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‘Why MBA’ Career Goals Essay

Posted: January 14th, 2020, 7:48 pm
by MBACrystalBall
The ‘Why MBA’ question isn’t as straightforward as it sounds. There are the basic introspective aspects of whether you need an MBA in the first place, why this is the right time, what your post MBA goals are and if they are well-aligned with your pre-MBA experience.

If you aren’t absolutely confident about those aspects, check out this video first. It explains how you can get the basic foundation in place before you even think about moving to the essays.

Why MBA, Why Now, Career Goals using the MBA MAP



If the concept explained in the video sounds logical, check out some more details about the MBA MAP.

The rest of the content in this post assumes that you have already managed the introspective and philosophical aspects (either on your own or by using the MBA MAP). Now you are planning to apply to MBA programs and looking at how best to articulate the Why MBA aspects in your MBA essays.

In this guest post for MBA Crystal Ball, Nupur Gupta shares tips and advice on how to write MBA essays for the ‘Why MBA’ essay question. Nupur is an admissions consultant and the Founder of Crack The MBA. She graduated from the full-time MBA program at The Wharton School in 2010 with majors in Entrepreneurship and Finance. Nupur obtained her Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Computer Science from Rochester Institute of Technology in Upstate New York.

Why MBA – How to write the career goals essay
by Nupur Gupta

In this post, we will seek to understand the question which arises in most school applications in some form or the other – Why MBA?

How different schools ask the ‘Why MBA’ question?

Look at the following questions from 3 of the top business schools:

Wharton: What are your professional objectives? (300 words)

HBS: Why do you want an MBA? (400 words)

Stanford: What do you want to do – REALLY – and why Stanford? (450 words)

Do you sense a trace of similarity here? Even though they may be worded slightly differently, these questions effectively aim to understand one and only one thing – namely, your PROFESSIONAL GOALS. Yes, professional goals are important enough to warrant bold, underline and capitalization!

What is the AdCom trying to understand by asking this question?


Let me start off by saying that this question is one of the pillars on which your MBA application rests. This question helps the school understand your reasons for wanting an MBA and they use your answer to evaluate if your post MBA goals make sense and whether or not they are in tune with whatever you have done thus far. They are looking to see whether or not an MBA is the bridge that you need to take you from where you are right now to where you want to be as mentioned in your goals. The essay is also a great opportunity for you to reflect on whether or not you really need an MBA to fulfill your career aspirations.

Some things that schools are trying to screen for:
  • Are you trying to use the MBA as a springboard to overcome unemployment or a lagging career progression?
  • Are your goals realistic and achievable?
  • Have you gone through a process of self-reflection?
  • Are you able to articulate your goals coherently?
  • Will your experiences add value to the class?
  • Will you add value to the school as an alum?
  • Will your profile be attractive to Recruiters?
A range of responses from the same candidate and our commentary and rating for each response

Consider 3 different responses from a candidate who is a 2nd generation owner/manager in a family business setup in the ophthalmic lens industry currently wherein the firm is within the top 15 players in the market.

1. Weak: my goal is to make a long-lasting impact in the field of ophthalmic lenses

2. Average: my goal is to return to the family enterprise and position it as a leading ophthalmic lens provider in India by implementing the learnings at business school

3. Strong: my short-term goal following my MBA from Wharton is to return to the family business and to implement the learnings in operations and marketing to our production and retail divisions in order to position the firm as the leading distributor and retailer in India in order to make an impact in the field of ophthalmic lenses. In the long-term, I would like to position the company as a leading global player in the industry through inorganic growth made possible by the 80,000+ strong alumni network at Wharton along with learnings from courses such as ‘Cross Border M&A’.

Response #1 is a generic ‘wishy washy’ goal with no thought as to how the person intends to make an impact, how an MBA would help in the process. In general, it is extremely vague and does not provide any insight to the user.

Response #2 begins to address some of the issues in Response #1 by starting to show the MBA as the missing link which can help the student transform the company from its current state to its desired state which is to be a leading provider of ophthalmic lenses.

Response #3 breaks the question down into two pieces – short-term and long-term goal. It talks about specific learnings from the MBA program that would be useful for the student (operations, marketing) and it further polishes off the desired goal to make it seem achievable and hence, more realistic.

MBA Essay Writing Do’s for the Career Goals Essay
  • Be as specific as you possibly can be
  • Show how your past roles are in sync with what you want to do and demonstrate intent as opposed to luck or destiny
  • Show the bridge connecting you from where you currently are to where you wish to be and how an MBA can provide the link between the two points
  • Stick to the word limits (+/- 10% is a good rule of thumb to follow)
  • Should you get laid off close to when you are applying to business school, try to take up something meaningful to do during that time period and preferably whatever you choose ties in with your goals so AdComs can see some sort of logical progression towards your goal
  • Show that you have done your due diligence to understand the school and evaluate how its resources would help you achieve your career goals
  • Ensure that your goals are realistic and briefly mention a path to get there
  • Career changers should ensure they understand the industry they aspire to enter well
  • Read the question and make sure you answer it properly. This becomes even more important as schools make slight changes in the way the question may be asked and you need to make sure you answer the question(s) being asked.
MBA Essay Writing Don’ts for the Career Goals Essay
  • Do not launch into a ‘save the world’ tirade unless it seems plausible given your career progression thus far
  • Do not use a cookie cutter approach in your essay for different schools. Tailor your response to each specific school in a way that highlights the resources at the school and demonstrates to them a great fit and also your excitement about their specific program
  • Do not be superficial in your reasons. As an example, stating you want an MBA because of the brand value, to take a break, to get back into the workforce, etc. may hurt your chances of admission as they show a lack of deep reflection on your part
  • Do not use language or tone that might make you seem arrogant or rude
Just as a quick reminder, don’t jump into the essays if you haven’t figured out the basics first. If you aren’t ready to tackle the essays yet, check out the MBA MAP.

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