Princeton Review Business School Essays That Made a Difference Book

CONTENTS
Introduction ......................................................................................... xiv
CHAPTER 1
Business School Admissions: A Brief Overview ..... 1
Anticipate and Coordinate..................................................................... 2
Apply Early ............................................................................................. 3
Rounds vs. Rolling Admissions ............................................................. 4
GMAT and GPA ..................................................................................... 4
Letters of Recommendation................................................................... 4
The Interview .......................................................................................... 6
Work Experience .................................................................................... 8
CHAPTER 2
The Importance of Being an Essay ........................ 9
The Real You, Revealed and Dissected............................................... 10
B-School Applicants Need an Advocate ............................................. 11
An Essay Can Be an Imperfect Screener ................................................................... 11
Caught between a Rock and a Hard Place ................................................................. 12
CHAPTER 3
How to Craft Your Essays .................................. 13
Hidden Agendas .................................................................................... 14
The “How” of an Essay Is Important ................................................. 14
Composing ASymphony, One Note at a Time ......................................................... 15
What Your Essays Should Say about You ......................................... 16
Now Add Two Shakes of Salt . . . ........................................................ 17
CHAPTER 4
Case Studies ...................................................... 19
1. A Tale of Two Brothers .................................................................... 20
2. Spousal Privilege, Denied ................................................................. 21
3. Maid in Manhattan........................................................................... 22
4. Third Generation Dropout .............................................................. 23
5. Disabled, but Not Disadvantaged .................................................... 24
6. If at First You Don’t Succeed—Grow Up ...................................... 25
7. A Near-Missed Opportunity ............................................................ 26
8. The Job Hopper ................................................................................ 28
CHAPTER 5
Common Essay Questions
(and What They’re Really Asking) ................... 31
Creating Perfection Takes Time ......................................................... 32
Reading Between the Lines .................................................................. 33
Theme 1: Career Goals and the MBA ........................................................................ 34
Theme 2: Extracurriculars and Social Interaction: Our Nonwork Side ..................... 35
Theme 3: Whom You Most Admire .......................................................................... 36
Theme 4: Teamwork—How Do You Work with Others in a Group Setting? .......... 36
Theme 5: Diversity and What Makes You Unique .................................................... 38
Theme 6: Your Greatest Personal Achievement/Accomplishment ........................... 39
Theme 7: Failure/ What Mistakes Have You Made? ................................................. 41
Theme 8: Ethics ......................................................................................................... 42
CHAPTER 6
Spotlight on Tuck’s Essay Questions ................... 43
Tuck’s Killer Essay Question .............................................................. 44
CHAPTER 7
The Personal Statement:
How, If, and When to Use It ............................ 47
Theme: The Personal Statement ......................................................... 48
How and When to Craft an Essay That Explains a Weakness
(or Rebuts a Weakness with a Strength) ......................................... 49
What is Legit? ............................................................................................................ 49
Addressing Some Common Problems ................................................ 51
Pink Slips ................................................................................................................... 51
Bad Grades ................................................................................................................. 52
Bad Scores and Text Anxiety ..................................................................................... 52
Learning Disability .................................................................................................... 53
In Summary ................................................................................................................ 53
CHAPTER 8
In Case You Slept through English Class ............. 55
The Essentials........................................................................................ 56
Jump-Start Your Writing .................................................................... 59
Clustering (or Organizing Your Chaos) ..................................................................... 60
Must-Follow Checklist for the Essays ................................................. 61
What NOT to Do: Fifteen Sure-Fire Ways to Torpedo Your Application ................ 63
CHAPTER 9
Straight From the Mouths of the Experts:
Interviews with Students
and Admissions Officers ................................. 67
Lisa Guglielmi, First-Year Student, Haas School of Business,
University of California—Berkeley ................................................. 68
Jenni Winslow, First-Year Student, Haas School of Business,
University of California—Berkeley ................................................. 71
Don Martin, Director of Admissions,
University of Chicago Graduate School of Business ...................... 74
Kate Klepper, Director of MBA Admissions,
Olin Graduate School of Business, Babson College ....................... 77
Linda Meehan, Assistant Dean for Admissions and Financial Aid,
Columbia Business School ................................................................ 79
Bill Sandefer, Director of Admissions and Financial Aid,
Freeman School of Business, Tulane University ............................. 83
CHAPTER 10
The Essays ......................................................... 91
Case Examples: Admissions Officers Critique
Winning Essays .............................................. 92
Babson College, Olin Graduate School of Business .......................... 93
Essay #1 ..................................................................................................................... 94
Critique .................................................................................................................... 95
Essay #2 ..................................................................................................................... 95
Critique .................................................................................................................... 97
Essay #3 ..................................................................................................................... 98
Critique .................................................................................................................. 102
Case Western Reserve University,
Weatherhead School of Management ............................................ 103
From the School ....................................................................................................... 104
Essay #1 ................................................................................................................... 104
Critique .................................................................................................................. 105
Essay #2 ................................................................................................................... 106
Critique .................................................................................................................. 107
Claremont Graduate University,
The Peter F. Drucker Graduate School of Management ............. 109
Essay #1 ................................................................................................................... 110
Critique .................................................................................................................. 114
Essay #2 ................................................................................................................... 115
Critique .................................................................................................................. 117
Dartmouth, Tuck School of Business ................................................ 119
Essay #1 ................................................................................................................... 121
Critique .................................................................................................................. 124
Essay #2 ................................................................................................................... 124
Critique .................................................................................................................. 129
When Bad Essays Happen to Good People ............................................................. 129
