guidance to create MBA essays that will impress admissions officers, and share MBA essay examples that illustrate our advice in action.

Second, we survey the five most frequently asked MBA essay questions. We preview video essay questions and link to detailed guidance on how to tackle this emerging class of application essays.

Third, we will teach you how to choose topics and stories for your essays and share a story-outlining technique to help you tell those stories.

Common MBA Essay Forms: Persuasive versus Narrative Essays

There are two primary forms that MBA application essays take: persuasive essays and narrative essays. In a persuasive essay, you must persuade your reader that your argument is a sound one. An op-ed column in a newspaper is one example of a persuasive essay.

The classic “What Will You Contribute to the Class?” question is an excellent example of a persuasive essay question that MBA programs like to ask. The essay you write must persuade the admissions committee that you will enrich next year’s class. You will generally present evidence from past experiences and achievements to support your claims about what you can offer the MBA community.

The other style of essay you’ll encounter in your MBA applications is the narrative essay. Certain MBA essay questions don’t sound like questions at all; they are, in fact, an invitation for you to tell a story. We refer to these as narrative essays – but others call them behavioral essays or expository essays.

The Leadership Story Essay is a perfect example of a narrative essay. It’s one thing to claim to be a leader – but it’s quite another to show the admissions committee that you’re a leader by telling a captivating leadership story in which you played the starring role.

While MBA essays often fall into these two categories, the actual prompts will differ from school to school. Let’s discuss the five most frequently asked MBA essay questions. ↑ To the Top

The Five Most Frequently Asked MBA Essay Questions

Every business school application requires you to answer one or more MBA essay questions. Although the essay prompts differ from application to application, we identified five types of MBA application essay questions that appear again and again.

Career Goals Essays

A career goals essay question regularly appears in one form or another on just about every MBA application. Even if you aren’t required to write this type of essay, you will almost certainly be asked about your post-MBA career goals during an admissions interview.

Admissions committees ask about your career plans because they want to understand what you aspire to do after your MBA and how the MBA degree fits into your career plan. As it turns out, a strong career goals essay is one of the best tools in your application to stand out from MBA candidates who don’t have a compelling career vision or haven’t effectively articulated their professional goals in their MBA application essays.

Leadership Essays

Leadership essays are your absolute best opportunity to convince MBA admissions committees of your leadership abilities. Remember that MBA admissions officers will be interested in your leadership achievements both inside and outside of work.

You probably won’t be asked directly, “Are you a leader?” Instead, you’ll be asked to tell stories about your leadership achievements. When given the opportunity, you need to supply evidence that you can rally other people and motivate them to work together to achieve an important shared vision or goal. Therein lies the objective of a great leadership essay.

Why MBA? and Why Our School? Essays

The “Why MBA? Why Our School?” essay is your chance to convince admissions officers that their school is the perfect fit for what you need from an MBA program. The best answers to these types of questions are both personal and specific. You need to effectively convey what you are looking for in an MBA program and tell the admissions committee why their school will best satisfy your learning goals and help you achieve your career development objectives.

“What Will You Contribute?” Essays

The “What Will You Contribute?” essay presents you with an opportunity to tell the MBA Admissions Committee why you would be a valuable addition to their incoming class. The schools are looking for candidates who can put in just as much as they take out. One critical thing to understand when preparing to answer these questions is that concrete and tailored answers about what you can contribute to each MBA program are crucial.

Professional Experience Essays

The professional experience essay is an executive summary of your career thus far. A resume is a record of jobs and achievements — a Professional Experience Essay provides the connections and interrelationships between those jobs and brings your resume to life. An effective Professional Experience essay will give the admissions committee a sense of the career decisions you’ve made, your major achievements in each step of your career, and the skills and knowledge you’ve acquired along the way.

MBA Application Video Essays

MBA admissions committees are increasingly relying on technology to help them evaluate and manage their growing applicant pools. MBA application video essays are becoming a popular tool, as MBA programs can use them to learn far more about candidates than the traditional application permits. In recent years, leading MBA programs including Kellogg Northwestern , MIT Sloan , and Chicago Booth have incorporated a video component into their evaluation process. Video essays are excellent screening tools that allow admissions officers to assess candidates’ professional presence and communication skills.

