Expert advice for Kellogg from Admissions Consultant blogs

Northwestern University Provost Jonathan Holloway has announced that Kellogg School of Management’s Dean Sally Blount—the first woman to lead a global business school—will step down at the end of the 2017-18 academic year after solidifying Kellogg’s place among the world’s premier business schools.

In addition to finishing the school’s $350 million capital campaign in August with a record-setting $365 million dollars, a crowning achievement earlier this year was the opening of the 415,000-square-foot lakefront building on Northwestern’s Evanston campus known as the Kellogg Global Hub, for which Blount led the fundraising, oversaw the design and guided the move-in.

Dean Blount posted a video message to the Kellogg community explaining her decision to step down, calling it, “an ideal moment for a new leader to be selected, and to take the reins.”

“I’m so excited about Kellogg’s next chapter, but I’m also aware that this moment offers a rare opportunity in my own life,” Blunt says, noting that next summer will mark 30 years since she came to Kellogg as a young graduate student.

“This inflection point creates an opportunity for me the to start thinking bravely about my own life in the ways that I have about the institutions I’ve led. I’ve long dreamed of taking a sabbatical year, to travel and to write, and I want to spend some time thinking about my own final chapters in education as the pace of transformation accelerates in our marketplace.”

Provost Holloway expressed his deep appreciation for Blount’s collaborative approach and dynamic stewardship of Kellogg, and said he is excited to have her leading the school for one more year. Holloway will oversee an international search to select Blount’s successor during the coming academic year.

“It is truly one of my life’s greatest honors that when President Shapiro and former Provost Linzer selected me to be Kellogg dean, I became the first woman to lead a top global business school,” Blount concludes in the video, adding,”I am grateful to the thousands of you who have partnered with me to make Kellogg soar again.”

 
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If you are looking for guidance on your Kellogg MBA application, Stacy Blackman Consulting can help with hourly and comprehensive consulting services. Contact us to learn more. Visit the website for Stacy Blackman Reviews, and check out the company’s e-publications for more in depth school-by-school guidance.

The Economist has released its annual ranking of the best full-time MBA programs in the world, and U.S. b-schools dominate the list, taking 16 of the top 20 spots.  The Kellogg School of Management, which this year opened its $250 million state-of-the-art education center known as the Global Hub, has finally unseated local rival Chicago Booth School of Business, which held the top spot in The Economist’s rankings for five consecutive years.

Kellogg has made incredible strides toward the top over these past five years; it placed 23rd in the 2013 ranking, jumped to 14th place in 2014, rocketed to seventh in 2016, and landed in second place last year.

Average salaries of new MBA graduates at Kellogg were just under $124,000, a 72% increase over pre-MBA salaries, according to the ranking’s data. At Chicago Booth, meanwhile, new MBA grads had average salaries of $126,000 but a slightly lower salary increase at 71%.

The Economist’s Top Ten Best Full-Time MBA Programs 

• Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management
• University of Chicago Booth School of Business
• Harvard Business School
• University of Pennsylvania Wharton School
• Stanford Graduate School of Business
• UCLA Anderson School of Management
• UC Berkeley Haas School of Business
• Dartmouth Tuck School of Business
• Columbia Business School
• UV Darden School of Business

Rankings are inherently controversial—what makes a good MBA program varies for each individual—but The Economist aims to look at business schools from the students’ perspective.

Their responses on how well the program delivers the things students themselves cite as most important inform the criteria The Economist measures and the weightings they apply. Four factors have consistently emerged when students assess the quality of their MBA program:

• open new career opportunities and/or further current career (35% weighting)
• personal development and educational experience (35%)
• increase salary (20%)
• networking potential (10%)

While we don’t like to encourage clients to focus too heavily on rankings when they’re making their MBA program selections, we also know those headed for b-school really can’t help themselves. But placing too heavy an emphasis on rankings can actually become a distraction for some applicants, so be sure to consider multiple factors when making your final school selection.
Image credit: Mike Willis (CC BY-ND 2.0)
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If you are looking for guidance on your MBA application, Stacy Blackman Consulting can help with hourly and comprehensive consulting services. Contact us to learn more. Visit the website for Stacy Blackman Reviews, and check out the company’s e-publications for more in depth school-by-school guidance.

Applying to business school is a process rife with decisions—which schools to target, which recommenders to choose, which essays to write—and a common one giving candidates some serious pause these days is which exam to take, the GMAT or the GRE? As the number of programs accepting the GRE continues to grow, aspiring MBAs are becoming more and more confused about this element of the application process.

In hopes of helping clarify the issue, mbaMission has teamed up with Manhattan Prep to create this new infographic comparing the classic GMAT and the increasingly popular GRE side by side. Quickly see how they differ, which test certain MBA programs accept, how the content and scores relate, and other useful details—and move a little closer to crossing another important decision off your to-do list!

Want to share our infographic on your site or blog? Copy and paste the code below.

<h3>mbaMission and Manhattan Prep’s GMAT vs. GRE Infographic</h3><a href=”https://www.mbamission.com/blog/2018/01/09/mbamission-and-manhattan-preps-gmat-vs-gre-infographic-new/”><img src=”https://www.mbamission.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/mbaMission-Infographic-2017-update-v5.jpg” alt=”mbaMission and Manhattan Prep’s GMAT vs. GRE Infographic” width=”700px” /></a><br><p><a href=”mbamission.com”>eg: Infographic By Domain.com</a></p>



*Data collected in December 2017. Any subsequent variance in figures may be due to finalization or adjustment of data by the schools after our publication date.

Alexa Loses Her Voice – Amazon Super Bowl LII Commercial

Sure, the Eagles’s first-ever Super Bowl win is a big deal, but according to a team of 50-odd MBA students at the Kellogg School of Management, Amazon was a big winner in strategic ad rankings with its “Alexa Loses Her Voice” ad in the 14th consecutive Kellogg School Super Bowl Advertising Review.

Two Kellogg marketing professors think businesses can learn a lot from which ads resonate with the audience, and for the past 14 years have been leading a panel of MBA students who grade the spots on their effectiveness in real time during the game.

“Amazon used a cast of celebrities that focused us on the brand, reinforced the equity in Alexa, and ultimately was fun to discuss and share with those around you,” says Derek D. Rucker, Sandy & Morton Goldman Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies in Marketing at the Kellogg School.

Other brands that earned top marks this year include Mountain Dew, Doritos, Tide, Avocados from Mexico, and Wendy’s.  “However, Squarespace and T-Mobile both missed the mark with questionable positioning and unclear calls to action,” Rucker notes. Each received an F for least effective advertising during this year’s Super Bowl.

The Kellogg School Super Bowl Advertising Review uses a strategic academic framework known as ADPLAN to evaluate the effectiveness of Super Bowl spots in building the advertiser’s brand. The acronym instructs viewers to grade ads based on:

Attention: Does the ad engage the audience?

Distinction: Is the execution unique in delivery?

Positioning: Is the appropriate category represented and a strong benefit featured?

Linkage: Will the brand and benefit be remembered?

Amplification: Are viewers’ thoughts favorable?

Net equity: Is the ad consistent with the brand’s history and reputation?

Two ongoing trends emerged throughout the big game – competitive angle in many ads and philanthropic efforts.

“As competitive as the game was, the category wars were equally competitive.  For example, there was hard hitting competition in the wireless wars with some brands calling one another out,” said Tim Calkins, Clinical Professor of Marketing at Kellogg, who co-leads the school’s Ad Review. “Many brands tried to appeal to viewers through philanthropic causes, including Toyota, Ram and Hyundai.”

However, social media backlash against the Ram advertisement, which featured a voice-over of a sermon by Martin Luther King Jr and a message of serving others, was immediate. Writes one sarcastic user on Twitter: “If you thought that MLK/Dodge commercial was bad, just wait until you see the upcoming Carl’s Jr. ad starring Gandhi.”

With a base price of $4.5 million for these ads, advertisers take an expensive gamble on commercial spots they hope will resonate and stick with consumers. The Ram ad may have garnered a C grade from the Kellogg team, but folks across the interwebs gave Ram a solid Fail for it.

A full list of the rankings is available here.

[image via screengrab]
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If you are looking for guidance on your MBA application, Stacy Blackman Consulting can help with hourly and comprehensive consulting services. Contact us to learn more. Visit the website for Stacy Blackman Reviews, and check out the company’s e-publications for more in depth school-by-school guidance.

Having the opportunity to learn from the best and brightest minds in business is one of the top motivators for many applicants considering an MBA degree at an elite business school. The professors and lecturers you’ll encounter have worked in the trenches, and bring an incredible wealth of real-world experiences into the classroom setting.

In our new limited series of professor interviews on the SBC blog, readers will get to know a bit more about these brilliant academics, what fields most excite them, the trends they foresee, what they enjoy most about teaching at their respective universities, and how it all comes together with their students.


Today, we’re meeting Jose Maria Liberti, Clinical Professor of Finance at Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University and William M. Scholl Professor of Finance at Kellstadt Graduate School of Business, DePaul University.

Liberti was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He received a bachelor’s and master’s degree in economics from the Universidad de San Andres (UdeSA), in Buenos Aires.

He moved to the United States in 1998 and earned both a Masters and a PhD in Economics from The University of Chicago.

Courses Taught: Mergers and Acquisitions, LBOs and Corporate Restructuring; Global Entrepreneurial Finance
What triggered your interest in your subject matter?
I am an economist by education, but a practitioner by nature. Given my professional experience working in a financial institution before my graduate studies, I have always been interested in corporate finance in general and mergers and acquisitions in particular.

For example, problems between minority and controlling stakeholders were daily topics in my working years. While in my graduate studies (and given my personal interests), I found that the most interesting applications on incentives issues were in the field of corporate finance.
What’s changed since you entered the field? Any surprising or unique applications of your field of study?
The field has changed a lot. Even relative to my years of the PhD, the academic finance profession has shifted considerably. There was a period where the capital structure or the way you finance a project is irrelevant, and the only frictions that matter are probably only tax frictions.

Of course, scholars realized that the way you allocate the cash flows of the firm has some impact on the way the firm is run. But all this old academic literature focused on external rules being fixed.

