Wharton Essay Topic Analysis - 工管

As we announced recently, Wharton has released its essay questions for the
2012-2013 admissions season. Like last year, after answering a required
question about professional objectives, applicants must respond to two of
three essay questions to round out the set. However, the adcom has changed
three of the essay topics this year, in addition to shrinking the total word
count from 1,500 to 1,400 words.

Let's look more closely at each of Wharton's prompts:

Required Question:

How will [the] Wharton MBA help you achieve your professional objectives?
(400 words)

While last year’s corresponding essay question asked applicants to simply
describe their professional objectives, applicants this year must go a step
further by explaining how attending Wharton will help them accomplish those
objectives. In acknowledgment of this new component, the Wharton adcom has
extended the word limit for this essay from 300 to 400 words.

A variation of the typical career goals essay, this question asks applicants
to adopt a big-picture view of their aspirations. In addition to describing
their immediate post-MBA career goals, applicants should also explain their
long-term plans and the broad impact they hope to have on their industry,
community, country or region. Applicants must also display a strong and
specific understanding of how Wharton’s program would enable them to
accomplish their goals. Taking the time to learn about the school’s
curriculum, special programs and extracurricular activities—whether by
visiting campus, speaking with members of the community, or reading the Clear
Admit Guide to Wharton—will pay dividends here.

Respond to two of the following three questions:

Option 1. Select a Wharton MBA course, co-curricular opportunity or
extra-curricular engagement that you are interested in. Tell us why you chose
this activity and how it connects to your interests. (500 words)

Continuing the Wharton-centric theme of the professional objectives essay,
Option 1 calls for applicants to showcase their understanding of Wharton’s
specific curricular and extracurricular offerings. By inviting applicants to
explain how a particular activity appeals to their interests, the adcom is
signaling that this is an opportunity for applicants to reveal more
information about their backgrounds (personal or professional) and goals.
Whether you choose to write about a course or a club, the key here will be
to strike a balance between discussing Wharton and discussing yourself. One
way to do this might be to begin by stating the course or activity you’ve
chosen, then describing your personal connection to that course or activity
(the ‘why?’ part of the essay question), and finally pointing to ways you
could contribute to that course or activity while in school. Overall,
remember that the main purpose of this essay is to illustrate how your
strengths will complement and enhance the offerings at Wharton.

Option 2. Imagine your work obligations for the afternoon were cancelled and
you found yourself “work free” for three hours, what would you do? (500
words)

One of the less conventional questions coming from Wharton in recent years,
this essay presents applicants with the chance to discuss their individual
hobbies, passions and interests. Given that the adcom has specified a
three-hour time limit, this is an ideal place for applicants to describe more
informal activities that they enjoy (such as taking in art exhibits,
preparing a special meal for friends, catching a foreign film or pursuing
recreational sports). While it may be tempting to use this essay to
highlight your impressive accomplishments from outside of work, be careful
about seeming overly ambitious or unrealistic in light of the time frame.
Similarly, applicants may want to think twice before spending the three
hours in too low-key of a fashion: an essay about how you would go out for
drinks likely would not allow you to feature the aspects of your background
that make you a compelling candidate.

Applicants should also note that in addition to describing what they would do
for three hours, they should also be addressing why they would do that
particular activity. This “why” component opens the door to revealing a
bit about your personal history. For example, if you would initiate a soccer
game with your coworkers, you could mention your lifelong involvement in
sports and passion for teamwork. Or, if you would head to your kitchen to
prepare a special meal, you could bring up your favorite cuisines you’ve
encountered while traveling internationally. When writing, it’s always a
good idea to get objective advice from an outside source, so feel free to
contact us for feedback on the topic you’ve chosen.

Option 3. “Knowledge for Action draws upon the great qualities that have
always been evident at Wharton: rigorous research, dynamic thinking, and
thoughtful leadership.” – Thomas S. Robertson, Dean, The Wharton School

Tell us about a time when you put knowledge into action. (500 words)

Once again, the adcom has selected a quote from Dean Robertson to serve as
the basis for an admissions essay. While last year’s corresponding question
centered on innovation, this year’s prompt focuses on acting upon
information. In asking applicants to describe a time when they “put
knowledge into action,” the adcom is looking for you to show that you are an
informed decision maker—that you make decisions in a timely manner, but have
data to support your choices. Wharton allows applicants to draw from the
personal or professional realms in addressing this prompt, so candidates
could conceivably write about anything from developing a fundraising strategy
for a local charity, to launching a new mentoring program at their job.
Whatever sort of example you settle on, remember that your essay should
emphasize research, thinking, and leadership; you need to prove that you can
use information/knowledge/data to create a plan and put it into action.
Finally, be sure to fully answer this question by explaining the situation
and the knowledge you were presented with, commenting on your thought process
and actions, and providing an ‘after’ snapshot that illustrates the results
of your efforts.


Good luck!

Best,
Kevin
[email protected]



---------------------------------
Kevin Chen
Senior Admissions Counselor, Clear Admit LLC (http://www.clearadmit.com/)
Stanford Graduate School of Business, class of 2005
Harvard Kennedy School of Government, class of 2000
Princeton University, class of 1994
Previous work experiences: McKinsey; NBA; Reuters


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