Simran
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| Posted :- 12-07-2009 11:02:24 |
Replies:- 0 |
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| My thoughts |
I have shared my thoughts on the essay list above. Please note that I am not an expert on admissions or essay writing. If you need clarification, we can always discuss things on this forum. Good luck for your apps:
Essay 1:
This has been a standard first question for ISB essays. Basically, ISB need to understand you as an individual and how are you different from rest of hundreds of applicants who apply to ISB. This essay is like your sales pitch to ISB Adcom where you are going to sell yourself to Adcom.
Remember, since this is going to make your first impression you need to spend most amount of time on writing this essay. Before you start, think of what is unique to you and that sets you apart from other potential candidates. Remember, differentiating yourself from others does not only mean making yourself look different than everyone else; it means making yourself look different from everyone else in a way that will somehow benefit the other students in your MBA class, help you contribute better and add to diversity of the class profile. You need to think of qualities that will serve you well in a business context during and after the school.
Essay 2:
There are various purposes of this essay. What you write in response to this essay will tell ISB about the way you handle pressure and tough situations, your creative instincts, your leadership skills, your risk taking ability and many other desirable qualities required in a good b-school candidate. Be honest in what you write and do not write to shower excessive praise on yourself. Describe a real life situation, personal or professional, where you successfully handled a difficult situation. Mention the ground realities and how you were different, better or more innovative than your peers.
Don't be afraid to write about the failures and setbacks that you may have faced. What matters more to ISB is how you overcome tough situations. Another important point to keep in mind is that you need to show your learnings from pressure situations and how you became a better person personally or professionaly after handling that situation.
Essay 3:
This is another very important typical career goals essay that most business schools include in their essay list. What ISB needs to know from you here is that whether you have given substantial thought to your future career path or you are just one of many following the MBA heard. First describe your short term and long term goals and then show them how an MBA will help you reach closer to those goals. Try not to write about your unhappiness in your present job or describe the benefits of an MBA.
A second important part of this question is how ISB will help you meet those goals. So, after describing why MBA is right for you at this point in time, you need to mention why an MBA from ISB and why not from any other school? Here you have to mention ISB specific clubs, organizations, activities etc and how they fit into your overall MBA plan. Show that you know a good deal about events in ISB and you have already envisioned yourself participating in those activities.
Essay 4:
An additional essay is also a standard feature in ISB applications. You first need to decide whether you need to write an additional essay or not. How do you decide? Answer a simple question: Do you feel that in above three essays, you have not got a chance to write an important aspect of your profile that will improve your chances in ISB? If yes, go for this essay.
This essay is can also be used to clarify any negative or not-so-good points in your profile e.g. you may discuss about a break education, lower grades in school or college times etc.
Essay 5:
This essay applies only to re-applicant students who applied in previous year but could not make it through. It will do you a lot good if you had seeked a feedback of your application in previous years. This essay then gives you a chance to address those weaknesses and show to Adcom that how you have actively worked on resolving those pain points. If you did not seek feedback, try mention what all things you have done in past one year that will be of value to a business school. For instance, merely getting a promotion may not be the correct way to describe things. You need to show how you've gained additional responsibility in your company and how that fits in your overall MBA career plan. What's about that promotion that would make you even more valuable to ISB this year. |
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