What happens when the environment and rules change? People realized that the rules are not fixed, that the changing nature of the rules is actually important, and of course, political gain or incentive gains is what makes the rules change.

Topics like nepotism, crony capitalism and extraction of rents from other parties have been introduced, making finance an incredible stimulating and thought-provoking field.
What do you like about the school you are teaching at?
The Kellogg School of Management provides all the resources and makes my life as an educator very simple, providing me with all the adequate resources to provide a high-quality product to the students.

One great advantage, and most important, is the high quality of students that enroll in my classes. They are just outstanding, since they are willing to be challenged and pushed outside of their comfort zones.
What role, if any, does ethics play in your curriculum, and how has that evolved over time?
Transparency and ethical behavior of financial professionals have become key components in any academic finance curriculum. After the 2008 financial crisis, there has been larger focus in Kellogg’s finance curriculum on the role of ethical behavior.

This behavior is also tied to new regulations passed on monitoring the financial industry since new investors pay more attention to their financial professional’s ethical standards.

Given that we prepare financial professionals for the future, I feel I have the responsibility to make sure the message of ethical standards is properly conveyed in the classroom and in the finance curriculum in general.
What are you most excited about in your classroom?
The most excited part of my classes are the discussions we have among the students. Since I teach advanced classes in corporate finance, the exchange of ideas can become very lively and dynamic in the classroom. If you are not ready to engage in class discussions, these are not the courses you would like to enroll in!
Best advice for an aspiring business mogul?
The advice I’d give is simple: Just push yourself to the limits and give 150% on whatever you do. For me, this would leave a mark independent of what you are doing career-wise.
What’s the impact you want to leave on your students? … On the world?
I prefer to think that I do something small and the sum of those small things will hopefully affect the bigger scheme of things. If I can push students to think deeply on issues, challenge the status-quo, and be engaged and curious on financial strategy topics – a subject that for many students is challenging or daunting – then I would feel personally satisfied.

Thank you Professor Liberti for sharing your time and insights with our readers!
(Photo by Jean Lachat)
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If you are looking for guidance on your MBA application, Stacy Blackman Consulting can help with hourly and comprehensive consulting services. Contact us to learn more. Visit the website for Stacy Blackman Reviews, and check out the company’s e-publications for more in depth school-by-school guidance.

Guest post by  Joe Marshall, Admissions Lead for Kellogg Veterans at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management
Transitioning out of the military can be a scary process.  Not only are you giving up the camaraderie and sense of mission that comes from service, but you’re also not sure what’s out there in corporate America and where you best fit.

For many veterans, going to business school is a fantastic opportunity to close skill gaps in functional business knowledge that enable you to better leverage leadership and other qualities honed in service.

However, the decision to apply for an MBA comes with its own set of unknowns. What should I put in my resume?  What schools should I apply to?  How do I knock off the rust from five years spent doing ruck marches instead of math to study for the GMAT?

Luckily, just like in the military, there is a lineage of veterans who have made a similar transition and are happy to assist you not only in getting accepted to an MBA program, but also in finding the right fit for you and your goals.

Here are five lessons I learned from my MBA applications.
Start GMAT Prep Early
For some the GMAT is a one-and-done deal, for others it requires perseverance and multiple attempts to hit that target score. The test covers math and verbal concepts that most veteran applicants have not dealt with in years.

The earlier in the process that you start studying for this test, the greater the likelihood that this part of the application will be in the rear-view mirror as you prepare your resume and essays for submission.

The test is valid for five years, so there is almost no applicant looking at business schools for whom it is “too early” to start studying for the GMAT. If you are still studying for that last retake of the GMAT as application deadlines approach, your essays and other materials will likely suffer as a result.
Reach Out to Veteran Communities at Target Schools
One of the best lessons a young service member can learn is to not unnecessarily recreate the wheel. The same lesson applies to business school applications.  There are veteran communities at every school who were in your shoes just a few years prior.

Find these veteran association websites and connect with their admissions reps.  These clubs, like the Kellogg Veterans Association, for which I serve as Admissions Lead, are happy to help because somebody did the exact same thing for them when they were applying. Do not hesitate to reach out, and more importantly, be prepared to give back in the same way once you hit campus.
Translate Your Resume
An important role these veteran clubs will play is to help translate your resume to properly convey your accomplishments to a wider audience. A common misconception is that your military experience does not give you marketable skills to a civilian employer.

This is certainly not the case, but the problem often lies in how these skills are presented to civilian employers. Work with those who transitioned before you to remove jargon and convey your accomplishments and skills in a manner that will properly demonstrate the value you will bring to that organization.
Tailor Your Essays to the School
For many veterans, it will make sense to work with an admissions consultant to package your story in the most effective way possible.  Each school will have a particular prompt that requires a unique answer that incorporates the school’s culture and distinctive traits.

Work with current students at that school to gain an understanding for what makes that school special and why you would be a great fit.

No matter the approach, starting early in your research pays dividends in the days before the deadline. Admissions reps for clubs will be inundated with essays and calls in the days before the deadline, but have much more time to work on a personal basis in the weeks leading up to it.  Proactive applicants are able to refine and hone their message, leading to more effective essays.
Visit Target Schools
I would strongly discourage anybody from attending a school they did not visit first. You want to get a feel for the community, surrounding area, and whether this is someplace that you would enjoy spending the next two years of your life.

If your travel schedule permits, preview days at schools provide a great opportunity to get a feel for that school long before you even click submit on the application.  Many schools host a military or veteran preview day to showcase the school and answer specific questions and concerns that veterans often have.
Now, Come Check Out Kellogg!
Kellogg is hosting an upcoming Military Preview Day on March 16th at its brand new building, the Global Hub. This event will include a mock class taught by a renowned faculty member, an alumni panel, current-students panel, and presentations from our admissions, career management, and financial-aid departments. 

The event will conclude with a dinner in downtown Evanston with current veteran students. Those in need of lodging can stay with a current student as part of our Sofas for Soldiers program.  Sign up here . Looking forward to seeing many of you in Evanston!

 
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If you are looking for guidance on your MBA application, Stacy Blackman Consulting can help with hourly and comprehensive consulting services. Contact us to learn more. Visit the website for Stacy Blackman Reviews, and check out the company’s e-publications for more in depth school-by-school guidance.

Poonam, founder and president of myEssayReview, is publishing interviews of her most recent successful students.  This is the latest in the series. Here is a chat with Mansi, who was accepted into 5 top MBA programs –Kellogg, Wharton, INSEAD, Stanford, and Harvard. Mansi is headed to Harvard, her dream school.

Mansi’s interview is published in 4 parts wherein she shares her background, goals, reasons to pursue MBA, unwavering preference for HBS, application strategy and preparation, her success mantra, advice on video essays, and much more.

Now presenting the concluding part of the interview wherein Mansi shares her success mantra and her personal interests and  hobbies.

Poonam: What is the Mantra of your astounding success? Not many people are able to achieve what you have achieved. That is why I would like to know  about the Mantra of your phenomenal success.

Mansi: That is a tough one. I think everyone will have their own set of ways to achieve their goal. For me, number one mantra is hard work. In life, there is no short cut to success. It is the way you look at things. You have to have sleepless nights, and long days, and give enough time to achieve your goal, sacrifice other things in the life, and still maintain a balance. As you had rightly suggested- start early. The best way is to start early to give ample time to application.

The second Mantra is ‘strategy’. If I had pushed myself to apply to Harvard in Round I and had not listened to you, I am sure I could not have accomplished it. The kind of story that I had in Round I or the kind of confidence I had in my story in Round I was much less compared to what I had in Round II. Again, I came to know myself a lot more in  four five months than the two months I had before Round I deadlines. So you have to  strategize really well because your dream school deserves the best of your time, your strategy, and your hard work.  I would advise applicants to  give it enough time and thought, and strategize well.

The third Mantra is the ‘introspection’. Indian applicants have never gone through such a process; they have only prepared course material and taken exams. But B- school application is entirely a different process. It does have an exam which requires a lot of introspection, and it also has an interview process which truly focuses on your soft skills. Lastly, working on your weaknesses is also very important for which self-reflection is the key because unless you know your worth yourself, you will not know what you are weak at. Especially for the interview processes, you should be confident of handling your weaknesses and what you can do to mitigate them.

Poonam: That is right. It is a process of self-discovery, and by the time you reached Harvard Application, you had already discovered yourself.

Mansi: Absolutely.

Poonam: And I have memorized all your stories by heart.

Mansi: Yes. I know. And sometimes, I was actually amazed, when you would return my essays with comments that  this example does not fit this essay as much as the other example. You remembered all my stories which at times I had forgotten. You rightly said that this is a process of self-discovery. I also remember the 30 minute Harvard interview that happened in Mumbai; those 30 minutes felt like 3 hours, as we had a conversation which I would normally have with somebody in 3 hours. It was short, yet it covered almost every aspect of my life, professional as well as personal. If I had not known about myself that well, I could not have given that 3 hours’ worth of information in thirty minutes.

Poonam: True.  It has truly been a long and arduous journey. You must have made many personal sacrifices as well. Would you like to share those with us?

Mansi: Yes, Poonam. Very rightly said. You have to work hard towards what is really important to you. And in that particular process, you have to sacrifice other things to achieve what you really want to. As you are aware, I am married, and I had sacrificed a lot of my family time. At the same time, I am really thankful to my husband who has been immensely supportive all this while. I had to miss family time, festivals, get -togethers, and weddings. I am blessed to have a supportive family and husband. I will share this one particular incident when we were celebrating Deepawali at my in-laws place in Mumbai. I had gotten my first interview invite from Kellogg which was right after Deepawali, and  my husband prepared for all pooja and stuff while I was preparing for my interview questions. So yes, I had sacrificed a lot of different things- birthdays, family functions,  TV and movies, but I am sure that at the end of day, those are totally worth it.

Poonam: Definitely. They all must be very proud of you for this extraordinary achievement. I am proud of you.

Mansi: Thank you, Poonam. Yes, they are.

Poonam:  Let us talk about something outside of professional area. What are your hobbies, interests? What are your favorite books?

