EssaySnark

  • about
  • contact
  • help
  • sign up
  • login
CLICK FOR MORE!
  • Essay Questions
    • Harvard
    • Stanford
    • Wharton
    • Chicago Booth
    • Kellogg
    • MIT Sloan
    • Tuck
    • NYU Stern
    • Columbia
    • Yale SOM
    • Berkeley Haas
    • UVA Darden
    • Duke Fuqua
    • Michigan Ross
    • UCLA Anderson
    • Cornell
  • Strategy Guides
    • MBA Interviewing Guide
    • Getting Off the Waitlist
    • Applying in Round 3 mini-guide
    • Applying to European Business Schools
    • School-Specific MBA Application Guides
      • Columbia 2020 MBA Strategy Guide
      • Harvard 2020 MBA Strategy Guide
      • Kellogg 2020 MBA Strategy Guide
      • MIT Sloan 2020 MBA Strategy Guide
      • Chicago Booth 2020 MBA Strategy Guide
      • *MORE SCHOOL-SPECIFIC GUIDES HERE*
  • MBA Consulting
    • Free essay reviews
    • What stage are you in?
    • Military MBA
    • BIPOC Program
    • Testimonials & Reviews
    • Guest Posts
  • My SnarkCenter
    • My Strategy Guides
    • My Favorite Posts
    • Discounts & Offers

Here’s how to prove that at Harvard, it’s not all about the essay*

November 18, 2019 by EssaySnark - Discusses Harvard Leave a Comment

We went on and on last month about why you probably shouldn’t be reading “sample” essays and we made the assertion that sometimes people get in despite the essays. Like, they had craptastic essays, but they still got the admit.

Or as seems to have been happening right and left this round, they at least got the interview invite, and we’ll have to see what happens in a few weeks on the acceptance front.

It’s not that the essays don’t matter. In some cases, for some profiles, and especially at certain schools, the essays can matter A LOT.

Writing top-notch essays as part of your MBA application is definitely a better path to possible success than so-so essays. Makes sense, right?

But unfortunately, even top-notch essays aren’t a sure thing when we’re talking about Harvard or Stanford.

Want to get proof?

Ask around to some of your buddies who have been rejected from Harvard in Round 1. If you happen to know any who went through some decimation of said essays by the ‘Snark, you may be especially interested to see that, hmmm, their essays were actually kinda good. In some cases, even really good. And still, they didn’t make it through to the next stage.

For Harvard, the essay alone isn’t gonna get you in the door. It needs backing through all the other elements of the profile coming together in the package that you submit. You need to show differentiation based on what you have sought out to accomplish in this life.

Remember, Harvard more than perhaps anyone is constructing a class. Yes, the members of that class tend to be seriously high achievers, which means that a high GMAT or GRE and an impressive GPA from college tend to be correlated with that. But those data alone do little to let you stand out. They’re a ticket to play the game. They’re not going to take you over the finish line — and they’re not even mandatory elements. They are correlations, not causations of success.

And simultaneously, you can have a really interesting background, with unusual datapoints in your personal history and a combination of life experiences that you don’t see every day — and if you don’t execute on the essay and make it part of a pitch where you’re using each and every part of the application to paint a full picture of who you are as an individual today… Well, that also can turn into a “no” from Harvard as well.

The further you move down the competitiveness scale for the schools, and the farther you get away from the H/S/W realm, then the more tolerance you’ll find built into the process, where a single non-optimized component does not hold you back if the facts of your background have these highlights of interest.

In other words: You can get away with a good rather than great set of essays to a school like UCLA and still move forward in their process, especially in Round 1, even if you’re coming from an oversubscribed pool, if there are enough other of those highlights peeking out.

Probably the most important first component at Harvard Business School Admissions is the resume. That’s because the resume captures what you have done with your life to this point.

We’re not saying you need to have a pretty resume. A straightforward standard-format professional layout resume is actually better than one that tries to showcase your style. (Unless you’re a designer or coming from a creative background, and then it might be appropriate for some of that to be reflected on the resume itself. As long as form doesn’t get in the way of function. It still needs to be easy to scan and digest quickly for an admissions person, which usually means that using a more standardized format, and having data in the spots where the reader expects it, will help you communicate to them on their terms. Which is always, always an aim to shoot for in this process. Make it easy on your reader, Brave Supplicant!)

If your resume tells a story of high differentiation, then that’s going to get you really far. The HBS Admissions Board is gonna lap that right up. (Do you know if your resume tells such a story? Our Comprehensive Profile Review will do so!)