Free MBA Essay Writing Course

Please enter your email below to gain 30 days of free access to our MBA Essay Writing course. Learn about the five most frequently asked MBA application essay questions and access our brainstorming tools and sample essays.

No matter which type of MBA essay question you are tackling, your primary objective is to provide evidence that proves you possess the qualities that admissions committees value most. By doing so, you will move one step closer to an acceptance letter from a top business school.

Now that you have a better picture of the classic MBA essay questions you’re likely to face, let’s cover selecting the strongest stories to present in your MBA application essays.

How to Choose the Best Stories for your MBA Essays

Story selection is something all MBA applicants wrestle with. When you first read the MBA application essay questions, it may be hard to figure out which topics to cover or which of your stories to tell. We’ll explain how to go step-by-step to choose your best stories. Here are the steps:

Research the School’s Fit Qualities

Categorize the question.

• Brainstorm Topic/Stories

Choose a Topic or Story

To choose your best stories, you need to know what qualities MBA programs truly value when evaluating applicants. You want to tell stories that prove to the admissions officers that you possess the attributes they seek in MBA candidates. We refer to these as the school’s Fit Qualities . You might think of them as the highest-common denominators among the candidates who are accepted.

Early in your MBA essay writing process is the time to make some strategic choices about which qualities and strengths you will put front and center in your MBA essays. If you attempt to feature all of your strengths, you run the risk that admissions officers will finish your essays with no clear idea of any of them. Instead, select three or four of the qualities that your research tells you the school you are applying to prizes most of all.

Second, study the essay question to determine if it falls into one of the five essay categories discussed earlier in this article.

By categorizing each question, you’ll have a better idea of what the admissions committee will be looking for in your response. You’ll know the criteria for scoring top marks in that essay style, which will guide your application essay design decisions.

Brainstorm Topics/Stories

Third, you are ready to start brainstorming potential topics and stories. Remember that your central objective is to find opportunities to feature the key elements of your application strategy .

Here are some questions you can ask yourself to help you to choose your best topic or story:

Are you the star of the story or supporting cast?

With very few exceptions, you need to write stories where you play the starring role. Don’t make the mistake some applicants make of writing a thrilling story about their parents’ hardships and triumphs, leaving little room for their own.

Did the experience occur recently?

It is usually best to choose stories that happened within the last three years. If an older story is incredibly compelling, then keep it on your list. However, bear in mind that admissions officers are rarely interested in reading about your high school glory days.

Does the essay feature several Fit Qualities?

Review your topic ideas objectively and ask yourself if they exemplify the school’s Fit Qualities. Because you’ll be limited to telling only a few stories, you’ll want to choose the ones that feature a few different Fit Qualities if at all possible.

Once you have selected your best stories, it is time to create an outline to organize your thoughts before jumping into the writing process. ↑ To the Top

How to Outline Your MBA Essay Stories

The persuasive essay writing style is prevalent in university and work settings, so it may have been some time since you were asked to write a story. For that reason, we want to share a powerful outlining technique called the STAR framework that will help with the “story-telling” essays you may be asked to write in your MBA application.

The STAR framework is designed to help you tell a concise story with a beginning, middle, and end.

The “S” in STAR stands for Situation .

The Situation is the time, place, and context of the story; you can think of it as the setting, but it might also include the broader challenge or conflict you or your organization faced. In essence, this is the set-up of the story.

“T” in the STAR acronym stands for Task . The Task is your role and goal in the story. What were you expected to accomplish by the end of the story? An effective story has built-in conflicts and complications.

The Action of the story is what admissions officers are really interested in because this is their chance to see your strengths and qualities in action. While it won’t be necessary to write down every step you took at the outlining stage, you’ll want to jot down the highlights.

Below is an MBA essay example told using the STAR framework. It outlines a story written by a candidate who served as a donation chair for a fundraising event for a non-profit organization.

Task: Assigning specific jobs to committee members, checking on their progress, helping teammates meet agreed-upon deadlines for obtaining the donations, and offering other assistance

Action: Motivated my team by having them meet Literacy Now children. Assigned tasks and checked in regularly. Successfully mediated team disputes. Visited 20 restaurants and called 12 wineries. Ensured deadlines were met.

