She Applied To Harvard & Stanford With These Two MBA Essays

Stanford Graduate School of Business

Anna’s Stanford Graduate Business School Essay

Stanford MBA Prompt: What matters most to you, and why?

In 2008 my world had very few shades of gray. I was confident in what my post-collegiate years would bring—I’d marry my high school sweetheart and have a couple of kids, an even, stable career, and a nice suburban house outside of Chicago complete with a finished basement and two-car garage. Even my classmates knew my destiny and voted me most likely to return to our hometown after college.

This future life I imagined was what I grew up in. My mom had given home life a priority, working part-time as a law clerk for a major firm on after finishing 2nd in the state on her certification exams. My dad, whom she began dating at age 16, barely scraped by on the Bar but opened his own law firm when I was in elementary school. My mom followed her motto of “putting on your own oxygen mask first”—waking up early, eating healthy, and calling the gym her second home (before it was popular). My dad would sleep late, teach us Chicago sports’ cheers, and take spur of the moment trips upstate for poker tournaments. (1) Mom involved herself in every homework assignment, essay, or test we had on our plates, and Dad coached every sports team. There was never a shadow of a doubt that our parents loved us and would do anything for us in their own unique ways.

Going to college only an hour away, I felt a little grayness creep in. I discovered engineering and followed it as a major instead of law, the route everyone else in my family had chosen. Though my dad often quipped I’d be a train conductor after graduating, they were proud of me for following my interest. Mack College, not known for its diversity, nonetheless exposed me to people from different walks of life, revealing to me the bubble I’d grown up in. I surprised my family—and myself—when I chose a co-op opportunity in manufacturing in Peoria, not in my hometown. And I loved it.

The more I tasted outside the bubble, the more I wanted to explore. After graduation, I joined the company’s rotational program, knowing it offered variety in the short term and security in the long term, since after the two-year program, I’d had the opportunity to be closer to my hometown.

Days after I found out I was moving to Bordeaux for my second rotation, my dad got the diagnosis of Stage IV cancer. I questioned my yearning for exploring the unknown. Was it worth it? My parents convinced me it was. We all agreed that Dad’s sickness was a temporary inconvenience, and they urged me to take the opportunity in France. Being away while Dad underwent treatments was one of the hardest things I had asked myself to do. And yet being in southwestern France was also one of the most rewarding, giving me challenges to conquer like speaking a new language, integrating into a foreign work culture, and instituting change when I had no clear authority to do so.

When I returned home that November after completing the rotation, I felt more empowered than ever and believed it was a turning point for my dad too. (2) I was looking forward to helping him rebuild the strength he’d lost through chemo treatments. Never entertaining any outcome but recovery, we were all shocked when he passed away suddenly at the end of that year.

All notions of that original life plan were thrown out the window, once and for all. The carefully balanced mobile of our family was taken off kilter. Dad’s shoes will always remain impossible to fill, but sharing his “take charge” personality, I’ve lent my strength to my mom and brother to get us through the big and small issues that life throws at us—from selling the house we grew up in to navigating traffic to managing finances. I’ve meanwhile leaned on them for warmth and comfort during the darkest of our days.

Shortly after my dad’s death, I struggled to reconcile my desire to be there for my family and my draw towards personal discovery. However, I’ve come to realize I must have both. I will never stop putting my family first and foremost, but I’m part of that family too. (3) What matters most is maintaining this balance—staying true to my family and my roots while exploring the unknown. The world is no longer black and white, and I don’t want it to be. (4)

Liza Weale, Gatehouse Admissions

Liza Weale, founder of Gatehouse Admissions

Expert Commentary by Liza Weale, founder of Gatehouse Admissions:

Before jumping into our critique of Anna’s Stanford GSB essay, we want to highlight that even though this essay understandably has some things in common with its HBS counterpart, it is nevertheless substantially different. As many of the HBS/GSB essay pairs demonstrate, what works for one school might not work for the other. Anna might have been able to successfully use her HBS essay for the GSB, but we are assuming that when she asked herself directly and honestly “what matters most” to her, a different answer bubbled up. In this essay, Anna no longer focuses on just one period in her life. Instead, she widens her lens and takes the reader on a journey through her early dreams about what she thought life would have in store for her, the moments that expanded those dreams, and who she has become as a result. By the end, we appreciate Anna’s internal struggle and her ultimate acceptance that she is not as in control of life’s outcomes as she had once thought.

What is notable in this essay is that her “what matters most” is realized only at the conclusion. Anna’s journey clarifies her answer for her, and we can presume that had her later years not played out as they did, she might have answered the GSB’s question very differently.

Analysis:

(1). Anna’s vivid descriptions of her parents are both comforting and relatable: she idolizes her mother and father but also recognizes their imperfections. Just as we are not expected to be infallible, neither are our heroes.

(2) Here, Anna shares a sense of happiness at her growth during her time abroad. She feels that momentum is on her side and must be on her father’s, too. These are understandable human reactions, and by writing about them frankly and sincerely, Anna earns our empathy. Her approach is also a smart strategic choice because it establishes a sharp contrast with the severity of her father’s condition.

(3) We can imagine the debates Anna must have had with herself over the guilt she felt about wanting
to go experience life while still honoring her family. At the end of her essay, she seems to forgive herself, perhaps recognizing that by living the life she wants, she will be better able to support the other members of her family. She also seems willing to assume her mom’s motto of “putting on your own oxygen mask first.” Anna’s honesty and vulnerability show us how much she has grown through her journey.

(4) By mentioning black and white in this final sentence, Anna connects the ending of her essay to the opening. Note that her theme (black, white, and gray) rarely appears overtly in the essay— enough for us to understand the metaphor but not so often as to seem gimmicky or repetitive. Incorporating a simple metaphor or symbol well throughout your essay can help ensure that your thesis stands out to the admissions reader and is more memorable.

ORDER: WHAT MATTERS? WHAT MORE? 50 SUCCESSFUL MBA ESSAYS TO HARVARD & STANFORD

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