Toggle navigation
MBA Watch Logo
MBA Watch Sponsor
Rice Business | Mr. Doesn’t Know When To Quit
GRE 331, GPA 3
Stanford GSB | Mr. Anti W2
GRE 331, GPA 3.0
MIT Sloan | Ms. Sassy
GRE 329, GPA 3.46
MBA Watch Sponsor
Kellogg SOM | Mr. HealthAI
GMAT 700, GPA 3
Harvard | Mr. Global Consultant Leader
GMAT GMAT FE 705, GPA 7
INSEAD | Mr. SE To PM
GMAT 675, GPA 3.0
MBA Watch Sponsor
Harvard | Mr. Data Econ
GMAT 750, GPA 4
Harvard | Mr. Energetic Indian
GMAT 760, GPA 9
Stanford GSB | Ms. Multifaceted Desi
GRE 309, GPA 4
MBA Watch Sponsor
Tepper | Ms. MRI Gal
GRE N/A, GPA 3.3
Columbia | Ms. Big4 CPA To MBA
GMAT 730, GPA 3.69
Cornell Johnson | Ms. Indonesian Tech
GMAT 740, GPA 3.02
MBA Watch Sponsor
Stanford GSB | Mr. IB To TFA
GMAT 750, GPA 3.4
NYU Stern | Ms. CA – Controller
GRE 321, GPA 8
Chicago Booth | Ms. Low GPA High Impact Care
GMAT 685, GPA 2.56
MBA Watch Sponsor
PQ Logo
Featured Schools
University of Cambridge Judge Business School logo
NYU Color (440 x 200 px)
ASB Landscape logo 440 x 200
Babson College
MBA Full time event
Today's Featured Schools
Featured Schools
University of Cambridge Judge Business School logo
NYU Color (440 x 200 px)
ASB Landscape logo 440 x 200
Babson College
MBA Full time event
  • Home
  • Main Menu
  • Most Recent
  • This Week’s Most Viewed
  • GMAT Master
  • Videos
  • Podcasts
  • Events
  • Study In UK
  • Special Reports
Rankings
  • MBA
  • Online MBA
  • Specialized Masters
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Executive MBA
  • Undergraduate Business Schools
News & Features
  • All Business School News
  • MBA
  • International MBA News
  • Online MBA
  • Specialized Masters
  • Admissions
Inside Business Education
  • THE Register
  • Thought Leadership
MBA
  • School Profiles
  • Rankings
  • News
  • Jobs
  • Faculty & Leadership
  • Best 40 Under 40 Professors
  • Events
Students
  • News & Features
  • Meet The Class
  • Best & Brightest MBAs
  • Best & Brightest Online MBAs
  • Women In Business School
Careers & Pay
  • News, Advice, & Trends
Online MBA
  • News & Advice
  • School Profiles
  • Rankings
  • Events
  • Pursuing Purpose At Gies
Masters Degrees in Business
  • News & Advice
  • Specialized Masters Directory
  • Rankings
  • Business Analytics
  • Master's In Management
  • Events
Financing
  • Financing Your Degree
Study IN Series
  • Study In France
  • Study In UK
Admissions
  • News & Advice
  • Admissions Consultant Directory
  • Your MBA Game Plan
  • Admissions Gateway
  • Getting Into HBS, GSB, & Wharton
  • Handicapping Your MBA Odds
  • MBA Watch
  • Events
GMAT & GRE
  • News & Advice
  • GMAT Master
More Resources
  • FREE: Insider Guides
  • FREE: Successful Essays To The GSB & HBS
  • Special Reports
Events
Videos
Podcasts
Executive MBA
Undergrad
Full Archive

About | Privacy Policy | Advertising| Editorial | Contact Us

Follow Us

Subscribe | Login

  1. Home
  2. Admissions News & Features
  3. Sponsored Blogs: Insights & Advice From MBA Admissions Consultants
  4. Personal MBA Coach’s Guide To The Columbia Business School 2020-2021 Essay Questions

Personal MBA Coach’s Guide To The Columbia Business School 2020-2021 Essay Questions

by: Scott Edinburgh, Founder of Personal MBA Coach on August 04, 2020 | 2,608 Views
August 4, 2020
    • Copy Link
    • Share on Facebook
    • Share on Twitter
    • Email
    • Share on LinkedIn
    • Share on WhatsApp
    • Share on Reddit

Columbia MBA Application essays

Columbia Business School requires all first-time applicants to answer three essay questions. The three questions together will prompt MBA candidates to cover a wide range of information about their professional goals, plans on campus, personal stories, and leadership styles. Avoid repeating yourself while ensuring that the three essays work together to paint an accurate and consistent picture of your candidacy. Read below for Personal MBA Coach’s tips for tackling each essay question.

Essay #1: Through your resume and recommendations, we have a clear sense of your professional path to date. What are your career goals over the next 3 – 5 years and what, in your imagination, would be your long-term dream job? (500 words)

Columbia specifically asks that candidates not repeat their resumes in this career goals question. While some mention of your professional past is still expected, it should be brief and used as context to further elaborate on why your goals are attainable. This question explicitly asks for both a short-term goal and a long-term dream job, so be sure to include both. These goals should show a logical progression from your current experiences. If they do not, then a brief explanation is a good idea so that the admissions committee can understand how you will realistically attain your goals.

