For Sale: Successful HBS Applicant Essays

THE EDITORS REDACTED DETAILS FROM EACH ESSAY SO THE AUTHORS COULD NOT BE IDENTIFIED

The Harbus redacted some details from each essay so that the authors could not be easily identified. In some cases, even numbers were disguised. “Some of the essays might refer to a project managed by the applicant that generated $52 million in revenue,” says Mohamed. “We took the actual number out and put in the word ‘number’ because we don’t want anyone to be identified. One of the purposes of this is to say it’s about the story and not the details.”

The omissions are sometimes unsettling but rarely matter. For example, in an essay entitled “The Educator,” an applicant began with: “A good education can transform lives. I know because I m the first member of my family to graduate from a full-time college. A child born today in (country) has less than a 15% chance of making it to college. My career goal is to launch a social VC fund that supports high-quality social enterprises to improve education for millions of children in (country).”

Initially, thought Mohamed, the essays would fall within a narrow spectrum. “I thought they would all be crisp and to the point, but the spectrum was way broader than I could ever imagine,” he says. “The absence of a word count makes things more interesting. Essays might have looked more similar to each other when there were word counts. They are very, very different and part of why we want people to see them is that they demonstrate there is no secret formula for the perfect essay.”

EDITOR DOESN’T EXPECT USERS TO CRAFT SIMILAR ESSAYS TO THOSE IN THE BOOK

A quick reading of the essays certainly confirms Mohamed’s perspective. Some start bluntly and straightforwardly, without a compelling or even interesting opening. Consider: “I would like HBS to know that I have made the best out of my opportunities, that I have purposefully sought to advance personally and professionally and that my resolve has directly impacted my development.”

Or, this one: “As with most prospective students, my application package provides an accurate representation of my historic professional, academic, and personal achievement, but it does not fully capture ‘me.’ The application illustrates a consistent record of excellent performance, but it struggles to provide context and personal perspective. Hopefully, this essay explains what my story unique, why Harvard Business School is the right fit, and the value I can provide to the Harvard community.”

Others are remarkably pragmatic. “Why an MBA?,” poses another successful applicant. “When I was evaluating alternatives prior to completing my undergraduate degree, one conversation with a trusted professor greatly influenced my final decision. This professor strongly encouraged me to consider the Master of International Business program at the (university). He made it clear, however, that it was to be considered a 5th year degree and was not an MBA substitute. Having completed the program, I understand why.”

Mohamed doesn’t believe that users of the book would be tempted to plagiarize a published essay. “I highly doubt that anyone would craft their essay around one in the book,” he says. “The people who will buy this book know that’s not the point of it. I read books and stories about successful people all the time and it doesn’t mean I’m going to emulate their lives. But it’s nice to see what you can learn from their trajectories.”

HARD TO TELL IF AN ESSAY HAD THAT MUCH SWAY IN A PERSON’S SUCCESS

Of course, the single essay that Harvard asks applicants to write is just one of many criteria used by admissions to assess the candidacy of an applicant. Undergraduate transcripts, grade point average, GMAT score, work experience, extracurriculars and recommendations are all essential parts of an MBA application at Harvard Business School. Any random combination of those factors could have far more weight than an essay.

In fact, for this year’s entering class, nearly ten applicants chose not to write an essay at all—and one of those essay-less candidates was admitted to the class.

“There are some essays that are groundbreaking stories,” says Mohamed, “and others where you can clearly see that the essay wasn’t the main criteria that allowed a person to be admitted. They had other things working for them.”

If anything, reading through the collection of essays does take some pressure off applicants because in many cases the writing quality is not all that impressive.