The Four Things Admissions Officers Evaluate

The MBA application includes a number of components for applicants to tell a cohesive story around their experiences and goals.

Each component—from the personal statement to the resume—is important to the story. But what exactly do admissions officers focus on when looking for candidates to accept?

Stacy Blackman, of Stacy Blackman Consulting, recently broke down the key areas that admissions committees tend to focus on when looking at applications.

1) PROFESSIONAL WORK EXPERIENCE AND GOALS  

While there is no mandatory pre-requisite for MBAs around how work experience, data from US News finds that the average tends to be four years.

Additionally, Blackman suggests that applicants have at least three years of work experience before applying if they want to increase their chances of acceptance. She stresses, however, that the overall experience is much more important than the time length of the experience.

“Have you worked within flat organizational structures, where you’ve had the same title for years? You can still differentiate yourself by highlighting substantial professional growth and quantifiable achievements,” Blackman writes. “Or, by showing examples when you embraced new challenges and took advantage of learning opportunities.”

When discussing your goals, Blackman says it’s important to clearly identify a definite role you envision for yourself in the future.

“Explain the kind of impact you want to have in the business world and on society,” Blackman writes.

2) LEADERSHIP COMES IN MANY WAYS

MBA admissions officers seek out leaders.

More often than not, applicants don’t have managerial positions under their belt.

Blackman says applicants shouldn’t worry about having an impressive managerial title and, instead, should focus on times when they demonstrated leadership skills.

“Successful leadership examples should show how you motivated other people,” Blackman writes. “Did you bring out their passions? Or, did you educate and help them see organizational priorities in new ways? The work of a leader energizes or improves the work of others. Find anecdotes from your professional and extracurricular background that illustrate this kind of behavior.”

In the end, Blackman says, demonstrating leadership is more important than a title alone.

“Define the leadership challenges you faced, not the management ones,” Blackman writes. “Collecting impressive titles does not make someone a great leader. However, helping a team overcome significant challenges does.”

3) CREATIVITY AND INTELLECTUAL APTITUDE

Typically, b-schools will ask applicants to answer creative MBA essay prompts.

At Duke’s Fuqua, it’s the “25 Random Things About Yourself.”

At NYU’s Stern, it’s the “Pick Six.”

Blackman says admissions officers are trying to gauge how much creativity and intellectual aptitude an applicant can bring to the table.

“When evaluating your MBA candidacy, admissions teams will look for evidence in responses that show you have a unique perspective that will add something new to the classroom,” Blackman writes. “So, think beyond your obvious achievements. You can differentiate yourself by highlighting the most compelling, memorable stories and experiences.”

4) INTERPERSONAL SKILLS

Lastly, Blackman says, admissions officers are looking for applicants who may be a good fit with a b-school’s culture.

To seek out these students, admissions officers often will often ask applicants to partake in video essays, team-based discussions, and group interviews.

The key, Blackman writes, is to make sure your application demonstrates that you have the right interpersonal skills to be a great fit to a b-school’s culture.

“Business schools want students who will play nice with others,” Blackman notes. “Watching how someone interacts with peers before anyone’s even admitted can be very telling. Your application and interview should support those individual attributes that make you a great candidate and person overall. They should reveal your understanding of the school’s culture. Finally, they must convey that you will be a terrific fit if admitted.”

Sources: Stacy Blackman Consulting, US News, Duke Fuqua, NYU Stern

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