Columbia Business School 2009-10 Essay Question Analyses and Deadlines

Here are Columbia’s deadlines and essay questions. Please note that Columbia is one of the few business schools that uses a rolling admissions system, meaning they make their selection decisions on pretty much a first-come, first-serve basis. This explains why they have a separate date for their “application review;” this is the date on which they begin reading applications, and they will continue to do so until the deadline. However, in between these two dates they will be making offers, wait list decisions, and rejections, meaning they are forming the class with each passing day. If Columbia is a top choice, please be sure to submit your application as early as you can within your target application review period.

	Application Review Begins	Decision Period	Application Deadline
January 2010 enrollment	April 30, 2009	within 8 weeks	October 7, 2009
Sept. 2010 enrollment; Early Decision	August 17, 2009	within 10 weeks	October 7, 2009
Sept. 2010 enrollment; International Applicants	January 6, 2010*	within 12 weeks	March 3, 2010
Sept. 2010 enrollment; U.S. citizens and permanent residents	January 6, 2010*	within 12 weeks	April 14, 2010

*Candidates wishing to be considered for merit-based fellowships must submit their applications by 11:59 EST on this date.

Below I have cut and pasted their instructions and essay questions from their on-line application. As usual, my comments are included beneath each question.

http://www4.gsb.columbia.edu/mba/learnmore

**By the way, a word about the word limit: since Columbia provides a “recommended word limit,” I would take that to mean that you can write an essay that hovers around their given number. Their word limit is a target or guideline, and as long as you can come close to it, it’s fine.

Dual Degree applicants: Please address the following questions within your response to Essay 1: How will the Dual Degree enhance your short-term or long-term goals?

Reapplicants: If you have applied to Columbia Business School within the past year, you are required to submit only the reapplication essay [scroll down to the bottom of the list]. If your last application was more than one year ago, you must answer essays 1, 2, and 3.

Essay 1
What are your short-term and long-term post-MBA goals? How will Columbia Business School help you achieve these goals? (Recommended 750 word limit)

This is the standard goals essay in which you have to explain your plans for the future (and, in the process, a bit about your career/career progression) and your reasons in choosing Columbia’s MBA program. Be sure to do thorough research of their program. Columbia prides itself on its innovative and hands-on curriculum and philosophy of teaching students how to respond to rapidly changing circumstances. You should be able to explain how this kind of curriculum and atmosphere fit in with your goals.

Essay 2
Master Classes are the epitome of bridging the gap between theory and practice at Columbia Business School. (View link below) Please provide an example from your own life in which practical experience taught you more than theory alone. (Recommended 500 word limit)

View with Real Player: http://merlin.gsb.columbia.edu:8080/ramgen/video1/faculty/MasterClass-promo.rm

A number of applicants have some trouble with this essay, mainly because they don’t quite grasp what the question is really asking. I would recommend (of course) that you first check the link that they have included, as it will explain more about what they mean by theory vs. practice. Once you have done that, try to think of an experience in which the reality of implementing something differed from what you had assumed from pure study alone. Had you learned something in the classroom, only to realize it didn’t work perfectly once you actually tried to do it? Did you believe something about business, only to see that it didn’t include certain critical factors once you tried to apply the concept in real life? Talk about that experience and what it taught you.

Essay 3
Please provide an example of a team failure of which you’ve been a part. If given a second chance, what would you do differently? (Recommended 500 word limit)

This is a twist on the traditional failure essay. Here you are asked to talk about a team failure, something that your group as a whole did not do well in. When talking about this story, though, be sure to discuss both the team failure and your contribution to that failure. What role did you play? Remember that you are the only person the admissions committee is interested in, so don’t dwell on the mistakes of others but rather analyze what you didn’t do. Even if other team members played a bigger role in the failure, think about what you could have done to have prevented the outcome. Perhaps you could have communicated better with your team mates, or have provided more training or support.

Optional Essay
Is there any further information that you wish to provide to the Admissions Committee? (Please use this space to provide an explanation of any areas of concern in your academic record or your personal history.)

If there is anything unusual or that may be of concern (no recommendation from a current supervisor, poor grades or test scores, employment gaps, etc.) to the admissions committee, be sure to explain that here. Otherwise, if you have a compelling story that you wish to share but were not able to include in the essay set, you may use this space to write your essay. For example, if you wrote only work-related stories above, you may want to use this essay to talk about something more personal.

Reapplication Essay

How have you enhanced your candidacy since your previous application? Please detail your progress since you last applied and reiterate your short-term and long-term goals. Explain how the tools of the Columbia MBA will help you to meet your goals and how you plan to participate in the Columbia community . (Recommended 750 word limit).

This is a straightforward question that wants to see how you have reflected on your growth and candidacy since your last application. Perhaps you took on more responsibility at work or improved your test scores. If you won any award or honors or promotion (etc.), be sure to discuss that too. Be sure you are not just copying and pasting last year’s goals essay, but take the time to write a new one based on who you are at this point in your career and life.

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