Stanford won’t be making significant changes to their app requirements — but still, we did a full update to our Stanford MBA essay guide with new insights on how to do an excellent job on these essays and truly increase your chances of an offer at this seriously competitive school!
Our Stanford MBA guide has been fully refreshed to cover new details on getting in – it’s time to get started!
2017-’18 Stanford MBA Essay Questions & Recommendations – Class of 2020
If you’re thinking of trying for Stanford, please keep in mind that the average GMAT score for the GSB Class of 2018 went up to – gulp! – 737. You still have time to retake the test if you’re not showing your strengths through your score yet.
The essay questions are the same as last year:
Two essays, 1,150 words total (or 1,200 if you’re doing the joint MSx application), allocated any way you wish:
- What matters most to you, and why? (750 words suggested – you will need this much space to tell your story)
- Why Stanford? (400 words suggested – which is really not much! but you’ll be able to work with it)
What everyone says is true: You need to be AUTHENTIC in your MBA applications.
Nowhere is this more true than with Stanford!
OK great. So how can you do that??
Resist the urge – as irresistible as it may be – to try and impress your reader.
Don’t try to think of what “sounds good.” Don’t think about what you think they want to hear. It’s hard not to do this but it’s important!
Instead, spend time sincerely reflecting on what your answer would be IF YOU WERE ANSWERING THIS JUST FOR YOURSELF.
Seems simple, eh?
Well…..
These two essays are a way to share your uniqueness with the adcom. But believe us when we say this: You don’t have to manufacture that uniqueness when you write them! The best way to grab the attention of the GSB is to do the work of self reflection that they talk about all over their website.
The competition here has always been fierce, but to put it into perspective: They were up to 8,100 apps in 2015, which we understand to be an all-time record, and many schools also reported record-setting volumes in 2016. HBS is the only school that gets more apps. Nobody else even comes close. Average GMAT at Stanford is 737. This is crazy.
Our Stanford essay guide is new and improved for 2017. Please get started now! You need all the time you can get to build it for this school! There are a bunch of exercises in this guide to help you get started with the all-important process of self-exploration. We also have plenty of Stanford MBA application advice available here on the site. An important tip? Don’t make Stanford the first application that you tackle! (Though ***do*** apply in Round 1 if you can.)
Stanford MBA recommendations (or “Letters of Reference” in their lingo)
Everything in this section is for the OLD APPLICATION and has not yet been fully confirmed for 2017, however we believe it should be accurate going forward. This info will be updated as we verify details.
Stanford used similar recommender questions to some other schools in 2016 – but they were not the same. Will need to confirm if they tweak things to standardize for 2017.- Two Letters of Reference
- Two main questions plus one optional for your recommenders to answer – though note that they’re not identical to how other schools are asking these questions.
- Review the questions here.
Definitely get a recommendation from your boss if you can (and if you think you can’t, reconsider). The recommender’s title does NOT matter to the adcom; it adds no value to have your CEO write about you if the first time he met you was when you asked him to write your recommendation. You want someone who knows you well and can speak in detail about the questions they’re asking. You have a lot of leeway in who to choose for both of these but it’s definitely quite easy to make a strategic misstep. There are lots of resources for choosing your recommenders available through posts on the blahg; if you want more help, our Letters of Recommendation App Accelerator walks through the specifics and lets you submit your recommenders’ strategy for feedback from EssaySnark.
Stanford 2017-2018 Dates and Deadlines for the Class of 2020
This is the same admissions schedule as they’ve traditionally run, however they’re now requiring apps to be submitted by 10am Pacific time (used to be a 1pm cutoff). See Stanford MBA Admissions Deadlines
- Rd 1 2017: September 19
INTERVIEWS: The general pattern at Stanford has been that interview invites will go out for a one-month period from about the end of October through end of November, when they have Round 1 release day and set the no-luck applicants free into the wild. You can expect a similar sequence this year. Final decision is mid-December.
- Rd 2 2018: January 10 – this is one of the later Round 2 deadlines, for which we are grateful! You will thank Stanford for this! As we complained about last year, the many schools that stack all their Rd 2 deadlines in the few days after the holidays deserve their own little spot in a very hot place. Stanford is a saint for at least giving all of you a little wiggle room after the first of the year.
