Chicago GSB essays for 2008 admission and analysis

Essays

Chicago GSB Office of Admissions is pleased to announce the essay questions for the Fall 2008 application.

1. Why are you pursuing an MBA at this point in your career? Describe your personal and professional goals and the role an MBA from the University of Chicago GSB plays in your plans to reach these goals. (1500 word maximum)

2. If you could step into someone else's shoes for a day, who would it be and why? (500 word maximum)

3. We have asked for a great deal of information throughout this application. In this portion of the application, we invite you tell us about yourself using a non-traditional application format--a PowerPoint presentation. In four slides or less, please provide readers with content that captures who you are.

Given that this is a new section we have set forth the following guidelines for you to consider when creating you presentation.
 

• The content is completely up to you. There is no right or wrong approach to the way you construct your slides or answer this question.
    
• There is a strict maximum of 4 slides.
• Slides will be printed and added to your file for review, therefore, flash, hyperlinks, embedded videos, music, etc. will not be viewed by the committee. You are limited to text and static images to convey your points.
    
• Slides will be evaluated on the quality of content and ability to convey your ideas.
    
• You are welcome to attach a word document of notes if you feel a deeper explanation of your slides is necessary.
• If you do not have access to PowerPoint or a similar software application, you can contact the admissions office at admissions@chicagogsb.edu for alternative methods.

(Optional) If there is any important information that is relevant for your candidacy that you were unable to address elsewhere in the application, please share that information here.

http://www.chicagogsb.edu/fulltime/admissions/essay.aspx

以下是来自Clearadmit的分析

Chicago GSB Essay Topic Analysis 2007-2008

To kick off this season’s series of essay topic analyses, we thought we would start with the school that’s really shaking things up this year. Though every few years we’ll see a dramatic shift in the focus or format of some school’s required essay questions, the Chicago GSB is pushing applicants to think beyond the essay format and assemble a four-slide Powerpoint presentation. Let’s take a look at the complete set of questions and think about how this new development might influence one’s approach to the Chicago application:

Essay 1: Why are you pursuing an MBA at this point in your career? Describe your personal and professional goals and the role an MBA from the University of Chicago GSB plays in your plans to reach these goals. (1,500 word maximum)
Our general guidelines for the standard career goals essay apply to this document, but the above-average length and the nature of Chicago’s other questions add another strategic consideration. While the second and third essays certainly provide ample opportunity to share information about oneself, there really isn’t much room for narrative. This is a distinct contrast from schools like Stanford and MIT, which ask applicants to recount the details of their actions in several specific kinds of situations across the application essays. With this in mind, Chicago applicants might want to use a portion of their 1500 words in this essay to briefly share the details of some professional achievements and significant experiences.

Essay 2: If you could step into someone else’s shoes for a day, who would it be and why? (500 word maximum)
The most common trap that applicants fall into when answering this question is writing more about the person whose shoes he or she would choose to occupy than about the reasons for this selection and the way it fits into his or her candidacy. While this can be a fun question with an answer that is sure to be telling, it’s important not to lose sight of what should be the main objective of one’s application: sharing impressive information about oneself that is relevant to one’s business school candidacy. Selecting a prominent figure whose work is in line with one’s professional goals or favorite hobby can be a great strategy for producing an interesting essay that allows for detail about the applicant’s background as well.

Essay 3: We have asked for a great deal of information throughout this application. In this portion of the application, we invite you tell us about yourself using a non-traditional application format–a PowerPoint presentation. In four slides or less, please provide readers with content that captures who you are.
This approach isn’t exactly revolutionary - Stern’s usual Essay 3 asks for a personal expression that gives candidates complete freedom with content and medium (except for the exclusion of edible/perishable personal expressions) - but it does speak to Chicago’s interest in a candidate’s interests and personality. While all this “white space” might be daunting to some, an easy way to approach this process is to ask oneself a few simple questions. Are there four personal themes to which you would like to devote a slide each? Would you prefer to use the four frames to create a sense of progression through a day, event or activity? We’re hesitant to provide too much guidance given the free-form nature of the task; the best advice we can offer is to think about who you are (and how this might be of interest to the GSB adcom), consider how you could translate this into words and images, and then try it out. Showing the initial result to someone who knows you well could be a great way to determine how successful this draft is. Good luck, and have fun!

http://blog.clearadmit.com/2006/07/chicago-gsb-essay-topic-analysis-2006/

To kick off this season’s series of essay topic analyses, we thought we would start with the school that’s really shaking things up this year. Though every few years we’ll see a dramatic shift in the focus or format of some school’s required essay questions, the Chicago GSB is pushing applicants to think beyond the essay format and assemble a four-slide Powerpoint presentation. Let’s take a look at the complete set of questions and think about how this new development might influence one’s approach to the Chicago application:

Essay 1: Why are you pursuing an MBA at this point in your career? Describe your personal and professional goals and the role an MBA from the University of Chicago GSB plays in your plans to reach these goals. (1,500 word maximum)
Our general guidelines for the standard career goals essay apply to this document, but the above-average length and the nature of Chicago’s other questions add another strategic consideration. While the second and third essays certainly provide ample opportunity to share information about oneself, there really isn’t much room for narrative. This is a distinct contrast from schools like Stanford and MIT, which ask applicants to recount the details of their actions in several specific kinds of situations across the application essays. With this in mind, Chicago applicants might want to use a portion of their 1500 words in this essay to briefly share the details of some professional achievements and significant experiences.