Mansi: As you know very well, I love to dance. Throughout my entire application process, I used to go for my dance class at least once a week to rejuvenate myself. I occasionally read science fiction. I am not a regular reader though.

Poonam: You are a certified Scuba diver as well.

Mansi: Yes. I am a certified scuba diver. I have dived in many countries such as Malaysia, India, Maldives, and Thailand. I can dive up to 18ft. Next month, I and my husband are going to Thailand for another diving trip after a gap of one year.

Poonam: Very good. Mansi, will you like to share anything that I have not asked?

Mansi: I have discussed almost all the aspects of application process. Again, key parts of your application process are- have a strong GMAT score, partner with a good consultant, strategize in which Round and which schools you apply to, start early, give yourself enough time for self-reflection, and definitely work hard. There is no short cut to success. Give your best. I am sure you can achieve what you want.

Poonam: Thank you for sharing your story. Your story will be inspirational for the prospective applicants.

Mansi: Thank you, Poonam. This is not only my story; this is your story as well.

Poonam: It is really nice of you to think that way.

Mansi:  This is a process you can’t do alone. This is a process where you need supportive people around you. So equal amount of thank you to you as well.

Poonam: Thank you so much. It was my privilege. I really enjoyed being part of your MBA journey. And I wish you good luck with Harvard. I hope you will have a wonderful time there. I will like to get in touch with you later.

Mansi: Definitely. I will keep you updated with my case studies at HBS.

Poonam: Wonderful. Thank you. It was a pleasure chatting with you.

Note: 

• Please  click at the following link to watch Mansi’s Video Interview:               https://youtu.be/5gmTESri_8Q
• You may connect with Mansi via LinkedIn  :
  https://www.linkedin.com/in/mansi-dhiman-439b2449/
• For those who have not read the first 3 parts of the interview, here are the links:

Part 1- Mansi's Background, Goals, Reasons to do MBA, and Preference for HBS

https://myessayreview.com/student-interviews/indian-engineers-journey-5-top-mba-programs-including-dream-school-harvard/

Part 2- Mansi's' Application Strategy, Planning and Preparation

https://myessayreview.com/student-interviews/indian-engineers-journey-5-top-mba-programs-including-dream-school-harvard-part-2/

Part 3- Mansis’ Most Challenging Part of the Application Process, and her advice on video essays

https://myessayreview.com/student-interviews/indian-engineers-journey-5-tops-mba-programs-including-dream-school-harvard-part-3/

This interview was first published in  myEssayReview blog.

For questions, email Poonam at poonam@myessayreview.com

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Poonam, founder and president of MER (myEssayReview), is publishing   interviews of her successful students as well as first year and second year students.  This is the latest in the series. Here is a chat with Eduardo, a second-year student at Kellogg.

In a candid video interview with Poonam, Eduardo shares his application experience, his amazing experiences at Kellogg, and offers valuable advice for the prospective applicants, regarding application process, goals, campus life, and recruitment.

The transcript of Eduardo’s Interview will be published in 2 parts.

In Part 1, he talks about his background, career goal, application experience, and the challenges he faced during the process . He also explains at length how Kellogg was the best fit for him.

Poonam: Hello, Eduardo, Welcome back.

Eduardo: Thank you.

Poonam: Last time we chatted was 2 years back when you were getting all set to start your Kellogg journey. And now you are a second-year student almost ready to graduate. So how does it feel? What changes have taken place in these two years?

Eduardo: Yes. I think, for me a lot has changed. I have made important life and career decisions. I have only two, or three months to go, and I don’t want to leave. And I really would love to stay more. I am enjoying every day and week of my final quarter at Kellogg. At the same time, I am very excited for the career path I am taking. Yes, it is really a transformative experience. I met a lot of amazing people and have many friendships. I have travelled like crazy. I have changed my career plan a couple of times, and I am ending up in that industry. Also, I got married which is a big thing.

Poonam: Congratulations. That’s great news.

Eduardo: Thank you. That was not planned originally before the MBA, but it ended up happening. MBA is a catalyst for change in many ways. Yes, these were two amazing years of my life.

Poonam: Absolutely. I am happy to know that. Eduardo, for those who have not read your previous interview will you like to tell something about yourself, where are you from and where did you study as an undergrad?

Eduardo: Sure. I am a Brazilian, born and raised in Sao Paulo, and I studied business during undergrad back in Sao Paulo. I started my career in Marketing which was my passion so I did 7 years of marketing and product management in a manufacturing industry. I loved my job but also felt that I was too focused in Brazil and Latin America and I wanted to have a global career. An MBA was a unique opportunity to have that global opportunity and also because I wanted to make some bigger impact in the long run back in Brazil but for that I felt like I needed to do something abroad for a while and learn and bring the knowledge and opportunities back to my country. Also, I came to Kellogg with a one plan of resuming my career in the same industry but then a lot changed, and I’m now switching to the technology industry

Poonam: Looking back, you received admit offers from Haas, UCLA, Yale, and Kellogg, all with substantial scholarships, but you finally chose Kellogg. How is Kellogg the best school for you and how are you the best fit for Kellogg?

Eduardo: As evident from the choices of schools I  made and was admitted to, I wanted a collaborative school. Kellogg was the only one that is not only collaborative and fun like smaller schools such as Berkeley and Yale, but also has resources of a large school. Kellogg has a number of programs - the two-year MBA is almost 500 students, plus students from other programs such as the MMM, the one-year program, the JD and MD , which make Kellogg really large. The speakers come to campus on different classes on niche subjects, so we not only enjoy many resources of a large school, but also enjoy the collaborative and fun environment of a smaller school. This is only possible at Kellogg because they really care about the culture, select candidates that align with the culture, and allow us to have this interesting combination of a smaller and large school.

In addition, Evanston and Chicago also mirror that idea. Most people live in Evenson; it is a small city north of Chicago that has grocery stores, restaurants and, bars etc. My commute is amazing as I can walk to my school. So, I have all the benefits of living in a small city, but at the same time I have Chicago, 30 minutes away, where we can go to parties in amazing restaurants, and enjoy other conveniences of a large city.

Poonam: A perfect mix of small and big school. Great! Looking back, what was the most challenging aspect of your application process, what was the challenge, how you overcame it?

Eduardo: For me, essays were the most challenging piece. I recognize that most people say that GMAT is the most challenging part, but for me the path was a little different.  I spent a lot of time on the GMAT. I was lucky that I had people that advised me to start early for the GMAT; I did that at the beginning of my career, way before I applied to business schools. I did spend a lot of time on that, but I knew what I had to do, so I think it was challenging in terms of time but it was not intellectually challenging. But essays were more challenging because initially, I was not comfortable, getting at the personal level of the stories; I really had to overcome that challenges and get deep into my personality. I spent a lot of time on my essays, and I thought I was doing a great job. Then, I remember, in the month of June, I decided to hire you for one essay only for one school because I wanted to double check if it would go in the right direction. And after your first review, I clearly understood that I was on the wrong path.  I trashed all the essays I had already written for many schools and started all over again. I think I learned a lot in the process. You taught me how to really get personal and write, which stories to tell, and how to tell those stories.   It was an amazing process, but definitely essays were something that required me to get out of my comfort zone and understand what it was all about.

Poonam: Exactly. I enjoyed the process, too.

Eduardo: Thank you.

This interview was first published in myEssayReview blog.

Note: Stay tuned to Eduardo’s interview Part 2 wherein he  shares his memorable experiences at Kellogg and   offers valuable advice to  the prospective applicants, especially international applicants regarding goals, campus life, and recruitment.

You may connect with Eduardo via linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/eduardostumpfsilva/

For questions, email Poonam at poonam@myessayreview.com

LinkedIn/ Facebook

 

 

 

Poonam, founder and president of MER (myEssayReview), is publishing interviews of her successful students as well as first year and second year students.  This is the latest in the series. Here is a chat with Eduardo, a second-year student at Kellogg.

In a candid video interview with Poonam, Eduardo shares his application experience, his amazing experiences at Kellogg, and offers valuable advice for the prospective applicants, regarding application process, goals, campus life, and recruitment.

The transcript of Eduardo’s video Interview is  published in 2 parts.  In this second and concluding part , Eduardo  explains how his experiences  in and outside of classroom shaped his career and personality and  transformed him . Also, he advises the incoming students, specifically international students, about their career goals, involvement  in activities/events at Kellogg, and recruitment process.

Poonam: What is your favorite thing about the program? Would you please share your best experiences in and out of the class that helped shape your career?

Eduardo: Definitely. There are a lot of things to share. I will share some of them otherwise we will be talking here for hours and hours. I will definitely start with the outside-the-classroom experiences because these are the ones that really mattered to me. The Global Lab program was special for me as in this program students go to a country and do consulting for a client. The client can be a company or the government, or a NGO in different parts of the world.  I did a global lab in Ecuador this past spring break. This is a six-month consulting program wherein you get to visit the client. I was there in Ecuador for one week. I am in a project for the Government of Ecuador, our direct client, for which I visited farmers and food processing plants, and helped the farmers to increase their income on their production of hearts of palm and golden berries, which grow very well in Ecuador. Having those interactions with farmers and government officials and understanding what their struggles are, is what I enjoy the most because I can use these learnings to make an impact. This is an amazing experience because in the process you visit different places and have a lot of fun with the colleagues.

So in  general, what I liked most about Kellogg was the opportunities for experiential learning outside the classroom. For example, I did a Marketing Lab which is also consulting for revamping a digital marketing strategy for a large retailer in USA. I visited the client a couple of times, and we had amazing faculty supporting our team along the way and providing us coaching. We also had support of a consulting company for coaching purposes. We had a big challenge and a big outcome at the end. So what I learned at Kellogg was  relevant and impactful to companies.

In addition to Labs, I did couple of other things.  Another experimental learning I would highlight is the mentorship for undergrad students from Northwestern, That has been an extremely interesting experience, so in addition to learning about coaching in a class room, I was also able to practice that. For me, it has been an amazing way of connecting with people in deep way, and I will probably continue to provide that coaching to undergrads beyond my time at Kellogg. Those personal relationships that you forge are amazing.

