How to write Chicago essay-insider tips

ivanmck

The Chicago Booth Essays

Happy August! Even though there is still plenty of summer left to enjoy, I know many of you are in the midst of preparing your MBA applications for the Round 1 Application Deadline. I thought I'd take this Admissions Insider to elaborate on how you can prepare and execute your best application to Booth! Each year we shape our essay questions to give you a chance to tell us what we need to know, and more. Our 2010 essay questions give you a great opportunity to introduce yourself beyond the typical resume and application data points.

Each part of the application combines to form a complete picture of you. The essays, however, are the center of your personal presentation to the Admissions Committee - the heart of it all. In order to be most effective in putting together your application, here are a few important steps not to be skipped in preparing to write your essays.

Know Thyself

If you're keeping up with my blog, you know how important I find self-reflection in the application process. I recently wrote a post called Know Thyself. What does this all mean for today's world?

Self reflection helps you understand how you got from point A to point B, and what your life experiences have meant to you, whether positive or not. You should be able to clearly answer a few key questions before you even begin to write. Why do you want to go back to school? Why is the MBA right for me? If you tackle the introspection phase thoroughly, the actual process of writing the essays should come much easier.

Know Your Schools

Once you've tackled introspection, you should have a good sense of your need for an MBA. There are hundreds of MBA programs, but no two are the same, and each institution falls along a continuum of options. Differences range from the size and location of the school to more significant issues regarding teaching styles, the choice to pursue a more general management curriculum versus pursuing concentrations, flexibility in selecting courses versus a set core curriculum, etc. No one school will suit everyone's needs, so narrowing your choice of schools to those that fit your academic, professional and developmental goals will be important. Make sure you know what specific attributes make Booth a good fit. If you haven't already, I suggest you create your Booth Connect account. Your personal Booth Connect pages offer personalized information based on your interests. We don't expect you to be Booth experts at the time of your application, but we do expect that you know enough about the school to evaluate your fit with us.

Have a Plan

Though our questions aren't exactly typical, they are pretty straight forward in terms of what we're asking. While you should be certain to cover the basics, you should also take the opportunity to share more about what makes you unique (interests, passions, values). Before you even start shaping answers to the individual questions, decide what you want to communicate about yourself and how much is relevant to share in the context of the application.

On to the Questions...

Now that you know how to create your overall message, we can talk a bit about each question individually. I'd also recommend that you check out the Clear Admit blog about our essays - they do a pretty good job helping you focus on what we're asking too.

1) How did you choose your most recent job/internship and how did this experience influence your future goals? What about the Chicago Booth MBA makes you feel it is the next best step in your career at this time? (750-1000 words)

This essay requires you to know the basics of your personal career path inside and out. How have your decisions made you ready to apply to an MBA program? While we understand that not everyone will be crystal clear in their future plans, you should be prepared to discuss your goals and how they relate to obtaining the degree.

Re-applicants have an extra question to answer:
        Upon reflection, how has your thinking regarding your future, Chicago Booth, and/or getting an MBA changed since the time of your last application? (250 words)

This question is designed to give our re-applicants a place to tell us what, if anything, has changed since the time of your last application. What has happened in your life or career that has made your goals change or remain steady? What actions have you taken or lessons have you learned in this past year?

2) Describe a time when you wish you could have retracted something you said or did. When did you realize your mistake and how did you handle the situation?

or

Describe a time when you were surprised by feedback that you received. What was the feedback and why were you surprised?

This essay is about self awareness. At Booth, you'll constantly be asked to evaluate and re-evaluate your personal development. Both questions give us a sense of your life experiences; specifically, how you handle feedback and how you bounce back in those not so positive situations. What did you learn from the experience and how will it impact your future actions? In order to be powerful, we often find that situational essay questions command authentic stories.

3) In four slides or less please answer the following question: What have you not already shared in your application that you would like your future classmates to know about you?

There has never been a right or wrong way to answer this question. From the very artistic to the bold black and white, it's always been about the content.

Be strategic; take an inventory of what you've shared with us elsewhere in your application. What else would you like the Admissions Committee and your future classmates to know? We encourage you to think less about what the committee wants to hear, and more about how to illustrate those facets of yourself and your personality that make you unique. This is your chance to make sure when each reader closes your application file, they walk away with a sense of who are, what makes you tick and what it might be like to eventually meet you.

 

We hope the process of writing your application is a time of discovery and adventure as you look to prepare for your future, whatever that may be. Yes, we understand how time consuming and expensive this process can be, but investing in yourself always brings great returns.

