MIT Essay Topic Analysis 2007-2008 » Clear Admit: MBA Admissions Consultants Blog

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Application Deadlines
Below are the upcoming deadlines for Fall 2008 entry to top-tier schools.
Apr. 1: UT Austin McCombs R3
Apr. 2: Dartmouth / Tuck R4
Apr. 3: INSEAD R4
Apr. 4: Oxford / Said R3
Apr. 23: UCLA / Anderson R4
Apr. 28: CMU / Tepper R4
May 2: LBS R4
Jun. 6: Oxford / Said R4

Essay Topic Analysis
Below are links to our comments on some of the top programs' essay topics for the 2007-2008 admissions season.
The Career Goals Essay
Berkeley / Haas
Chicago GSB
CMU / Tepper *
Columbia
Cornell / Johnson
Dartmouth / Tuck
Duke / Fuqua
Harvard
IESE *
INSEAD
London Business School
MIT / Sloan
Michigan / Ross
Northwestern / Kellogg
NYU / Stern
Oxford / Said *
Penn / Wharton
Stanford GSB
UCLA / Anderson
UNC / Kenan-Flagler
UT Austin / McCombs *
UVA / Darden
Yale SOM
* denotes last year's commentary

Categories
Use categories to access all that has been written on each of the topics. We have categorized by school and by subject matter.

Interview Reports
A selection of interview field reports from fellow applicants posted to the MBA Admissions Wiki. Add your reports when you are finished with your interviews.
Chicago
Columbia
Dartmouth / Tuck
Duke / Fuqua
Harvard
Kellogg
Michigan / Ross
MIT / Sloan
Stanford
UNC / Chapel Hill
Virginia / Darden
Wharton
London Business School

GMAT Resources
GMAC
Manhattan GMAT
GMAT Club
Princeton Review
Test Prep New York
Kaplan
Beat The GMAT

Writing Resources
Guide to Grammar and Writing
The Internet Grammar of English
English Usage, Style and Composition
The Economist Style Guide
Paradigm Online Writing Assistant

School Rankings
Rankings are a good way to start your research on various MBA Programs. Keep in mind each uses a different methodology.
Business Week
Economist
Financial Times
Forbes
USNews
Wall Street Journal

Career Guides
The following resources should be useful to those who want to research the careers open to them after (or before) earning an MBA.
Vault.com
Wetfeet

Business School Resources
The following are business resources offered by a variety of leading Business Schools. It's useful to subscribe to these resources, especially for the schools to which you are applying.

MBA Programs: North America
If an MBA Program is not listed, please e-mail and we will be happy to list it.
Berkeley / Haas
Carnegie Mellon / Tepper
Chicago
Columbia
Cornell / Johnson
Dartmouth / Tuck
Duke / Fuqua
Emory / Goizueta
Harvard
HEC Montreal
Indiana / Kelley
Michigan
MIT / Sloan
Northwestern / Kellogg
New York / Stern
North Carolina / Kenan Flagler
Pennsylvania / Wharton
Queens
Stanford
Texas / McCombs
Thunderbird
Toronto
UCLA / Anderson
Virginia / Darden
Western Ontario / Ivey
Yale

MBA Programs: Rest of the World
As there is some variety in the length of international MBA programs, we have denoted the length of the program next to its name (1 = one year; 2 = 2 years). If an MBA Program is not listed, please e-mail and we will be happy to list it.
AGSM (Australia) 2
Cambridge / Judge (UK) 1
CIEBS (China) 2
Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (China) 1
ESADE (Spain) 1 or 2
HEC (France) 2
IESE (Spain) 2
IMD (Switzerland) 1
INSEAD (France) 1
IPADE (Mexico)
ISB (India) 1
London Business School (UK) 2
Oxford / Said (UK) 1
Rotterdam (Netherlands) 2
University of St. Gallen (Switzerland) 1

Additional Resources
Here we link a host of additional resources available across the web. E-mail info@clearadmit.com to have resources added to this list.
AACSB International
Association of MBAs
Beyond Grey Pinstripes
EFMD
gradschools.com (worldwide)
Infozee
mba.com (GMAT Scores)
MBAInfo
mbaleague.blogspot.com
MBAzone
MBA Jungle
TOEFL
Top MBA

MBA Tipline
We encourage admissions officers, students and applicants to alert us of interesting news and developments, please send an email to news@clearadmit.com so we can blog it.

