Market Yourself Like a Pro

To promote yourself to a school’s admissions officer, you need to have a script. 

Business schools are interested in learning about the complete you. Here’s how to:

• showcase your positive qualities
• acknowledge your shortcomings
• share what’s special about you
• above all, tell the truth

Use every opportunity to showcase your strengths—through essays, interviews, follow-up correspondence, and any other contact you have with a school.

What Strengths?

Talk with people who know you well—particularly those who will write your letters of recommendation. Pay attention to what they tell you. Their insight may help you write your application essay and prepare for interviews.

Talk It Up

When interviewing with school recruiters, be sure to link your strengths with the strengths of the school. Explain what you will contribute to the program and your class, as well as what you hope to gain from them.

Emphasize Your Leadership Skills

A business school wants to teach you specific functional skills and develop your leadership skills. Demonstrating your existing and potential leadership skills is very important in the admissions process.

Every interaction you have with school staff is an opportunity to demonstrate your ability to lead. Highlight experience you have had in working with groups that had specific goals. You may not have been the official leader, but you may have taken an influential leadership role. Consider the qualities you believe are critical to managing a successful business and give specific examples from your background that demonstrate those traits.

Be creative in thinking about relevant experiences—don’t limit yourself to leadership roles on the job. Brainstorm with those close to you for examples that demonstrate that you have what it takes to be a successful leader in business.

Everyone has weakness. Your application should address any inconsistencies or problem areas in your academic and/or professional background such as:

• Time gaps in your resume
• A succession of jobs you didn’t hold for very long
• No apparent increase in job responsibility over time
• A poor academic performance or grade point average (GPA) for one semester or longer
• Gaps in your academic skills

Admissions officers expect you to take responsibility for any problems. Use your application to show what you learned from these situations and to make people comfortable with who you are. Be sure to demonstrate that past issues will not adversely affect your future academic or professional performance.

Some applicants who are otherwise strong may be weak in certain important academic subject areas, like quantitative methods (such as calculus), computing technology, and statistics. Find out whether the schools you’re applying to will want you to address any academic deficiencies. Some schools may offer you admission if you complete certain courses before enrolling. Most schools on your list will probably have similar prerequisites.

Complete prerequisite coursework early in the admissions process—and certainly before your planned enrollment date. You might also want to take supplementary courses, just to polish your skills.

Today’s business schools are committed to bringing together students from different geographic locations, work experiences, ethnic and cultural backgrounds, and life experiences.  The reason is simple—diverse students enrich an MBA program and enhance the learning experience.

So be sure to highlight your individuality and talk about how you can contribute to a school’s diversity. What will make your application stand out?

While creativity is something many schools look for, one place where it is not appreciated is on your application. 

Chris Privett, spokesman from the Duke University Fuqua School of Business, told Businessweek.com in July 2008:

“All students are required to read and sign the honor code of Duke University's Fuqua School of Business before submitting the application for admission. The scope of the honor code includes the commitment to the principles of honesty, trustworthiness, fairness, and respect for others. A signature indicates that the applicant has read the honor code and agrees to accept and abide by the honor code and its bylaws.”

Honesty is the Only Policy

No school wants to see its graduates become famous for breaking the law. Many schools are investing more in checking applications, from spot checking résumés to full background checks by security contractors. Truthfulness is not something schools take lightly.

If you have been laid off, remember that you are not the only one, and don’t lie about it. Being laid off is a reflection of the economy, and business schools know that as well as anyone.
 
Use your period of unemployment as an opportunity to take actions that will make you a stronger applicant and a better job prospect after business school. Study for the GMAT, spend more time writing your applications, take refresher mathematics courses, volunteer for organizations or causes you believe in, or take on a leadership role in a civic organization. (See Prepare for the Test for study tools and advice.)

If there are other issues in your background that you feel you need to explain in your application, be forthright  and show how you have addressed them (see Acknowledge Your Shortcomings on this page).

Make sure that every element of your application—including what you say in interviews—is accurate and true. Business schools don’t expect you to be perfect, but they do expect you to be honest.

Whether you are meeting staff, students, professors, or alumni, think about the impression you’re making.  Begin by making the right impression immediately, regardless of whether an interview is part of the admissions decision. Admissions officers do listen to what other people in their offices say about candidates, so a positive interaction with one staff member can go a long way to help, and conversely, a negative interaction can hurt your chances of admission.

If you have a formal interview, use it to your advantage. Be prepared to market your strengths and address your weaknesses, especially as compared with a school’s published applicant pool. Being successful in an MBA program requires strong communication skills. What better way to demonstrate yours?

Good Resource to Go: Writing a Killer Résumé: A Primer for MBA Candidates