Essay #3 ................................................................................................................... 129
Critique .................................................................................................................. 134
Essay #4 ................................................................................................................... 134
Critique .................................................................................................................. 137
MIT, Sloan School of Management .................................................. 139
Essay #1 ................................................................................................................... 140
Critique .................................................................................................................. 141
Essay #2 ................................................................................................................... 142
Critique .................................................................................................................. 143
Essay #3 ................................................................................................................... 144
Rutgers Business School..................................................................... 147
Essay #1 ................................................................................................................... 148
Critique .................................................................................................................. 149
Essay #2 ................................................................................................................... 150
Critique .................................................................................................................. 152
Essay #3 ................................................................................................................... 153
Critique .................................................................................................................. 155
xii
Contents
Tulane University, A. B. Freeman School of Business .................... 157
From the School ....................................................................................................... 158
Essay #1 ................................................................................................................... 159
Critique .................................................................................................................. 161
Essay #2 ................................................................................................................... 161
Critique .................................................................................................................. 162
Essay #3 ................................................................................................................... 163
Critique .................................................................................................................. 165
University of Chicago, Graduate School of Business ...................... 167
Essay #1 ................................................................................................................... 168
Critique .................................................................................................................. 168
Essay #2 ................................................................................................................... 169
Critique for Essays #2 and #3 ............................................................................... 169
Essay #3 ................................................................................................................... 170
Essay #4 ................................................................................................................... 170
Critique .................................................................................................................. 171
Essay #5 ................................................................................................................... 172
Critique .................................................................................................................. 173
Summary .................................................................................................................. 174
University of Iowa, Henry B. Tippie School of Management ......... 175
From the School ....................................................................................................... 176
Essay #1 ................................................................................................................... 176
Critique .................................................................................................................. 178
Essay #2 ................................................................................................................... 178
Critique .................................................................................................................. 179
University of Michigan Business School ........................................... 181
Essay #1 ................................................................................................................... 182
Critique .................................................................................................................. 183
Essay #2 ................................................................................................................... 184
Critique .................................................................................................................. 185
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,
Kenan-Flagler Business School ...................................................... 187
Essay #1 ................................................................................................................... 188
Critique .................................................................................................................. 190
Essay #2 ................................................................................................................... 191
Critique .................................................................................................................. 192
Essay #3 ................................................................................................................... 193
Critique .................................................................................................................. 194
Essay #4 ................................................................................................................... 195
Critique .................................................................................................................. 195
Essay #5 ................................................................................................................... 196
Critique .................................................................................................................. 197
Essay #6 ................................................................................................................... 198
Critique .................................................................................................................. 199
Essay #7 ................................................................................................................... 200
Critique .................................................................................................................. 201
Essay #8 ................................................................................................................... 201
Critique .................................................................................................................. 203
Essay #9 ................................................................................................................... 203
Critique .................................................................................................................. 206
Essay #10 ................................................................................................................. 207
Critique .................................................................................................................. 207
University of Rochester,
William E. Simon Graduate School of Business Administration .... 209
Essay #1 ................................................................................................................... 210
Critique .................................................................................................................. 211
Essay #2 ................................................................................................................... 211
Critique .................................................................................................................. 212
University of Texas, McCombs School of Business ......................... 213
Essay #1 ................................................................................................................... 214
Critique .................................................................................................................. 215
Essay #2 ................................................................................................................... 216
Critique .................................................................................................................. 217
Essay #3 ................................................................................................................... 218
Critique .................................................................................................................. 220