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1. Give a candid description of yourself, stressing the personal characteristics you feel to be your strengths and weaknesses and the main factors, which have influenced your personal development, giving examples when necessary. (400 words approx.)

While “main factors which have influenced your development” comes later in the question, it seems clear to us that you would be best off providing this context for your experiences before discussing the strengths and weaknesses derived from them, as it is important that you show a cause and effect relationship between your formative experiences and your personal characteristics. Although the question advises you to “use examples when necessary,” your story will be strongest if you offer anecdotes consistently; the details of your story will reveal each of your attributes. Still, this should not be a hodgepodge of strengths/anecdotes. You might focus on two or three strengths and one weakness in a mere 400 words.

An important note: it is vital that you be honest about your strengths (don’t tell the committee what you think they want to hear; tell them who you are) and especially about your weaknesses; transparent or disingenuous statements about your weaknesses will not fool anyone and will only reveal you to be a person who cannot critically evaluate him/herself.

2. Describe what you believe to be your two most substantial accomplishments to date, explaining why you view them as such. (400 words approx.)

It is important to offer two anecdotes that reveal different sides of you as an applicant. While one professional accomplishment is “mandatory” for almost all candidates, the other accomplishment can come from your community, personal and, possibly, academic life. It is important that you not forget that two elements need to be tackled, the story of your accomplishment and a reflective element (“why do you view them as such?”). The second half of this question should not be ignored; your personal thoughts are no one else’s and can differentiate you from the pack.

3. Describe a situation taken from school, business, civil or military life, where you did not meet your personal objectives, and discuss briefly the effect. (250 words approx.)

The best failure essays are often those that show reasoned optimism and tremendous momentum toward a goal—a goal that is ultimately derailed. In most cases, you will need to show that you were emotionally invested in your project/experience, which will enable the reader to connect with your story and vicariously experience your disappointment. If you were not invested at all, it is hardly credible to discuss the experience as a failure or learning experience.

It is important to note that INSEAD is not only focused on failures; “not meet(ing) personal objectives” could include setbacks, which allows the door to swing open to include a range of personal experiences. For example, you could not discuss an injury that prevented you from competing for an elite college athletic competition as a failure, but it would certainly qualify as “not meet(ing) personal objectives.” You can carefully consider setbacks in which you bear no responsibility for creating the situation; in such a case, again, it is crucial that you show that you were emotionally invested, that events were going in a certain direction and that the situation quickly turned in an unfavorable direction.

Even though INSEAD does not ask for reflection, you should still consider explaining what you learned. It is very easy to offer trite and clichéd statements about your response and what you learned about yourself (Note: Everyone learns resiliency—consider another key learning). It will take time to truly create a unique statement about your road forward and lessons learned, but the payoff will come in an essay that is much more personal and self-aware than thousands of others.

4. Discuss your career goals. What skills do you expect to gain from studying at INSEAD and how will they contribute to your professional career? (500 words approx.)

Because of significant overlap from one MBA application to the next, we have produced the “MBA Mission Personal Statement Guide.” We offer our guide to candidates free of charge, via our online store.  Please feel free to download your copy today.

5. Please choose one of the following two essay topics:

a) Have you ever experienced culture shock? What did it mean to you? (250 words approx.), or

b) What would you say to a foreigner moving to your home country? (250 words approx.)

Clearly, with INSEAD priding itself on its international focus, the Admission Committee is trying to get a sense of your cultural sensitivity and international awareness. If you have traveled at all—for business or pleasure—we recommend answering Essay A, as it approaches you in the international sphere. In contrast, Essay B presents you with a stronger domestic knowledge, which is generally less desirable in the classroom. In either instance, it is essential that you offer anecdotes and try to capture the spirit of human interaction; simple country facts will bore, whereas placing the reader in the middle of your experience will be quite compelling.

6. Is there anything that you have not mentioned in the above essays that you would like the Admissions Committee to know? (200 words approx.) This essay is optional.

This essay should only be used if there is something quite compelling that you have not had the opportunity to discuss, or if there is a problem with your application (grades, GMAT, recommender, etc.). This is not an “all purpose” essay or a place to paste an essay from another application.

mbaMission hosts a weekly blog series, “Admissions Myths Destroyed,” for our friends at Beat the GMAT. Check out the BTG site for fresh material and ours for “reprints.” The following piece was penned by mbaMission Founder, Jeremy Shinewald:

Because the GMAT is the sole piece of data that is truly consistent from one candidate to another, many MBA applicants get carried away, placing undue emphasis on the test as the sole determinant of their chances (when, in reality, it is only one of several important aspects of an application). In extreme cases, some applicants will consider quitting their jobs to focus on the GMAT full time. Bad idea.

