Work in Finance? Don’t Make These Common MBA Application Mistakes

MBA applicant with a finance background

As an MBA applicant with a finance background, you’re no doubt wondering how to stand out from your equally impressive peers. No matter how remarkable your pedigree is, the truth is that no business school wants an entire class filled with individuals of the same profile. While this information may have you wondering how in the world you can ever earn an acceptance letter, keep in mind that MBA programs welcome candidates with your background. Every year, the classes at top B-schools include multiple former finance professionals.

As we pointed out last week when we started this Top 10 list of common MBA application mistakes, there’s a right and wrong way to attract the admission committee’s attention. Let’s dive deeper into what an MBA applicant with a finance background should avoid and what makes for a successful application.

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Mistakes Every MBA Applicant with a Finance Background Should Avoid

Mistake #4: Failing to leverage your interests outside of work

While most of your peers will have similar work examples, you are the only one with your particular hobbies, interests, friends, and family. What are your passions outside of the office? If you don’t tap into your personal pursuits to add another dimension to your MBA application, you’re missing out on a critical opportunity to connect with the admissions committee.

When reflecting on your life, consider the differences that can help you stand out. It can be anything from education to family to activities and interests. What do you spend your free time and money on? What values have you inherited from your family? Take those differences and create a nugget of a story to include in relevant essays to reveal more about you than your GPA or work history.

Mistake #5: Overlooking work accomplishments that fall outside the norm

Everyone on the admissions committee knows what an investment banking, hedge fund, or private equity analyst does daily. Many of your peers are also working hard to gain admission, and thousands of applications later, your work experience may seem similar to all the others in the pile.

MBA applicant with a finance background

As you survey your peers, think about what you do at work that is outside your typical deal or investment-focused work (and theirs). Instead of discussing the analysis you conducted or the due diligence you performed, think about the time you trained the interns or organized a community service event for your colleagues. You may have created a new process or led recruiting efforts. These “extra-curricular” work activities can be an asset to your application and help you stand out.

How to Leverage Your Banking Resume to Get an MBA at Harvard, Wharton, or Stanford

Mistake #6: Not explaining the meaning behind your career goals

Whether staying on your current career path or switching to something completely different, it’s important not to assume that the MBA admissions committee will understand why you are pursuing your specific career goals. Your task is to explain that you have consciously selected your future career plans through research, evaluating your strengths and weaknesses, and other intangible factors.

In short, your career goals must have special meaning to you, and you’ll need to communicate that meaning through your application materials.

As an MBA applicant with a finance background, aim to demonstrate precisely how your career goals and personal history have come together into a path with real purpose. Obviously, not every candidate plans to save the world after pursuing an MBA. Still, even if your career goals are not inherently altruistic, it’s essential to show that they have deep meaning for you.

MBA applicant with a finance background

Mistake #7: Not showing your collaborative side

How do you demonstrate teamwork when sitting solo in front of a computer screen all day? What if you work primarily on your own projects for your associate and very little with other analysts? It’s sometimes challenging to feel like you are part of a team when you’re always performing tasks for senior-level meetings and pitches. That’s the dilemma facing many an MBA applicant with a finance background as they answer questions about their ability to work collaboratively on a team.

The most successful teams take each person’s strengths to counteract others’ weaknesses. As you enter your MBA program, you’ll bring specific skills that can be an asset to any project. Applying these critical strengths to your business school environment can be a great way to showcase how much you will contribute to your learning team, your cluster or cohort, and any club leadership position.

That’s all for today, but we’ll be back tomorrow with the final installment addressing the common mistakes finance applicants must avoid. So, stay tuned!

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Stacy Blackman Consulting offers multiple services to meet your MBA application needs. From our All-In Partnership to interview prep, essay editing, resume review, and much more, we’ve got you covered. Contact us today for a free 15-minute advising session to talk strategy with a Principal SBC consultant.

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