Discussing your long-term dream job is an opportunity to show the admissions committee your true ambitions and what really matters to you professionally. It is important that candidates have lofty goals here but ones that make sense for them and fit with both their short-term goals and overall story. This is a unique chance to show not only how you envision your career unfolding but also to give the reader a little more insight into who you are by adding at least a brief mention of why this career interests you.

Finally, while not explicitly asked for, a bit on how you will prepare for these goals while at Columbia will offer a nice segue into Columbia Business School Essay #2.

Essay #2: Why do you feel Columbia Business School is a good fit for you? (250 words)

This essay takes a direct approach to Columbia’s “fit” question. During some previous cycles, CBS has asked candidates about their desire to be in New York City. While Columbia’s current essay #2 addresses fit more broadly, mentioning how you plan to leverage the city would still be advised here.

With only 250 words and a lot to cover, it is important to be focused and specific. Show that you have done your research on what options are available on campus and which specifically interest you. Naturally, a tie should be made between these opportunities and your career goals.

This is the time to discuss the classes you hope to take, clubs you will join, and other programs of interest to you, such as speaker series or immersion seminars. Candidates should also consider culture, which is becoming increasingly important to many top business schools.

Essay #3: Tell us about your favorite book, movie, or song and why it resonates with you. (250 words)

As in previous years, the third Columbia Business School essay is used to get to know applicants on a personal level. Use this essay to tell admissions committee members something unique about your profile. Think here about your hobbies, passions, upbringing, or values. Then, select a book, movie, or song with parallels to your own experience(s). Perhaps you have a passion for music. Select a movie or book about a musician with similar talents. Similarly, if you have overcome a particular hardship, a song that discusses a struggle that mirrors your own could be an ideal choice. The “what” matters much less than the “why” here. Do not pick something you think will impress the reader (for example, “Becoming” might be an overused choice this year). Instead, pick something that you truly connect with personally.

Finally, Columbia has an optional essay. Do not feel compelled to answer this unless you have something specific to explain in your background (for example, a career gap, an unusual recommender, extreme personal circumstances, etc.) This is not the time to spend 500 words professing your love for Columbia.


Scott Edinburgh is a Wharton MBA and MIT Sloan BS graduate and founded Personal MBA Coach 15 years ago with the goal of providing customized one-on-one support. Scott also serves on the Board of Directors for AIGAC, the Association of International Graduate Admissions Consultants, and is invited to speak at MBA Admissions events globally. Our clients have been accepted to all top schools globally with a 96% success rate. They received $6.5M+ in scholarships last cycle.

Trending

2025-2026 MBA Application Deadlines At Leading Business Schools

Lifetime Achievement Award In MBA Admissions: Dawna Clarke At UVA Darden

Want Your Students To Be Ready For The Job Market? Embed Skills-Building In The Curriculum

A Sports Business Master’s In Silicon Valley? Santa Clara Leavey Says Game On

A Sports Business Master’s In Silicon Valley? Santa Clara Leavey Says Game On

How To Get Into HBS? Part 2 Of 2

student visa

Admitted To Harvard & Stanford But Not Sure They Want To Come Because Of Trump

What It’s Really Like To Build A Startup At Wharton

10 Best European MBA Programs: Where Future Global Leaders Thrive

Tagged: admissions consulting, Columbia Business School MBA Application essay tips, Personal MBA Coach, Scott Edinburgh

Post navigation

Previous Article: Emory Will Accept LSATs & MCATs In Lieu Of GMAT Or GRE
Next Article: Reapplying In Round 1: How To Bounce Back After Rejection In R3
  • Stay Informed. Sign Up! Login
    Logout
    Search for:
  • PQ Consultant Directory PQ Consultant Directory
  • Partner Blogs

    6 MBA Specializations To Supercharge Your Career

    by Melissa Jones, Fortuna Admissions (23 hours ago)

    How To Stand Out In The Application Pile

    by Matt Symonds, Fortuna Admissions (2 weeks ago)
    Jody Keating, Fortuna Admissions

    5 Tips To Craft A Killer MBA Resume

    by Jody Keating, Fortuna Admissions (3 weeks ago)

    MBA Application Rounds: What To Know About Round 1, Round 2, & Round 3

    by Judith Silverman Hodara, Fortuna Admissions (4 weeks ago)
    NEW Karen Marks Photo

    Advice Column: True Or False: Are You Falling For These Business School Application Myths?

    by Karen Marks, North Star Admissions Consulting (1 month ago)
  • Advice and Articles
    • How To Use Poets&Quants MBA Admissions Consultant Directory
    • How To Select An MBA Admissions Consultant
    • MBA Admission Consulting Claims: How Credible?
    • Suddenly Cozy: MBA Consultants and B-Schools
    • The Cost: $6,850 Result: B-School

Our Partner Sites: Poets&Quants for Execs | Poets&Quants for Undergrads | Tipping the Scales | We See Genius

About Poets&Quants | P&Q News Archives | Privacy Policy | Advertising & Partnerships | Editorial | Contact Us | Sign In / Register

Copyright© 2025 C Change Media, LLC All Rights Reserved.

Website Design By: Yellowfarmstudios.com