Blog Archive Monday Morning Essay Tip Overrepresenting Your Overrepresentation

Blog Archive Monday Morning Essay Tip Overrepresenting Your Overrepresentation Many in the MBA application pool worry that they are overrepresentedâ€"particularly male investment bankers and Indian software engineers. Applicants cannot change their work histories, of course, but they can change the way they introduce themselves to the admissions committee. Consider the following examples: Example 1: “As an investment banker, I…” Example 2: “Managing a team to code a new software product for ABC Corp., I….” In these brief examples, each candidate mistakenly introduces the reader to the very overrepresentation that he/she would likeis trying to minimize. Many applicants feel they must start their essays by presenting their titles or company names, but this approach can immediately give the reader pause and leave him/her thinking, “Here we go again.” Overrepresented business school candidates should therefore consider the opening lines of their essays especially carefully. Rather than stating the obvious, an applicant might instead immerse the reader in a situation or present a special aspect of his/her position. Example 1 (launching into a story): “At 5:30 pm, I could rest easy. The deadline for all other offers had passed. At that point, I knew….” Example 2: (stand out): “While managing a multinational team, half in Silicon Valley and half in Pakistan, I….” In the first example here, the banker candidate avoids drab self-introduction and instead plunges the reader into the midst of a mystery that is playing out. In the second example, the software engineer candidate introduces him-/herself not as a “coder” but as a multinational manager. Of course, every applicant’s situation is different, but with some effort, your story can be told in a way that avoids the pitfalls of overrepresentation. Share ThisTweet Monday Morning Essay Tips Blog Archive Monday Morning Essay Tip Overrepresenting Your Overrepresentation Many in the MBA application poolâ€"particularly male investment bankers and Indian software engineersâ€"worry that they are overrepresented. While applicants can’t change their work histories, they can change the way they introduce themselves to Admissions Committees. Example 1: “As an investment banker, I….” Example 2: “Managing a team to code a new software product for ABC Corp., I….” In these brief examples, each candidate mistakenly introduces the reader to the very overrepresentation that he/she is trying to avoid. Many applicants feel it necessary to start their essays by offering their titles or company names, but this approach can immediately give the reader pause: “Here we go again.” Overrepresented candidates need to consider their introductory lines quite carefully. Rather than stating the obvious, a candidate might immerse the reader in a situation or present a special aspect of his/her position. Example 1 (launching into a story): “At 5:30 pm, I could rest easy. The deadline for all other offers had passed. At that point, I knew….” Example 2: (stand out): “While managing a multinational team, half in Silicon Valley and half in Pakistan, I….” In the first example here, the banker candidate avoids drab self-introduction and instead immerses the reader in an unraveling mystery. In the second example, the software engineer candidate introduces him-/herself not as a “coder” but as a multinational manager. While each applicant’s situation is different, every candidate can work with his/her story to avoid the pitfalls of overrepresentation. Share ThisTweet Blogroll Monday Morning Essay Tips Blog Archive Monday Morning Essay Tip Overrepresenting Your Overrepresentation Many MBA applicants worry that they are overrepresentedâ€"male investment bankers and Indian software engineers, in particular. Applicants cannot change their work histories, of course, but they can change the way they introduce themselves to the admissions committee. Consider the following examples: Example 1: “As an investment banker, I…” Example 2: “Managing a team to code a new software product for ABC Corp., I…” In these brief examples, each candidate introduces the very overrepresentation that he/she would like to minimize. Many applicants feel they must start their essays by presenting their titles or company names, but this approach can immediately make the reader pause and think, “Here we go again.” Overrepresented business school candidates should therefore consider the opening lines of their essays especially carefully. Rather than stating the obvious, an applicant might instead immerse the reader in a situation or present a special aspect of his/her position: Example 1 (launching into a story): “At 5:30 pm, I could rest easy. The deadline for all other offers had passed. At that point, I knew…” Example 2 (stand out): “While managing a multinational team, half in Silicon Valley and half in Pakistan, I” In the first example here, the banker candidate avoids drab self-introduction and instead plunges the reader into the midst of a mystery that is playing out. In the second example, the software engineer candidate introduces him-/herself not as a “coder” but as a multinational manager. Of course, every applicant’s situation is different, but with some effort, your story can be told in a way that avoids the pitfalls of overrepresentation. Share ThisTweet Monday Morning Essay Tips Blog Archive Monday Morning Essay Tip Overrepresenting Your Overrepresentation Many in the MBA application pool worry that they are overrepresentedâ€"particularly male investment bankers and Indian software engineers. Applicants cannot change their work histories, of course, but they can change the way they introduce themselves to the admissions committee. Consider the following examples: Example 1: “As an investment banker, I…” Example 2: “Managing a team to code a new software product for ABC Corp., I….” In these brief examples, each candidate mistakenly introduces the reader to the very overrepresentation that he/she is trying to minimize. Many applicants feel they must start their essays by presenting their titles or company names, but this approach can immediately give the reader pause and leave him/her thinking, “Here we go again.” Overrepresented business school candidates