MBA Common Essays for Candidates Applying in 2025

1. Describe your greatest achievement. Why do you view it as such? (200-250 words)

2. Describe yourself / introduce yourself to your classmates / share an interesting or fun fact about you. (100-150 words)

3. What are your short term and long term career goals? Why are these your goals? How can an MBA from the specific program you are applying to help you reach your goals? (500-700 words)

[If your budget is limited, consider skipping the outline for the career essay – its value may be less significant compared to other outlines].

4. Write one separate, unique essay for each program you are applying to:
(200-270 words per program)

A. How will our MBA program help you achieve your goals?

B. Are there any other reasons why you are applying to our program? What do you know about our program?

DO NOT PREPARE THIS ESSAY FOR HARVARD, KELLOGG, INSEAD, DARDEN. They are not likely to ask for it.

For Booth, TUCK, UNC, WHARTON prepare only part A above. For STANFORD, DUKE prepare only part B.

See some pointers for preparing this essay at:
http://ARINGO.co.il/clientinfo/why-our-school/

5. If applying to Stanford – Stanford asked this essay question in the past 13 years:

• What matters most to you, and why? (recommended length – around 650 words)

6. If applying to Cornell Tech MBA – the following personal statement / creativity statement was required in the past 7 years, with several variations:

Please respond to all the prompts in an essay or question format in 700 words or less, double-spaced, 12-point font:

1. Why are you interested in a one-year, tech-focused MBA (as opposed to a traditional two-year MBA program that would offer a summer internship opportunity)?

2. Demonstrate the relationship between your current professional experience and academic background to your short- (0-5 years after graduating) and long-term (6-15 years after graduating) career goals for this program.

3. At Cornell Tech, we aim to educate leaders for the digital age. What, in your opinion is the single most important characteristic that such leaders must possess? Why?

4. What else would you like the admissions committee to know about you? (upload file)

Optional: Additional Information (250 word maximum, double-spaced, 12-point font)

7. If applying to Kellogg – Kellogg asked this essay question in the past 10 years (with several variations):

• 2017 variation – Leadership and teamwork are integral parts of the Kellogg experience. Describe a recent and meaningful time you were a leader. What challenges did you face, and what did you learn? (450 words)
• 2018-2023 variation – Kellogg’s purpose is to educate, equip & inspire brave leaders who create lasting value. Tell us about a time you have demonstrated leadership and created lasting value. What challenges did you face, and what did you learn? (450 words)
• 2024 variation – Kellogg Leaders are primed to tackle today’s pressing concerns everywhere, from the boardroom to their neighborhoods. Tell us about a time in your life where you’ve needed a combination of skills to solve a problem or overcome a challenge. Which skills did you use? What did you accomplish? (450 words)
• 2025 variation – Kellogg leaders are primed to tackle challenges everywhere, from the boardroom to their neighborhoods. Describe a specific professional experience where you had to make a difficult decision. Reflecting on this experience, identify the values that guided your decision-making process and how it impacted your leadership style. (450 words)

8. If applying to INSEAD – INSEAD asked these essay questions in the past 13 years:

• Job Essay 1
  Briefly summarise your current (or most recent) job, including the nature of work, major responsibilities, and where relevant, employees under your supervision, size of budget, clients/products and results achieved. What would be your next step in terms of position if you were to remain in the same company? (200 words)
• Job Essay 2
  Please give a full description of your career since graduating from university. Describe your career path with the rationale behind your choices. Discuss your short and long term career aspirations with an MBA from INSEAD (300 words)

9. If applying to INSEAD – INSEAD asked this essay question in the past 13 years:

• Give a candid description of yourself (who are you as a person), stressing the personal characteristics you feel to be your strengths and weaknesses and the main factors which have influenced your personal development, giving examples when necessary. (500 words max.)