Similar to above: Round 2 interview invites are released in a one-month window, beginning somewhere around the first of February. In early March, they usually have a “release”, at which time anyone not moving forward says bye-bye. Final decision is end of March.
Stanford MBA Useful Links
Remember when reviewing info about Stanford that anything a school states is specific to its own programs only – not to other schools – and information can also change from year to year.
- The Stanford MBA Admissions Blog was closed down in late 2014. Why a school would shutter its blog, we do not know. It used to be at http://www.stanford.edu/group/mba/blog/ (anyway, it was updated infrequently, even when it was live)
- The school has a Twitter account but it’s not typically got any admissions stuff on it
Huh. Not a very useful list, is it? Stanford does do webinars from time to time and they have a standard campus visit program as other schools do. They do not encourage applicants to cold-call or -email their students, however. If you know a Stanford alum personally then that’s an excellent resource to start with.
For Reference: Stanford’s Past-Season Questions
Included for historical purposes, in case you want to study what they’ve asked in the past – which has been largely the same for many years, so this section should be useful. This content is preserved as it was originally posted for each respective year. Be sure to check what this year’s requirements are before proceeding!
Click to view last year's questions[The essay questions for the Class of 2019 were the same as they are for the Class of 2020, which are discussed in detail at the top of this page.]
2016 Stanford MBA Essay Questions
Two essays, 1,150 words total, allocated any way you wish:
- What matters most to you, and why? (750 words suggested – you will need this much space to tell your story)
- Why Stanford? (400 words suggested – which is really not much! but you’ll be able to work with it)
The word count suggestions are different if you’re doing the simultaneous MBA + MSx app.
[End last year’s questions section.]
Click to view 2015 questions
2015 Stanford MBA Essay Questions & Recommendations for the Class of 2018
Stanford has made some applicant-positive changes this year AND WE HOPE OTHER SCHOOLS WILL FOLLOW SUIT. (Oh look! MIT has done so!)
Our 2015 predictions for the GSB were on target:
- Essays: Stanford is – mostly – maintaining status quo from last year, keeping the same two questions (see below).
- However GOOD NEWS! They’ve expanded the length limit!!! And, Stanford allows you to allocate the word count any way you like (this is not new, we’re just pointing it out since it’s very unique among all the bschools and their essays). Your total allocation is now 1,150 words for these two essays, which is up 50 words from last year – that is not a lot, but any little bit will help. This is positive.
- Another plus? They’ve adjusted their deadlines in a way that is HUGELY BENEFICIAL TO ALL OF YOU. It’s almost like the Stanford adcom read our recent post with suggestions on that – or maybe we’re just oddly prescient these days. 😉
- They’ve also – sort of – kept the two standard recommenders’ questions but they’ve added one more! Another big ‘yay!’ This is an optional “anything else you want to say?” question. It may sound trivial but honestly, it lets your recommenders talk in greater detail about you – so they can make a stronger case for your admission. This is a plus.
- The one downside? They actually changed the wording of the first “standardized” question – don’t these schools realize that CHANGING THEM means they’re NO LONGER STANDARDIZED?? Sheesh.
The Stanford 2015-’16 Essay Questions
Same prompts as they’ve had for awhile – and you have plenty of resources available to tackle these on this site.
EssaySnark **knows** what makes for a strong app, and (finally!!) the Stanford admissions peeps are openly saying the same things. It’s all covered in this guide. Get a head start on what to expect with this very challenging application. You’ll want to give yourself as much time as possible to work on these essays (but please don’t start writing until after you’ve figured out what to say!!! this guide explains how).
Our Stanford essay guide has been expanded for 2015 to cover more tactical angles (previous editions of this guide have been largely strategic).
And yet another plug for these guides: Stanford has recently tweaked the instructions on its website for this season, being more direct and clear with what they’re looking for in terms of essays and recommenders. Every one of these angles was already covered in our Stanford guide.
[End 2015 questions section.]
Click to view 2014 questions
2014 questions – these are OLD
There was no behavioral question in 2014, as there had been for many many years. They announced the Class of 2017 app changes on their blog on May 15, 2014.
