MBA Applicants Should Show They’ll Contribute to the Community
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Students at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School
Business schools attract talented, ambitious individuals who seek to advance their careers and positively impact the world. But, getting accepted into a top MBA program isn’t easy. The admissions committees look for candidates with more than just strong academic and professional backgrounds. Successful admits also fit the school’s mission and values and have the potential to contribute to the community and the learning experience of their peers.
How Will You Contribute to the Community?
As an MBA applicant, it’s essential to show how you can add value to the business school if accepted. Think of concrete ways beyond fulfilling course requirements and getting the degree. Focus on these areas to showcase your strengths and prove your commitment to giving back to the school.
Identify your unique strengths and passions.
Take time to reflect on what makes you stand out as a candidate. How can you leverage your skills, knowledge, and experiences to contribute to the program? Consider your personal and professional goals, values, and interests. Think about how they align with the school’s vision and culture. Highlight achievements demonstrating your leadership, teamwork, creativity, resilience, and other relevant qualities that can benefit the school.
Why It’s Good to Be a Non-Traditional MBA Applicant
Research the school and its programs.
Before applying to a business school, you should do your homework. Find out as much as possible about the institution, its faculty, students, alums, and opportunities.
Some things to research include the school’s:
- Mission and values
- Curriculum
- Specialties and strengths
- Location and resources
- Reputation and rankings
Also, check out the school’s website, social media, events, and other resources to get a sense of its culture and community and to see if it is a good fit for you.
Curious about your chances of getting into a top B-school? Contact us to talk strategy with a free 15-minute advising session with an SBC Principal Consultant.
Tailor your application to each specific business school.
When preparing your MBA application, tailor your resume, essays, recommendations, and other materials to the specific business school and its programs. Show how your background and goals align with the school’s mission and values. Also, highlight how you plan to contribute to its community and learning environment.
Avoid using generic or formulaic approaches. Instead, highlight your unique qualities and achievements, and use specific examples and anecdotes to illustrate your points.
Engage with the business school throughout the admissions process.
After submitting your MBA application, don’t just wait for the decision. Instead, take the initiative to engage with the program and signal your interest and fit. Attend events such as information sessions, webinars, or fairs. Ask questions and interact with the AdCom representatives.
Also, reach out to current students and alums to learn more about the school and its programs. Doing so can showcase your curiosity, enthusiasm, and commitment to the school. At the same time, you can also learn more about the program and its expectations.
Show your potential to continue contributing after graduation.
Besides demonstrating your fit and potential to contribute to the business school during the admissions process, you can also show your commitment to giving back to the school and the broader community after graduation. Consider volunteering, mentoring, or joining the alumni association, and share your plans and ideas with the admissions committee.
Doing so can signal your long-term commitment to the MBA program, its mission, and your willingness to contribute to the school’s future success and impact.
Proving that you will contribute to the business school if accepted requires more than just meeting the admission requirements and having a solid resume. It involves showing your love for the program and letting the admissions committee know how you plan to enhance the learning environment for everyone.
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Stacy Blackman Consulting offers multiple services to meet your MBA application needs, from our All-In Partnership to hourly help reviewing your MBA resume. Contact us today for a free 15-minute advising session to talk strategy with a Principal SBC consultant.
Here’s a snapshot of the caliber of expertise on our SBC team.
Ashley
Ashley is a former MBA Admissions Board Member for Harvard Business School (HBS), where she interviewed and evaluated thousands of business school applicants for over a six year tenure. Ashley holds an MBA from HBS. During her HBS years, Ashley was the Sports Editor for the Harbus and a member of the B-School Blades Ice Hockey Team. After HBS, she worked in Marketing at the Gillette Company on Male and Female shaving ...
×Kerry
Kerry is a former member of the Admissions Board at Harvard Business School (HBS). During her 5+ year tenure at HBS, she read and evaluated hundreds of applications and interviewed MBA candidates from a wide range of backgrounds across the globe. She also led marketing and outreach efforts focused on increasing diversity and inclusion, ran the Summer Venture in Management Program (SVMP), and launched the 2+2 Program during her time in Admissions. Kerry holds a B.A. from Bates College and ...
×Pauline
A former associate director of admissions at Harvard Business School, Pauline served on the HBS MBA Admissions Board full-time for four years. She evaluated and interviewed HBS applicants, both on-campus and globally. Pauline's career has included sales and marketing management roles with Coca-Cola, Gillette, Procter & Gamble, and IBM. For over 10 years, Pauline has expertly guided MBA applicants, and her clients h ...
