aal286 wrote:
brobeedle wrote:
I just submitted my application for round 1. Think about it this way. If they really wanted to know why mba/why insead/career goals, they would've asked that. they did ask that in previous years, but have kept it out this year - i think theres a reason for that. they want to know you as a person, and know who you really are and what drives you. i'm sure INSEAD knows you absolutely love the school and would do anything to attend. they made the change so that they can hear more real and authentic stories, as opposed to random name dropping and "i love INSEAD because...."
just my 2 cents. i haven't been invited to interview or anything yet, but I honestly think if they didn't ask those questions, they don't want to know. The only one area I would focus on is Career Goals - try to incorporate that somewhere in your essays. You can even get your recommender to talk about these areas, if you absolutely cannot fit them anywhere in your essays.
fingers crossed :D
I agree that INSEAD most likely wants to see more personal and interesting essays and moved away from the "why MBA/why INSEAD" question because most candidates were essentially saying the same thing (extolling the virtues of INSEAD's diverse student base, etc.) I'm pretty sure the topic will still come up in the interviews though.
Hey,
I am a 15'J admit at INSEAD. I can vouch for what aal286 said. Both my interviews lasted for more than an hour each and the interviewers were primarily focused on getting to know my career goals, need for an MBA and rational behind going to INSEAD.
So, my two cents would be to answer the questions at hand.
Send me a PM if you need help with anything specific.