Mr. Impactful Consultant

Hi, it’s Nisha with mbaMission. As you may be aware, you have a well-rounded profile, including good career progression at an MBB featuring positive impact outside of your day-to-day role, which schools will love to see. However, they see a lot of strong consulting candidates with strong leadership skills and impact. What they’ll want to understand, which may be a key part of your story: what is the type of social impact you want to create, and how have your experiences and observations to date (including, perhaps, your challenging upbringing) driven you towards that ultimate goal? How will an MBA from each program you’re targeting give you the tools you need to make it a reality? I think your candidacy will hinge on your ability to answer such questions via a compelling narrative, while highlighting the key values that make you who you are.

Given how intensely competitive Stanford is (7% acceptance rate, lowest of them all) I’d aim for the stars while expanding your list. Other top schools that come to mind: Wharton (given its deep ties to impact investing), Haas (for social impact and innovation). I hope that helps a bit – please reach out if you’d like to discuss your profile in greater detail. Best of luck!

Hi Mr. Impactful Consultant, This is Donna Bauman with Stratus Admissions Consulting and I want to congratulate you on your impressive accomplishments thus far. Your strong grades, GMAT score and 2 promotions in MBB consulting demonstrate you have a very strong MBA profile. However, remember at Stanford you are competing with many similarly accomplished young professionals and to stand out you need to share more about what matters most to you—and of course why! I don’t have a very clear idea what you mean about your goal to have social impact through innovation. What kind of innovation? What kind of social impact? You mention some challenges you faced in your upbringing—the GSB essay asks you to reveal WHY something matters most to you. Perhaps there is a story from your upbringing that gives insight why you think innovation can improve the lives of others. The what matters most and why is up to you to decide—but the best answers often are deeply personal and help the admissions team understand why you have done the work you’ve done and how you can further advance the causes that matter most to you through an MBA degree. It is unlikely that Stanford will change this iconic essay question for the coming year given that this classic question has endured for many years. The good news is that gives you lots of time between now and R1 2021 to do some deep reflection on this question. It is not enough to have great grades, test scores and promotions! Yes these things are impressive and will be helpful—but Stanford’s mission is to Change lives, change organizations and change the world! How to you plan to do this? How can you demonstrate the impact you have already had? These are the things to keep in mind as you reflect on this question. It is not an easy question to answer, but if you do some thoughtful reflection and are not afraid to share who you really are, you will benefit no matter what the outcome! Do not take offense at the low odds– GSB is difficult for anyone with the lowest acceptance rate of all MBA programs. If you look at traditional acceptance rates at all the MBA programs you mentioned– your odds are likely best at Kellogg (proud Kellogg alum encouraging you to do further research there!), then Sloan, HBS and least odds at GSB. This should not discourage you from applying, just know that if you absolutely want to attend an MBA program next year you should apply to several programs! You also could be a candidate for scholarships at many other MBA programs so give this consideration as well when you select your school list!

Hi Mr. Impactful Consultant, This is Donna Bauman with Stratus Admissions Consulting and I want to congratulate you on your impressive accomplishments thus far. Your strong grades, GMAT score and 2 promotions in MBB consulting demonstrate you have a very strong MBA profile. However, remember at Stanford you are competing with many similarly accomplished young professionals and to stand out you need to share more about what matters most to you—and of course why! I don’t have a very clear idea what you mean about your goal to have social impact through innovation. What kind of innovation? What kind of social impact? You mention some challenges you faced in your upbringing—the GSB essay asks you to reveal WHY something matters most to you. Perhaps there is a story from your upbringing that gives insight to why you think innovation can improve the lives of others. The what matters most and why is up to you to decide—but the best answers often are deeply personal and help the admissions team understand why you have done the work you’ve done and how you can further advance the causes that matter most to you through an MBA degree. It is unlikely that Stanford will change this iconic essay question for the coming year given that this classic question has endured for many years. The good news is that gives you lots of time between now and R1 2021 to do some deep reflection on this question. It is not enough to have great grades, test scores and promotions! Yes these things are impressive and will be helpful—but Stanford’s mission is to Change lives, change organizations and change the world! How to you plan to do this? How can you demonstrate the impact you have already had? These are the things to keep in mind as you reflect on this question. It is not an easy question to answer, but if you do some thoughtful reflection and are not afraid to share who you really are, you will benefit no matter what the outcome! Do not take offense at the low odds– GSB is difficult for anyone with the lowest acceptance rate of all MBA programs. If you look at traditional acceptance rates at all the MBA programs you mentioned– your odds are likely best at Kellogg (proud Kellogg alum encouraging you to do further research there!), then Sloan, HBS and least odds at GSB. This should not discourage you from applying, just know that if you absolutely want to attend an MBA program next year you should apply to several programs! You also could be a candidate for scholarships at many other MBA programs so give this consideration as well when you select your school list! We have some excellent counselors at Stratus, including GSB alum Soterios Rouman, who can challenge you to think deeply about this question.