{"id":24588,"date":"2014-06-30T08:54:47","date_gmt":"2014-06-30T15:54:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/2014\/06\/mccombs-mba-essay-analysis-your-2015-application\/"},"modified":"2014-06-30T08:54:47","modified_gmt":"2014-06-30T15:54:47","slug":"mccombs-mba-essay-analysis-your-2015-application","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/mccombs-mba-essay-analysis-your-2015-application\/","title":{"rendered":"McCombs MBA Essay Analysis, Your 2015 Application"},"content":{"rendered":"

Are you ready to dig into your essays? Application essays are specifically and cleverly designed to get into your head. We like to turn the tables on the admissions committees and get inside their<\/i> heads. Why are they asking these questions? What are they looking for? Read on as our experts break down application essay questions to help YOU plan the attack.<\/h3>\n
Essay One<\/a>
\nEssay Two<\/a>
\nOptional<\/a><\/div>\n
Aight, I’m pumped! Where to next?<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
CHECK OUT OUR MBA ESSAY WRITING GUIDE \u279d <\/div>\n

<\/a><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n
SIGN UP FOR A FREE PROFILE EVALUATION \u279d <\/div>\n

<\/a><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
McCombs MBA Essay Analysis: Essay One<\/h5>\n

Imagine that you are at the Texas MBA Orientation for the Class of 2017. Please introduce yourself to your new classmates, and include information you feel relevant to both your personal and professional life. Select only one communication method that you would like to use for your response.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Write an essay (250 words)
\nShare a video introduction (one minute)
\nShare your about.me profile<\/p>\n

Introductions can take place in a variety of ways. Standing in a circle of a few at a cocktail party. In a one-on-one interview. First day on the job.<\/p>\n

The version we\u2019re after here is much different. McCombs just handed you a mic, dimmed the house lights, and threw a spotlight onto you. This is your time not just to introduce yourself, but to perform. A performance is artful. And requires a special type of messaging. Your challenge isn\u2019t to hold the attention of the guy sitting across the desk who is usually forced to tune in. Your challenge is to capture and sustain the attention of a room full of people, whose magnitude (by itself) tends to make it an uphill battle from minute 1.<\/p>\n

Golden Rule:<\/strong> Dullness is deadly.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t be dull. Don\u2019t be quiet. Don\u2019t be average. Don\u2019t be monotone. Don\u2019t be\u2026 safe.<\/p>\n

Now\u2019s your chance to tap your inner James Bond. Your inner MLK. Your inner Seth Macfarlane. Charm. Wit. Risk. Energy. A deviating from that safe, straight, center pathway.<\/p>\n

Whether it\u2019s an essay, or a video, or an about.me profile, the very first thing you need to do is grab your audience\u2019s attention. There\u2019s no real room for a slow burn here. If this were a two hour movie, and you had a proven track record, maybe an audience would spot you an unceremonious beginning, trusting in a future payoff. You have no such luxury here, my friend. Your cohort doesn\u2019t know you. You need to be spectacular and attention-worthy from second 1.<\/p>\n

What makes for a good opener? Well, practically speaking, \u201cit\u201d can be absolutely anything, which is to say it can take the FORM of just about anything. But what most great opening moments have in common is this: they knock the reader\/audience off balance. For most of you, that may sound great, but it still may not mean much. \u201cHow the hell am I supposed to throw the reader off balance?\u201d Well, one way to think about it is to leave some stuff OUT. The more buttoned up your opening is, the more likely your audience will feel secure. And secure\u2014for now\u2014is lethal. Bad.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy name is Craig Blodgitsnick. I am 27 years old. And I\u2019m a banker.\u201d Great. Super clear. And therefore\u2026 too clear? It\u2019s all buttoned up. The audience needs a reason to hear more. With an opening like that, however, we\u2019re left with no such desire. Here\u2019s an alternative.<\/p>\n

\u201cI make people cry for a living.\u201d<\/p>\n

Um, say what? What the hell does that mean. Did he just say that? I have no idea who this guy is, I have no idea how I feel about him, I have no sense of whether that\u2019s a good or bad thing. What I do know\u2026 is that I\u2019m dying to hear more. Success. This speaker has the audience in the palms of his hands.<\/p>\n

\u201cPond. Cigarette. Abandoned BMW. These three things almost got me arrested, led me to my future wife, and ultimately set me on a path of world domination.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hunh? I mean, I couldn\u2019t be more in. Who the hell says that? How on Earth are those three things connected? After everyone gives their boring standard speech, I can bet you money I\u2019m gonna remember the guy who said THAT.<\/p>\n

Throw your reader off balance. Give them a reason to want to read more. Now, not to scare you, but this isn\u2019t easy. It is a touch risky, and it requires some finesse. But it is absolutely worth working toward. But just for a moment, let\u2019s talk about the downside\u2026<\/p>\n

If you can\u2019t quite pull it off, and it seems forced and inauthentic, then you run the risk of seeming like you\u2019re trying too hard. And that\u2019s a liability. So, get a gut check from a second set of eyes (doesn\u2019t have to be a pro, could be anyone\u2014see if they buy it). If it\u2019s just not passing muster, there is recourse. Which is to tell a very honest, earnest story. Your story, a personal story. But, it\u2019s gotta be a cool story. If it\u2019s a straightforward, you are toast. There\u2019s gotta be some GRIT in there, some adversity, some uniqueness. That can be equally compelling.<\/p>\n

