MBA Essay Questions: Why MBA, Why Now, Why Schoolname

In this post, we will seek to understand how to answer three questions that are found on many MBA applications namely, Why MBA? Why Now? Why Schoolname?

Look at the following required essay questions for MBA applications to three schools:

Stanford:

What do you want to do – REALLY – and why Stanford? (450 words)

Emory:

Why have you decided to pursue an MBA? What are your short-term post MBA goals? What are your long-term professional aspirations? (150 words each, 450 words total)

Georgetown McDonough:

State your short-term career goal immediately following graduation from the Georgetown MBA program. What skills have you developed on which you will build? What skills will you need to develop? (1 page, double spaced, 12 point font or ~500 words)

Do you sense a trace of similarity here? Even though they may be worded slightly differently, these questions effectively aim to understand your professional goals in light of your career progression in the past. Furthermore, schools typically want candidates to explain how their program is best suited for candidates to bridge the gap between where they are in their career and where they wish to be.

Understanding AdCom’s Perspective on Why MBA Essay Question:

These questions are the pillars on which your MBA application rests. They help the school understand your reasons for wanting an MBA and they use your answer to evaluate if your post MBA goals make sense and whether or not they are in tune with whatever you have done thus far. They are looking to see whether or not an MBA is the bridge that you need to take you from where you are right now to where you want to be as mentioned in your goals.

In order to answer these questions, candidates typically have to go through deep introspection in order to assess what they have done in the past and what they wish to do in their future. This introspection is a great opportunity for candidates to reflect on whether or not they really need an MBA to fulfill your career aspirations.

To take a simple illustration:

Let’s assume you are at Point A in your life currently with respect to your career goals and wish to get to Point B. There may be certain gaps in your education, skill-set, network, etc. which you need to fill in order to reach from Point A to Point B. You need to evaluate whether or not an MBA program is the best way for you to reach from Point A to Point B. If you believe that is indeed the case, you need to convey three things to AdCom:

Your Personal & Professional Experiences to date (Your Location Today)
Your short-term and long-term goals post MBA (Your Desired Location)
How an MBA program from their school is the best way for you to reach from Point A to Point B (MBA Program)

What is the AdCom trying to screen for by asking the Why MBA Essay Question:

Are you trying to use the MBA as a springboard to overcome unemployment or a lagging career progression?
Are your goals realistic and achievable?
Have you gone through a rigorous process of self-reflection?
Are you able to articulate your goals coherently?
Will your experiences add value to the class?
Will you add value to the school as an alumnus?
Will your profile be attractive to Recruiters?

Sample MBA Goal Statements:

Consider 3 different MBA goal statements from a candidate who is a 2nd generation owner/manager in a family business setup in the ophthalmic lens industry currently wherein the firm is within the top 15 players in the market.

1. Weak: my goal is to make a long-lasting impact in the field of ophthalmic lenses

2. Average: my goal is to return to the family enterprise and position it as a leading ophthalmic lens provider in India by implementing the learnings at business school

3. Strong: my short-term goal following my MBA from Wharton is to return to the family business and to implement the learnings in operations and marketing to our production and retail divisions in order to position the firm as the leading distributor and retailer in India in order to make an impact in the field of ophthalmic lenses. In the long-term, I would like to position the company as a leading global player in the industry through inorganic growth made possible by the 80,000+ strong alumni network at Wharton along with learnings from courses such as ‘Cross Border M&A’.

Response #1 is a generic ‘wishy washy’ goal with no thought as to how the person intends to make an impact, how an MBA would help in the process. In general, it is extremely vague and does not provide any insight to the user.

Response #2 begins to address some of the issues in Response #1 by starting to show the MBA as the missing link which can help the student transform the company from its current state to its desired state which is to be a leading provider of ophthalmic lenses.

Response #3 breaks the question down into two pieces – short-term and long-term goal. It talks about specific learnings from the MBA program that would be useful for the student (operations, marketing) and it further polishes off the desired goal to make it seem achievable and hence, more realistic.

Tips – Why MBA Essay Question:

Be as specific as you possibly can be
Show how your past roles are in sync with what you want to do and demonstrate intent as opposed to luck or destiny
Show the bridge connecting you from where you currently are to where you wish to be and how an MBA can provide the link between the two points
Stick to the word limits (+/- 10% is a good rule of thumb to follow)
Should you get laid off close to when you are applying to business school, try to take up something meaningful to do during that time period and preferably whatever you choose ties in with your goals so AdComs can see some sort of logical progression towards your goal
Show that you have done your due diligence to understand the school and evaluate how its resources would help you achieve your career goals
Ensure that your goals are realistic and briefly mention a path to get there
Career changers should ensure they understand the industry they aspire to enter well
Read the question and make sure you answer it properly. This becomes even more important as schools make slight changes in the way the question may be asked and you need to make sure you answer the question(s) being asked.

Common Pitfalls – Why MBA Essay Question:

Do not launch into a ‘save the world’ tirade unless it seems plausible given your career progression thus far
Do not use a cookie cutter approach in your essay for different schools. Tailor your response to each specific school in a way that highlights the resources at the school and demonstrates to them a great fit and also your excitement about their specific program
Do not be superficial in your reasons. As an example, stating you want an MBA because of the brand value, to take a break, to get back into the workforce, etc. may hurt your chances of admission as they show a lack of deep reflection on your part
Do not use language or tone that might make you seem arrogant or rude