Sample MBA Essays: MBA Applicant Beware!

MBA Prep School’s guide is replete with essay writing tips, and we do provide excerpts from sample essays to illustrate the most common MBA essay categories. However, while you will find page-after-page of helpful advice and building blocks for constructing your own original MBA essays and stories, we don’t publish an extensive catalog of MBA essays written by MBA Prep School’s past clients.

The problem with collections of sample MBA application essays is that they can mislead you into thinking that if you can just replicate one of those sample essays, you’ve got your golden ticket into business school. Unfortunately, the opposite can be true. The reason those essays “succeeded” is because they were an integral part of a complete story about an impressive human being whom the admission committee concluded belonged at their business school.

And the scary truth is that reading MBA essay examples might even harm your chance of admission for several reasons:

1. They might stunt your creativity and ability to express yourself. If you are trying to mimic someone else’s essays – the content, the style, or the approach – your story and voice are likely to get lost in the process. Admissions committees want to be impressed – but they want to be impressed by you. Feature the traits and tell the stories that depict “you” at your best.

2. Sample MBA essays can undermine your confidence in your MBA candidacy. The essays that get published as samples are often truly eye-catching, dramatic, and sensational – stories of exceptional accomplishment, rare feats, or extreme obstacles. It may seem, in comparison, that none of your stories stack up. The good news is that the whole package is what matters, not a single defining moment in a candidate’s life.

The last thing you need is to doubt your abilities or have a crisis of confidence when you’re trying to put pen to paper (or finger to keyboard). Trust in your own experiences and tell stories about what you – and only you – will bring to the MBA program.

3. Admissions officers can tell when you’ve “sampled” from sample MBA essays. The pesky thing about MBA admissions committees is that they’re filled with brilliant people who know how this game is played and what resources are available. They can spot themes and clichéd stories inspired by sample essay collections. More importantly, they can sense when you’re telling someone else’s story or when the story doesn’t ring true to your MBA application’s other elements. Don’t give an admissions officer reason to doubt your authenticity by risking even the appearance that you “sampled” from MBA sample essays that are swirling around on the Internet.

At MBA Prep School, we work with clients we believe in and help them tell their stories, not someone else’s. Remember that the MBA application process is not a storytelling contest; even if it were, the winners would be chosen based on the authenticity, originality, and integrity of the stories they tell!

Final Thoughts

Critics of MBA essays often wonder if they still have a place in the application process when admissions committees can rely on quantitative data points to choose among applicants. However, your transcripts, test scores, and resume are historical documents that only tell a fraction of the story. Your MBA essays represent a powerful opportunity to communicate your goals, strengths, reasons for applying, and potential contributions to the class.

The process of writing MBA essays provides you with a rare opportunity for self-examination and self-expression. Many applicants value the introspection required of them in the MBA essay-writing process and find they can better articulate their strengths and goals during their subsequent MBA interviews as a result. By putting ample thought and effort into brainstorming and writing your MBA essays, you will almost certainly increase your odds of being accepted to a top MBA program.

Related Articles: Essay Examples

• Career Goals Essay Example
• What Will You Contribute? Essay Example
• Why MBA? and Why Our School? Essay Example
• Leadership Story Essay Example
• Professional Experience Essay Example
• MBA Video Essays
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How to Write a Top MBA Personal Statement (With Examples)

Working on your MBA application? You aren’t alone. In 2021, over 200,000 students graduated with an MBA degree making it the number one choice for graduate students for the 10th year in a row. And there’s good reason for this. According to the National Center for Education Statistics , post-MBA, grads can earn significantly more at work—experts estimate an additional $20,000 each year depending on the industry. 

During the application process, you’ll want to stand out. A well-crafted personal statement will help distinguish you from other applicants. It serves as a powerful tool to showcase your unique experiences, skills, and aspirations to admissions committees. To make a lasting impression, tailor your personal statement to each MBA program you’re applying to, highlighting how your background aligns with their values and goals. For additional support, keep reading for some MBA personal statement examples and guidance. 

Understanding the Foundations – Word Count, Templates, and Pricing

When you start your personal statement, keep the word count in mind. Make sure to write your statement succinctly. Templates can give crucial structure to a first draft and make sure you hit necessary points. Finally: is it worth it to hire a professional proofreader? We break down the pros and cons. 

