Like most B-Schools , Chicago Booth has also gone on a diet this year.\u00a0 While last year\u2019s two required essay questions (excluding\u00a0 PPT presentation and re-applicant essay) allowed applicants to use 1350 words, this year they are allowed just 900 words. Apart from the standard \u2018Goals\u2019 essay, Booth asks its applicants to write two short -answer essays about their biggest challenge and about something that has changed their thinking or perception. Also, Booth\u2019s unique PPT slide presentation question comes with a choice this year. You may either prepare a 4-slide presentation or write an essay of 600 words about other unique aspects of your personality that have not been revealed in other parts of the application.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s look at the questions one by one.<\/p>\n
1. What are your short- and long-term goals, and how will a Chicago Booth MBA help you reach them? (500 words)<\/strong><\/p>\n This question remains unchanged from last year except that you are allowed to use 500 words instead of 600 words. A Goals Essay connects past, present and future i.e. your past work- experience (past), your goals,(future), and the need of an MBA from a particular school to achieve your goals (present).\u00a0 The Schools want to see that you have a clear plan\/ vision for future and you have the ability to convince them of the same by telling your story\u00a0 in an engaging manner.<\/p>\n Past:\u00a0 Begin your essay with a story\/ event\/ life experience that reflects passion for your chosen field ( eg. marketing or finance) leading to your Bachelors degree .Continue your story\u00a0 about your past experience and provide details about how you have pursued\u00a0 your interest\/passion\u00a0 and progressed along your career path all these years. Make sure your story showcases your personal and professional attributes.\u00a0 (approximately 100 words )<\/p>\n Future: Then relate your short term and long term goals to real life experiences that have helped you shape your goals. Explain why you believe that\u00a0 an MBA is the next logical step in your career path? How an MBA will bring you closer to the fulfillment of\u00a0 your goals? . Also, discuss why it makes sense\u00a0 to do MBA\u00a0 NOW and not after 1-2 years?<\/p>\n Short term goals:<\/strong> Be clear and quite decisive for short term goals (even if you are not 100% sure.) Show that you have put some thought into it.<\/p>\n Long Term Goals:<\/strong> It\u2019s ok to be more broad and idealistic for long term goals, but explain steps (A to B to C) Show sincerity and passion in\u00a0 talking about your dreams. When discussing your long term goals, please make sure there is a logical connection between short term and long term goals. (approximately 200-words)<\/p>\n Present:\u00a0 Once you have justified the need to do an MBA , explain\u00a0 how an MBA from\u00a0 Chicago is your best bet at this time? How it will help you achieve your goals? Discuss how you will use their resources to achieve your goals? Be specific in answering the second part of the question -'Why Chicago Booth'? Go online, visit campus, classes, talk to professors, students, and alumni. Discuss experiences you have had visiting classes, programs, professors, if you can. Make sure there is a connection between your goals and the offerings of Chicago (approximately 200 words)<\/p>\n Lastly, even though the essay prompt doesn't ask you about your contribution to Chicago, include a brief statement about how you \u00a0are a good match for Chicago Booth\u2019s program?<\/p>\n 2 - Short Answer Essays:\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n a. What has been your biggest challenge, and what have you learned from it? (200 words maximum)<\/strong><\/p>\n The Challenge question seems to be a favorite of B-Schools this year. While some schools have specifically asked \u2018personal challenge or obstacle\u2019(Ross),and \u00a0some have been specific about \u2018a challenging work situation\u2019 (Darden), Booth offers you freedom to choose your challenging experience from your personal as well as professional life. However, the term\u2019 biggest\u2019 indicates that it has to be a huge challenge.<\/p>\n Narrating all parts of your biggest challenge in only 200 words is nothing short of a challenge in itself . So you need to follow the principle of \u2018less is more.\u2019 That is, be as precise and concise as possible and make sure all parts of your story come through clearly<\/p>\n You biggest challenge story can be personal (eg. overcoming family expectations, or family sickness or any other family emergency) or professional (\u00a0 crucial project with limited resources, a need to take an important decision with insufficient information or pressure from the superiors or lack of cooperation from team members etc.)<\/p>\n Remember, whatever your story is, it should present you in a positive light, revealing your strengths in the areas of diplomacy, honesty, maturity, ethics, creativity and integrity. Be honest in providing details of your story, how you felt, what you did, what you said etc. These vivid details of your story would reveal your character traits.<\/p>\n The Structure:<\/strong>\u00a0 Make sure your challenge story has the following four<\/span> components:<\/p>\n Since the second part of the essay question asks you to share what you learned from the experience, it is imperative that you explain at length why that experience is meaningful to you, both in terms of the challenges you overcame, the results you produced, and the leanings you gleaned from it .You may also describe how you are now applying or trying to apply those lessons in similar situations at work. The key here is your essay should eventually demonstrate your growth.<\/span><\/p>\n In the following example, the applicant wraps up his challenge story by outlining its significance for him.<\/p>\n Example:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cToday I recall XXX as one of my most memorable projects. From revenue perspective, it was not the biggest project I handled. However, it was the most challenging project in terms of saving my company and above all, my own reputation in front of the unforeseen challenges. The experience <\/em>taught me valuable decision making and team-working skills that I am now practicing successfully.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n b. Tell us about something that has fundamentally transformed the way you think. (200 words maximum)<\/strong><\/p>\n This short answer question, like the previous one, is replacing last year\u2019s question \u201cHow has your family, culture, and\/or environment influenced you as a leader?\u201d<\/em> Again, the purpose of this question is also to get to know the real you.