As Dean Dolan advises applicants on the Michigan MBA website, the “Ross difference is action-based learning.” Ross is a program that emphasizes learning both inside and outside the classroom, and is seeking candidates that are both intellectually curious and able to accomplish their goals.

When you are approaching this set of essays think about how you will best illustrate your fit with the unique Michigan MBA program.

Don’t forget to check your deadlines before getting started!

Essay 1
Introduce yourself to your future Ross classmates in 100 words or less.
The first thing to ask yourself is what you would want to know about your future classmates as potential teammates and friends? That is the information you should communicate here. If you have worked on your application strategy and thought about your personal branding, this question is just one part of the whole. You will be discussing career goals and other professional aspects of yourself in the next few essays, so this is your opportunity to tell your future classmates something about you as a person. Do you have a unique background you will be able to share with your classmates? What about hobbies and personal accomplishments? Think about this question as the “elevator pitch” to adcomm, and one that should be more personal than professional.

Essay 2
Describe your career goals. How will an MBA from Ross help you to achieve those goals? What is your vision for how you can make a unique contribution to the Ross community? (500 word maximum)
This career goals question is fairly standard, yet focuses more on the future rather than the past. Since you are not specifically asked to explain your entire career path, focus on the high points that will provide the relevant context to your goals. When did you face a turning point or make a big decision about your career? What were some of your proudest accomplishments?

When you describe your goals it will be important that they are both aspirational and credible. Because you are investing in an Michigan MBA, you will want to show how your career goals warrant the time and money you will spend. A promotion to the next level is not enough of a reason to spend two years at the Michigan MBA program, but perhaps your goal to run the company one day is. Think about the goal that will represent the pinnacle of your career in the next 10-20 years, and then describe any other sub-goals that will help you get there.

Having done your research on Michigan MBA’s academics and resources will help you answer the question about your motivation to pursue an MBA at Ross and how you will contribute to the community. Choose specific classes, professors and programs that fit into your career goals. Think about clubs and conferences that are unique to the Michigan MBA and will advance your career. This question is about more than how Ross will help you achieve your goals, you’ll also need to show your unique value as a member of the community. Can you share your career expertise? Your network? Personal hobbies or skills? Think again about what you would want from a future classmate and apply that filter to your unique talents.

Essay 3
Describe a time in your career when you were frustrated or disappointed. What did you learn from that experience? (500 word maximum)
Behavioral questions like this one are meant to illustrate how you have acted in situations in the past, as a predictor of future behavior. Your answer should be concise but detailed, and clearly lay out both the situation and what you did and thought as you navigated the outcome.

Often a tough experience is an excellent learning opportunity and contributes to your growth and development. Don’t be afraid to admit that you have faced frustration and disappointment, because you are only human. The important part of this story is how you reacted and what you learned. Think about the type of person who will be successful in a Michigan MBA program and as a manager and a leader. What skills do you share with a strong leader, and were any formed during a challenging interpersonal situation like this?
Similar to the HBS essay, this is an opportunity to show how you handle challenging situations. Everyone faces frustrations and challenges at work; it is how you decide to react that creates learning and growth. Revealing your emotions and thought process in this essay will provide a window into how you process difficult experiences and emerge from them with a new direction.

The key to a successful essay is to demonstrate how, specifically, you navigated the experience. A lesson learned or beneficial outcome to the experience would end the essay well and allow you to illustrate your leadership, teamwork or social skills.

Essay 4
Select one of the following questions:
• What are you most passionate about and why? (300 word maximum)
Since you have only 300 words you will want to focus on one aspect of your personal, professional or extracurricular life that really excites you.

Overall, this essay is meant to show how introspective you really are. Have you thought deeply about your passions and motivations in life, and do you know what truly makes you happy? If you can show that you understand yourself and are most motivated by your own passions rather than the expectations of others, you can demonstrate both self-awareness and maturity in this essay.

If the open ended prompt is intimidating you can try brainstorming over a period of a few days. Ask friends and family what most excites you when you go about your day to day life. Keep a notebook by your bed so you can record your first thoughts upon waking up, or dreams that might help you understand your passions.

