Common MBA Essay Writing Mistakes to Avoid

A well-crafted MBA essay can give your application the much-needed boost when competing with hundreds of other applicants. This is why when you write your personal statement, you have to make it a point to avoid mistakes that many applicants often commit when writing their essay.

Too much information on your personal statement for MBA

The applicant who included the questionable Craigslist posting in his application to NYU’s Stern School is a victim of what Gallogly refers to as the “too much information syndrome.” An essay is not a confessional and an admissions committee is not a group of therapists, Gallogly said. Carrie Marcinkevage, the MBA program admissions director at Penn State University’s Smeal College of Business, has also come across this problem while reviewing applications. She said she sometimes reads essays where people put in too many details about a former relationship or family trauma. The excess of personal information in the essay frequently has little or nothing to do with what makes the applicant a good MBA candidate.

The real challenge in writing a personal statement is revealing yourself within a limited number of words. Some essays are too focused on personal experiences and attribute that they no longer relate to MBA applications. They become irrelevant and somewhat out of focus.

Not following the rules

Mae Jennifer Shores, director of MBA admissions and financial aid at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, will never forget the essay from an applicant that ran 27 pages. Single-spaced. It was when she worked at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and the applicant had blatantly disregarded the school’s word limit, which was 1,000 words or the equivalent of three double-spaced pages. Exacerbating matters, the applicant used five of the 27 pages to explain a decision to submit three times the suggested number of recommendation letters. “My reaction was: This is very sad because this is an incredibly accomplished individual, but I would have some concerns about this person’s suitability on a team.”

Following the rules designated by the school is very important. If you follow rules and instructions, the admissions committee will deem you as someone who can respect authority and who can work well in a team.

Writing like a poet

Applicants are eager to have their essays sound sophisticated and polished, full of lively prose and witty observations about their careers. That’s fine. Yet common trap applicants fall into is being verbose, losing sight of the main points they want to communicate. “Keep in mind, we are assessing your communication skills, not assessing your ability to write prose in the style of William Faulkner,” said Anderson’s Shores

You can be creative when writing your essay but you have to avoid sounding like a poet. Don’t be ambiguous with your expressions and don’t use archaic words. As much as possible, use simpler words that best convey your thoughts, feelings, and perspectives.

Here are other valuable tips from this excerpt:

* Don’t exaggerate or write to impress.

* Don’t use a flowery, inflated, or pretentious style.

* Don’t neglect the technical part of your essay (grammar, spelling, and sentence structure).

Don’t pretend to be someone you’re not. Instead, stay true to your own voice. Make it seem like your talking directly to your readers. Let them see the real you–what makes you a good candidate and how you can accomplish more with an MBA degree.

Your MBA personal statement is a very essential element of your application. You need to write an almost perfect essay with enough information about yourself. Just remember to always follow the rules.