{"id":2566,"date":"2015-10-03T13:52:59","date_gmt":"2015-10-03T18:52:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dallasadmissionsconsulting.l7g1nsll-liquidwebsites.com\/?p=2566"},"modified":"2015-10-03T13:52:59","modified_gmt":"2015-10-03T18:52:59","slug":"the-biggest-problem-with-mba-personal-statements","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/austinadmissions.com\/2015\/10\/03\/the-biggest-problem-with-mba-personal-statements\/","title":{"rendered":"The Biggest Problem with MBA Personal Statements?"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a phrase: they’re too damn boring!<\/span><\/p>\n

I’ve helped clients write over 100 MBA personal statements in the last few years, and one recurring theme stands out: business school applicants almost always want to restate their resume, point for point, on a personal statement.<\/span><\/p>\n

I mean, how boring is that?<\/span><\/p>\n

First rule of writing: put yourself in your reader’s shoes. Do you think an MBA Admissions Adviser wants to read a rephrasing of your resume, especially when they’ve just <\/em>read your resume, and he or she has to read hundreds <\/em>of boring essays a year? Will restating your resume in your personal statement help your chances of getting accepted? Will it show how you’re uniquely suited to the challenges of that business school?<\/span><\/p>\n

No, no, and another NO!<\/span><\/p>\n

So, how can you stand out, while still maintaining an appropriate tone and responding to the prompt?<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Be creative.<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

A Business school essay must always<\/em> effectively respond to the prompt. You may see a question like: why is now the right time for you to pursue an MBA? <\/em>Or something along those lines.<\/span><\/p>\n

Do not respond with: I’m at the perfect point in my career to start an MBA because….<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

I’ve seen fifth graders start an essay more effectively.<\/span><\/p>\n

Instead, tell your story. Highlight the aspects of yourself that aren’t on your resume. Catch the readers attention from the first line!<\/span><\/p>\n

“I tightened my damp peacoat. The harsh New York winter proved a formidable foe. It was 3 PM on a Wednesday, and the sun hadn’t come out in three days. I eighty percent sure my Texan toes were in the first stages of frostbite, yet as I pushed through the heavy gold doors at 55 Wall Street to start my second week as a junior analyst, I was more excited than I’d been in a long, long time.”<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

An intro like this shows the reader that you’re not the average B-school applicant. It shows the reader that you actually care <\/em>about whether he or she enjoys your essay. It is the beginning of forging a personal connection with your reader. You are now a living, breathing (cold) person with fears, anxieties, ambitions, and dreams. Your reader can start to get to know you on a personal. That’s a good thing.<\/span><\/p>\n

Still, you do need to answer the prompt. You’re not applying to a creative writing program where a rambling first person retelling of the first time you tried Quinoa might actually be appropriate.<\/span><\/p>\n

You DO need to highlight relevant work experience. You DO need to tell the reader why you’re a qualified candidate.<\/span><\/p>\n

But you DON’T need to restated your resume line by line.<\/span><\/p>\n

And you DON’T need to be so freaking boring!<\/span><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a phrase: they’re too damn boring! I’ve helped clients write over 100 MBA personal statements in the last few years, and one recurring theme stands out: business school applicants almost always want to restate their resume, point for point, on a personal statement. I mean, how boring is that? First rule of writing: put yourself in your reader’s shoes. Do you think an MBA Admissions Adviser wants to read a rephrasing of your resume, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2567,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"wds_primary_category":0},"categories":[80,74,39,40,42,44,82],"tags":[79,66,81],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/austinadmissions.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2566"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/austinadmissions.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/austinadmissions.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/austinadmissions.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/austinadmissions.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2566"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/austinadmissions.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2566\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/austinadmissions.com\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/austinadmissions.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2566"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/austinadmissions.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2566"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/austinadmissions.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2566"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}