• Describe a personal challenge or obstacle and why you view it as such. How have you dealt with it? What have you learned from it? (300 word maximum)
This essay question is similar to Essay 3, but focuses on a personal challenge or obstacle. This question is the perfect opportunity to bring up a pivotal moment in your background that has shaped your personal development. Challenges often reveal quite a bit about character, and your story should convey how you handled the situation, and reflect upon the key lessons of the situation. If you are describing a challenge that was external to you rather than self-imposed be sure to avoid blame or excuses. Everyone faces challenges or obstacles in life, and your response will reveal a tremendous amount about your character. This kind of essay is ideal to seek a third-party opinion on tone and approach.

Optional Essay
Is there anything else you think the Admissions Committee should know about you to evaluate your candidacy? (500 word maximum)
If there are any areas of concern, this is the correct place to address them. Strike an upbeat tone here and avoid excuses. Explain your issue clearly and focus most of the essay on the correction for the issue. For example, if you had a disciplinary issue in college, spend most of the issue demonstrating that you learned from the experience and have been an ideal citizen ever since.

If you do not have a weakness to address here, it’s an ideal opportunity to provide any information that you were unable to work into the other three essays. If you have an unusual background, hobby or extracurricular experience, this may be an opportunity to provide that information to the adcomm.

Soojin Kwon Koh, director of admissions at University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business, updated the MBA admissions blog Friday with the news that round three decisions were released earlier in the week and the waitlist has seen some activity–both with admits and denies.

The University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business has chosen Alison Davis-Blake as its new dean. Davis-Blake’s deanship will become effective August 22 of this year, pending the University of Michigan Board of Regents’ approval.

Davis-Blake has served as dean of the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota since 2006. Previously, she was a management professor and associate dean at the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas.

Davis-Blake said in a Ross press release:

I am very excited for the opportunity to lead the Ross School of Business. Ross has long been among the top business schools in the country and the world. It has strong programs across the board and is housed within a great university. Its action-based learning approach is a unique niche that sets it apart from other business schools.

Davis-Blake will be the first female dean in Ross’ history. She was the Carlson School’s first female dean as well. Given that women make up a small minority of business school deans, Davis-Blake was asked last year in a Financial Times interview how she dealt with male-dominated environments.

“If I’m in the extreme minority I always assume I need to perform twice as well to get half the credit as a member of the majority group and I act accordingly,” she replied.

Clearly, Davis-Blake’s hard work has not gone unnoticed. Said Jerry Davis, who led the Ross School’s Dean Search Advisory Committee:

She impressed the committee with her grasp of the broad competitive landscape of business education, its future trends and the factors that distinguish Ross from the other top schools. She has had great success working with faculty, staff, students, alumni and donors at Carlson, and the school’s reputation has risen accordingly. She also has great experience with globalizing the educational experience of students at Carlson, managing alliances with schools in Europe and Asia, and implementing a required overseas experience for undergraduates.

Davis-Blake’s commitment to global education may be one of top factors that attracted the committee. According to the Wall Street Journal, Ross has lagged behind other top business schools in establishing a global presence, and catching up is one of its highest priorities.

Image courtesy of The University of Minnesota.

The following are 5 MBA interviews tips from the Ross Michigan MBA program. The latest application advice offered this week by admissions director Soojin Kwon Koh of the Stephen M. Ross Michigan MBA Program covers how to use the interview experience to provide added dimension to the “paper” version of yourself.

As we’ve noted before, the purpose of the interview is twofold: it gives AdCom a chance to see a candidate’s personality, leadership qualities and motivation for pursuing an MBA; and it also lets applicants tell their own story beyond the essays and other materials in the application.

Applicants should remember that an invitation to interview doesn’t mean you’re a shoo-in. The admissions interview is intended as a “fit” interview, says Soojin, so you should approach it with the same seriousness and vigor you would a job interview.

Here are some of the admissions director’s MBA interview tips for conquering the admissions interview with grace:

Be professional: Schools want to admit candidates who will represent their institution well to recruiters and the outside world — both as students and future alums. Interviewing with a second-year MBA student doesn’t mean that you can be more casual in your language and demeanor. Remember to keep it professional.