In the classroom, I had amazing classes. Customer Analytics is the one that I would highlight for those interested in technology, and I had professor Florian Zettelmeyer who is amazing. There is also a Negotiation class wherein you practice a lot of negotiations with your colleagues, which is lot of fun.

Poonam: Great. Great to know that you are having a wonderful time at Kellogg. I was wondering if there is there anything you will like to change about Kellogg?
Eduardo: Well. I am not sure how to change it. But one thing that nearly everyone experiences at Kellogg is the fear of missing out on events because there are so many things going on every week.  So you have speakers coming to campus for lunch and for evening sessions. Also, we have a lot of opportunities to be an entrepreneur or working with startups at the Garage, a place where startups of Kellogg are. There are so many things going on, and what happens is that we have a fear of missing out on these. For example, I am one hour into the event and then one hour at another place in Evanston or Chicago. I just want to be everywhere, and I end up being a little bit over-stressed and overwhelmed. However, in second year we have a better ability of focusing on things that really matter to us and managing fun and work, because at business school it is all a big mix, as we do not have a clear weekend in a week. We are doing case competition over the weekend, and then you are having a party on Tuesday, so we have to manage and make choices of what is important to us. There is an initiative at Kellogg called the ‘Good Life’, which helps people reflect, and I think it is a very good initiative that helps people to calm down and think about the things they should prioritize   and not be overwhelmed and stressed out with all the things that are available there.

Poonam: Is there anything that you wish you had known earlier, before you started your journey at Kellogg? Can you share some advice to incoming students to Kellogg to make their adjustment easier?

Eduardo: Yes, definitely.  I think that it is true for me as well as for most international students, and that is not only for Kellogg but across different schools. I wish I had known earlier that recruiting is very intense, and it starts very early in the process, no matter which school you are in, because ultimately it is the timing for the recruiters and not for the schools. So my advice is you need to reflect early on, on the things that you want to do. I thought naively that I could have 2 to 3 years of reflections on what I want to do and consider different career paths. The realty is that you do not have two years to reflect, you just spend a couple of months or may be the first two or three months to reflect, and then from there you start recruiting for internship, and then internship is a big change in terms of industries. If you are international, your internship definitely needs to start to carve the path for your ultimate goal which makes it even more important that you actually invest some time at the beginning of your MBA, reflect on your career by talking to people, to second year students, and understand different choices you have. And simply be aware that recruiting is very intense that will simply take away a big chunk of your MBA experience.

So I will recommend especially to international students to understand the importance of networking in USA, and invest time early on networking really hard because that will open up amazing opportunities. But if you do not do it or leave it for a later stage in the recruiting process, as I think many international do, then you may have a problem.  I assumed that the recruiting process would be similar to what I had experienced in Brazil, but that was not the case. It is a process that you have to invest much more time, so I strongly suggest the prospective students to think hard about their goals from the very start and reflect what you want to do in the first couple of months, then dedicate time for recruiting and for networking early on because that will pay off handsomely later on.

Poonam: It sure is a valuable advice, especially for international students. What are your plans after graduation? Are your goals still the same?

Eduardo: Yes, my goals have changed considerably. Originally, I was planning to resume my career in the manufacturing industry in Brazil.   The reasoning for that was my ultimate goal of making an impact in Brazil by helping people, particularly in low income families, to improve. My long-term goal has not changed. But I realized that if I stay for a couple of years in the Silicon Valley, I will be much more equipped to bring skills to help me join a startup or a tech company in Brazil that could really drive growth and job creation. So for that I decided to stay in the USA. I interned at CISCO for my internship for the summer, and I will resume my career there as a Product Manager. I want to spend a couple of years in the bay area and Silicon Valley, learn a lot from the different big trends that are happening in the valley and be equipped to go back to Brazil where I make the impact that I wanted to make originally anyway. It is a big change for me, and I am very excited.

Poonam: Yes, so the long terms goals are the same. Eduardo, is here anything that I didn’t ask and you will like to share?

Eduardo: Yes, I think that my big piece of advice for anyone starting an MBA is to come with an open mind. If you come with an open mind, you take advantage of the opportunities on a whole different level. For example, you may have a career plan, and it is good to have a plan from day one, but really take a step back when you come to the campus, and  talk to second year students , talk to people that have tried different areas, and then different industries and roles, and take classes for professors that are simply awesome professors, and they will inspire you for different directions. I had a class on finance that I was really impressed with though I am not a big finance guy, and at some point, I even considered a career in that because that professor was so inspiring.

Poonam:  Can you please tell us the name of the professor?

Eduardo:  Yes, it is David Matsa. I did a couple of classes of Finance II with him. Beside him, there are several professors that will inspire you, no matter what your interests are at Kellogg. So, i would advise to come with an open mind for your career, for the types of people you meet. I think it is only natural that you tend to be in a community that is from your industry or from your country but try to break free from those groups. Participate in clubs and events, as these are all opportunities. I think breaking free of those close communities will take you into unexpected paths. So my final piece of advice is to come with an open mind and be ready for new things. MBA is not an opportunity for you to be completely focused only on academics but exploring new options. Academics is something important, but it is probably a small piece of the overall big picture of the things that you want to learn while doing an MBA.

Poonam:  Wonderful. Is there anything else that you would like to share with viewers? Any clubs that you have been part of?

Eduardo: Oh for me, one thing that I learned at Kellogg is that I think many applicants come to the MBA with an idea of leading a club, and that is like one way you can impact your community, but that is definitely not the only way. I think if you want to have leadership experiences, there are many ways you can do that. Also, if you want to contribute to the community which I think is ultimately what being joining a club is all about, there are different ways you can do it as well. So I think if you want to lead a club, or join a club, or whatever initiative you have, you should have a vision of something that you can contribute to your class, and to your colleagues and to the community as a whole, and if you find that sweet spot of having a particular set of skills and an opportunity to contribute, that is what you should choose. In my case, I wanted to have mentorship experience and that is why I have been coaching North Western university undergrads. I think I have been able to give a lot to those students and have learned from that experience.

Also, I have also been a reader for the Kellogg in the admission process. Basically, the students are trained to read the applications, in addition to a number of other reviewers including the Office of Admissions, but we do contribute to the admission process, and I believe that I bring some experience that is helpful in that sense to better evaluate candidates I also provided consulting for an NGO ‘Dream for Kids’ in Chicago. I have helped to improve their program and their plan for growth, providing support for underprivileged students. I was the project leader, and I felt that I could really contribute to that.  It was deeply connected to my experience with NGO related work in Brazil.

Poonam: In fact, I was going to ask you about your voluntary work in Brazil. That was significant contribution to the community.

Eduardo: I have done a couple of years of NGO in Brazil. Focus on education for different NGOs has been my passion, and I found an opportunity to continue that contribution in Chicago. So when you think about clubs, the most important thing is you should find those kind of opportunities that really fit with you and make you contribute to the community in a unique way.

Poonam: Very true. Thank you, Eduardo for sharing  your Kellogg experience with us. I am sure your insights and valuable advice will be very helpful to the prospective applicants, especially to those who are applying to Kellogg.   Thank you so much.

Eduardo: Thank you, Poonam.  I am happy to chat. Kellogg is an amazing school, and I will encourage  everyone to apply to Kellogg, and I think that you probably have  links to my linked in profile.  I am happy to chat about Kellogg and  the culture at Kellogg on a personal basis if anyone is interested. I had a wonderful time, and I am happy to share that experience with whoever is interested. And obviously thanks for your support as well for making this possible. We had an amazing time together. Thank you.

Poonam: Thank you. It was my privilege to work with you, and I really enjoyed chatting with you today. Thank you and best of luck for your personal and professional life in your post Kellogg career.

Eduardo: Thank you. Have a nice day. Bye.

You can connect with Eduardo via LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/eduardostumpfsilva
Link to Video Interview with Eduardo:
 https://youtu.be/EC5-d4LkPKE
Part 1 of Eduardo's Interview:
Background, Application Experience, Most challenging Part of Application process & Preference for Kellogg

https://myessayreview.com/student-interv ... ce-advice/

For questions, email Poonam at poonam@myessayreview.com

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Note :  This Interview was first published in  myEssayReview blog.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Women now make up more than half of the incoming classes in the top U.S. universities, but still only a small fraction of CEOs, board directors, NGO and government leaders. The Kellogg School of Management has identified three critical key decision points or “pivot points” (launch, mid-career, executive) where women face career barriers that are unique culturally and biologically.

 On May 8th and May 9th, Kellogg will convene its first-ever Global Women’s Summit. The Global Women’s Summit will bring together exceptional women leaders, including featured speaker Sherry Lansing, former CEO of Paramount Pictures, Dean Sally Blount and Ellen Kullman, former CEO of DuPont, to share advice, insights and counsel from women on how to navigate each of these pivot points – including topics like managing up, leading in a biased world, and making bold moves to advance your career.

The event will bring together more than 800 Kellogg women in Evanston. Kellogg will share these inspirational insights and crucial advice broadly by live-streaming fourteen of the event’s sessions.
Tuesday, May 8th
3:30 p.m. – 3:55 p.m.
Dean’s Welcome – Navigating the Key Career Pivot Points for Women

3:55 p.m. – 4:35 p.m.
Kellogg’s Investment in Women

4:35 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.
A Conversation with Hollywood Leading Lady, Sherry Lansing

Session 1: 5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Letting Go of Perfection Positioning Yourself for a Board Seat
Wednesday, May 9th
Session 2: 8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. How Bold Moves Can Make Your Career

Session 3: 9:10 a.m. – 10:10 a.m. Interacting Effectively with the Board Managing Well – Up, Down, and Across

Session 4: 10:20 a.m. – 11:20 a.m. Negotiating for Yourself on Your Way In, Up, and Out

Session 5: 12:50 p.m. – 1:50 p.m. Disrupt Yourself: Putting the Power of Disruptive Innovation to Work

Session 6: 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Creating a Powerful Second Act Generating Capital for Female Founders and CEOs 

Closing Sessions:

3:15 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. What We Wish We Had Known: Lessons To and From Our Children

4:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Dean’s Closing and Call to Action

Don’t miss this unique opportunity to stream these thoughtful conversations about the roadblocks women face on their route to the C-suite.
A Note for Female MBA Applicants
Business schools have really ramped up their efforts to recruit and groom future women leaders, so if you’re a woman planning on pursuing an MBA, make sure to take advantage of every available opportunity. During the school research phase, a great place to start is at a workshop event for women hosted by the program you’re considering.

