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Business school application essays provide a forum to explain certain aspects of your background that require clarification or which you are not happy about. You will have to decide in each situation what merits an explanation, but you should never be under the assumption that an MBA admissions member will overlook any part of your application. If an obvious weakness exists then an individual will see it. Here are 3 parts to watch out for on your MBA application:

Low GPA

In addition to taking a class to show that you are capable of being in a challenging curriculum, you may want to provide some reasoning for why your grades suffered in college. Here it is critical to be very clear on the difference between providing background and making excuses. You should not say that your grades were poor because the classes were very difficult. MBA programs consider their classes to be very challenging. You may be able to explain that your grades dipped due to a particular reason, for example a family emergency or health issue.

This part of your essay can be where honesty is most effective. If the reason for low grades is lack of focus, talk about this and show how you have changed. Remember that one low grade will not require an explanation. You should not feel the need to detail grounds for every small mistake in your background.

Taking extra time to graduate

There are a number of reasons why an individual may have taken extra time to graduate from an undergraduate university. In many cases, these reasons and explanations can be very appealing reflections of your interests and can allow the admissions committee to learn more about your life and interests. It can certainly be okay to take that additional time, particularly if you have a strong reason for doing so. If you took time off to be lazy, this can be another time when you can be honest and provide evidence of a more recent shift in priorities.

Changing majors

Some candidates want to explain a strong shift in majors and it can make sense to do so. While switching majors is not necessarily a weakness, it can raise inquiries about your focus. At the very least, this may leave the admissions member wondering about the change. An honest reason of why you decided to change can make sense. There may be an interesting event that led to the change or just a gradual shift in interests. Your time at the undergraduate level is a time for discovery and learning about oneself. Being honest about your growth can be a nice way for an admissions committee to learn more about you.

For more robust guidance on your MBA application essays, check out the Stacy Blackman Consulting Essay Guide Series – school specific guides with essay tips, sample essays, information on what your target schools value and more.

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