Why is it a bad idea to quit your job to improve your GMAT score? Quite simply, it sends the message that you can’t manage what others can manage quite well. In your application, you will need to account for any and all time off and if you note that you took time off to study for the GMAT (which would be the honest thing to do), you will be placing yourself at a relative disadvantage to others, who have proved that they can work and study simultaneously (and potentially maintain community and personal commitments as well). By taking time off you will send the unintended message that you cannot achieve what others have achieved, unless you have an uneven playing field. Is that really the message that you want to be sending to your target academic institution – one that wants to be sure that you can handle the academic course load, a job hunt, community commitments and more?

Regardless of the perceptions of the admissions committees with respect to time off, we think that a calm and methodical approach would be the best one for you anyway. By furthering your career as you study, you will have a sense of balance in your life and relief from the stresses of the GMAT – a chance to clear your head at the start of the day. On test day, you will have a far better chance of keeping a level head, ensuring that you will do your best on the test — which was the point in the first place, right?

Applying to B-School in 2010/11? By taking action now, you can dramatically improve your chances of gaining admission to a top-MBA program next year. Indeed, it is never too soon (and certainly not too late) to take several crucial steps to shape your MBA candidacy. Join mbaMission Founder, Jeremy Shinewald, as he leads prospective applicants through a Long Term Planning webinar.

Topics of discussion will include:

• Creating your 10 month timeline
• Maximizing the Impact of Community Activities
• Accelerating Personal Goals
• Building an Alternative Transcript
• Taking and Retaking the GMAT
• Making the Most of Campus Visits
• Understanding the differences between MBA programs
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All attendees of this exclusive event will receive:

• 10% off any 9-session ManhattanGMAT course
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What do I need to do to prepare for my business school interview? What types of questions will my interviewer ask? Is it better to interview with a member of the Admissions Committee or with an alumnus/alumna?

Via an interactive presentation, mbaMission Founder Jeremy Shinewald will offer advice on best practices to help you prepare for and succeed in your admissions interviews. He will explore different types of interviews, discuss what each Admissions Committee is looking for and reveal helpful time management tips.  Jeremy will also be available for a Q&A session after the presentation.  Join us for a valuable event that will be an essential part of your interview preparation!

All attendees of this exclusive event will receive the following:

$100 off any nine-session ManhattanGMAT course
Free access to a ManhattanGMAT computer-adaptive practice exam
Free half-hour consultation with an mbaMission consultant
Priority when registering for mbaMission mock-interview sessions

Sign up for our FREE EVENT!

mbaMission hosts a weekly blog series, “Admissions Myths Destroyed,” for our friends at Beat the GMAT. Check out the BTG site for fresh material and ours for “reprints.” The following piece was penned by mbaMission Founder, Jeremy Shinewald:

These days, it is common for us to receive panicked phone calls from applicants who are twenty-six years of age, asking if they are too old to get into business school. Why is that?

Well, for much of the last decade, several top schools have declared their openness to younger candidates and have even been courting them. Harvard Business School has welcomed “direct-admits” those entering immediately after completing their undergraduate degrees — and started the 2+2 program — to encourage undergraduates to consider deferred acceptance. (Today, 439 members of HBS’s Class of 2011, or about 46% of the class, matriculated at HBS with four years of work experience or less.) Chicago Booth followed suit, launching the Chicago-Booth Scholars Program, granting deferred admission to University of Chicago seniors, and the Early Career Candidate program to attract students with one to three years of experience. While the Stanford GSB does not publish an average age, it does state that its median work experience is four years. So, if you are an “older” candidate at 27, 28, 29, or — dare we even write — 30, should you even bother applying?

First of all, it is worth noting that not all schools are on the bandwagon. Tuck, for example, states that “in general” it does not accept students with less than two years of work experience. Darden’s range is 1-10 years, meaning that it currently has no direct-admits. Michigan Ross requires that students complete their degree before applying, meaning that seniors are ineligible.

However, if you are focused on a school that is open to younger candidates, you should still think logically about this situation: you can’t get any younger, so, you can either self-select out of the application process or you can let the admissions committees read your applications and make their own decisions. Further, applicants should not mistake an openness to younger candidates as some sort of aversion to older candidates. (After all, 54% of HBS’s class has more than four years of work experience.) If you have something special to offer, you are still in the running – there is no secret cutoff that immediately eliminates you from the pool.

As we have written before, the schools are governed by self-interest. They want the best candidates out there and if you are among the best, your age will not be an obstacle.