While you’ll also want to attend general information sessions, these diversity events allow you to meet and network with other prospective students, current students, alumni, and faculty, as well as provide a chance to listen and ask questions about the specific opportunities for woman in the MBA program.

In the last five years, women’s enrollment at Forté Foundation member schools has steadily gained each year, according to a report released in December. Fall 2017 saw 17 schools that had 40% or more women enrolled (including Kellogg), up from only two schools that reached this milestone in the fall of 2013.

Despite some barriers, real or perceived, women considering business school should know the MBA degree truly is the one of the best ways to transform their career by giving them the skills and knowledge necessary to be successful.
***

If you are looking for guidance on your MBA application, Stacy Blackman Consulting can help with hourly and comprehensive consulting services. Contact us to learn more. Visit the website for Stacy Blackman Reviews, and check out the company’s e-publications for more in depth school-by-school guidance.

If you’re in the midst of GMAT preparation or the MBA application process, you’ve almost certainly stumbled upon (or actively researched) stories about rising GMAT scores.

It wasn’t too long ago that an overall score of 700 represented a nice, round, respected target, even for top schools. In 2005, the cream of the MBA crop was littered with 700-level average GMAT scores – 707 at HBS, 704 at Tuck, 701 at Haas, 700 at Kellogg and Sloan, and 695 at Booth – all of which are bound to evoke jealousy or disbelief among applicants entering the process today.

Back in 1996, incoming classes at many of those MBA programs had average GMAT scores in the 650 to 660 range. At the start of the 21st century, a Quant sub-score of 45 put you in the 82nd percentile. A few years later, it was good for 78th (2006), then 75th (2007), then 71st (2009), and 66th (2013). Today, that Q45 lands you in the 57th percentile of GMAT test takers worldwide!

There is no denying the GMAT arms race – and applicants, schools, and rankings are all in on the action. More people are taking the test, test takers can freely cancel unwanted scores, applicants worried about the GMAT can now take the GRE, and MBA programs are as rankings-focused as ever before. The causes are myriad, and the impact on MBA classes continues to play out.

Discussions about cause and effect are nice, but we’ll save those for another day. My goal here is to take a closer look at the rise of GMAT scores by schools and "tiers" – with the hope of helping you better visualize what the GMAT field looks like among the top full-time MBA programs in the U.S.

Average GMAT Scores (Means)

As you’ve Googled around and gone down a few GMAT Club rabbit holes, you may have encountered claims that “720 is the new 700.” While I usually caution against sweeping generalizations, MBA adages, or blog paranoia, the 720-is-the-new-700 concept does hold water.

The underlying question is not whether it’s true – the questions are more “over what time period” and “what does this mean for specific schools”? The following chart shows the average (mean) scores for seven tiers of U.S. MBA programs (37 schools), followed by a few key observations:

excellent annual GMAT series. Each analysis includes five-year look-backs for the top 50 U.S. programs.

Median GMAT Scores
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Most top-tier programs report mean GMAT scores on their class profile pages. But every so often, you will come across a school that only provides the median. Examples include HBS, Yale, and UNC Kenan-Flagler. Thankfully, if you do a little digging, you can find those means reported elsewhere.The reverse exercise is the far more cumbersome task. That is to say, if you really want to know the median GMAT scores across programs, only a handful of schools give it to you directly. So you have to sleuth around. Poets and Quants' "Meet XYZ's Class of 2019" tends to cite both where available.

When doing your school diligence, I encourage you to compare means to means and medians to medians. As you'll see in the data that follows, the median GMAT score at a given MBA program is usually higher than the mean. (You can typically round the mean up to the nearest 10 points.)

Over the past decade, estimated median GMAT scores at the top 19 U.S. MBA programs have trended upward by a solid 20 points. There's a 10-point median uptick for schools ranked in the 20s and 30s. (Note that certain 2017 medians and some historical data reflect mean-based estimates.)

Free Consultation. [And for a fantastic analysis of the MBA admissions chances for Indian applicants at the top 50 U.S. programs – including GMAT score data – please check out this GMAT Club post.]

The Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University has not changed its application essay questions this year, after making only minimal changes to its prompts last season, when mbaMission Senior Consultant Rachel Hyman was a admissions officer at Kellogg. So, who better to ask than Rachel for an opinion on how to approach them? In discussing Kellogg’s questions, Rachel commented, “When I was in the admissions office, we looked for authentic personal self-reflection in essays. With one question about brave leaders and the other about personal and professional growth, Kellogg provides opportunities for applicants to reveal that they have it within them to reflect and develop their skills and characters. I would encourage applicants to really ensure that they give the admissions committee an opportunity to get to know the real you, your journey [growth] so far [to become a stronger leader], and why you are a critical piece within the Kellogg mosaic. Don’t hesitate to let them know about how you will create lasting value and grow as an individual through your relationship with Kellogg.” Consider this perspective—one in which you are opening yourself up to the admissions committee and sharing not just your accomplishments but also your experiences and values—as you write your essays. Our analysis follows…

Please feel free to request a free consultation with Rachel Hyman.

Required Essay 1: Kellogg’s purpose is to educate, equip & inspire brave leaders who create lasting value.  Tell us about a time you have demonstrated leadership and created lasting value. What challenges did you face, and what did you learn? (450 words)

In reality, this is a fairly straightforward essay prompt, and we recommend responding in an equally straightforward manner. Launch directly into the story of your leadership experience and detail the specific actions you took in directing others to achieve some kind of enduring result. The key here is to show you shared a valuable experience with colleagues, extracted the most from your team members, and attained a desired outcome. Although we often note that not all great leadership stories necessarily have to end in success, Kellogg’s request for evidence of “lasting value” certainly implies that the school wants to hear about a situation that had a positive, if not victorious, outcome. You will need to convey not only your role in spearheading a group to achieve what you did but also how that achievement persists to this day.

Note that Kellogg does not specify that the experience you share must be related to your workplace or career. Leadership does not need to have an official title attached to it, and it can be expressed in a community service or even family life setting just as much as in a workplace, so explore all the different areas of your life for possible stories. We recommend using a narrative approach to presenting your story, but be sure to also share the thought process and motivation(s) behind your actions. This way, the admissions committee will take away both a clear picture of what you accomplished and the aspects of your character that inspired you and helped enable your success.

That said, the school acknowledges within the prompt that even endeavors that have a positive result are rarely smooth sailing from beginning to end—hence the question about challenges faced. A mistake applicants often make in writing this kind of essay is presenting a strong narrative in which they are incredible leaders, and then near the end, making a brief (and typically disjointed) reference to a hardship or conflict encountered along the way, meant to fulfill the “challenges” element of the essay query. To be effective and believable, your ups and downs must be woven intrinsically into your narrative, rather than simply acknowledged at the end. Clearly explaining how you approached and prevailed over the challenge at hand is crucial, so go beyond simply describing the roadblock itself and ensure that you detail your response and the inner workings of your decision making at that point.

Lastly, do not forget or neglect to explain what you learned from the experience—Kellogg specifically asks you to do so! And keep in mind that for your takeaways to be “meaningful,” they have to be profoundly connected to your narrative. The admissions reader should be able to easily understand the connection between the situation you describe and your subsequent learnings.

Required Essay 2: Pursuing an MBA is a catalyst for personal and professional growth. How have you grown in the past? How do you intend to grow at Kellogg? (450 words)

How have you grown in the past? The best way to answer this question is to really take the question at face value and think about… how you have grown in the past! Kellogg has no preconceived notions of what applicants should offer in response to this query; it simply wants to learn more about who you are now and how you came to be this person. Rather than pandering to what you think Kellogg wants to hear or trying to conceive of a storyline that seems like it would sound good, truly reflect on your growth to date and focus on analyzing one or two recent experiences that effectively reveal how you have developed and matured.

You might use the first 200–250 words of your essay to share a brief anecdote or two illustrating your growth. These stories can be thematically connected, or they can present two separate circumstances in which you grew in different ways. This portion of your essay will show that you possess the capacity to grow, so in the rest of your submission, you can outline your agenda for growth at Kellogg. You can focus on academic and/or professional needs or on broader personal needs (such as intellectual growth or global exposure)—either option is fine. What is important is that you clearly show a genuine understanding of how Kellogg is the right catalyst for your anticipated development. If your connection to the school is merely superficial—based just on rankings or reputation, for example—you will reveal only that you do not truly grasp the potential inherent in your time in the program. So do your research and really learn about Kellogg in depth, and then present clear links between the program and your developmental needs, going beyond a simple listing of courses or resources and illustrating a more thorough and personalized connection between the offerings and your specific needs and interests.

This question involves many of the elements of a traditional personal statement essay, so we encourage you to download your free copy of the mbaMission Personal Statement Guide. This complimentary guide explains ways of approaching these topics effectively and offers several sample essays as examples. Feel free to download your copy today.

And for a thorough exploration of Kellogg’s academic program, unique offerings, social life, and other key characteristics, be sure to download the mbaMission Insider’s Guide to the Kellogg School of Management, which is also available free of charge.

Certain applicants will respond to additional questions:

Dual-degree applicants: For applicants to the MMM or JD-MBA dual degree programs, please explain why that program is right for you. (250 words)

If you are applying to one of Kellogg’s dual degree programs, you should be ready to demonstrate a great deal of intentionality. After all, you are committing to a specialized path that requires additional time and cost. With a limit of just 250 words, you have no choice but to cut to the chase and specify how a dual degree is necessary for you to achieve your particular desired outcomes. After presenting your goals, you will need to tie these goals specifically to the Kellogg programs you are targeting and to their associated resources. This essay is essentially another opportunity (after Essay 2) to explain your distinct need to attend Kellogg, only here, you can focus on showcasing the non-MBA portion of your intended degree.