Know yourself: You should be prepared to answer the question, “Why an MBA?” While you already have written about it in your application essay, AdCom also wants to know how you talk about it in person: Do you have your “elevator pitch” down?

Anything on your resume is fair game, so know it well. Explain your experiences clearly and succinctly. Provide specific examples and relevant details. Use the “CAR” approach — context, action, result — to frame your responses.

Know the school: Interviewers tend to feel more positively about candidates who have done their homework. They don’t just want really smart, accomplished students to join the community; they want students who will engage in the many opportunities Ross offers.

Knowing all about Ross doesn’t guarantee an interviewer’s endorsement, but you can make a more favorable impression on an interviewer — whether it’s for b-school admission or for a job — if you show you’re interested enough to research the organization.

Distinguish yourself: Make sure the stories and examples you share give the interviewer a sense of your interests, passions, goals, values, decision-making framework, and personality. AdCom wants to get to know you as people, not as resumes.

Practice: Here is the last, but arguably the most important, of the MBA interview tips. Practice discussing your professional experience, and identify stories that highlight some of the characteristics the school is looking for in candidates — leadership, teamwork, initiative, engagement, integrity, self-awareness, curiosity, passion, etc.

Conduct a mock interview with a colleague or friend to crystallize your thoughts and figure out the appropriate level of detail and length of response. And remember to relax and be yourself. We hope the above MBA interview tips were of help.

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If you’re in the midst of preparing your application for the Ross School of Business’s Round 2 deadline coming up on January 5, 2011, read Stacy Blackman’s complete Michigan Ross Advice section for essays tips, application updates and more!

In the latest MBA Newsletter from the Stephen M. Ross Michigan MBA Program, admissions director Soojin Kwon Koh explains how treating your resume like a first impression can help you put your best application forward.

Admissions officers weigh your resume quite heavily to assess your candidacy, so make sure this first impression is a good one, says Soojin. Does your resume concisely convey your background and accomplishments? This marketing tool foreshadows your future potential, so make sure you maximize the precious real estate on this document, the director advises.

Here in a nutshell, some guidelines Soojin offers to ensure your resume will make a powerful first impression:

• Keep it professional, polished, concise and complete.

• Remember your audience may not be familiar with your industry or organization, so steer clear of jargon and define the context of your organization if necessary.

• Show the whole package of what you bring to the table both professionally and personally. An MBA is much more than classes and networking; how will you participate in and contribute to the school’s community?

• Review, review, review. Don’t turn in the first draft of your resume…ask objective reviewers to gauge whether it is a strong and accurate depiction of you.

This advice from the Michigan MBA program holds true no matter where you’re applying. Take time to polish this crucial element of your application and it can open the door to your B-school future.

For Stacy Blackman’s MBA essay tips specifically geared for the Michigan MBA program, follow this link. Additional Michigan MBA advice can be found here.

Soojin Kwon Koh, admissions director at the Michigan MBA program, recently updated her blog with some stats on Round 1 applications–candidates applied from more than 40 countries!–and the news that the first group of Round 1 interview invites went out on Monday, October 25th.

Invited applicants have three weeks to complete their interview, and the second batch of invites goes out November 12th, Soojin explains, adding that the Michigan MBA program is looking to build an incoming class of about 490 students.

Interviews give prospective students the opportunity to share their unique story, goals and interests with admissions–and allow you to learn more about the program for which you are applying.

If you’re gearing up to apply in Round 2, one great way to prepare is by attending the next Preview Day on Friday, November 12th. “I will be walking through how the Admissions Committee looks at an application and engage the group in a discussion of an essay or two,” says Soojin.

“Fall is a great time of year to visit Ann Arbor! The leaves outside my window are glorious shades of orange, yellow and red,” says the director, who assures that there’s still time to register.

Those who can’t make it to Preview Day may want to listen to a Forte webinar Soojin moderated that features application advice from several admissions directors. “We discussed such topics as how to ‘tell your story,’ how to showcase your leadership ability, and how to prepare for the interview,” she explains.

For more on the recent changes to the admissions interview made for the fall 2011 admissions year, follow this link.

If you’re working on your application and looking for additional guidance to successfully navigate the Ross Michigan MBA essay questions, you can read our tips here.

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