There is no need to increase much less invent. The key to a good essay is to be sincere
Check out this article from Poets & Quants about what we ought to say in a essay an MBA. The Poets & Quants is a community that discusses and shares on its website a variety of information for those who want to pursue a post-graduate degree in the area of business.
- TopPharmacySchools: Lists best schools of sociology in the state of Mississippi, covering all zip codes and high schools of Mississippi.
Check out the article:
Over the past few weeks, I spoke with a group of candidates for the MBA 2013-14, helping them with their strategies of application for this season of admissions. A few days ago, one of them asked me a question very sincere about their applications for 10 of the best universities. “As I write my essays, should I tell the truth, or should I just play the game and say to the members of the admissions committee what they want to hear?”, he asked.
Initially, I was surprised with the question. So I went back in time to when I was in the same position and had similar thoughts. “I really appreciate your honesty,” I replied. “This is a question that I believe that everyone faces in a competitive climate of MBA admissions”.
“The Truth”, “The Game”, and the Authenticity
In my opinion, the whole dialectic of the moral of being honest versus lying and / or embellishing some response, end up overshadowing the real issue at hand. To begin with, lie to, or increase the that is true is the strategy of a fool. Members of the admission committee already saw and heard everything. This means that they have a high sensitivity to discover lies. And I don’t venture in to test my luck on this criterion.
In addition, I believe, is that most of the things that people lie are things that will not influence the permanence or not in the program. Of course, only a committee member of admission can tell you this, but I’m 99% sure, that my assumption is a fact to be true.
Save your energy to say that your business is worth $20 million if in fact it is worth $2 million, and do not bother to say that you have won a prize if, in fact, was in second place. The members of the admissions committee are much more interested in knowing that your MBA has a goal achiever, but you never started your own business before, or that you knew how to deal with various challenges and knows how to relate with other people.
In addition, the stories inflated almost never “sell” as well as the authentic. Even members of the admissions committee are not able to point where you are lying, or rising, they can see that is “missing” something in your story. For more universities, please check Gradphysics.
The Truth shall make you Free
The truth can be liberating. The feeling of not having “nothing to hide”, not only takes the weight of your back by wanting to impress, as it allows his words out with an air of authenticity, which can be very good for your admission. Let me take for example. I received in my pre-MBA 25% less than my previous job. These data could point to an upward movement in my career.
Rather than try to pass over it, however, I simply explained what occurred. I explained to him that, while I was actually earning less money, I had gained more responsibility, I had more control over the strategic direction of my new company and I was also able to continue with my process to achieve my goals. This was the truth. Also it was true that I hated my previous job, but this was not necessary to say.
There is a fine line between the authenticity and exaggeration. Learning to walk in this line will help you a lot, not only in your essays, but in life in general. This will help you to do a good interview with members of the admissions committee and will make them to believe that you will get a great job (which affects the reputation of the institution in the rankings) after graduation.
Look, no past is perfect, nobody is, and the members of the admissions committee know this. Tell the truth, show what you learned or gained with your experience and how it helped in your evolution, avoid exaggeration, and you will be well seen by the evaluators.
And if you end up being mis-rated, believe me when I tell you with confidence that, probably, is not because you were overly candid in your essay for Columbia or Kellogg, or your profile was not sought by universities, it is likely that many people with a profile similar to his have already been approved.