Word Count Considerations

A well-written personal statement is often the deciding factor in the business school admissions process. Conveying your thoughts concisely is a crucial skill in the business world, and future peers will be grateful for your brevity.

One strategy is to start with a longer draft and edit it down when revising. Remove unnecessary details and tighten wordy language. Focus on improving the quality of your content over meeting the maximum word count. 

Templates as a Starting Point

Templates can help to organize your thoughts. Use them to provide structure and give your writing direction. By planning ahead, you can decide how much space you want to dedicate to each element—this can also help you meet the word count.

Remember: popular templates are popular for a reason, and following them too strictly can make your statement feel rigid and unoriginal. To avoid that pitfall, personalization is key. Your individual experiences, goals, and perspectives are all unique. What would a Master’s in Business Administration mean to you? Don’t be afraid to customize any template to fit your voice. 

Professional Proofreading

Graduate schools know what a well-written personal statement looks like—and so do professional proofreaders. Experts can help catch small grammatical errors and improve clarity in your writing. It can be challenging to review personal writing from an objective standpoint. A good proofreader will streamline your writing and ensure overall coherence, improving your odds with your preferred school of business. 

Unfortunately, this can be expensive. Pricing for these services can easily cost hundreds of dollars. If hiring one isn’t in the budget, here are some alternatives: 

• Find writing groups online or in person. Not only will you receive feedback, you’ll get a better idea of what other personal statements look like. Be prepared to help edit other statements.
• Reach out to peers and mentors. Turn to people who know your voice and can tell when your writing is authentic. Make sure they aren’t afraid to give negative feedback.
• Utilize free online resources. Writing tools like Grammarly or Hemingway help check grammar and sentence structure. They won’t help with essay format and aren’t infallible; double-check any changes they might suggest.
• Read your statement out loud. This can help make sure your statement has a good rhythm and flows naturally.
• Take breaks. Be your own set of fresh eyes. When you’re in the thick of writing, you might glaze over easy-to-spot details while you’re thinking of the big picture. Allow yourself to recharge and clear your head before you get back to it. 

Tailoring Your Personal Statement to Top MBA Programs

Make sure to personalize your essays to specific MBA programs . Include details about specific classes and faculty, unique opportunities, and the strengths that make this program stand out. 

Then, tie yourself into the narrative. What role would you fill as a graduate student or an alumnus? Consider your own strengths and where they align with this specific program. What career goals could this opportunity help you achieve? 

Remember to mention your soft skills and other details that may not show up elsewhere on your application. Finally, shine a spotlight on your unique contributions in past roles. 

Write a Captivating Introduction

A beautiful personal statement will be overlooked unless the introduction captivates the audience. You can begin with compelling anecdotes, personal stories, or influential quotes. Tie this introduction into your reason for pursuing an MBA. Make the reader care before launching into your achievements. Then, clearly state why you’re pursuing an MBA. Example: “From the dynamic intersections of global markets to the intricate strategies driving corporate success, the realm of business has always beckoned to me as a realm of boundless opportunity and perpetual evolution..” 

Discuss Academic and Professional Background

Now it’s time to discuss what you’re bringing to the table. It’s okay to brag! Think about any key achievements or acquired skills that are transferable to an MBA program. What motivated you to apply? Example : “As a project manager at XYZ Corp, I navigated intricate challenges, demonstrating resilience and strategic thinking – skills I am eager to refine in a top-tier MBA program.” 

Answer the Questions: Why an MBA? Why Now? 

What does an MBA mean for your career goals ? Break down your short and long-term goals to answer this essay question. How do the skills you gain from earning an MBA connect to your plan? Research the program you’re applying for and use examples from the curriculum. Example : “My immediate goal is to transition from project management to strategic consulting, and Crummer’s MBA program’s focus on experiential learning and global business strategy perfectly complements my aspirations.” 

Emphasize Soft Skills

Think about moments you demonstrated personal growth or teamwork. Are there any moments you stepped up to lead a project or team? Your past experiences will influence your habits in a graduate school setting. Example :  “Leading a cross-functional team on a high-stakes project not only honed my leadership skills but also taught me the importance of collaborative problem-solving, a cornerstone of Crummer’s MBA program. “

Spotlight Unique Contributions

What sets you apart from other applicants? Moreover, what impact will your unique perspective bring to the MBA cohort? Explain how your background will enrich the learning environment. Detail personal qualities and experiences that showcase your value. 

