{"id":32392,"date":"2016-03-09T12:09:07","date_gmt":"2016-03-09T19:09:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/?p=32392"},"modified":"2016-07-27T15:45:42","modified_gmt":"2016-07-27T22:45:42","slug":"3-key-ways-to-stand-out-through-your-emba-essays","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/3-key-ways-to-stand-out-through-your-emba-essays\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Key Ways to Stand Out Through Your EMBA Essays"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Make
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<\/p>\n

Give the adcom the\u00a0reason to select you.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After demonstrating that you\u2019re a well qualified applicant comes the biggest challenge: differentiating yourself.\u00a0You must show your uniqueness<\/a> and value as an individual and as an applicant in a way that is relevant to the EMBA program. Essentially, you\u2019re giving the adcom the reason to select <\/span>you <\/span><\/i>out of other highly qualified, accomplished peers in similar industry, functional, and demographic groups.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>While some differentiating factors might be apparent from your resume, e.g., if you work in an industry or function that is relatively underrepresented, the essays are where you can most vividly portray your distinctiveness.<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

There are three key avenues for differentiating yourself: <\/span><\/p>\n

1. Distinctive Factual Points<\/strong>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

These are the unique facts of your experience, such as industry niche, pertinent experience like managing through a global merger, special challenges like dealing with heavily regulated industries or an unusual organizational structure.<\/span><\/p>\n

How to determine whether an aspect of your experience is a differentiating factor?\u00a0 Dig past the top soil. For example, say you are in consulting. \u00a0It\u2019s likely in any top EMBA program<\/a> that a good percentage of students will come from that industry, and so it may not seem like much of a differentiator. \u00a0But going deeper into your consulting experience for the specifics \u2013 e.g., you consult on IT strategy for the defense sector \u2013 you\u2019ll likely find details that <\/span>are<\/span><\/i> differentiating, whereas general management consulting would not be.<\/span><\/p>\n

To get the most mileage out of a differentiating factor, don\u2019t just state the fact in your essays, but also provide illustrative detail and anecdote to truly <\/span>show<\/span><\/i> what is special and different about it (let the reader really <\/span>see <\/span><\/i>it).<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>2. Your Individual Perspective<\/strong>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Individual perspective is a way that everyone can differentiate himself.\u00a0In most essays you will have to reflect on your experiences to some extent.\u00a0When doing so, don\u2019t just highlight the facts and accomplishments \u2013 identify the key learning, growth, and\/or insight you gained from each change or important event; clarify your decision process when taking career steps.\u00a0This individual view is inherently unique, even if the experience you are describing may seem commonplace. Do keep such perspective relevant; for maximum impact, it should align with your decision making vis-\u00e0-vis your career path and\/or goals. So be selective in adding insights, learning, etc. according to that criterion. \u00a0<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>In the essays, you can either weave this individual perspective and insight into the narrative, or present the narrative and then add a paragraph focusing on your reflection. <\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>3. Your Goals<\/strong>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The goals essay<\/a> will be the backbone of your application.\u00a0(Rather than a specific goals essay, some EMBA applications feature a Statement of Purpose or Statement of Intent, which typically will also include some goals discussion.) \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For each phase of your goals, in the essay you should discuss:<\/p>\n

a.\u00a0<\/strong>What you expect to do at that level, <\/span><\/p>\n

b.\u00a0<\/strong>How you hope to grow, <\/span><\/p>\n

c.<\/strong>\u00a0Most important \u2013 what you hope to accomplish<\/a> (for the company and\/or industry and\/or market and\/or consumers and\/or community, etc. \u2013 this is about external, real-world impact). <\/span><\/p>\n

Of course, the points above are not completely separated in reality; but they all should be addressed. The last point is most important because it\u2019s what will get the adcom rooting for you. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Provide specifics<\/a>: titles or positions, specific markets, likely number of people to manage, budget size or P&L responsibility, etc.\u00a0Also describe how this particular step builds on your previous experience.<\/span><\/p>\n

How do you make your goals do \u201cextra duty\u201d by differentiating you?\u00a0Through the vision for what you want to achieve, what impact you want to have \u2013 it goes back to that last point c above.\u00a0While other candidates will likely present similar goals, only you will present this specific vision.\u00a0For example, if your goal is to become a senior manager at a major pharmaceutical firm, don\u2019t just explain why this a logical and likely step.\u00a0Get the reader excited about the prospect of your taking this role.\u00a0Perhaps you perceive certain trends in the regulatory systems or certain production opportunities in developing regions\u2026\u00a0Being a decision-maker addressing such issues will allow you to maximize chances for your company to continue innovating and marketing new drugs.<\/span><\/p>\n

In summary, for effective <\/span>goals essays<\/span>, keep three short words in mind: <\/span>what<\/span><\/i>,<\/span> how<\/span><\/i>, and <\/span>why<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n

I hope you\u2019ve found this series of EMBA posts<\/a> helpful and that it gives you some traction as you start the application process. \u00a0A key area of my expertise is working with EMBA applicants. \u00a0If you would like more guidance, I would be honored to assist you<\/a> \u2013 as would my colleagues at Accepted<\/a>. It can be helpful to have an outside perspective to guide you through the application process. Good luck with your applications!<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Ace<\/span>
\n**Image\u00a0Designed by Freepik<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Cindy<\/a> By Cindy Tokumitsu<\/a>,\u00a0co-author of <\/em><\/em>The EMBA Edge<\/a>, and author of the free special report, <\/em><\/em>Ace the EMBA<\/a>. Cindy has helped MBA applicants get accepted to top EMBA programs around the world. She is delighted to help you too!<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Related Resources:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Why MBA<\/a>, free guide
\n\u2022\u00a0Excellent Executive MBA Admissions Advice<\/a>, podcast
\n\u2022\u00a0EMBA Program Variety<\/a><\/p>\n

This article\u00a0<\/a>originally appeared on\u00a0<\/em>blog.accepted.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Applying to a top b-school? The talented folks at Accepted have helped hundreds of applicants get accepted to their dream programs. Whether you are figuring out where apply, writing your application essays, or prepping for your interviews, we are just a call (or click) away.<\/p>\n

Contact us, and get matched up with the consultant who will help\u00a0you\u00a0<\/em>get accepted<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After demonstrating that you\u2019re a well qualified applicant comes the biggest challenge: differentiating yourself.\u00a0You must show your uniqueness and value as an individual and as an applicant in a way…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,939,775,113,243],"tags":[60,1784],"class_list":["post-32392","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mba","category-accepted","category-admission-consultants","category-applications","category-blog","tag-emba","tag-emba-application-help","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32392","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\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32392"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32392\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32396,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32392\/revisions\/32396"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32392"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32392"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32392"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}