If that’s the case, it’s not going to matter too much if your essay is not going above and beyond what’s being conveyed on the resume. (As long as you don’t say something wildly inappropriate, of course.) This is why we say that it’s not wholly about the essay for Harvard. The essay is an opportunity to show how you approach a challenging and ambiguous assignment (also discussed here, and of course in our Harvard Business School MBA Application Guide). The essay is your chance to shine, in terms of demonstrating self-awareness and maturity, and showcasing what you believe are the salient features of your own profile, in a way that goes above and beyond what the other parts of the application are already presenting.

But if the other parts of your application are already robustly demonstrating that you’re a person of depth, of experience, of thoughtfulness, of ambition, who offers diversity in some dimension or another, then that’s what the Harvard Admissions Board will respond to. That’s where an interview invitation is born.

If you’re showing a career path that is quite common to what others in your category have pursued, then it’s going to take a lot more evidence of that differentiation to prove to admissions that you’re one to more actively consider.

That’s certainly where the essay can help. But if the evidence of that isn’t already in place in the application, then it’s a missed opportunity. And if the essay is only recapping the same facts that are already in the other parts of the app, then it can be so much of a missed opportunity that the adcom takes a pass.

The prompt for the Harvard essay seems so innocuous: “What more would you like us to know as we consider your candidacy?”

It requires digging into the details for yourself, knowing who you are, understanding the landscape of admissions and appreciating what Harvard is about, before writing even the first word of that draft.

(Want help with all of this? Our Complete Essay Package can be a tremendous asset in supporting this process of self-exploration and analysis, and guiding you to what can work best for YOUR profile and YOUR application for an MBA from Harvard Business School.)

So basically, this is yet another cautionary tale: There are so many ways for this to go sideways! AND, you are sitting here RIGHT NOW with all the options available. If you’re considering Harvard in Round 2, then starting the work on that application today is important. If you didn’t make it past the hurdles for HBS in Round 1, then you’re actually in really good company. Today’s post may have made you feel worse about it all over again, and that wasn’t the intention. Instead, it was meant to try and help you cut yourself some slack. You took the actions that you did through the summer in putting together your app strategy, and you’re likely in a very good position at some other very good schools, even if the HBS dream didn’t pan out. And, this whole thing about applying to business school is HARD. It likely feels like a direct rejection of YOU, which is understandable when they’ve asked you to serve up all of yourself on a platter through the app. But a rejection is not saying you’re not any good; it’s saying that there was a gap in execution of the strategy, and that there is more competition for this process than probably anything you’ve undertaken before. The way that Harvard defines “unique” and “accomplished” is quite variable, and there is no one mold that you can aspire to, that will make it all turn into gold.

But, if you’re early days in the process, there are steps you can take to make sure you put together the absolute best app that you can. (Like, starting now. Leveraging the resources available. Working diligently non-stop on app components from here to submit.) And if you do that, then you’re going to come out the other end of the process feeling proud of yourself, no matter what some silly adcom ends up doing in response.

 
 
You may also be interested in:

  • What does it mean to be “differentiated” in the context of your MBA applications?
  • Another example of the “Harvard type”
  • What is an ‘MBA resume’?
  • If you want detailed, actionable feedback on the essay strategy you have constructed: The HBS Essay Decimator

 
 

Filed Under: school reviews & insights Bschools: Harvard

« Previous: School research, people. That’s what you can be working on right now. SCHOOL RESEARCH.
Next: ($) Using those MBA employment reports (international applicant edition) »

So who the heck is EssaySnark, anyway?!

We're the snarky experts in MBA admissions!

Sometimes amused and often appalled by what candidates write in their MBA applications to top bschools, EssaySnark created this little blahg to share common mistakes. Learn from them and avoid making admissions directors laugh (or want to hurl) when they read your essays. If you are hoping to have your essay reviewed anonymously on the blahg for free, submit it for consideration.

Want EssaySnark's personal assistance with your MBA applications? Start with our menu of consulting services and please read the Help FAQ to learn how we operate. Still have questions after doing all that? Email Team EssaySnark at gethelpnow at essaysnark dot com.

Good luck on your apps, Brave Supplicant!

Tell us what you think. Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Sign up for the 'Snark via email

Enter your address to get weekday blahg posts by email.

UPCOMING MBA APP DEADLINES

  • INSEAD Jan '22 Intake Rd 2
    in 1 month, 2 weeks, 0 days, 18 hours
  • (expected) HBS Class of 2024 app requirements released
    in 1 month, 4 weeks, 0 days, 19 hours
  • (expected) Columbia J-Term/ED app to open
    in 2 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 19 hours
  • INSEAD Jan '22 Intake Rd 3
    in 3 months, 1 week, 2 days, 18 hours
   
From a BSer January 2020:
"love the guide books!"


