If you’ve ever stared at a blank page trying to craft the perfect MBA application essay, agonizing over every word, you’re not alone. Writing these essays is tough. It’s a delicate dance of showcasing your achievements and personality without sounding arrogant, all within strict word limits. You pour your heart and soul into these essays, hoping admissions committees will recognize your brilliance.
But have you ever stopped to wonder: do top MBA programs really care about GMAT essays as much as we think they do?
Seriously: Are MBA Essay Readers Really Reading?
It might be a hard pill to swallow, but imagine being an admissions officer at a top business school like Harvard Business School (HBS). Every year, you face a tidal wave of applications – nearly 10,000 at HBS alone. And most of these applications flood in right before deadline. Realistically, meticulously reading every single essay from 10,000 applicants, even with a team, simply isn’t feasible.
To put this into perspective, consider a story about essay evaluation. Once, I was involved in scoring essays for an international academic competition. My task, along with another scorer, was to evaluate 160 essays, scoring them from 1 to 100 and ranking the top essays in different age categories.
Even with just 160 essays, it was an incredibly demanding task. Reading each essay thoroughly was time-consuming. After the first few, we realized we had to become efficient. We started skimming introductions and conclusions. If an introduction was strong, we’d quickly scan the first sentence of each paragraph to see if it was worth closer examination for an award. Eventually, after about 80 essays, we even started skipping conclusions and began assigning scores based largely on the introductions and, surprisingly, even the handwriting.
We weren’t really reading in the way the essay writers intended. And that was with only 160 essays. Now, picture facing nearly 10,000 MBA applications.
How to Write MBA Essays That Get Noticed (Even When Skimmed)
The point is, even the most dedicated MBA admissions reader is likely to skim many of your essays. If you’re unlucky, they might not even go beyond your introduction. No admissions committee member would openly admit it, but human nature dictates that skimming becomes necessary when faced with such a massive volume, especially if the essays don’t immediately grab attention.
So, what’s the takeaway for your MBA application essays? Knowing that your essays might be skimmed should actually inform your writing strategy. Write essays designed to make an immediate impact, essays that are easy to digest. Long, rambling paragraphs are a recipe for being skimmed – or even skipped entirely.
Regardless of how impressive your professional background or extracurricular activities are, there’s always a risk that your carefully written essays won’t be fully appreciated if they don’t immediately strike the reader as interesting, compelling, and unique.
MBA programs are seeking future business leaders, not necessarily the next great novelist. However, they still appreciate a well-told story. A touch of writing flair can be exactly what you need to make your application memorable and highlight your leadership potential. Keeping your paragraphs concise and incorporating a bit of humor, where appropriate, can significantly increase the chances of your essays making a positive impression, even in a quick skim.
Ultimately, while top MBA programs care about GMAT essays in the sense that they are a required part of the application, remember that admissions committees are also looking at the bigger picture. Your GMAT score is important, but your essays offer a chance to showcase your personality, communication skills, and unique experiences – aspects that numbers alone can’t convey. So, focus on writing compelling, concise, and engaging essays that capture attention from the very first paragraph.
And finally, try not to overthink every tiny detail. Writing MBA essays is challenging, but it can be a bit less daunting to remember that you’re likely not being scrutinized word-for-word by a literary critic. Relax, focus on the big picture, and let your authentic voice shine through. That minor grammatical error probably won’t be the deciding factor. Probably.