\u201cHi, my name is Goran Crevitz and I became an adult when I was five years old when I was separated from my parents and grandparents. My first job was\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

Yah, I\u2019d listen to that guy. (But did you notice how even here, the author has thrown the audience off balance? This is not happenstance.)<\/p>\n

Whichever medium suits you best, take advantage of it. Don\u2019t choose the video if all you do is read an essay. If you use video, it has to be because there\u2019s something about your look and body language and visible energy that communicates something a written essay can\u2019t quite capture. If you choose an essay over video, it\u2019s gotta be because there are certain things you\u2019re able to do with the written word that would be MORE effective than a video version.<\/p>\n

Keep your audience on the edge of their seat, though, by throwing them off balance.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\n
Ready to Start your MBA?<\/pre>\n
 SIGN UP FOR A FREE CONSULTATION \u279d <\/p><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n
McCombs MBA Essay Analysis: Essay Two<\/h5>\n
In the Texas MBA program, we promote a diverse and collaborative community by providing opportunities for growth in an academically rigorous environment. Please discuss why McCombs is the right program for you, what you hope to gain from your time in the Texas MBA Program both personally and professionally, and how you will contribute to your classmates\u2019 experiences. (500 words)<\/strong><\/p>\n
The worst thing you can do here is tee up a response that can work just as well for another school. McCombs is an outstanding program. One of the best\u2014but, it doesn\u2019t have the rank or reputation of \u201cTop 10.\u201d These guys don\u2019t wanna be the fallback option to folks who can\u2019t quite make it to schools that are higher up on their preference list. They\u2019d rather take the guy who wants McCombs more than ANY OTHER program. Why? Well, when you want something badly, you tend to work harder to get it. Desire here counts for a lot.<\/p>\n
So, in order to make this argument convincingly, you need to come across as a guy who might PREFER to go to McCombs over MIT or Wharton, etc. This argument must be as personal as it is based on logic. At some level, the argument won\u2019t hold water if it\u2019s too \u201clogic-based.\u201d Why would anyone prefer a lower-ranked program to a higher-ranked one? Well, there are lots of potential reasons, but it can\u2019t possibly be based on certain parameters that led to that school\u2019s ranking that is LOWER than another\u2019s. Let\u2019s say you were about to choose a husband and your decision was going to be based on height, and that you wanted to marry the TALLEST option available. Man #1 is 6\u20198\u201d and Man #2 is 6\u20190\u201d. You can\u2019t select Man #2 \u201cbased on his height.\u201d The logic collapses there.<\/p>\n
Now, you CAN, however, suggest that that while height is important to you, Man #2 possesses THREE ESSENTIAL and UTTERLY COMPELLING OTHER TRAITS that ultimately make him trump Man #1. This will allow you to get out of the \u201cwait, if these are the reasons you like McCombs, why wouldn\u2019t you prefer Haas, or Tuck, or Duke\u201d etc.<\/p>\n
You MUST find those \u201cUTTERLY COMPELLING OTHER TRAITS\u201d that make McCombs the most desirable \u201cman\u201d on Earth\u2014for YOU. (This is true of ALL programs, but is especially true of schools ranked in the mid-teens.) If your arguments aren\u2019t specific enough, this essay will just implode on itself. Do as much research as you possibly can, and make it clear that you know everything there is to know about this school and that you would almost rather NOT earn an MBA than to earn an MBA at some place OTHER than McCombs, because McCombs is simply the best and most effective path that connects the present you to the desired future you.<\/p>\n
Describe the fit. Explain what McCombs is, and then articulate how YOU snap into place perfectly. Explain it emotionally as well\u2014feelings you get from your research, talking to people, visiting the campus, etc. This becomes bulletproof. No one can argue with \u201chow much you like a place\u201d or \u201cthe fact that a particular school energizes you\u201d for example.<\/p>\n
In terms of impact, you\u2019ll want to demonstrate a clear understanding of their mission, what the value in a student body, and then to show how your presence will not just be in step with them, but also enhance it in some meaningful way. Be specific. Better to talk about something that is particularly meaningful to McCombs that may not be all that exciting to another school. (As always, if THIS response can easily be applied to another program\u2026 it\u2019s not going to hold up.)<\/p>\n
        <\/p>\n
\n
Ready to Start your MBA?<\/pre>\n
 SIGN UP FOR A FREE CONSULTATION \u279d <\/p><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n
McCombs MBA Essay Analysis: Optional<\/h5>\n
Please provide any additional information that you believe is important and\/or will address any areas of concern that will be beneficial to the Admissions Committee in considering your application. (250 words)<\/strong><\/p>\n
They may all phrase it differently, but your approach to the Optional Essay<\/em><\/a> is aaaalways the same, folks.<\/p>\n
        <\/p>\n
\n
Ready to Start your MBA?<\/pre>\n
 SIGN UP FOR A FREE CONSULTATION \u279d <\/p><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Are you ready to dig into your essays? Application essays are specifically and cleverly designed to get into your head. We like to turn the tables on the admissions committees…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":140,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"1","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[817],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24588","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-admissionado","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24588","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\/140"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24588"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24588\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24588"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24588"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24588"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}