Re-applicants: Since your previous application, what steps have you taken to strengthen your candidacy? (250 word limit)

Whether you have improved your academic record, received a promotion, begun a new and exciting project, increased your community involvement, or taken on some sort of personal challenge, the key to success with this essay is conveying a very deliberate path of achievement. Kellogg wants to know that you have been actively striving to improve yourself and your profile, and that you have seized opportunities during the previous year to do so, because a Kellogg MBA is vital to you. The responses to this essay question will vary greatly from one candidate to the next, because each person’s needs and experiences differ. We are more than happy to provide one-on-one assistance with this highly personal essay to ensure that your efforts over the past year are presented in the best light possible.

All applicants have the opportunity to provide explanations or clarification in 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)

However tempted you might be, this is not the place to paste in a strong essay you wrote for another school or to offer a few anecdotes that you were unable to incorporate into any of your other essays. Instead, this is your opportunity, if needed, to address any lingering questions that an admissions officer may have about your candidacy, such as a poor grade or overall GPA, a low GMAT score, a gap in your work experience, etc. Consider downloading our free mbaMission Optional Essays Guide, in which we offer detailed advice on when and how to take advantage of the optional essay, along with multiple sample essays, to help you mitigate any problem areas in your profile.

Required Video Essay: The Video Essay is one component of the application and provides you with an additional opportunity to demonstrate what you will bring to our vibrant Kellogg community – in an interactive way. You will respond to several short video essay questions. The questions are designed to bring to life the person we have learned about on paper.

After submitting an application and payment, you will be able to access the video essay through your application status page. One question will be a “get to know you” icebreaker type of question. The second question will be an opportunity to describe your plans for the future and how Kellogg will help you on that journey. The other questions will be randomly generated questions that will be similar to interview questions.

There are practice questions that you may complete as many times as you like to get comfortable with the format and technology. The practice questions and experience will simulate the actual video essay experience, so this is meant to be a useful tool to help you feel prepared.

We encourage you to practice so you are comfortable with the format once it is time to complete the official questions. There is not an opportunity to re-do the answer to the official video essay questions.

You will have 20 seconds to think about the question and up to one minute to give your response.

We estimate the video essays will take 20–25 minutes to complete—which includes time for set-up and answering all the practice questions.  You will need an internet connected computer with a webcam, microphone and an updated version of Adobe Flash in order to complete the video essay.

Start by taking a deep breath. We understand that these video essays can make you feel like you are being put on the spot, but Kellogg is really not trying to scare you. The admissions committee simply wants a more dynamic representation of your personality than a written essay can provide. You cannot answer any of the school’s video questions incorrectly, so do not concern yourself with trying to give the “right” answer. Just respond to each query honestly, as smoothly as you can (despite any nervousness you may be feeling), and be yourself so the school can get a better sense of the unique individual you are. Thankfully, Kellogg provides some basic information about the nature of several of the questions you will encounter in the application’s video segment, so you will not be going in totally blind.

The “get to know you” question will be about a topic you know very well—you! Kellogg refers to this question as an “icebreaker,” so imagine meeting someone for the first time at a party or other event. Similar questions to what you might ask each other in the process of getting acquainted are what you can very likely expect from Kellogg. Examples we can imagine are “What is your favorite book and why?,” “If you unexpectedly had 24 work-free hours, how would you spend them?,” and (as Kellogg itself offers on its site) “If you could live anywhere in the world for a year, where would it be and why?” Although we are going to assume that you already know yourself pretty well, these types of queries sometimes require a moment or two of thought before a clear answer can be offered. So take some time to imagine these sorts of questions (you can even Google “icebreaker questions” to find lists of general examples) and practice delving into your personality in this way.  Who knows, you might even learn something new about yourself in the process!

Fortunately, Kellogg very kindly provides the school-specific question in advance: “What path are you interested in pursuing, how will you get there, and why is this program right for you?” With respect to your interest in Kellogg, you need to truly understand why you are choosing this specific program for your MBA. By that, we do not mean that you should create and memorize a laundry list of reasons. Instead, you must have a comprehensive understanding of the resources the school offers and be able to clearly and concisely express which ones are of particular importance and significance to you—and why. Then, when you are recording your video response, you will need to convey this information in a way that is sincere and compelling. That will not happen if you are listing facts you have simply committed to memory! Kellogg offers very clear advice on this: “We don’t want scripted answers—we want to get to know you and learn something new. … When you record your answer speak authentically—we can tell if you are reading notes! And, no need to memorize an answer to the Kellogg question… it might make you sound like a robot.” The research you do on the school for Essay 2 will of course be valuable here as well.

You cannot expect for sure that you will be asked to describe a challenge, but do not dismiss this possibility altogether. Kellogg says that some of the questions posed will be “similar to interview questions,” and queries about past challenges are most definitely common in MBA interviews! You may wish to download a free copy of the mbaMission Interview Guide, which, in addition to advice on preparing for and mastering the interview process, includes several pages of common interview questions that could be helpful in approaching your Kellogg video essays.

One minute is not very long, so run through several practice sessions—perhaps in front of a mirror—to get a sense of how quickly those 60 seconds will pass when you are in front of the camera. Although you can prepare as much as you want (the school even provides practice questions to help you do so), you get only one chance at the recording. If you stumble while answering or ultimately are unhappy with your answer, unfortunately, you cannot do anything about it. You will not be able to rerecord your responses or try again another time. This may make you nervous, but we encourage you to view the situation a little differently. Kellogg wants to get to know the authentic you through these video essays. If you fumble for words or lose your train of thought, just laugh or shrug and continue with your response. Accepting a mistake with a sense of humor and grace will give the admissions committee a more positive and natural impression of your personality than rigid scripting and overpreparation ever could.

The Next Step—Mastering Your Kellogg Interview: Many MBA candidates find admissions interviews stressful and intimidating, but mastering this important element of the application process is definitely possible—the key is informed preparation. And to help you develop this high level of preparation, we offer our free Interview Primers! Download your free copy of the Northwestern Kellogg Interview Primer today!

Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management is a close-knit community that values a diverse community and philanthropy. As Melissa Rapp, Kellogg’s Director of MBA Admissions, explains with a blog post on Kellogg’s Inside Perspective “Kellogg believes deeply in diversity and inclusion and we want to build classes that reflect a wide variety of backgrounds, industries, functions, geographies, and beliefs.

The more variety we can put in a class the better the experience is for you. The diversity of perspectives and opinions allow you to broaden your viewpoint and practice the essential skill of learning to collaborate with others who don’t think like you do. You, your experiences and your passions all make you unique and we want to learn about it all. Have the confidence and bravery to tell your story.”

To make sure you are perfect for Kellogg and can explain that in this set of essays, do your research on the programs, activities, clubs, classes and professors you are most excited about. While you are reading and conversing with students and alumni, keep looking for ways in which you will contribute to the community.

Kellogg now has a video essay as part of the application process, something that Director Rapp is extremely excited about. As she explains, the video essay allows the admissions committee to see the full three-dimensional view of the candidate. Relax and be yourself. You can always practice with the SBC video interview prep to make sure you are absolutely ready for the video essay.

REQUIRED ESSAYS
Essay One: Kellogg’s purpose is to educate, equip & inspire brave leaders who create lasting value. Tell us about a time you have demonstrated leadership and created lasting value. What challenges did you face, and what did you learn? (450 words)

This essay focuses on leadership using a behavioral essay framework (the clue is “tell us about a time…”). The details about exactly what you did, said and learned in your leadership story communicate valuable information about how you approach issues and learn from experience. Director Rapp also says that “creating lasting value” is a key to this essay and you should think about what you have done that endures.

As you structure the essay, spend some limited time to set up the background of the story, and then use the majority of the space to describe specifically what you did, thought, felt and how you behaved. Use details to entice the reader and set yourself apart. A few well-placed specifics will add color without adding length to the essay.

You have wide latitude in your topic selection, as long as you demonstrated leadership and enduring value. It might be a time that everything went perfectly smoothly and you learned how to work with a group or inspire people to action. On the other hand, it could be a challenging situation where you learned what not to do! Don’t be nervous about showing weakness here, as long as the outcome demonstrates that you have left your mark on the organization.

If you choose a challenging situation the learning part of the essay will be crucial. Show you can and do learn from experience. Every leader has to learn and develop, and willingness to be open to feedback and improve will be an asset to your application.

Do not neglect mentioning teamwork, which is a core value of Kellogg’s culture. Your leadership experience is likely part of a team at work or in an extracurricular activity, and sensitivity to teamwork and collaboration in any leadership story demonstrates maturity and social skills.

Essay Two: Pursuing an MBA is a catalyst for personal and professional growth. How have you grown in the past? How do you intend to grow at Kellogg? (450 words)

This essay question is a hybrid of a classic career goals essay and a personal essay. Kellogg is interested in candidates who are able to integrate their personal and professional goals and show how a Kellogg MBA will serve both sides of life.

When you describe professional and personal growth in the past, make sure it is relevant to your plans to pursue an MBA at Kellogg. The story you tell in this essay should provide insight into your decision to pursue an MBA and allude to your future goals. Because this isn’t a question about your entire career and personal life thus far, you should choose only one or two main experiences to share.

The topic of this essay should also be an experience that demonstrated growth over time. Perhaps you started in an entry-level position at work and progressed into a management role. Or maybe you learned more about yourself by switching jobs and careers, showing progression in your understanding of your goals and aspirations.

For the personal angle of the essay you could focus on a passion outside of work that has developed over time and led to personal growth. It’s also possible to have both personal and professional growth in your career. Many people mature significantly in the time period between college and graduate school and typically work and life both contribute to that growth.

VIDEO ESSAY
The Video Essay is another component of the application and provides you with an additional opportunity to demonstrate what you will bring to our vibrant Kellogg community – in an interactive way. You will respond to several short video essay questions. The questions are designed to bring to life the person we have learned about on paper.

One question will be a “get to know you” icebreaker type of question. The second question will be ““What path are you interested in pursuing? How will you get there? Why is this program right for you?”