Blog Archive

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Monday, August 13, 2007

MIT Essay Topic Analysis 2007-2008

MIT’s essay format has been among the most consistent of the top MBA programs over the past few years. In addition to the cover letter (more on that unique task below), the school consistently poses four questions about different sorts of situations and requests detailed information about how the applicant reacted and behaved. It’s important to note that the philosophy behind Sloan’s approach is that past behavior is a reliable predictor of future behavior, so it will be wise to select examples that show you at your best.

Though the wording of the questions has changed slightly compared to last years, with this season’s set focused a bit more explicitly on negative or challenging circumstances, the sorts of situations asked about are consistent - impact, negotiation, persuasion, and execution. Each of the questions is entirely open in terms of the origin of the examples the applicant can use - work, undergrad, current activities and even appropriate personal stories are fair game here. The key will be to show the adcom how you behave given different pressures and objectives by touching upon all of the points about thoughts, feelings, words and actions.

Cover Letter: Prepare a cover letter (up to 500 words) seeking a place in the MIT Sloan MBA Program. Please comment on your career goals and those factors which influenced you to pursue an MBA education at MIT Sloan.
For years, Rod Garcia has likened the MBA application process to the recruiting process; MBA aspirants, just like job applicants, need to demonstrate that they know how to market themselves. This is why the school requires a cover letter as part of their application.

As you approach this assignment, keep in mind that many of the standard cover letter themes need to be discussed - your attributes and skills, why you are interested in joining the ‘company’ (MIT/Sloan), and what you feel you could contribute. These certainly intersect with the ideas covered by other schools’ “career goals” essays, so much so that it may be tempting to simply tack a greeting onto the beginning of a career goals essay you’ve prepared for another program. MIT’s request for these ideas in cover letter format, however, actually makes it very easy to spot recycled material, so it’s important that you tailor your response to the school’s unique process. A potential outline for this essay might open with a ‘greeting’ to the committee followed by a statement of your interest in MIT and what you would bring to the school, then a short statement of your career goals with a summary of the ways in which your experience to date has prepared you, then a “why MIT” section explaining why it is the best place for you in terms of what you need from an MBA and your fit with the school, concluding with a thank you.

Essay 1: Please tell us about a time when you had an impact on a group or organization. Describe in detail what you thought, felt, said, and did.
This has been Sloan’s standard lead-off question for several years running, indicating an enduring focus on an applicant’s ability to affect positive change on a small or large scale. In sharing this story, keep in mind that in addition to providing a clear discussion of the specific steps you took to achieve the end result, it will also be important to quantify or at least concretely describe the impact you made on the person, group or organization and explain why it was important or significant to all parties.

Essay 2: Please tell us about a challenging interaction you had with a person or group. Describe in detail what you thought, felt, said, and did.
This question is designed to extract not only information about how the applicant acts when faced with a challenge, but also about what sorts of interactions, situations and perhaps even personalities the candidate finds challenging. It’s therefore a good idea to think about what a potential example might say about you and your interpersonal style and preferences before drafting this essay.

Essay 3: Please tell us about a time when you defended your idea. Describe in detail what you thought, felt, said, and did.
This question is very similar to last year’s inquiry about advocating for a position, with the added element of explicit criticism or questioning. The adcom is clearly interested in how potential students handle opposition, as well as how effectively they are able to take an unpopular stance and hold their ground. Some background about the situation and the reason you believed in your idea will naturally be necessary here, but the bulk of your response should focus on your thoughts, feelings and actions during the defense.

Essay 4: Please tell us about a time when you executed a plan. Describe in detail what you thought, felt, said, and did.
This question invites subject matter that might be very similar to last year’s inquiry about a time the applicant put an idea into action, but the wording suggests that the adcom’s interest may have shifted a bit - away from theory and over to action. While it would ideal to select a story in which the execution of the plan was successful and resulted in a positive impact, this particular essay is more focused on the process.

One final thing to note is that MIT has historically requested that applicants select experiences or events from the past one to two years. Though the adcom has lifted that official guideline this year (as many applicants with significant work experience or impressive early achievements must have found it quite restrictive), it is quite likely that the general preference for recent examples remains. While applicants now have more explicit freedom to draw essay subject matter from any time, it would probably be prudent to showcase experiences from the past two years in as many essays as possible.

# posted by Clear Admit @ 2:34 am in Essay Topic Analysis, School: MIT / Sloan

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Chicago
Columbia
Dartmouth / Tuck
Duke / Fuqua
Harvard
Kellogg
Michigan
MIT / Sloan
New York / Stern
North Carolina / Chapel Hill
Stanford
Virginia / Darden
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Yale
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IESE
INSEAD
London Business School

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