Tips for Georgetown McDonough’s 2023-2024 MBA Essays

Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business recently released its MBA essay prompts for the 2023-2024 admissions season.

This year, the business school reduced essay options from four choices to three. Stacy Blackman, founder of Stacy Blackman Consulting, recently dove into the three essay prompts and offered a few tips on how to best approach each.

ESSAY OPTION 1

The first essay option asks applicants the following:

Our mission is rooted in Jesuit principles of equality and respect for everyone and an ethos of caring for the whole person. Inclusivity and diversity are core to supporting a community of people with an intersectional understanding of themselves and the world around them. Share how your educational, familial, cultural, economic, social, and/or other individual life experiences will contribute to the diversity of perspectives and ideas at Georgetown University.

Essay option one is all about the diversity of Georgetown’s community. This essay option is a great choice for applicants who want to shed light on their unique background or experiences with diverse communities.

“When brainstorming ideas for this essay prompt, think about the experiences of your life,” Blackman says. “Has anything in your family, economic, cultural, or social experiences had an impact of any kind that you will bring?”

Additionally, Blackman suggests that applicants research which aspects of Georgetown’s community that they align with.

“Unique experiences can be an asset to many clubs and activities,” Blackman says. “Make sure to describe which activities or organizations at Georgetown to which you plan to contribute and be inclusive to other people.”

ESSAY OPTION 2

The second essay option asks applicants the following:

Commitment to service and community is an important value that Hoyas share across Georgetown McDonough’s 40+ MBA student-run clubs and organizations, nine centers and initiatives, and various other co-curricular activities. What do you want your legacy to be as a McDonough student and alumni? Be as specific as possible.

Essay option two focuses on legacy and leadership. Blackman recommends studying Georgetown’s culture of service to better understand the school’s commitment to service and community.

“This essay is an opportunity to share what you hope to accomplish during your MBA experience,” Blackman says. “How will you serve others and participate in the community? An example from your past experience will validate what you describe. And, thorough school research will show some specific areas where you can contribute.”

ESSAY OPTION 3

The third essay option asks applicants the following:

Magis is a Jesuit value that instills the sense of achieving “more” or “greater” excellence. Share how you achieved magis during a professional experience as evidenced on your resume. Describe why this experience exemplified excellence and what about your involvement (i.e. strengths or skills) contributed to the excellence.

Essay three offers applicants an opportunity to dig deep into one of their accomplishments.

“Think about a professional experience on your resume you are particularly proud of,” Blackman says. “Then, describe how your skills and strengths made it possible. Be specific and detailed about what you did in this example.”

The key to this essay is to define your own set of principles and values in relation to your accomplishment.

“Note that Georgetown cares greatly about ‘principled’ leadership,” Blackman says. “Further, Georgetown defines principled leaders as those who operate with a ‘clearly articulated set of principles and values.’ Therefore, defining your own set of principles and values in this essay can add to the story. Georgetown wants to understand both what you did and how you did it.”

Sources: Stacy Blackman Consulting, Georgetown University