The other question will be a randomly generated question that will be similar to interview questions. Overall the video essay is an opportunity for the admissions committee to get a sense of who you are and your personality beyond your skill with the written word.

After you submit your application you will receive your actual video essay questions. Prepare as if you would for an interview, drafting the topics you want to cover and practicing your presentation. Writing some bullet points down in advance will help you remember and focus as you answer the questions.

The video should accurately portray your personality and demeanor. Extensive preparation will help you be comfortable and be yourself when you are recording the video, but should not create a feeling that you scripted and are “acting.”
Kellogg allows you to practice with the video format a few times before you submit your official video, and it would be useful to do some additional rounds of practice in front of the camera.

Dual-degree applicants: For applicants to the MMM or JD-MBA dual degree programs, please explain why that program is right for you. (250 words)

Doing your research on Kellogg MBA’s academics and resources will help you answer the question about why you need a dual degree to achieve your goals. If you are applying to the MMM program, you’ll have to show how the degree will prepare you more effectively for your career goals than the MBA alone.

Be able to articulate what is different about the Kellogg MMM program as compared to the MBA and other joint degrees. Know the classes you want to take, the professors you hope to work for, and how the MMM experience will be an asset in your future career.

Similarly, the JD-MBA at Kellogg is a highly competitive admissions process and will require a very clear explanation of what you will do with both degrees after school. Consider the unique attributes of the Kellogg JD-MBA program as compared to others, and also why you specifically need both a JD and an MBA to achieve your career goals.

Re-applicants: Since your previous application, what steps have you taken to strengthen your candidacy? (250 word limit)

In answering this question make sure you provide tangible evidence that you have improved the overall package you are submitting this year. Some of the most tangible improvements are a stronger GMAT score or grades from new quantitative classes you attended since the last time you applied.

Other steps that you can describe include a promotion at work, new volunteer activities, or increased responsibility at work or in your activities. If you don’t have something tangible and external to report, it’s reasonable to discuss how your career goals have changed or your personal aspirations have been refined as you revamped your applications.

Additional Information (Optional)
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)

If there are any areas of concern, this is the correct place to address them. Strike an upbeat tone here and avoid excuses. Explain your issue clearly and focus most of the essay on the correction for the issue. For example, if you had a disciplinary issue in college, spend most of the essay demonstrating that you learned from the experience and have been an ideal citizen ever since.

Low GPA issues should be explained here, and if there is a grade of C or below on your transcript the admissions committee will want to know why and feel comfortable it is an outlier in your overall academic record. For academic questions make sure you emphasize your improved performance either later in your college career or in subsequent work or classes since college.
Image credit: Mike Willis (CC BY-ND 2.0)
 
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If you are looking for guidance on your MBA application, Stacy Blackman Consulting can help with hourly and comprehensive consulting services. Contact us to learn more. Visit the website for Stacy Blackman Reviews, and check out the company’s e-publications for more in depth school-by-school guidance.

Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management has posted the MBA essays for the 2018-19 admissions cycle, which remain unchanged from last year.
Essay Questions
For 2018-2019, the following two essays are required of all applicants:

• Kellogg’s purpose is to educate, equip & inspire brave leaders who create lasting value.  Tell us about a time you have demonstrated leadership and created lasting value.  What challenges did you face, and what did you learn? (450 words)
• Pursuing an MBA is a catalyst for personal and professional growth. How have you grown in the past? How do you intend to grow at Kellogg? (450 words)

Certain applicants will respond to additional questions:

• Dual-degree applicants: For applicants to the MMM or JD-MBA dual degree programs, please explain why that program is right for you. (250 words)
• Re-applicants: Since your previous application, what steps have you taken to strengthen your candidacy? (250 word limit)

All applicants have the opportunity to provide explanations or clarification in 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)

Video Essay
Melissa Rapp, Director of Admissions for the Full-Time MBA Programs and the MS in Management Studies Program, is a huge fan of the video essay, which Kellogg introduced four years ago.

Rapp says it’s the best because, “It gives us the opportunity to hear applicants tell their stories in their own voices. It has taken the two-dimensional application process and made it three-dimensional for every candidate. We have pioneered this technology and are not looking back. Our Career Management Center and alums tell us that more and more companies are using similar technology for initial interviews so it’s good practice for future career moves too.”

Per the admissions website: The Video Essay is one component of the application and provides you with an additional opportunity to demonstrate what you will bring to our vibrant Kellogg community – in an interactive way. You will respond to several short video essay questions. The questions are designed to bring to life the person we have learned about on paper.

• After submitting an application and payment, you will be able to access the video essay through the your application status page. One question will be a “get to know you” icebreaker type of question. The second question will be an opportunity to describe your plans for the future and how Kellogg will help you on that journey. The other questions will be randomly generated questions that will be similar to interview questions.
• There are practice questions that you may complete as many times as you like to get comfortable with the format and technology. The practice questions and experience will simulate the actual video essay experience, so this is meant to be a useful tool to help you feel prepared.
• We encourage you to practice so you are comfortable with the format once it is time to complete the official questions. There is not an opportunity to re-do the answer to the official video essay questions.
• You will have 20 seconds to think about the question and up to one minute to give your response.
• We estimate the video essays will take 20-25 minutes to complete – which includes time for set-up and answering all the practice questions.  You will need an internet connected computer with a webcam, microphone and an updated version of Adobe Flash in order to complete the video essay.

***

Kellogg offers more insight in this section (see link above) on why the admissions team has a video essay component, what kinds of questions to expect, wardrobe suggestions, as well as answers to many technical questions related to the process.

The Kellogg full-time MBA application is now live. For more information on applying, please visit the Kellogg School MBA admissions website.

 
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If you are looking for guidance on your MBA application, Stacy Blackman Consulting can help with hourly and comprehensive consulting services. Contact us to learn more. Visit the website for Stacy Blackman Reviews, and check out the company’s e-publications for more in depth school-by-school guidance.

The Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University has posted the following MBA application deadlines for the 2018-19 admissions season.
Round 1
Application due: September 19, 2018
Decision released: December 12, 2018
Round 2
Application due: January 9, 2019
Decision released: March 27, 2019
Round 3
Application due: April 10, 2019
Decision released: May 15, 2019

Applications are due no later than 5 p.m. CT on the application deadline date. All applicants are considered equally; however, the earlier you apply, the greater chance we can accommodate your interview preference. If you’re an international applicant, Kellogg encourages you to apply in Round 1 or 2 to allow time for your visa application.

For additional information on applying, please visit the Kellogg School MBA admissions website.
Image credit:  Mike Willis (CC BY-ND 2.0)
 
***

If you are looking for guidance on your MBA application, Stacy Blackman Consulting can help with hourly and comprehensive consulting services. Contact us to learn more. Visit the website for Stacy Blackman Reviews, and check out the company’s e-publications for more in depth school-by-school guidance.

[caption id="attachment_43137" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
image source: Pixabay[/caption]

 
Round one (1) applications are just around the corner. By now you should have had a conversation, or two, with your recommenders about your professional and academic goals. They should have also agreed to support your business school application(s).

It is common to feel a nervousness about the recommendation letters. Typical questions that arise, even at this stage, are: Have I chosen the right person? What are they going to write about me? Will they write at length and in detail about my accomplishments? Are there areas in which I could receive a less than an ideal review? etc.

For these questions to be on your mind is perfectly normal. After all, a lot is riding on that glowing reference letter.

A good recommendation letter is one that comes from a supervisor, client, or project leader who can communicate, in vivid detail, your professional achievements and can speak to your professional goals and ambitions. Instead of wondering what the recommender will write, why not spend that energy bringing the very best parts of your profile to the forefront of their mind. I ask you this: Have you prepared your recommender to give you a glowing recommendation?

If not, there is still time to reach out to them for these key issues.
RESUME
While your recommender might know you, your ambitions, and your accomplishments as it relates to your working for and with him/her, he/she is not aware, and should not be expected to be mindful of all your experiences and accomplishments. Be kind and share a copy of your resume – preferably the one you will be submitting with your b-school application(s). Your resume will give the recommender a basis from which to draw and can also be reminded of your accomplishments. They can then address specific examples that show your brilliance.
EXPERIENCES
Talk to your recommender(s) about events/experiences that have shaped your decision to pursue an MBA. What are some of the tools an MBA will equip you that may have enhanced your professional experience? Which experiences have demonstrated your readiness to succeed? When discussing experiences, be sure you talk about those relevant to your recommender. A paper you wrote in college is irrelevant to your supervisor in the Private Equity firm, for example. But, if the person supporting your application has witnessed you grow from an intern to a Senior Analyst, talking to him/her about your journey makes perfect sense. Remember to be specific, after all, the schools are asking your recommenders to be.
ADMINISTRATIVE
Not many people like the administrative process, but that is a part of admissions. Be sure you have given your recommender the details he/she needs to submit the letter. They should have already been added to your target school’s application portal, which sends an automatic email with instructions on how to proceed.

An application is considered complete only when all the required materials are submitted. The recommendation letter is one of those required documents and must be provided by the admission deadline of the schools you are targeting. Therefore, be sure you have communicated your target deadline to your recommender.

Finally, keep track of your recommender’s progress. From the school’s application portal, you can check on the status of your recommendation letters.  If your recommender has not submitted his/her letter of recommendation two weeks before the deadline, it is advisable to reach out with a friendly reminder.

Trust that you have made the right decision in choosing recommenders that want to help you succeed and waive your right to see the content of your recommenders’ letter. The recommender will be more inclined to be candid in their remarks, and the admissions team will add more weight to a recommendation letter that has not been seen by the applicant.

 

 
ABOUT SIA ADMISSIONS:
Sia Admissions Consulting is a boutique firm based in New York City. We specialize in coaching students of diverse background navigate university admissions process. Our goal is to partner with students to help them characterize and reflect their individuality in all areas of the admissions application.

