Gone are the convenstional questions about goals and achievements - Northwestern Kellogg MBA Essays are looking for CHARACTER. Time to step it up.<\/p>\n
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Resilience. Perseverance. Grit. Call it what you will\u2026. Challenges can build character. Describe a challenging experience you\u2019ve had. How were you tested? What did you learn? (450 words)<\/strong><\/p>\n What this is… is a great question. Before we dig into how to answer it, let\u2019s soak up all the hints first. Why would Kellogg make mention of \u201cresilience, perseverance, and grit\u201d unless those were things they valued (and are therefore looking for specifically in would-be MBAs)? Whatever your story, whatever your challenge, if they don\u2019t lead to the development or sharpening of those things in particular, you\u2019ve missed the purpose of this prompt. In other words, if the conclusion of your essay is \u201cand this is an amazing example that shows how smart and capable a leader I am,\u201d you\u2019ve missed it. The conclusion you want is \u201cI was pushed well outside my comfort zone, but learned over and over that even the most awkward, unpleasant, direct lines of communication are always more effective than the alternatives.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cBuilding\u201d character. Let\u2019s consider that word a bit. When you build a house, you don\u2019t use a crane to drop a magically pre-assembled house onto the foundation. In other words it doesn\u2019t from no-house to\u2026 house, with the snap of your fingers. You lay that sucker brick by brick, nail by nail. It\u2019s a process. It\u2019s linear. The experience you describe for this essay must show development, which means there\u2019s a difference between the Before & After picture. Before this episode, there were certain assumptions you relied on in your approach. Or there were certain go-to leadership tactics. Or there were certain principles you had held steadfastly to. Whatever the \u201cthing\u201d is, it needs to have EVOLVED somehow through this experience. We wanna know what it used to be. What happened to \u201ctest\u201d it. And how it changed.<\/p>\n This is important. If there wasn\u2019t a shift in your tactical algorithm, a change in your philosophy, a renewed sense of \u2026 something, your story is gonna feel like a fleshed out resume bullet point. Instead, we need to see an EVOLUTION from how you were or behaved or viewed things BEFORE this event to how you then were or behaved or viewed things DIFFERENTLY ON ACCOUNT of this event. Identify those things before you begin, and the rest will be easy.<\/p>\n Once you have that locked and loaded, now we can begin delivering this thing with some punch. (Easy, once the STORY points are solid.)<\/p>\n You have a few choices for how to OPEN this. <\/p>\n The key to this essay is to develop a clear picture in your head of Before & After. The sharper the contrast there, the more something in you was TESTED, the better. If the challenge here didn\u2019t force you to step outside your comfort zone, walk into unchartered territories, cause you to feel anxious ever, etc. then you may not have the most appropriate example. This isn\u2019t a question about a time you were placed in a perfect situation and were able to shine from start to finish. There need to be bumps. Times you QUESTIONED others, and most importantly YOURSELF. The more you\u2019re able to puncture your self-confidence, and question your own sense of right and wrong, the better. <\/p>\n SIGN UP FOR A FREE CONSULTATION \u279d <\/p><\/div>\n <\/a><\/div>\n <\/br>\n<\/div>\n Leadership requires an ability to collaborate with and motivate others. Describe a professional experience that required you to influence people. What did this experience teach you about working with others, and how will it make you a better leader? (450 words)<\/strong><\/p>\n Again, let\u2019s pay attention to the hints. They could have just asked about a leadership experienced, right? Instead, they define leadership as they see it, using words like \u201ccollaborate\u201d and \u201cmotivate\u201d and \u201cinfluence.\u201d There\u2019s also a hint in the word \u201cteach\u201d \u2013 it implies that you STRETCHED somehow through this experience to grow your sense of collaboration, teamwork, leadership, etc. What does that mean? Well, it means that if you didn\u2019t LEARN anything on account of this experience, it\u2019s not gonna pack as much punch. People who are able to demonstrate the way in which they learned something tend to more likely to have internalized that idea than those who have difficulty remembering what it was like \u201cbefore they learned the lesson.\u201d This requires\u2026 humility. It requires the uncomfortable exercise of traveling back in time to the moment BEFORE you \u201cgained\u201d something. To a time where maybe you WEREN\u2019T quite as sharp, or talented, or effective as a leader. If you can remember that time, and you can remember the moment that changed, and if you can examine why things changed, it all adds up to a guy who has limitless potential to learn, improve, and succeed. It may surprise you to learn that MAJORITY of the essays we read do NOT initially convey this. It takes hard work to confront the way you were BEFORE you improved.<\/p>\n So let\u2019s hop into our Deloreans and zip backwards in time. Now, you\u2019ve heard us talk about choosing your stories carefully, and grabbing only from your greatest hits (as opposed to answering these questions so literally that you ill-advisedly choose the 7th most impressive story in your repertoire simply because it seems to answer the question better\u2014don\u2019t do this!). Once you\u2019ve chosen your BEST leadership story, before you begin shaping your response, we need to identify a few key pieces:<\/p>\n Once you have these two pieces licked, now you can start building a compelling narrative. Structurally, fairly straightforward:<\/p>\n SIGN UP FOR A FREE CONSULTATION \u279d <\/p><\/div>\n <\/a><\/div>\n <\/br>\n<\/div>\n Re-applicant Essay: Since your previous application, what steps have you taken to strengthen your candidacy? (250 word limit)<\/strong><\/p>\n Here’s everything you need to know about writing the Optional Essay<\/a><\/em>… the right way.<\/p>\n Optional Essay\/Additional Information: If needed, use this section to briefly describe any extenuating circumstances (e.g. unexplained gaps in work experience, choice of recommenders, inconsistent or questionable academic performance, etc.) (no word count)<\/strong><\/p>\n And for all you reapplicants out there… let’s show the adcom a better version of yourself<\/a><\/em> this time around, eh?<\/p>\n\n
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Ready to Start your MBA?<\/pre>\n
Northwestern Kellogg MBA Essay Question 2<\/h5>\n
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Ready to Start your MBA?<\/pre>\n
Northwestern Kellogg MBA Essay - Optional<\/h5>\n