A lot of us aspire to do Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from the best colleges of the world. The process of application to great B-Schools all over the world consist of responding to specific essay questions in addition to other application elements like GMAT scores, education degree transcripts, work experience, etc.

Through these essays, the admission committee is trying to understand your attributes and qualities beyond academic and professional accomplishments. In general, essays should be a true reflection of you and be honestly attempted, which in turn makes them impactful. Below is the collection of essays collected from previous years -

MIT Sloan, US

Essay: Please submit a cover letter seeking a place in the MIT Sloan MBA Program. Your letter should conform to a standard business correspondence and be addressed to Mr. Rod Garcia, Senior Director of Admissions. (250 words or fewer)

Harvard Business School, US

Essay: You’re applying to Harvard Business School. We can see your resume, academic transcripts, extracurricular activities, awards, post-MBA career goals, test scores, and what your recommenders have to say about you. What else would you like us to know as we consider your candidacy?

University of Chicago Booth School of Business, US

Essay: View the collection of shared Booth moments (from the website). Choose the moment that best resonates with you and tell us why.

INSEAD, France

Job Description Essays

Job Essay 1: Briefly summarize your current (or most recent) job, including the nature of work, major responsibilities, and where relevant, employees under your supervision, size of budget, clients/products and results achieved. (short answer)

Job Essay 2: What would be your next step in terms of position if you were to remain in the same company? (short answer)

Job Essay 3: Please give a full description of your career since graduating from university. Describe your career path with the rationale behind your choices. (short answer)

Job Essay 4: Discuss your short/long-term career aspirations with or without an MBA from INSEAD. (short answer) Optional: If you are currently not working or if you plan to leave your current employer more than 2 months before the programme starts, please explain your activities and occupations between leaving your job and the start of the programme.

Motivation Essays

Motivation Essay 1: Give a candid description of yourself (who are you as a person), stressing the personal characteristics you feel to be your strengths and weaknesses and the main factors which have influenced your personal development, giving examples when necessary (approximately 500 words).

Motivation Essay 2: Describe the achievement of which you are most proud and explain why. In addition, describe a situation where you failed. How did these experiences impact your relationships with others? Comment on what you learned (approximately 400 words).

Motivation Essay 3: Describe all types of extra-professional activities in which you have been or are still involved for a significant amount of time (clubs, sports, music, arts, politics, etc.) How are you enriched by these activities? (approximately 300 words)

Optional Motivation Essay: Is there anything else that was not covered in your application that you would like to share with the Admissions Committee? (approximately 300 words)

Stanford University, US

Essay 1: What matters most to you, and why?

For this essay, we would like you to:

• • Do some deep self-examination, so you can genuinely illustrate who you are and how you came to be the person you are.
  • Share the insights, experiences, and lessons that shaped your perspectives, rather than focusing merely on what you’ve done or accomplished.
  • Write from the heart, and illustrate how a person, situation, or event has influenced you.
  • Focus on the “why” rather than the “what.”

Essay 2: Why Stanford?

• • Enlighten us on how earning your MBA at Stanford will enable you to realize your ambitions.
  • Explain your decision to pursue graduate education in management.
  • Explain the distinctive opportunities you will pursue at Stanford.
  • If you are applying to both the MBA and MSx programs, use Essay B to address your interest in both programs

Kellogg School of Management, US

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)

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)

HEC, France

 Essay 1: Why are you applying to the HEC MBA Program now? What is the professional objective that will guide your career choice after your MBA, and how will the HEC MBA contribute to the achievement of this objective? (500 words max.)

Essay 2: What do you consider your most significant life achievement? (250 words max.) 

Essay 3: Leadership and ethics are inevitably intertwined in the business world. Describe a situation in which you have dealt with these issues and how they have influenced you. (250 words max.)

Essay 4: Imagine a life entirely different from the one you now lead, what would it be? (250 words max.)

Essay 5: Please choose from one of the following essays (250 words max):

• • What monument or site would you advise a first-time visitor to your country or city to discover, and why?
  • Certain books, movies or plays have had an international success that you believe to be undeserved. Choose an example and analyze it. 
  • What figure do you most admire and why? You may choose from any field (arts, literature, politics, business, etc.)

Optional: Is there any additional information you would like to share with us? (900 words max.)

Other Useful Blogs

Collection of Essay Questions of Top B-Schools - Part 2

Best Time to Apply to a B-School

Top B-School MBA Scholarships

MIM vs. MBA