10. If applying to Duke – Duke asked this essay question in the past 12 years:

• The ‘Team Fuqua’ spirit and community is one of the things that sets the MBA experience apart, and it is a concept that extends beyond the student body to include faculty, staff, and administration. Please share with us “25 Random Things” about you. These ’25 Random Things’ help us get to know someone’s personality, their background, special talents, and more.The Admissions Committee wants to get to know YOU – beyond the professional and academic achievements listed in your resume and transcript. Share with us important life experiences, your likes/dislikes, hobbies, achievements, fun facts, or anything that helps us understand what makes you who you are.Please present your response in list form, numbered 1 to 25. Some points may only be a few words, while others may be longer. Your complete list should not exceed 2 pages, with a font size no less than 10-point. Do not copy the essay question in the document you upload with your application.

11. If applying to NYU – NYU asked this essay question in the past 13 years with several variations:

• 2017 variation – Please describe yourself to your MBA classmates. You may use almost any method to convey your message (e.g. words, illustrations). Feel free to be creative. If you submit a non-written piece for this Essay (i.e., artwork or multimedia) or if you submit it via mail, please upload a brief description of your submission with your online application. (check for instructions on the website)
• 2018-2024 variation – Describe yourself to the Admissions Committee and to your future classmates using six images and corresponding captions. Your uploaded PDF should contain all of the following elements:
  • A brief introduction or overview of your “Pick Six” (no more than 3 sentences).
  • Six images that help illustrate who you are.
  • A one-sentence caption for each of the six images that helps explain why they were selected and are significant to you.
• 2025 variation – Introduce yourself to the Admissions Committee and to your future classmates using six images and corresponding captions. The Pick Six is a way to share more about the qualities you will bring to the Stern community, beyond your professional and academic achievements. Your uploaded PDF should contain all of the following elements: A brief introduction or overview of your “Pick Six” (no more than 3 sentences). Six images that help illustrate your interests, values, motivations, perspective and/or personality. A one-sentence caption for each of the six images that helps explain why they were selected and are significant to you. Note: Your visuals may include photos, infographics, drawings, collages, or any other images. Your document must be uploaded as a single PDF. The essay cannot be sent in physical form or be linked to a website.

12. If applying to Ross – Ross asked this essay question in the past 7 years (with several variations):

2018 variation –

Select one prompt from each group. Respond to your selected prompts using 100 words or fewer (<100 words each; 300 words total).

Group 1

• I want people to know that I:
• I turned an idea into action when I:
• I made a difference when I:

Group 2

• I showed my resilience when I:
• I was humbled when:
• I am out of my comfort zone when:

Group 3

• I was aware that I am different when:
• I find it challenging when people:
• A valuable thing I have taught someone is:

2019-2020 variation –

Select one prompt from each group. Respond to your selected prompts using 100 words or fewer (<100 words each; 300 words total).

Group 1

• I want people to know that I:
• I made a difference when I:

Group 2

• I was humbled when:
• I am out of my comfort zone when:

Group 3

• I was aware that I am different when:
• I find it challenging when people:

2021-2024 variation –

Select one prompt from each group of the two groups below. Respond to each selected prompt in 100 words or less (<100 words each; 200 words total). Every word counts here – the tight word count is intentional to force you to focus.

Group 1

• I want people to know that I:
• I made a difference when I:
• I was aware that I was different when:

Group 2

• I was out of my comfort zone when:
• I was humbled when:
• I was challenged when:

Please attach your essay using the following button: (upload doc, Limit files to under 10Mb, Accepted File Types: ., .pdf, .doc, .docx, .rtf)

2025 variation –

Michigan Ross is proud to support a community of leaders and impact makers. As a future member of this community, we want to know more about who you are and what drives you. Please choose 1 of the following prompts to tell us more about what makes you stand out beyond your academic and work experience. List the prompt you are answering at the top of your response. (200 words) (upload file)

Select one:

• What makes you unique?
• Can you provide a specific example of how you’ve overcome a personal challenge?
• What makes you excited to get up each morning?
• Describe a time when you made a difference in your community or with an individual.