Chicago GSB 2006 MBA Essay Questions
[Edit: July 21, 2008 - The applications tips for the 2009 Chicago essay questions are now available online.]
[Edit: Click on the link for the 2007 Chicago essay questions and tips.]
The Graduate School of Business Full-time MBA program admits new students in the autumn quarter only. We use a system of three application deadlines, with early applicants rolled over for consideration at subsequent deadlines.
Application Deadline | <>Decision | <>
|---|---|
October 26, 2005 | <>January 11, 2006 | <>
January 4, 2006 | <>March 22, 2006 | <>
March 15, 2006 | <>May 17, 2006 |
Chicago's questions went online today. I guess the adcoms were busy over the July 4th weekend. First Harvard's; now Chicago's
An entirely new approach here, probably reflecting the arrival of Rosemaria Martinelli (formerly head of admissions at Wharton) at Chicago.
My comments are in red below.
Essay Questions
The essays are a way for us to get to know you better and a way for you to differentiate yourself from a large applicant pool. Consider how you can tell us your “story” through the following essay questions.
The full application will be available in August. The following essay questions will be required of each applicant. Please contact the admissions office at admissions@chicagogsb.edu or at 773-702-7369 should you have any questions.
Essay 1: To complete, we require that you answer all parts of A, B, and C below. (1500 words maximum total):
- Explain the path that has led you to pursue an MBA as the next step in your professional/ personal development. What steps did you take and how did you reach your decision?
- What or who influenced your choice of schools? What criteria will you use to decide where you will attend? What is it specifically about Chicago GSB that is going to help you succeed?
- Describe your short and long term post-MBA career goals. What steps will you be taking in order to achieve your goals?
They are giving you a lot of room here to describe your professional development, how that development influenced your MBA goals, and how "specifically" Chicago GSB will help you achieve your goals.
"Specifically" is a key word. If you are cutting a goals paragraph from one application to the next and changing the school's name, you flunk. Forget it. As I said in the post about HBS earlier today, think about where you are at now, where you want to go, and how Chicago's program will help you get there. The MBA is a bridge -- not an end in itself.
Essay 2: Choose one of the following two questions to answer (500 word maximum)
- Describe the most challenging team environment in which you have been involved. What role did you play? What impact did you have? What did you learn?
- Describe a time when you exhibited leadership skills even though you were not the designated leader. What was the situation? What skills did you utilize?
Both these questions ask for a time when you were not the designated leader and "had impact" or led. A good (but not the only) approach to either of these questions would start with an anecdote about the situation, bringing the reader into the situation so they could see the challenges and how you resolved them. Then go into the analysis and make sure you answer all elements in these questions.
Essays 3 & 4: Choose two of the following five questions to answer (500 word maximum for each).
- How have you used your personal characteristics and resources to improve the lives of others?
- Describe a time when you felt a strong sense of purpose in your life. What motivated you? What changes did you make personally and professionally to achieve that purpose?
- What would you consider the biggest failure or disappointment in your life? How did you adapt your plans or move past that failure or disappointment?
- If you can spend one day as someone else, who would it be? Why? What would your day look like?
- To be successful in life, you must be able to distinguish between fleeting trend and genuine innovation. Tell us of a time when you had to make such as a distinction. What, if anything, would you have done differently?
These two essays should round out your profile for Chicago GSB. Question 1 is clearly a detailed community-focused essay. Question 2 could be professional or non-professional. Questions 3 and 4 should balance out the other two. In general I like to aim for a 2:1 professional to non-professional balance in essay content, but that is a general guideline not a hard-and-fast rule. Demonstrate that you are a pro who knows why you want an MBA and can contribute to classroom discussion and benefit from an MBA . Then show that you are an interesting human being with multiple interests who can and will contribute outside the classroom as much as in the classroom.
[Chicago updated is questions slightly. For my take on the change, which does not change the substance of the questions or my suggestions, please see "Chicago GSB 2006 MBA Questions"]
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