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Essay for reason for MBA?

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Essay for reason for MBA?

by yvichman » Mon Dec 22, 2008 9:57 am
Hi Stacy,
I'm thinking of going back to school to get an MBA. I have an undergrad in Sociology and although studied it, went a different route as far as employment post graduation. I worked for a startup eccommerce company doing sales. As the company grew I eventually gained a management position.

Since I started working at the company at the very early stages I gained on the job experience of strategies that worked in making the company successful, and those that had little effect. I want to go back to school to get the actual classroom experience b/c being a sociology major, I had very few business classes.

I recently left my current company and moved to Israel less than a year ago and am thinking an MBA now would help me in several ways including networking in a new environment and getting into a field that might be difficult with just a sociology degree. (marketing)

I realize people have a variety of reasons to go to Business School but as far as the essay. Everything I read about how to write a good essay, says that one should make theirs stand out. I feel like my reasons for going back are pretty boring and ordinary (career change). Do you have any advice on what makes a good essay/ one that would stand out?

Thanks in advance for your time.
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by Lisa Anderson » Mon Dec 22, 2008 12:35 pm
Dear yvichman,

You don't have to have an "exciting" reason to go back to school to distinguish yourself from the competition. In fact, needing to gain business fundamentals in an academic setting in order to make a career change is probably the most legitimate and best reason to go to business school. What is crucial is that there is a solid rationale behind your decision--connect the dots, so to speak--how does your background plus a MBA make sense for your career goals? If you can present a well-thought plan of what you need to do from your present job to get to your long-term career goal, then you will be answering the question as the admissions committee wants you to---and very few folks making a significant change do.

Good luck,
Lisa
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by AleksandrM » Mon Dec 22, 2008 3:58 pm
Hey yvich,

I was in a similar position. I graduated with a sociology degree. Given what I was interested in I was split between MBA and MAC, but ultimately decided on the MAC because of the extent of specialization I would gain (it is also a 1 year degree vs. 2 for MBA).

In your essays, I would suggest to do the following:

1. Show that you are very well aware of your previous achievements, as well as their limitations (this will be a point of departure for explaining why MBA and why now)

2. Show that you have researched the career track that you desire. References to specific regulatory changes and how they affect the marketplace, realignment in market participants, etc. will help you with that. You can also try to get in contact with someone who is already in an industry you are interested in. See if you can get an interview with that person. You can ask questions about his/her experiences and the career strategy that they utilized to get to where they are.

3. Make sure that you highlight how the skills that you have gained through your work experience - as well as those you have gained through your Soc degree and maybe some volunteer/extracur work - are transferable to your new career trajectory, even if the work that you did isn't necessarily relevant to the new career.

4. Probably the most important point in terms of actually making a case for going to a specific school. Read everything that you can about the program: the website, alumni stories, current student stories, class descriptions, the business school newspaper/magazine, the profiles of the professors that teach at the school (become somewhat familiar with their work/research [is it something that you are interested in, given your career ambitions]), read profiles of this school and simply about the school in magazines (Business Week, Economist, US News and World Report, etc.) and newspapers (NY Times, Financial Times, Wall Street Journal). Try to contact an alumnus and ask him/her questions that are relevant to your interests, etc; see what new info they will provide you with.

5. In a smart and savvy way, incorporate the above info into your essays. Make sure that it paints a portrait for the adcoms. Don't just state facts in a dry fashion, e.g., "The XYZ School of Management is one of the best institutions in marketing research. This will add to my chances of success in a marketing career." Make sure that you really, really, REALLY connect with the school. The more specific you are in your examples for why you want to attend that school and why you would add value to the classroom, the higher your chances of standing out to the adcoms.

6. Do not try to copy someone else's style. Instead, try to find your own voice. If you are a creative type, then be creative in your essay. For example, tell an anecdote in a captivating way that will grab one's attention and lead one to want to read on. However, if you are more of an analytical guy - facts, structures, numbers, etc. - then let that come through in the essay. The most important thing is to maintain flow and consistency throughout your application. Adcoms are smart people who have seen A LOT of applications, and they will smell bullshit as soon as they encounter it.

I will suggest this book to you: "Great Application Essays for Business School" by Paul Bodine.

This book will not tell you how to write YOUR essays. It will not tell you what to write in YOUR essays. However, it will help to steer away from common pitfalls; get you thinking about the right aspects of your professional, personal and academic life; help you ask smart questions about yourself - your motivations, interests, dislikes; and provide you with a plethora of useful tips that will help you to navigate the essay portion of your application with confidence and a clearer head.

I hope that this helps.
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