Harvard Business School (HBS) 2024 Application Essay Guidance

New Selection Criteria

• Three traits HBS Adcom looks for:
  1. Business-minded
  2. Leadership focused
  3. Growth oriented
• Applications essays inspired by these traits
• Broad traits, most applicants likely have relevant anecdotes

Essay Writing Philosophy

• Consider essays as a portfolio, not individually
• Admissions readers should learn something new from each essay
• Avoid repeating the same note to reinforce a brand; show multi-dimensionality
• Brainstorm all three prompts thoroughly
• Ensure each essay offers new insights about yourself

Importance of Narrative Writing

• Fundamentals: crafting strong introductions, maintaining reader interest
• Answer all parts of each essay prompt
• Connect past experiences to current choices and future ambitions

Essay 1: Business-minded

• Prompt: Reflect on experiences influencing your career choices and aspirations; impact on businesses, organizations, and communities (300 words)
• Key Points:
  • Identify root of professional identity and career choices
  • Link experiences to career aspirations (plausible yet ambitious)
  • Explain impact (integrity, stakeholder reflection, positive influence)
  • Avoid forcing a social mission if it doesn’t fit your story

Essay 2: Leadership Focused

• Prompt: Reflect on experiences shaping who you are, how you invest in others, and future leadership goals (250 words)
• Key Points:
  • Identify core shaping experience
  • Connect experience to current leadership perspective
  • Show how experience leads to investing in others
  • Link perspectives to future leadership goals
  • Example: Competitive sport leading to volunteer coaching

Essay 3: Growth Oriented

• Prompt: Share an example of demonstrating curiosity and its influence on your growth (250 words)
• Key Points:
  • Identify a genuine, intense curiosity (e.g., biography, meditation, work project)
  • Show commitment to the interest
  • Connect curiosity to personal growth and understanding of capabilities
  • Outcome is less important than the connection between curiosity and growth

Final Notes

• Essays require serious self-reflection
• Consider essays collectively and review meticulously
• Use a narrative approach to engage the reader
• HBS applications are demanding but worthwhile

Next Step: Check out the comparison between HBS and Stanford GSB in the upcoming video.