Mr. Enlisted Officer

Well, this is an eye-opener: “Immigrated from Korea when I was 11 and faced three evictions before enlisting in the Army at age 18.” By “evictions,” I assume you mean that you had to deal with three attempts to “deport” you from the U.S. If that is the case, I’m so sorry you had to deal with that unfortunate situation but also so admiring of you because you not only enlisted to serve our country but also made it to West Point. That is a really powerful story that you need to tell the admission folks at Harvard Business School because it will take you out of the pile of military applicants at HBS. As an officer in the Army who had deployed to Iraq, you no doubt have earned your leadership chops. I also very much admire your post-MBA goal to start an organization to assist minority owned small businesses, though I would be tempted to tell HBS you want to do that first as a consultant. The consulting firms really like former military types with MBAs and you would benefit from that experience before starting your own firm. I’m rooting for you!