Since the required essay is pretty career-centric, I usually tell people to use the optional one to tell the AdCom something else about their candidacy that's more personal and that probably doesn't have anything to do with your job... but that might still be something your fellow classmates can learn from. Have you traveled somewhere unique? Are you really passionate about, say, foreign films or cooking elaborate meals or some under-the-radar sport? Have you done something with an organization outside of work that is important to you? Remember that the "outside of class" stuff is just as important as your actual coursework when it comes to the value you're going to get out of 2 years on campus. So if you show them what else you can bond with classmates over or perhaps teach them or get them inspired by, it might give you the edge. They're looking for real people who others are going to like to hang out with and the optional essay is a great way to give them that kind of insight into your personality.
Hope that helps!
Engr2012
Hi
SBCErikaOlson, thank you for answering the questions from various posters and keeping this thread informative.
I had a quick question for you. I saw that you mentioned in one of the posts above that we should utilize the optional essay of 400 words to mention about something that has not been covered by the other required essay. I was still trying to figure out what types on things would fall under the requirements of essay 2? IMO, the standard fit questions, why MBA, why Wharton, why Now etc are already covered in the required essay. What topic(s) would you advise people touch upon in this essay optional essay of 400 words?
Thanks
Thank you for an excellent and detailed reply.
So based on your recommendations, would you agree that this optional of Wharton should be similar to Essay 3 of Columbia " CBS Matters, a key element of the School’s culture, allows the people in your Cluster to learn more about you on a personal level. What will your Clustermates be pleasantly surprised to learn about you? (Maximum 250 words)" ?
Thank you again for your reply.