should therefore consider the opening lines of their essays especially carefully. Rather than stating the obvious, an applicant might instead immerse the reader in a situation or present a special aspect of his/her position. Example 1 (launching into a story): “At 5:30 pm, I could rest easy. The deadline for all other offers had passed. At that point, I knew….” Example 2: (stand out): “While managing a multinational team, half in Silicon Valley and half in Pakistan, I….” In the first example here, the banker candidate avoids drab self-introduction and instead plunges the reader into the midst of a mystery that is playing out. In the second example, the software engineer candidate introduces him-/herself not as a “coder” but as a multinational manager. Of course, every applicant’s situation is different, but with some effort, his/her story can be told in a way that avoids the pitfalls of overrepresentation. Share ThisTweet Monday Morning Essay Tips Blog Archive Monday Morning Essay Tip Overrepresenting Your Overrepresentation Many MBA applicants worry that they are overrepresentedâ€"male investment bankers and Indian software engineers, in particular. Applicants cannot change their work histories, of course, but they can change the way they introduce themselves to the admissions committee. Consider the following examples: Example 1: “As an investment banker, I….” Example 2: “Managing a team to code a new software product for ABC Corp., I….” In these brief examples, each candidate introduces the very overrepresentation that he/she would like to minimize. Many applicants feel they must start their essays by presenting their titles or company names, but this approach can immediately make the reader pause and think, “Here we go again.” Overrepresented business school candidates should therefore consider the opening lines of their essays especially carefully. Rather than stating the obvious, an applicant might instead immerse the reader in a situation or present a special aspect of his/her position: Example 1 (launching into a story): “At 5:30 pm, I could rest easy. The deadline for all other offers had passed. At that point, I knew….” Example 2: (stand out): “While managing a multinational team, half in Silicon Valley and half in Pakistan, I….” In the first example here, the banker candidate avoids drab self-introduction and instead plunges the reader into the midst of a mystery that is playing out. In the second example, the software engineer candidate introduces him-/herself not as a “coder” but as a multinational manager. Of course, every applicant’s situation is different, but with some effort, your story can be told in a way that avoids the pitfalls of overrepresentation. Share ThisTweet Monday Morning Essay Tips Blog Archive Monday Morning Essay Tip Overrepresenting Your Overrepresentation Many in the MBA application poolâ€"particularly male investment bankers and Indian software engineersâ€"worry that they are overrepresented. Although applicants cannot change their work histories, they can change the way they introduce themselves to the admissions committee. Consider the following examples: Example 1: “As an investment banker, I…” Example 2: “Managing a team to code a new software product for ABC Corp., I….” In these brief examples, each candidate mistakenly introduces the reader to the very overrepresentation that he/she is trying to avoid. Many applicants feel they must start their essays by offering their titles or company names, but this approach can immediately give the reader pause, leaving them thinking, “Here we go again.” Overrepresented candidates should consider their opening lines quite carefully. Rather than stating the obvious, a candidate might instead immerse the reader in a situation or present a special aspect of his/her position. Example 1 (launching into a story): “At 5:30 pm, I could rest easy. The deadline for all other offers had passed. At that point, I knew….” Example 2: (stand out): “While managing a multinational team, half in Silicon Valley and half in Pakistan, I….” In the first example here, the banker candidate avoids drab self-introduction and instead plunges the reader into the midst of an unraveling mystery. In the second example, the software engineer candidate introduces him-/herself not as a “coder” but as a multinational manager. Of course, each applicant’s situation is different, but every candidate can work with his/her story to avoid the pitfalls of overrepresentation. Share ThisTweet Monday Morning Essay Tips Blog Archive Monday Morning Essay Tip Overrepresenting Your Overrepresentation Many in the MBA application poolâ€"particularly male investment bankers and Indian software engineersâ€"worry that they are overrepresented. Although applicants cannot change their work histories, they can change the way they introduce themselves to the admissions committee. Consider the following examples: Example 1: “As an investment banker, I…” Example 2: “Managing a team to code a new software product for ABC Corp., I….” In these brief examples, each candidate mistakenly introduces the reader to the very overrepresentation that he/she is trying to avoid. Many applicants feel they must start their essays by offering their titles or company names, but this approach can immediately give the reader pause and leave them thinking, “Here we go again.” Overrepresented candidates should therefore consider their opening lines especially carefully. Rather than stating the obvious, a candidate might instead immerse the reader in a situation or present a special aspect of his/her position. Example 1 (launching into a story): “At 5:30 pm, I could rest easy. The deadline for all other offers had passed. At that point, I knew….” Example 2: (stand out): “While managing a multinational team, half in Silicon Valley and half in Pakistan, I….” In the first example here, the banker candidate avoids drab self-introduction and instead plunges the reader into the midst of a mystery that is playing out. In the second example, the software engineer candidate introduces him-/herself not as a “coder” but as a multinational manager. Of course, each applicant’s situation is different, but every candidate can work with his/her story to avoid the pitfalls of overrepresentation. Share ThisTweet Monday Morning Essay Tips