CLASS OF 2023 MBA APPLICATION STRATEGY GUIDES

     
    The 2020 Berkeley-Haas MBA Application Guide - updated for the Class of 2023 application!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Berkeley Haas - refreshed and updated, with brainstorming exercises and structured maps to help you focus your stories!
   
    The 2020-2021 NYU Stern MBA Application Guide that covers the main essay, the EQ Endorsement and Pick Six!
SnarkStrategies Guide for NYU - discusses your requirements for the Class of 2023 essays!
   
    The 2020-2021 Columbia MBA Application Guide
SnarkStrategies Guide for Columbia Business School for 2020-2021 applications
   
    The 2020 Harvard MBA Application Guide - completely overhauled and updated for the coronavirus era!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Harvard Business School!
   
    The 2020-2021 Duke Essay Guide - covers the 25 Random Things essay and all the rest too!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Duke Fuqua - up to date for the current season!
   
    The 2020-2021 MIT Essay Guide covers the org chart, the contacts for two references, and additional tips for the cover letter and 'introduce yourself' video -- and everything else you need to know!
SnarkStrategies Guide for MIT Sloan MBA - totally revised for the Class of 2023!
   
    The 2020-2021 Tuck Essay Guide has been refreshed with latest insights and advice for your essays about "investing generously" and "why Tuck"!
SnarkStrategies Guide for the Dartmouth Tuck MBA - completely overhauled for 2020, to help you demonstrate how you are nice, aware, etc stuff!
   
    The Yale SOM MBA Application Guide for Class of 2023 candidates!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Yale SOM - updated for 2020-2021
   
    The 2020-2021 Chicago Booth MBA Application Guide - ready to go to support your Class of 2023 essay strategy!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Chicago Booth for this year's MBA app!
   
    The 2020 Wharton MBA Application Guide - even more advice on how to get to a win with those essays!
SnarkStrategies Guide for The Wharton School - with new tips for 2020!
   
    The 2020 Kellogg Essay Guide - with a full methodology to identify your 'lasting impact' and your 'values' -- plus tips on 2020 world events and applicability to your essays!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Kellogg MBA - updated and revised for the new realities of 2020!    
      The 2020 Stanford MBA Application Guide - for "what matters most" in your MBA application!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Stanford GSB for the Class of 2023
   
    The 2020-2021 UCLA Anderson MBA Application Guide - updated for Class of 2023 on "impact"!
SnarkStrategies Guide for 
UCLA
   
   

Brave Supplicants' latest reviews on The 'Snark


Feb 11, 2021
by hopeful on MBA Interview Prep: Custom Practice Questions
Helpful

Just wanted to say thank you for these questions! A lot of them were really tailored to my profile, ... Read more

Apr 10, 2020
by George on EssaySnark
Great Starting Point

I thought getting over the GRE/GMAT hurdle was fairly straightforward--disciplined study then test execution... Read more

Apr 10, 2020
by George on Single Shot Express MBA Essay Review
Worth Every Penny

I used the Single Shot Express to decimate essay #1 at my first-choice school. Paired with the school... Read more






Not sure where to begin with EssaySnark?
Our Snark Selector
will tell you!



What were we snarking about at this time in past years?

  • 2020: "What should I do with my summer?"
  • 2019: ($) Got a glitch with your grades? TAKE ACTION NOW!
  • 2018: Should you care who the dean is?
  • 2018: Does it matter who the dean is? 2018 edition
  • 2017: If you really want to go to Harvard...
  • 2016: Another little quiz
  • 2016: ($) When your safety school is actually a stretch school.
  • 2015: ($) Deciding on a school: Does location matter?
  • 2013: Success Story! "It's complicated..."
  • 2012: "School X, or School Y with $$$?" (Part who knows)
My Tweets

See the Top U.S. Business Schools on a Map!


EssaySnark is currently available! We're accepting new clients! Standard turnarounds apply. If you're in a hurry, Speedy Review is available!

EssaySnark® is a registered trademark. All content copyright © 2010–2021 Snarkolicious Press · Privacy Policy

Where should you start with EssaySnark?

Which EssaySnark service is right for you? Answer a few questions to find out!

This field must be set to Everyone - then in the Settings -> HTML -> After Fields screen there's JavaScript to hide it.
Sending