Essay 2: If you could step into someone else’s shoes for a day, who would it be and why? (500 word maximum)
The most common trap that applicants fall into when answering this question is writing more about the person whose shoes he or she would choose to occupy than about the reasons for this selection and the way it fits into his or her candidacy. While this can be a fun question with an answer that is sure to be telling, it’s important not to lose sight of what should be the main objective of one’s application: sharing impressive information about oneself that is relevant to one’s business school candidacy. Selecting a prominent figure whose work is in line with one’s professional goals or favorite hobby can be a great strategy for producing an interesting essay that allows for detail about the applicant’s background as well.

Essay 3: We have asked for a great deal of information throughout this application. In this portion of the application, we invite you tell us about yourself using a non-traditional application format–a PowerPoint presentation. In four slides or less, please provide readers with content that captures who you are.
This approach isn’t exactly revolutionary - Stern’s usual Essay 3 asks for a personal expression that gives candidates complete freedom with content and medium (except for the exclusion of edible/perishable personal expressions) - but it does speak to Chicago’s interest in a candidate’s interests and personality. While all this “white space” might be daunting to some, an easy way to approach this process is to ask oneself a few simple questions. Are there four personal themes to which you would like to devote a slide each? Would you prefer to use the four frames to create a sense of progression through a day, event or activity? We’re hesitant to provide too much guidance given the free-form nature of the task; the best advice we can offer is to think about who you are (and how this might be of interest to the GSB adcom), consider how you could translate this into words and images, and then try it out. Showing the initial result to someone who knows you well could be a great way to determine how successful this draft is. Good luck, and have fun!

http://blog.clearadmit.com/2006/07/chicago-gsb-essay-topic-analysis-2006/

沙发！！！

再帮顶surfer的贴，今年CHICAGO GSB的essay很有意思呢，有意来CHICAGO的筒子们好好想想一定能写出彩的。

加油！！！

This year, Chicago continues with its “offbeat” approach to essays, incorporating a 4 page power-point presentation that will challenge candidates’ creativity. Our analysis of its essays and presentation follows: 

1. Why are you pursuing an MBA at this point in your career? Describe your personal and professional goals and the role an MBA from the University of Chicago GSB plays in your plans to reach these goals. (1500 word maximum)

Many candidates regard writing this 1500 word essay as a “monster” of a task. While it is true that this essay is 500 words longer than similar essays from Wharton or Berkeley (for example), this should be seen as an added opportunity for the Admissions Committee to get to know you, your goals, sense of purpose and need to attend Chicago.

When this question first appeared, many candidates saw an opportunity to present their career histories in their entirety. You should notice that the question does not ask for your entire career history, but asks for the “path that led you to pursue an MBA…” You need to exercise judgment in discussing your path and develop “cause and effect” relationships from one experience to the next; in doing so, you will show the reader that your MBA is the culmination of your professional life, not merely another “logical step”.

Other than the word count, the other significant differentiator between Chicago’s essay one and other “typical” personal statements is that Chicago specifically asks, “What or who influenced your choice of schools…” Chicago wants to be sure that you have made an effort to get to know the GSB and that you have truly done your homework; thus, you would be wise to rely on a priori experiences with alumni, students, professors, administrators, admissions officer, etc. in order to explain how you have learned about the school. Further, you will need to explain what it was about these encounters that made you want to learn more and apply – whether you were learning about academic resources or were simply attracted to the environment/personalities or both.

With Chicago’s “extra” words, you have a wonderful opportunity to develop your compelling connection to the school. You can create profound arguments that show how you will use the school’s resources to advance your professional goals. Again, it is not enough to merely explain what programs the school offers – they already know! If you properly utilize the “how you learned about us” and the “Why Chicago?” sections, the “extra” 500 words in this essay should be easily manageable.

Please feel free to email us at info@mbamission.com for a free document on writing personal statements.

2. If you could step into someone else’s shoes for a day, who would it be and why? (500 word maximum)  

Chicago offers this “wide-open” and unorthodox question, not as an opportunity to find out which celebrity you admire, but to understand your personality through the eyes of another. While the individual that you choose is quite important, the reasons why you chose him/her are even more crucial to the essay. As absurd as this may seem, the essay, while about someone else, is still fundamentally about you. When approaching this essay, you should challenge yourself to consider the vicarious experiences that you would need to grow professionally, personally and/or spiritually — but we would have a bias toward the personal/spiritual sides. By “becoming” this person for the day, you will need to show significant learning and a potentially enduring impact on your life.

