This year too, Wharton has two required essays in its full-time MBA application process.  While the first question has been retained from the previous years, the second question this year is different. It touches upon the same points of contributing to the Wharton community as last year, however the question this time around is broader and allows you to pick any aspect of your candidature you want to highlight. As always, there is an additional essay for reapplicants and an optional essay for first-time applicants.

One of the standards in Wharton’s arsenal, this question is slightly more than a standard career goals essay and should be approached as such. Note that in the past couple of years, Wharton has changed the language of this question to focus only on professional instead of both personal and professional aspirations. Given the 500 word limit, this allows you to delve deeper into your aspirational career path while highlighting your accomplishments and journey so far.

This first part of this essay should ideally focus on painting a picture about your short term, mid term and long term goals. Keep in mind that it is important that you tie this back to your current work profile and skill set.

In the next part, go into how the collective learning from Wharton can help you bridge the gaps in your skill set and enable you to reach your short term goal. Talk about specific courses, conferences, clubs and professors that will help you get there.

Finish strong and talk about how you will use the network and knowledge gained in your two years at Wharton to navigate your career path and reach your long-term goal.

Throughout this essay, be specific. This is where a thorough research will come in handy. Talk to alumni, career offices and adcom to figure out what specific resources are available at Wharton that will help you achieve your goals and help you in your professional journey. Even better, find out which of these resources are unique to Wharton. For example, Wharton is the only top school with campuses on both east and west coasts.

Though the prompt states that the experience or accomplishment should not be reflected elsewhere in your application, it is safe to assume that you will not be penalized for picking out a bullet point from your resume and expanding on it. The important thing is to pick out an experience or accomplishment that is truly impactful and one that you can link to the second part of the question.

In describing the experience, talk about the process of how you achieved your goals instead of just focusing on the end result. Walk the reader through the bumps you faced, how you faced them and your thought process in the situation. Then in the second part of the essay, relate it to your contribution into the Wharton MBA program. As in the first essay, keep it focused and specific.

If you are a reapplicant, this question is critical. As the prompt suggests, reflect deeply on the past year and show the admissions committee how you have grown as an applicant. This growth can be both on the professional and on the personal front. It’s important here that this essay should not solely be a laundry list of achievements. Ideally, reflection on your previous decision about the application should have led to some key actions that you then undertook during the past year.

Some schools do check if you sought feedback on your last year application/interview, which tells them that you are keen to improve and apply again. While most schools may end up not providing a feedback or providing a very generic feedback, but in our opinion, one should reach out to schools for feedback nevertheless.

On the other hand, this question is truly optional for first-time applicants. Only use this space if you genuinely have something that needs to be said. Be straightforward, avoid giving excuses and if possible, talk about what changes you have made to remedy the situation. For example, if your grades in quantitative subjects were particularly low during undergrad, mention that in a straightforward way and highlight if you took any additional courses between now and then to make sure that you are prepared for the quantitative rigors of the Wharton MBA. Schools also welcome an explanation if your recommendation isn’t coming from your direct supervisor and your reasons for choosing a particular recommender.