×Geri
Geri is a former member of the Admissions Board at Harvard Business School (HBS). In her 7 year tenure in HBS Admissions, she read and evaluated hundreds of applications and interviewed MBA candidates from a diverse set of academic, geographic, and employment backgrounds. Geri also traveled globally representing the school at outreach events in order to raise awareness for women and international students. In additio ...
×Laura
Laura comes from the MBA Admissions Board at Harvard Business School (HBS) and is an HBS MBA alumnus. In her HBS Admissions role, she evaluated and interviewed hundreds of business school candidates, including internationals, women, military and other applicant pools, for five years. Prior to her time as a student at HBS, Laura began her career in advertising and marketing in Chicago at Leo Burnett where she worked on th ...
×Andrea
Andrea served as the Associate Director of MBA Admissions at Harvard Business School (HBS) for over five years. In this role, she provided strategic direction for student yield-management activities and also served as a full member of the admissions committee. In 2007, Andrea launched the new 2+2 Program at Harvard Business School – a program targeted at college junior applicants to Harvard Business School. Andrea has also served as a Career Coach for Harvard Business School for both cu ...
×Jennifer
Jennifer served as Admissions Officer at the Stanford (GSB) for five years. She holds an MBA from Stanford (GSB) and a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Jennifer has over 15 years experience in guiding applicants through the increasingly competitive admissions process into top MBA programs. Having read thousands and thousands of essays and applications while at Stanford (GSB) Admiss ...
×Erin K.
Erin served in key roles in MBA Admissions--as Director at Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley and Assistant Director at Stanford's Graduate School of Business (GSB). Erin served on the admissions committee at each school and has read thousands of applications in her career. At Haas, she served for seven years in roles that encompassed evaluation, outreach, and diversity and inclusion. During her tenure in Admissions at GSB, she was responsible for candidate evaluation, applicant outreach, ...
×Susie
Susie comes from the Admissions Office of the Stanford Graduate School of Business where she reviewed and evaluated hundreds of prospective students’ applications. She holds an MBA from Stanford’s GSB and a BA from Stanford in Economics. Prior to advising MBA applicants, Susie held a variety of roles over a 15-year period in capital markets, finance, and real estate, including as partner in one of the nation’s most innovative finance and real estate investment organizations. In that r ...
×Dione
Dione holds an MBA degree from Stanford Business School (GSB) and a BA degree from Stanford University, where she double majored in Economics and Communication with concentrations in journalism and sociology. Dione has served as an Admissions reader and member of the Minority Admissions Advisory Committee at Stanford. Dione is an accomplished and respected advocate and thought leader on education and diversity. She is ...
×Anthony
Anthony served as the Associate Director of MBA Admissions at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, where he dedicated over 10 years of expertise. During his time as a Wharton Admissions Officer, he read and reviewed thousands of applications and helped bring in a class of 800+ students a year. Anthony has traveled both domestically and internationally to recruit a ...
×Meghan
Meghan served as the Associate Director of Admissions and Marketing at the Wharton MBA’s Lauder Institute, a joint degree program combining the Wharton MBA with an MA in International Studies. In her role on the Wharton MBA admissions committee, Meghan advised domestic and international applicants; conducted interviews and information sessions domestically and overseas in Asia, Central and South America, and Europe; and evaluated applicants for admission to the program. Meghan also managed ...
×Amy
Amy comes from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania where she was Associate Director. Amy devoted 12 years at the Wharton School, working closely with MBA students and supporting the admissions team. During her tenure at Wharton, Amy served as a trusted adviser to prospective applicants as well as admitted and matriculated students. She conducted admissions chats with applicants early in the admissions ...
×Ally
Ally brings six years of admissions experience to the SBC team, most recently as an Assistant Director of Admission for the full-time MBA program at Columbia Business School (CBS). During her time at Columbia, Ally was responsible for reviewing applications, planning recruitment events, and interviewing candidates for both the full-time MBA program and the Executive MBA program. She traveled both internationally and dome ...
×Erin B.
Erin has over seven years of experience working across major institutions, including University of Pennsylvania, Columbia Business School, and NYU's Stern School of Business. At Columbia Business School, Erin was an Assistant Director of Admissions where she evaluated applications for both the full time and executive MBA programs, sat on the admissions and merit scholarship committees and advised applicants on which program might be the best fit for them based on their work experience and pro ...
×Emma
Emma comes from the MBA Admissions Office at Columbia Business School (CBS), where she was Associate Director. Emma conducted dozens of interviews each cycle for the MBA and EMBA programs, as well as coordinating the alumni ambassador interview program. She read and evaluated hundreds of applications each cycle, delivered information sessions to audiences across the globe, and advised countless waitlisted applicants. ×