In 2014, also Stanford streamlined the number of letters of reference that they need, down to just two, from the three that they had asked for before. They require one from your current direct supervisor (there are certain situations where it’s acceptable not to get one from your current manager, but you should do so if you possible can). The second you have flexibility with; can be a former supervisor, or a peer, though we suggest a former supervisor as typically the best option. Choose wisely, Brave Supplicant!
[End 2-years-ago questions section.]
Click to view 2013 questions
2013 questions – these are VERY OLD
The essays are exactly the same as last year, with one teensy tiny change:
Three essays:
- What matters most to you, and why?
- What do you want to do—REALLY—and why Stanford?
- Choose one:
- Tell us about a time in the last three years when you built or developed a team whose performance exceeded expectations.
- Tell us about a time in the last three years when you identified and pursued an opportunity to improve an organization.
- Tell us about a time in the last three years when you went beyond what was defined or established.
Essay length limits: 1600 words, divided up among the essays as you see fit. (EssaySnark recommends you stick with their suggestions, though: 750 / 450 / 400.)
The teensy-tiny change is, there’s a few “Just for Fun” questions within the application about your favorite place; last year, they asked about your favorite food.
[End two-years-ago questions section.]
The best help for the Stanford app? Our SnarkStrategies MBA Guide for Stanford GSB, available in an easy access online version.
EssaySnark reviews and advice on Stanford essays
Our advice is to study these – but please don’t try to copy what someone else wrote about in a ‘matters most’ essay! We hope the reason for this caution is obvious.
- essay critique: Stanford “What matters most and why?” (January 2017)
- Inside-out and outside-in stories (essays for Berkeley, Kellogg, Stanford) (December 2016)
- Yet another tip on writing Stanford Essay B: “Why Stanford?” (December 2016)
- Tips on Stanford Essay B: “Why Stanford?” (November 2016)
- essay critique! Stanford Essay B: “Why Stanford?” (November 2016)
- No whitewashing (relates to Stanford Essay A) (July 2016)
- A BSer wonders about applying to Harvard vs Stanford (July 2016)
- Stanford essays are out – thank you Stanford! (May 2015)
- Your first idea and your best idea (with a tip for Stanford’s “What is your favorite…?” short-answer question) (November 2015)
- essay critique: Stanford “What matters most” (March 2015)
- Stanford essay critique: “What matters most to me is sports” (September 2014)
- Stanford Essay 1: “What matters most?” (July 2014)
- Stanford Essay 1 – matters most – part 2 (July 2014)
- Stanford Essay 2 and Wharton Essay 1: Are they the same or not? (July 2014)
- Stanford and career goals (December 2013)
- Stanford’s “What matters most and why?” (May 2013)
- Three GMAT Club essay reviews:
- Essay 1: “What matters most” (August 2013)
- Essay 2: “What do you REALLY want to do?” (August 2013)
- Essay 3: “Went beyond what was defined or established” (September 2013)
You might also want to check out:
- November 2016 What makes Stanford so great?
- June 2016: Stanford’s “save the world” culture
- August 2015: A common mistake when writing essays for Stanford
- July 2015: What we recommend you don’t do when writing your essays for Stanford (huh, we have a lot of “don’t do this” posts for Stanford this year!)
- July 2015: Seeing sample essays will not help you be authentic
- June 2015: A memo to Derrick Bolton (about applicants using admissions consultants)
- June 2015: More about applicants and admissions consultants
- May 2015: The most important change with the GSB’s app
- November 2014: Applying to H/S/W? Why “Is my GMAT good enough?” is not the right question
- November 2014: What if Stanford asks, “What other schools have you applied to?”
- November 2013: Stanford and admissions consultants
- November 2013: It’s Stanford and only Stanford for me
- September 2012: Essay advice from the one who matters most
- November 2011: Why do people’s Stanford drafts suck so much?
The EssaySnark Stanford MBA guide has been updated, and expanded, for the 2017 application, to give you all the support you need to tackle these daunting essay questions. It’s now 77 pages of useful insights and actionable tips for how (and how NOT!) to approach your task. Brave Supplicants this year have even more help in understanding how to build a compelling set of two essays!