The Harvard Business School MBA essay is open-ended and challenging. There’s some tried-and-true ways to gain the attention of the HBS admissions when answering the question on “What else would you like us to know as we consider your candidacy?” Today we examine an actual applicant’s essay for Harvard. This is not a sample essay but instead should help you get some ideas for how to present yourself in this challenging Harvard essay.
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FPHAWK says
This writer choose a professional topic. Would it be a mistake to write about a purely personal (family) topic in an HBS essay? Some schools seem to guide you to the personal with their prompts: IU’s “I’m most afraid of…”, of course Duke’s 25 random things. Would it be a mistake to mix in a little professional with the personal instances like these?
essaysnark says
1: “There are NO RULES for how you do your Harvard essay.”
2: “[I]f you’re serious about applying (deadline is coming up fast!) then we suggest you begin by picking up the HBS strategy guide.”
rmb356 says
Snark,
Thank you very much for taking a look at my essay. You are right about the not answering the question piece (obvi). I think I got so caught up on answering the old questions you included in your Harvard guide (along the greatest accomplishment/failures lines), that I didn’t think about coming back to focus on the actual answer for this years prompt. Rookie mistake. I’m going to see if I can figure out a way to correct that deficiency without mangling what I’ve already crafted. Once again, I appreciate the feedback!
essaysnark says
And thanks for the opportunity to review a good essay here! We’re feeling reasonably bullish on your chances so we expect an update as this puppy progresses! Good luck with everything and nice job of being at this stage so soon.