Key Elements for a Powerful Personal Statement

Take a holistic approach to strike the right chord in your personal statement. Give admissions committees a more concrete impression of you. Weave in your qualifications, experiences, and aspirations. Don’t just mention your professional achievements—detail all of your positive qualities. 

Showcase Work Experience 

Be strategic when discussing your real-world work experience. If you can, including measurable results is a great way to show your professional impact. Earnings numbers, statistics, and other metrics will show off your professional experiences. 

Articulate Career Goals and Aspirations

When discussing career goals for an MBA application, detail your short and long-term objectives clearly. Ambiguity can weaken your statement’s impact. Whether you’re joining a family business, starting your own business, or looking to go abroad for international business you should discuss how you see yourself navigating the business world. Connect these career aspirations to the MBA program. 

Incorporate Extracurricular and Real-World Experiences

Touch on any extracurricular experiences like internships or entrepreneurship. Explain how these real-world experiences impacted your analytical skills, business acumen, and decision-making. If you’re an entrepreneur, touch on your journey or discuss the vision for your next startup. 

You can also talk about moments where you demonstrated leadership and communication skills. Teamwork is critical to business leaders. Reflect on your leadership experience—the successes you’ve won and the lessons you learned. 

Maintain Authenticity

Write authentically. Admissions officers want genuine stories. Give readers a reason to empathize with you. Overly formal and generic language can depersonalize your statement and keep readers at arm’s length. 

Also, use conversational language. If something sounds clunky or unnatural, it probably also reads that way. Plus, the way you speak naturally showcases your personality. While you should always use proper grammar, don’t suck the life out of your statement in the name of sounding more “academic.” Use this opportunity to demonstrate your communication skills. 

Navigating Common Challenges

Crafting your personal statements can be challenging! Let’s answer some FAQs. 

How Do I Balance the Personal and Professional Aspects?

Be intentional about what you choose to mention from your personal life. Use elements that either contrast or emphasize your professional experience. How does your background influence your business philosophy? Make sure to keep a professional tone and align your statement with the admissions committee’s expectations and be prepared for any questions the interviewer could ask.

How Do I Handle Sensitive Topics?

If you’re writing about a sensitive topic, do so thoughtfully. You don’t know what type of people will be reading your statement, so be considerate and intentional about any details you choose to share. 

However, your application essay should be a reflection of you. Sensitive subjects often play a major role in personal growth and development. Discuss what you learned from this challenging experience and how it influenced you. 

How Do I Make My Writing Stand Out? 

We’ve touched on all of the story elements you need—now trim the fat. Avoid common clichés and generic statements. Common phrases will dilute the unique perspectives in your personal statement. Make sure the language aligns with you. Avoid language that could apply to everyone when possible. 

Other MBA Application Process Essentials – GMAT Score, GPA, and Statement of Purpose

The MBA application process is multifaceted and holistic. Alongside your statement, admissions committees also consider your GMAT scores and GPA. GMAT scores are used to gauge applicants’ aptitude for business studies, while GPA showcases your readiness for MBA rigor. If you have a lower score in either category, address these challenges by highlighting your other strengths, relevant experience, and resiliency. Remember: committees consider the entire application, not just scores. 

The other factor in the application process is your Statement of Purpose or SOP. This will complement your personal statement. Make sure your SOP articulates your academic and career goals without echoing your other application essay. Avoid redundancy. Focus on the future: link the MBA program to your long-term plan. Take a forward-looking perspective and demonstrate how the MBA will work as a natural progression in your life. 

Your personal statement should be as unique as you are. Start with a compelling narrative and a plan. Proofread your essay, and don’t be afraid to seek help from peers or professionals. Explain how your personal and professional life gives you the necessary skills to thrive at your desired program and be specific about what you want to do there. This is your chance to differentiate yourself from other applicants—take advantage!

Crummer is the #1 ranked MBA program in Florida. You can learn more about what we offer and when you’re ready, start working on your application . 

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