MBA essay prompt tracker, 2026-27

Please reflect on how your choices have influenced your career path and aspirations.

What experiences have shaped how you invest in others and how you lead?

Curiosity can be seen in many ways. Please share an example of how you have demonstrated curiosity and how that has influenced your growth.

What matters most to you, and why? For this essay, reflect deeply and write from the heart. Once you have identified what matters most to you, help us understand why.

Why Stanford for you? Describe your aspirations and how your Stanford GSB experience will help you realize them.

We believe that leadership comes through in different shapes and forms and look for examples of when you have taken initiative, persisted through challenges, engaged others in your efforts, or supported those around you. Think about a time in the last five years when you have created a significant impact, whether in professional, extracurricular, civic, or academic settings. What was the situation, what did you do, and what was the impact? (Up to three examples, 1,200 characters each.)

We know that each person is more than a list of facts or predefined categories. With this space, we provide you with an optional opportunity to elaborate on how your life experiences have helped shape how you see the world. (800 characters)

We are deliberate in the questions we ask. We believe that we get to know you well through all of the elements of your application. Complete this section only if you have critical information you could not convey elsewhere on your application, for example extenuating circumstances affecting academic or work performance. (1,200 characters)

What is your immediate post-MBA professional goal?

Describe your medium- and long-term professional goals after your Wharton MBA.

Taking into consideration your background – personal, professional, and/or academic – how do you plan to add meaningful value to the Wharton community?

Please use this space to share any additional information about yourself that cannot be found elsewhere in your application and that you would like to share with the Admissions Committee. This space can also be used to address any extenuating circumstances, for example unexplained gaps in work experience, choice of recommenders, inconsistent or questionable academic performance, or areas of weakness.

What is your immediate post-MBA career goal? (max 300 characters)

What is your long-term post-MBA career goal? (max 300 characters)

Upload an image and explain its significance to you. (max 300 characters)

Share a fun fact or something unique about yourself. (max 300 characters)

Is there any unclear information in your application that needs further explanation or additional details you would like to share with the Admissions Committee?

Part I: An MBA is a significant investment of time, energy and resources, and the decision to pursue one deserves serious reflection. Tell us about the pivotal experiences and decisions that have brought you to this moment in your career, how they have shaped your ambitions, and why now is the right time to take this next step. Part II: Now turn the lens outward: beyond what you hope to gain, what do you hope to contribute to the students who will learn alongside you? (You choose how to split the 550 words.)

Five 60-second video responses, due 96 hours after the application deadline; no re-recording.

MIT Sloan seeks students whose personal characteristics demonstrate that they will make the most of the incredible opportunities at MIT. Write a cover letter to the admissions committee (up to 300 words).

Every applicant has a story that can't be captured in a resume. Take up to 90 seconds to share yours: who you are, where you come from, and what's shaped the person you are today. (Single take: no editing, music, or subtitles.)

A randomly generated, open-ended question answered live in the application (short prep window, ~60-second response).

Through your resume and recommendation, we have a clear sense of your professional path to date. What are your career goals over the next three to five years and what is your long-term dream job?

Please share a specific example of how you made a team more collaborative, more inclusive or fostered a greater sense of community within an organization.

We believe Columbia Business School is a special place with a collaborative learning environment in which students feel a sense of belonging, agency, and partnership: academically, culturally, and professionally. How would you co-create your optimal MBA experience at CBS? Please be specific.

Two required answers, 50 characters maximum each. (1) What is your immediate post-MBA professional goal? (2) How do you plan to spend the summer after the first year of the MBA? If in an internship, include target industry and/or function; if starting your own venture, indicate its focus.

If you wish to provide further information or additional context around your application to the Admissions Committee, please upload a brief explanation of any areas of concern in your academic record or personal history. This does not need to be a formal essay; you may submit bullet points.

Briefly introduce yourself, then tell us what makes you feel alive when you are doing it, and why? (Video, 1-2 minutes; two recording attempts allowed.)

What are your post-MBA career goals, and how will the resources at UC Berkeley Haas help you achieve them? How do you plan to remain adaptable as your career evolves?

We invite you to share aspects of your background, personal circumstances, or significant experiences that have meaningfully impacted who you are today and how you have reached this point. Please tell us how these experiences have influenced your perspectives, decisions, and aspirations, and how they contribute to the person you are becoming.

This section should only be used to convey relevant information not addressed elsewhere in your application. This may include explanation of employment gaps, academic aberrations, or supplemental coursework. You are encouraged to use bullet points where appropriate.

Your professional goals are described elsewhere in your application. What led you to those goals and to your understanding of where you need to grow? Why is Tuck the right environment to support that growth and help you achieve your ambitions? (2,000 characters)

People are often shaped by experiences that are not fully reflected in their resume. Tell us about an important aspect of who you are that has shaped you as a person. How will your perspective enrich the Tuck community? (2,000 characters)

Describe a time when supporting another person was not easy or straightforward. What made it difficult, how did you respond, and what did you learn? (2,000 characters)

Please provide any additional insight or information that you have not addressed elsewhere, for example an atypical choice of references, factors affecting academic performance, or unexplained gaps or changes in your career. Complete this question only if you feel your candidacy is not fully represented by this application. (2,000 characters)

Describe the biggest commitment you have ever made. Why is this commitment meaningful to you and what actions have you taken to support it?

Describe the community that has been most meaningful to you. What is the most valuable thing you have gained from being a part of this community and what is the most important thing you have contributed to this community?

Describe the most significant challenge you have faced. How have you confronted this challenge and how has it shaped you as a person?

Briefly describe your career interests and how you arrived at them. What have you already done to explore or pursue these interests? What have those efforts helped you understand about the opportunities you are considering and the preparation they will require?

Use this space only to clarify aspects of your application not addressed elsewhere. It is truly optional and is not an additional required essay.

What is your short-term career goal, and how do you plan to leverage the Ross MBA and its program offerings in your first role after graduation? Please be specific and answer both parts of this question.

Choose one: (1) Think of a time something important did not go as planned. What did you do next? (2) What is something you worked on for an extended period of time (over six months) that ultimately resulted in a positive outcome? What kept you committed? (3) Share an example of a specific situation when your actions created a positive impact on your community or an individual. List the prompt you are answering at the top of your essay.

Is there something in your resume or application that needs a brief explanation? Appropriate uses include an employment gap, academic outliers, choice of recommender, or completion of supplemental coursework. Bullet points are fine.

What would you want your classmates to know about you that is not on your resume?

At this time, how would you describe your short-term, post-MBA goal in terms of industry, function, geography, company size and/or mission? How does it align with the long-term vision you have for your career?

New required video essay for 2026-27; format and prompts to be published when the application opens.