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June 18, 2025 632 views

Top Tips for LGBTQ+ MBA Applicants

Vibrant rainbow balloon arches in a city plaza during a Pride celebration, with high-rise buildings in the background.

Pride Month is a powerful reminder to celebrate and elevate LGBTQ+ voices—but our commitment to helping LGBTQ+ MBA applicants shine doesn’t stop there. Given the current climate, we believe that being bold and authentic is more critical than ever. That’s why we’re proud to support your journey to business school with thoughtful guidance that empowers you to lead with confidence.

A group of queer and allied consultants from the SBC team came together to share advice drawn from our own experiences—and from working with clients who’ve inspired us with their courage and clarity.

Advice for LGBTQ+ MBA Applicants

Here are ten tips for LGBTQ+ MBA applicants to consider as they plan their business school journeys.

1. Connect with the LGBTQ+ student organizations at the schools you’re considering.

Speaking to LGBTQ+ MBA students at various schools is one of the best ways to learn about the program and the experience of LGBTQ+ students studying there. Additionally, most MBA programs include information about the school’s LGBTQ+ student organizations on their websites. But if you can’t find this information, contact the admissions office.

Hands holding letters representing LGBTQ+ MBA

Specifically, reach out to one of the student co-presidents of a given school’s LGBTQ+ student organization. In our experience, these club leaders almost always write back to potential students.

This will allow you to gain the perspectives of current students and possibly connect with others in the admissions office who work with LGBTQ+ MBA applicants. In addition, if there are events or information sessions specifically for LGBTQ+ applicants, you’ll want to be sure to attend these as well.

Listen to B-Schooled Podcast Episode #123: Tips for LGBTQ+ and Other Underrepresented Applicants

2. Tap into the power of the LGBTQ+ network.

The LGBTQ+ community is tight-knit, generous, and often eager to help. Whether you’re reaching out to alumni from your target schools or professionals in industries that interest you, don’t underestimate the power of a thoughtful message. LinkedIn is a great place to start, and while referrals from mutual contacts are ideal, cold outreach often gets a surprisingly warm response.

The Wharton School has the largest LGBTQ MBA club in the United States.

When you do reach out, be professional and respectful. Keep your message concise, clear, and typo-free. If someone replies or offers guidance, a prompt and sincere thank-you goes a long way.

3. When writing your essays, share your story thoughtfully.

For many, coming out is a deeply personal experience that requires tremendous self-examination and introspection. Thus, an essay touching on this profoundly revealing vulnerability and self-awareness can be remarkable.

Some of the most compelling essays we’ve read, for example, don’t actually “center” on a coming-out story. Instead, they used this experience as a jumping-off point to explore topics that are deeply meaningful to the applicant.

Remember that admissions officers want to understand many different aspects of you as an applicant. So, present this element of your identity as an important facet—but not the totality—of who you are.

4. Use Optional Sections Strategically

Many applications include optional questions about context, identity, or hardships. For LGBTQ+ applicants, this can be a valuable place to share more about your journey, especially if you’ve faced bias, lack of family support, or other obstacles that shaped your path. Use this space thoughtfully, with a tone that’s honest, not defensive. Your voice matters.

Whether you’re still exploring your MBA options or knee-deep in essays, we’re here to help. Schedule a free 15-minute consultation with a Principal SBC Consultant to talk strategy—no pressure, just real talk.

5. Embrace what sets you apart—being different is your edge, not your obstacle.

We see many LGBTQ+ MBA applicants who have been in the closet in college or professionally to conform to what society has told them a business person is “supposed” to be.

With all of our clients (not only members of the LGBTQ+ community), we encourage people to be themselves authentically. Embrace your individuality, your quirkiness, and your queerness, along with all the other things that make you unique.

A smiling person with rainbow-colored eye makeup and a pride scarf, representing LGBTQ+ identity and confidence.

6. Check out the Reaching Out MBA Conference.

The Reaching Out MBA Conference (ROMBA) is held every fall in a major U.S. city. The 2025 conference is scheduled for September 25–27 in New Orleans. This event educates, inspires, and connects our community through C-suite panels, workshops, competitions, a range of receptions, and a career fair featuring 100 corporate partners across various industries, all recruiting LGBTQ+ MBA talent.

Be sure to check the ROMBA website for registration details.

After you’ve been accepted:

7. Explore the Point Foundation (and other scholarship groups).

The Point Foundation (Point) is the nation’s largest scholarship-granting organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) students of merit. Point promotes change through scholarship funding, mentorship, leadership development, and community service training. To apply, applicants must be planning to attend a degree-granting undergraduate or graduate program, including doctoral programs. More information is available via the link above.

8. Consider your multiple identities when choosing the program that is right for you.

Several members of our team brought up the complexities of navigating the application process when one has multiple identities, such as being trans or non-binary, femme, from a low-income background, or non-white.

Each of these identity layers can add another degree of nuance when choosing the MBA program that feels right for you. This, of course, means different things for different people. For you, this might mean selecting an MBA program that has:

  • Specific Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) policies in place (not just lip service)
  • Faculty class rolls that include preferred names/pronouns
  • Taken steps to make sure non-white and international students don’t feel isolated and that staff reach out proactively to check in instead of waiting for students to come to them
  • A no-tolerance policy for derogatory language/behaviors so that individuals feel safe and know they can come forward
  • A robust “ally culture” that supports LGBTQ+ and other underrepresented students
  • Resources for pregnant/nursing mothers

On the other hand, we also realize that a) the list above is by no means comprehensive and that b) no single program is getting this 100% right. Therefore, we encourage applicants to evaluate these and other factors in light of their decision criteria to find the best fit. And then, once you select the program that is right for you and enroll, work hard to make it even better for those who will follow you.

9. When you do get to business school, speak up and pay it forward.

For every out person on a business school campus, there are often several other LGBTQ+ MBA students—especially those with multiple identities—who might not feel comfortable being out on campus yet.

Many of us recall instances from our own business school experiences when speaking up or speaking out prompted others who hadn’t yet to approach us privately to thank us for making our voices heard. There is also a multiplier effect: once one person raises a hand to make a statement or acknowledge their identity, others gradually feel more comfortable doing the same.

10. Finally, enjoy yourself and make friends.

Invite that stranger to coffee. Have those tough conversations. Encourage the LGBTQ+ student organization to co-host a happy hour with a conservative group on campus. Business school can—and should—be a LOT of fun. It is also a powerful opportunity for you to influence the hearts and minds of classmates who will one day run corporations, organizations, and governments around the world.

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Stacy Blackman Consulting offers multiple services to meet your MBA application needs, from our All-In Partnership and Interview Prep to hourly help with essay editing, resume review, and much more! 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.

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SBC’s star-studded consultant team is unparalleled. Our clients benefit from current intelligence that we receive from the former MBA Admissions Officers from Wharton, Columbia CBS and every elite business program in the US and Europe.  These MBA Admissions Officers have chosen to work exclusively with SBC.

Just two of the many superstars on the SBC team:
Meet Anthony, who 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.

Meet Erin, who has over seven years of experience working across major institutions, including University of Pennsylvania, Columbia Business School, and NYU’s Stern School of Business.

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