5 Top Tips To Maximize Your MBA Application Process Now

As one year draws to a close and a fresh year begins, you may find yourself making plans and setting goals for the future. If you’re thinking it’s time to supercharge your career with an MBA, it’s also time to plan your application process.

Getting an MBA is a life-changing endeavor, and getting admitted to a top school is a rigorous and competitive process. You will need to invest considerable time, energy and self-reflection to maximize your chances of admissions success. If you’re hoping to apply to one of the world’s most competitive business schools in the fall, that process starts now.

Business schools don’t just want a litany of your professional triumphs and academic excellence. They want to know who you are, what makes you unique, and what you care about. I have reviewed thousands of applications during my career in MBA admissions, from serving as head of Admissions at INSEAD to my Director role at Fortuna Admissions. I feel strongly that the most important action you can take is this: spend substantive time on self-reflection. 

Throughout your business school application process — from crafting MBA essays to the admissions interview — you can expect probing questions designed to reveal your unique qualities, guiding values, formative experiences and academic and career ambitions. For example, Stanford GSB’s notorious essay asks, “What matters most to you, and why.” One of Harvard’s essays charges applicants to “reflect on how your experiences have influenced your career choices and aspirations and the impact you will have on the businesses, organizations, and communities you plan to serve. (answering all of that in 300 words or less.) MIT Sloan’s video statement declares simply (if open-endedly): “Introduce yourself to your future classmates.” 

Answering such questions in a compelling, authentic, and concise way that piques an admission officer’s curiosity to know more requires profound self-awareness.

“I tell my clients at the start of our engagement that spending time on self-reflection is the factor that ensures you’ll get into one of your top choice MBA programs,” says Fortuna Senior Expert Coach Jenifer Raver. “It’s not resume, achievements, GMAT, or GPA. How much time are you willing to invest in yourself and this process – that’s the question. I’m asking you to get to know yourself.” 

Initiating a process of outcomes-oriented introspection requires intention, discipline, and time. I’ve gathered up some tips and steps that lay the groundwork for a successful application to your dream school.  

5 ESSENTIAL WAYS TO MAXIMIZE YOUR MBA APPLICATION PROCESS NOW

1. Look beyond your current horizon.

Take a big step back to consider where you are in your life and why you are choosing to pursue this type of degree at this moment of your career. The New Year is a timely moment to initiate a practice of thoughtful introspection, along with ample time to make the habit routine. 

“Not allowing yourself that time and space to be introspective early on is a missed opportunity,” says Fortuna’s Sharon Joyce, former Berkeley Haas Associate Director of Admissions. “For most people we’re working with, who have been incredibly successful in both academics and career to date, the missing piece at the outset is often thinking deeply on why the MBA is the vital next step and being able to express this from a place of authenticity and depth.”

2. Take time to unplug. 

Given the accelerated pace of life for fast-track, high-performing individuals, finding the time for sincere self-reflection can feel daunting. Professional necessity has conditioned most of us to be connected to our external devices more than our interior lives; disconnecting from devices feels like a radical act. Yet a little distance — and silence — can do wonders for grounding your thoughts. Start small: To get reacquainted with your inner self, 

try a daily stroll without your phone in tow. 

Or schedule time to unplug from your devices and screens for regular intervals. Filmmaker Tiffany Shlain started a practice she calls her “Technology Shabbat,” where she and her family disconnect from all their devices from Friday evening until Saturday night. If the thought of it makes you break into a sweat, remember it doesn’t have to be an entire day. But this kind of practice can boost your creativity while also lowering the stress of constantly communicating with everyone but yourself.

3. Don’t go it alone. 

As the cofounder of Fortuna Admissions, I’m convinced of the benefits of having an expert MBA admissions coach who can guide and support you. Beyond their expertise and insight, a seasoned coach will push you to go deeper, helping to excavate and illuminate the stories and reflections you may have overlooked that will distinguish you with the MBA Admissions committee. 

“What we’re offering isn’t just editorial support. It’s a relationship, and that takes time. The most powerful stories are often the most personal, and those kinds of insights won’t come out in the first phone call,” says Raver. “We can always meet our clients where they are in their application process, but I’ve found that if you’re willing to meet with your coach regularly, and commit to self-reflection several months in advance, things are going to work out well.” 

That said, a first phone call can help you assess mutual fit and what you stand to gain by investing in the coaching process. You can request a free consultation with Fortuna Admissions.

4. Invest in meaningful extracurriculars.

As an MBA candidate, how you articulate your extracurricular involvement contributes to your overall story. Ideally, well-positioned extracurriculars will clarify and reinforce your passions, involvement in the community, and commitment to pursuits outside of work. 

As Fortuna’s Heidi Hillis says in her article How to Position Extracurriculars on Your Business School Application, “What you do in your free time (what little you might have of it) is as interesting and important to the admissions committee as what you do at work because it sends a signal about the kind of student and alum you’ll be.” 

While outside activities can fall by the wayside in the face of heavy workloads, it’s vital to stay involved in at least one or two of your commitments outside of work — whether it’s a nonprofit board, fundraising effort, sports team, or Bollywood dance club. If your resume is light on extracurriculars, now is the time to take up some meaningful activities outside of your work life.

“You are not going to be able to compete for a place at the top schools if you only have deals or client work to talk about,” says Fortuna’s Karla Cohen, former Associate Director at Harvard Business School. “Your extracurriculars should help you to speak from your core being and reinforce what you want to do with your life, and why you want to do it.”

5. Escape the tyranny of the “perfect profile.”

Too many applicants squander valuable time overthinking what admissions officers want to hear and exacting a narrative to fit their perception of the “perfect profile.” It can be a challenge to articulate who you are and why you are worthy. It’s subjective, and you’ll be judged, but delivering your narrative with authenticity is about daring to get personal. In the end, the more authentic you are, the more interesting you will be to the MBA admissions committee.

“Having passion and a sincere conviction about what you’re doing translates so much better to a standout MBA application than crafting what you think the school will be looking for,” says Fortuna Cofounder and Director Judith Silverman Hodara. Programs pride themselves on getting to know you as a person during the admissions process, and no single profile is more admissible than another.

So, consider this your resolution for the new year:  Start early on your MBA reflection and enjoy yourself. The sooner you start your personal journey of introspection, the more you will enjoy the MBA admissions process, and the greater your chances of admissions success. As Fortuna Co-Founder Matt Symonds says, “If you bring awareness to the process of applying, and not just the outcome, the benefits will extend far beyond an acceptance letter.”

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Caroline Diarte Edwards is a Cofounder and Director of Fortuna Admissions and former INSEAD director of admissions, marketing, and financial aid. For more free advice from Fortuna Admissions in partnership with Poets&Quants, check out these videos and articles. For a candid assessment of your chances of admission success at a top MBA program, sign up for a free consultation.