<\/p>\n When choosing an experience\/ story for this essay keep in mind the word\u00a0 \u201ctransformed\u201d<\/strong> in the essay prompt which means \u2018\u00a0to change somebody or something completely\u2019 , so you need to introspect deeply to look for that experience which not only brought about transformation in your perception, but also resulted in altering your way of doing certain things.<\/p>\n You may choose your story from your personal or professional life. However, if you have already discussed a personal story in your \u2018challenge\u2019 essay , it makes more sense to choose a story from your professional life or vice versa. This will provide the Ad Com a well- rounded picture of your personality. <\/em>The story could be about a person (a professor, or a great boss or any other person) or an event ( a family affair or an external occurrence)\u00a0 that impacted you so deeply that it completely transformed your way of thinking.<\/p>\n For organizing ideas for this essay, I would recommend the same 4-part structure<\/strong> :<\/p>\n Please explain the situation, the action, and the result part briefly and focus more on \u00a0what you learned and then applied those lessons \u00a0\u00a0in a similar situation later.<\/p>\n In both the short answer questions, the idea is to show growth. So your story should effectively show the contrast between your current mind-set and your previous one, so\u00a0 the Ad Com \u00a0gets a clear sense of your \u201cbefore and after\u201d self .<\/p>\n Example:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThis event completely changed my way of thinking, and I realized that an honest person\u00a0 will ultimately emerge\u00a0 a winner no matter what trials and tribulations he\/she\u00a0 has to face. Since then, I have never compromised on the principal of honesty in my life.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n 3 - Presentation\/Essay: <\/strong>The Chicago experience will take you deeper into issues, force you to challenge assumptions, and broaden your perspective. In a four-slide presentation or an essay of no more than 600 words, broaden our perspective about who you are. Understanding what we currently know about you from the application, what else would you like us to know?<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>Power Point Presentation<\/strong>: Chicago Booth\u2019s \u201cPowerPoint question\u201d is still here, but it has been reworded again this year . Last year, Booth wanted you to talk about those aspects of yourself that you have not \u201calready included in your application\u201d. This year they are asking you to broaden their \u201cperspective about who you are\u201d. This might make you wonder , \u201cAren\u2019t they asking the same thing?\u201d Yes, they are asking the same thing in a different way.<\/p>\n With PPT presentation, creativity is the key - creativity not in terms of technicalities, but in terms of ideas. So here is an opportunity for you to differentiate yourself \u00a0by presenting an entirely distinct\u00a0\u00a0 image of your yourself through pictures. This PPT slide presentation may\u00a0\u00a0 be looked upon as an 'optional essay 'asked by other schools- an opportunity to tell the Ad Com what you could not tell in other parts of your application. In Question 1, you have already discussed your goals and why you want an MBA from Chicago ,and in\u00a0 Question 2 ,you have discussed your \u2018biggest challenge\u2019 and \u2018something \u00a0that transformed your way of thinking\u2019. Your resume and the application form provides information regarding your past experience, so you need to make sure not\u00a0 to repeat these subjects \u00a0here.<\/p>\n So how to get ideas for these four slides? Well, be creative and imaginative and use this PPT presentation to portray your unique values, passion, and hobbies<\/span> .For example, if you passionately pursue a hobby e.g. painting, photography, reading, or singing etc. you may use 1-2\u00a0 slides to present details of your hobbies through vivid images . Make sure to use images to help them understand you better.\u00a0 Remember, it is not a test of your power point presentation skills; it is a platform to present to the AD Com those aspects of your personality that will support your candidacy. If you are able to convey your ideas effectively through minimal images, that is fine.<\/p>\n Also, you may\u00a0 use one of the slides to elaborate \/re-emphasize\u00a0 your most unique personality trait.<\/span> For example, if you have\u00a0\u00a0 an amazing example of your ability to take initiative or to think outside the box , but could not describe it in detail in other essays because of\u00a0 limited space, it is a good idea to tell\u00a0 that particular story through images here. Another option can be to show case your international<\/span> experience or cultural adaptability,<\/span> for almost all B-schools look for international experience as one of the desired assets in their potential candidates. So if you have one, your best bet is to use one of the slides for your most impressive story that showcases your international exposure, global outlook, and cultural adaptability. Also, you may use one of the slides to tell an impressive story of your leadership experience. <\/span>\u00a0<\/em>You may also use this platform to address areas of concern in your application e.g. low gpa or low GMAT score or gap in job. <\/span><\/p>\n Essay:<\/strong> In case you don\u2019t feel comfortable with PPT presentation and are an essay lover, Booth \u00a0\u00a0<\/em>has given you an option of writing a600 words essay instead\u00a0 so you can \u00a0effectively use words to paint\u00a0 a well -rounded interesting picture of yourself.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/ins><\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Like most B-Schools , Chicago Booth has also gone on a diet this year.\u00a0 While last year\u2019s two required essay questions (excluding\u00a0 PPT presentation and re-applicant essay) allowed applicants to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":141,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[113],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14440","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-applications","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14440","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/141"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14440"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14440\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14444,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14440\/revisions\/14444"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14440"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14440"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14440"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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