Good Luck! 
Rose Martinelli

bamboo890718

Tips on the slides, really useful!thank u ivan.

cannedpineapple

Don't forget to check out the clear admit blog for more info (as recommended by Rose Martinelli):

http://blog.clearadmit.com/2009/07/chicago-booth-essay-topic-analysis-2009-2010/

val_2008

thanks a lot!

yuxinzhao

以下是引用ivanmck在2009/8/7 20:06:00的发言：

The Chicago Booth Essays

Happy August! Even though there is still plenty of summer left to enjoy, I know many of you are in the midst of preparing your MBA applications for the Round 1 Application Deadline. I thought I'd take this Admissions Insider to elaborate on how you can prepare and execute your best application to Booth! Each year we shape our essay questions to give you a chance to tell us what we need to know, and more. Our 2010 essay questions give you a great opportunity to introduce yourself beyond the typical resume and application data points.

Each part of the application combines to form a complete picture of you. The essays, however, are the center of your personal presentation to the Admissions Committee - the heart of it all. In order to be most effective in putting together your application, here are a few important steps not to be skipped in preparing to write your essays.

Know Thyself

If you're keeping up with my blog, you know how important I find self-reflection in the application process. I recently wrote a post called Know Thyself. What does this all mean for today's world?

Self reflection helps you understand how you got from point A to point B, and what your life experiences have meant to you, whether positive or not. You should be able to clearly answer a few key questions before you even begin to write. Why do you want to go back to school? Why is the MBA right for me? If you tackle the introspection phase thoroughly, the actual process of writing the essays should come much easier.

Know Your Schools

Once you've tackled introspection, you should have a good sense of your need for an MBA. There are hundreds of MBA programs, but no two are the same, and each institution falls along a continuum of options. Differences range from the size and location of the school to more significant issues regarding teaching styles, the choice to pursue a more general management curriculum versus pursuing concentrations, flexibility in selecting courses versus a set core curriculum, etc. No one school will suit everyone's needs, so narrowing your choice of schools to those that fit your academic, professional and developmental goals will be important. Make sure you know what specific attributes make Booth a good fit. If you haven't already, I suggest you create your Booth Connect account. Your personal Booth Connect pages offer personalized information based on your interests. We don't expect you to be Booth experts at the time of your application, but we do expect that you know enough about the school to evaluate your fit with us.

Have a Plan

Though our questions aren't exactly typical, they are pretty straight forward in terms of what we're asking. While you should be certain to cover the basics, you should also take the opportunity to share more about what makes you unique (interests, passions, values). Before you even start shaping answers to the individual questions, decide what you want to communicate about yourself and how much is relevant to share in the context of the application.

On to the Questions...

Now that you know how to create your overall message, we can talk a bit about each question individually. I'd also recommend that you check out the Clear Admit blog about our essays - they do a pretty good job helping you focus on what we're asking too.

1) How did you choose your most recent job/internship and how did this experience influence your future goals? What about the Chicago Booth MBA makes you feel it is the next best step in your career at this time? (750-1000 words)

This essay requires you to know the basics of your personal career path inside and out. How have your decisions made you ready to apply to an MBA program? While we understand that not everyone will be crystal clear in their future plans, you should be prepared to discuss your goals and how they relate to obtaining the degree.

Re-applicants have an extra question to answer:
  Upon reflection, how has your thinking regarding your future, Chicago Booth, and/or getting an MBA changed since the time of your last application? (250 words)

This question is designed to give our re-applicants a place to tell us what, if anything, has changed since the time of your last application. What has happened in your life or career that has made your goals change or remain steady? What actions have you taken or lessons have you learned in this past year?

2) Describe a time when you wish you could have retracted something you said or did. When did you realize your mistake and how did you handle the situation?

or

Describe a time when you were surprised by feedback that you received. What was the feedback and why were you surprised?

This essay is about self awareness. At Booth, you'll constantly be asked to evaluate and re-evaluate your personal development. Both questions give us a sense of your life experiences; specifically, how you handle feedback and how you bounce back in those not so positive situations. What did you learn from the experience and how will it impact your future actions? In order to be powerful, we often find that situational essay questions command authentic stories.

3) In four slides or less please answer the following question: What have you not already shared in your application that you would like your future classmates to know about you?

There has never been a right or wrong way to answer this question. From the very artistic to the bold black and white, it's always been about the content.

Be strategic; take an inventory of what you've shared with us elsewhere in your application. What else would you like the Admissions Committee and your future classmates to know? We encourage you to think less about what the committee wants to hear, and more about how to illustrate those facets of yourself and your personality that make you unique. This is your chance to make sure when each reader closes your application file, they walk away with a sense of who are, what makes you tick and what it might be like to eventually meet you.

We hope the process of writing your application is a time of discovery and adventure as you look to prepare for your future, whatever that may be. Yes, we understand how time consuming and expensive this process can be, but investing in yourself always brings great returns.

Good Luck! 
Rose Martinelli

 A time of discovery and adventure