At Sia, we firmly believe that “one-size” does not fit all—each student has his or her story that, if communicated properly, a university admissions committee is eager to hear; therefore, we coach each student in originally telling his or her story. Our partnership with each student consists of  – (i) recognizing the student’s story by asking poignant questions which help us (ii) identify the quintessence of his or her strengths and aspirations, so we may (iii) build an idiosyncratic strategy that helps the student distinctively present his or her story. Our aim is to coach student in showcasing a unique application that communicates their individuality as an ideal candidate for the field and institution of choice.

Kellogg
has released its application deadlines and essays for the 2020-21 application
season. The essay questions remain unchanged from last year. The first question
asks about your leadership experience and the impact made, and the second
question asks about your values and motivation in life and work and their
influence on you.

Application Deadlines:

 

Application Deadline

Decision Released

Round 1

September 16, 2020

December 9, 2020

Round 2

January 6, 2021

March 24, 2021

Round 3

April 7, 2021

May 12, 2021

The 2020 MBA application is live now. Applications are due no later than 5 p.m. CT on the
application deadline date.

If
you're an international applicant, Kellogg encourages you to apply in Round 1
or 2 to allow time for your visa application.

Essays:

Kate
Smith, Assistant Dean of Admission and Financial Aid at Kellogg advises in her blog post:

"From our conversations with
students, we know that the most challenging trait to demonstrate and evaluate
continues to be leadership. We're looking specifically for
examples of spearheading change, striving for excellence or creating a
lasting impact. We want our students to be the kind of people who aim to
leave an innovative mark on their companies before and after Kellogg."

Here is MER's analysis of the essay questions:

Written
Essay 1: Kellogg's purpose is to educate, equip & inspire brave leaders who
create lasting value. Tell us about a time you have demonstrated leadership and
created lasting value. What challenges did you face, and what did you learn?
(450 words)

This
question asks the applicants to recount a leadership experience in which they
made a significant impact while overcoming challenges and learning something
that helped them in similar situations in the future. Please note the word "brave
leaders" and choose a leadership example in which you stepped outside your
comfort zone to guide people around you towards a goal.

Regarding
examples of leadership, you may choose stories from your personal or
professional experiences. Make sure that the impact you have made and the value
you have created is not only in terms of dollar amounts or percentages but also
in terms of the challenges faced. The examples can be handling an uncooperative
team member, or a supervisor, taking a decision with insufficient information,
convincing someone of your innovative ideas, handling a new project, meeting
stringent deadlines, managing a client's expectations, or resolving the
conflict between two team members, etc.

  In
these exceptional times, when the whole world is dealing with a global health
crisis, what actions you took to do your part in helping people that made a difference
in their lives? Did you take the initiative to make masks or PPE for the
hospitals,  or did you private tutor kids,
or got involved with a local NGO to contribute in any way you could, or connected
with your alma mater in their virtual efforts to help the underprivileged.  Maybe you stepped up to volunteer in your
community and helped an old and physically disabled people in your neighborhood
with groceries or medicines or took the responsibility of your family as your
parents have immunity issues. During this ongoing crisis, you can show
leadership in many different ways. The key is you stepped out of your comfort
zone at this challenging time, took the reins, and made a difference.

As always, we recommend you follow
the 4-part STAR framework below:

• Situation: what was the situation/ challenge? Who were the people
  involved in this situation- players, stakeholders?
• Task: what you needed to accomplish? What conflict/ challenges did
  you encounter?
• Action: What were the actions you took? Describe this in detail as
  it will become a crucial part of your essay.
• Result/
  Impact: What was the outcome of your
  leadership efforts? Were you able to address the situation? What "lasting
  value" you created? What lessons did you learn?

Since
the second part of the essay question asks you to share what the experience
taught you, you must explain at length why that experience is meaningful to
you, in terms of what you achieved and what you learned about yourself. The
experience may have revealed to you your strong attributes, which you might not
have been aware of earlier. For example, you might have never known that you
could rise to the occasion to contribute to the ongoing crisis, but this complicated
situation offered you an opportunity to lead people that yielded great results.
You may wrap up the essay with a final note about how you are now applying or
trying to apply those lessons in similar situations.

You
may also use this essay as an opportunity to comment on a leadership position
you are interested in holding as a student at Kellogg and add value to the
Kellogg community.

Kate
Smith's advice: This question is unchanged. We're
looking for those individuals who have found or plan to find unique ways to
demonstrate the Kellogg purpose in their careers. As you consider leadership,
in particular, keep in mind that Kellogg was the school that pioneered the
team-based learning model that is now ubiquitous among the top business
schools. We want all of our students to be able to step up when their teams
need them.

Written
Essay 2: Values are what guide you in your life and work. What values are
important to you, and how have they influenced you? (450 words)

This
essay requires applicants to do a significant amount of self-reflection to
understand what values and beliefs are meaningful to them. Simply discussing
values that you think will impress the admission committee members will not
work here as it is crucial to explain how you have demonstrated those values/
beliefs in your life.

Also,
please don't be tempted to provide a laundry list of values. You may discuss
only 2-3 values, and back up your statements with concrete examples from your
life (personal or professional). Also, explain how these values have shaped
your personality and have influenced your decisions and actions.

You may wrap up your essay by
stating how you will enrich the Kellogg community through these values.

Kate
Smith's Advice: Our goal is to uncover what
motivates and inspires you. What drives you? How will this make you a
meaningful member of the Kellogg community?

Reapplicant Essay:

Since your previous application,
what steps have you taken to strengthen your candidacy? (250 words)

This
is a straightforward re-applicant essay. Through this question, the Ad Com would like to know if
your need for the Kellogg MBA is as strong as it was last time. Hence you
should demonstrate your continued interest in Kellogg by explaining how you
have enhanced your application since you applied last time. Focus on the areas
you have improved upon since you applied last. Whether you have taken extra
classes, boosted your GMAT score, received a promotion, led a new and exciting
project, increased your community involvement, taken on a personal challenge, or
articulated your goals, the key here is to demonstrate that you are now a
stronger candidate. Your conscious efforts to strengthen your profile and to
work on your weak areas will prove how determined you are about your Kellogg
MBA.

Additional Information Essay:

All applicants have the opportunity
to provide explanations or clarification in Additional Information. Use this
section if you think the person reviewing your application might have a few
questions about one or more of your responses. This could include:

• Unexplained gaps in work experience
• Academic, GMAT or GRE performance
• Extenuating circumstances that we should be aware of
  when reviewing your application

The purpose of this essay is to address a weakness in your profile. For example, if you have a lower than average GMAT score, any grades below a C on your transcript, academic probation, or a significant employment/education gap, you can explain that in this essay. Also, if you cannot get your recommendation letter from your current supervisor, you should explain that in the optional essay. Your response should be positive, straightforward, and fact-focused and should not sound like you are making excuses for a weakness in your profile. To provide a context for a weak area in your profile, make sure your reason is genuine to convince the Ad Com that your low grades or employment gap occurred due to unforeseen circumstances beyond your control. First, explain the facts, then show how you have addressed the issue, and finally, conclude by explaining why this will not impact your ability to handle the academic rigor of the program.

 This question is entirely optional. If you don't
have any areas of concern, you may not write this essay.

 Video Essays:

Kate
Smith:
"Kellogg introduced the video essay several years ago to provide the
chance to "meet" our applicants around the world. It also lets us
assess your communication skills through a medium that has overtaken the
business landscape."

Kellogg has retained its video
essays.

Video essay 1: Please introduce
yourself to the admissions committee.

This
question allows you to present your personality to the Ad Com and your
classmates. You can discuss your cultural background, motivation, personal and
professional goals, hobbies/interests, and issues that pique your interest. The
motive is to tell them who you are. Since you will be discussing your plans in
your second video essay, you may just touch upon them in this video essay.

Kate
Smith's advice: "Consider this your
opportunity to share what you would want your future Kellogg classmates and our
admissions committee to know about you. What makes you, you?"

Video
essay 2: What path are you interested in pursuing, how will you get there, and
why is this program right for you?

The
second question provides you an opportunity to describe your plans for the
future and how Kellogg will help you achieve them. Since the written essays do
not offer you a chance to discuss your post-MBA goals and why you are applying
to Kellogg, this is a great place to show how your goals are in line with the
offerings and resources of Kellogg.

Kate
Smith's advice: "This is an intentionally
broad question so you can answer honestly and meaningfully. We want to know
what set you en route to pursuing an MBA and why you're choosing a particular
Kellogg Full-TimeProgram."

Video
essay 3: The
third question will ask about a challenge you've faced.

Kate
Smith's advice:  Each of you will receive a randomly selected prompt, all of
which have the same objective. We want you to show us how you handled a
challenging situation in your career or personal life. For example, we might
ask you to tell us about a time you failed to achieve a goal you had set for
yourself.

This
is typically an interview-style question and is usually related to the
workplace or your leadership skills, for example, "Tell us about a time
when you had to make a difficult decision?" or "Tell me about a time
when you overcame an obstacle in the workplace."

The
Kellogg application suggests some sample questions that you can use to prepare
for video essays. You should practice as many times as you like until you get
comfortable with the format and technology. You may prepare MBA related
questions as well as non-work questions about your interests/ passions and
volunteer work. Add more items to the list and begin practicing. Also, it's a
great idea to seek the help of family or friends and get their feedback on your
topics and delivery style so you can improve yourself accordingly in your next
recording.

You
will have 20 seconds to think about the question and up to one minute to give
your response. So timing is the crucial thing in this response. Please note
that you will not get a second chance to record your answer to the official
video essay questions. So make sure to practice to get a clear sense of how
much time you need to think and record your response.

Click
here for Kellogg's
Tips on Video essays .

Kate Smith's tips for completing the 2020-21Kellogg application

Free Resources:

10 Key Essay Tips with Examples

Essay Analysis of Other Top Programs-2020-21

MER Students Share their success Stories

Case Studies

You
may also be interested in Kellogg alumnus Eduardo's advice. Kellogg Second Year Student Shares his experience /advice

Also, check out Kellogg admit Rohit's
story: Indian Doctor and Civil Cervices Officer's Journey toKellogg

Since 2011, MER (myEssayReview) has helped many applicants get accepted into the top
20 MBA programs. (Poonam is one of the top 5 most reviewed consultants on the GMAT Club.)

Do you have questions about your
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