An important note: this is not an opportunity for you to praise Warren Buffet or admire Steve Jobs. Unless you are very careful or have an inordinate personal connection to this individual, picking someone who is quite famous can often be no more than a descent into cliché.

3. We have asked for a great deal of information throughout this application. In this portion of the application, we invite you tell us about yourself using a non-traditional application format–a PowerPoint presentation. In four slides or less, please provide readers with content that captures who you are.  
        Given that this is a new section we have set forth the following guidelines for you to consider when creating you presentation.  The content is completely up to you. There is no right or wrong approach to the way you construct your slides or answer this question. There is a strict maximum of 4 slides. Slides will be printed and added to your file for review, therefore, flash, hyperlinks, embedded videos, music, etc. will not be viewed by the committee. You are limited to text and static images to convey your points. Slides will be evaluated on the quality of content and ability to convey your ideas. You are welcome to attach a word document of notes if you feel a deeper explanation of your slides is necessary. If you do not have access to PowerPoint or a similar software application, you can contact the admissions office at admissions@chicagogsb.edu for alternative methods. 

At MBA Mission, we are quite excited about this essay, as it represents a blank slate. Thus, it is an incredible opportunity for candidates to create presentations that are entirely distinct from all others. What is great about this essay/presentation is that in a traditional essay it is your task to differentiate via your content, but in this presentation you can showcase your unique attributes via content and also captivate via your design.

Because this presentation is so open, we would need to meet with candidates one-on-one to devise personal strategies. Still, as a general rule, we recommend that candidates consider their content first and then devise a design that will allow them to communicate all of the important attributes that they have identified. You do not want to make the mistake of choosing a distinct and captivating method of presentation which limits your ability to tell your story in its entirety. Choosing to understand your content first will prevent this from happening and start you on the right track.  

http://www.mbamission.com/blog/2007/07/09/essay-analysis/

The Chicago MBA Admissions Office has all new questions for this year, and in accordance with long Chicago tradition -- not to mention its "Challenge everything" motto, -- two are creative and non-traditional.  My comments below are in red.

1. Why are you pursuing an MBA at this point in your career? Describe your personal and professional goals and the role an MBA from the University of Chicago GSB plays in your plans to reach these goals. (1500 word maximum)

This is similar to last year's Essay 1, but the focus is a little more forward-looking than in previous years. Here is one way to approach the question (and there are definitely others): Identify two or three critical elements in your life that have convinced you now is the right time to pursue your MBA.  Describe what you want to be doing, highlighting both the foundation provided by your experiences discussed initially in the essay and the gap between where you want to be and where you are. Then conclude by discussing how Chicago's program, its flexibility, its iconoclastic nature, and its analytical rigor will help you progress to your destination. In answering the last part of the question, be specific. Don't just mouth buzz words or Chicago's home page. Dig a little. Think a lot. Connect the dots.

Chicago asks about personal and professional goals, and thereby gives you a lot of latitude. Most of you will probably focus on the professional side of your life in this essay. At the same time, if your goals reflect both non-professional commitments or interests and professional ones, you can bring them out here.

2. If you could step into someone else's shoes for a day, who would it be and why? (500 word maximum)

This could be a great question to answer while revealing a deeply held, non-professional interest, especially if you didn't explore it in Essay 1. As always, you want the essays to complement each other and work together to portray you.

Whom do you admire? It can be someone you know, someone in the public sphere, or a historical figure. The "why" part of the question is more important than the "who."

3. We have asked for a great deal of information throughout this application. In this portion of the application, we invite you tell us about yourself using a non-traditional application format--a PowerPoint presentation. In four slides or less, please provide readers with content that captures who you are.

Given that this is a new section we have set forth the following guidelines for you to consider when creating you presentation.
  

• The content is completely up to you. There is no right or wrong approach to the way you construct your slides or answer this question.
     
• There is a strict maximum of 4 slides.
• Slides will be printed and added to your file for review, therefore, flash, hyperlinks, embedded videos, music, etc. will not be viewed by the committee. You are limited to text and static images to convey your points.
     
• Slides will be evaluated on the quality of content and ability to convey your ideas.
     
• You are welcome to attach a word document of notes if you feel a deeper explanation of your slides is necessary.
• If you do not have access to PowerPoint or a similar software application, you can contact the admissions office at admissions@chicagogsb.edu for alternative methods.
     

I warned you that this year 's questions are non-traditional. I am not sure I can give general guidelines for this question at this time (other than "follow the instructions") because the slides will depend so much on how you respond to the other questions and what you have done. In any case, I want to think about this before I post tips.

(Optional) If there is any important information that is relevant for your candidacy that you were unable to address elsewhere in the application, please share that information here.

Most of you will have important and relevant information to share. Again, do not waste the adcom's time with an empty optional essay. No grand summaries or poignant pleas for admission. Use this essay to add value and provide the admissions committee with information about a facet of your life, character, qualifications, or experience not discussed in the other essays or perhaps not discussed in depth elsewhere in the application.