Harvard Business School Revises MBA Application, Adds 3 Short Essay Prompts

Harvard Business School has changed its master’s in business administration application for 2024-2025, requiring applicants to answer three short, focused essays instead of one open-ended essay, the school announced on its website.

The switch to three short essays is the first major change to the application in nearly a decade. In 2016, the MBA application moved to require only one essay without a word limit under the tenure of then-Managing Director of Admissions and Financial Aid Deirdre C. Leopold.

Rupal Gadhia, the current managing director of MBA admissions, wrote in an emailed statement that “each year we review our application process holistically to ensure that it is transparent and provides candidates the space and direction to apply with confidence.”

The three new essays mark a shift in their admissions criteria to align with their search for applicants who “better reflect the common traits that our students bring to campus – those who desire to make an impact through business, those who are focused on investing in those around them, and those who are curious and growth-oriented,” Gadhia wrote.

The business-minded, leadership-focused, and growth-oriented prompts ask applicants to reflect how their experiences have influenced their career choices, influenced what type of leader they want to become, and shaped the way they demonstrate curiosity, respectively.

Gadhia went on to emphasize the importance of a holistic approach to admissions in order to “draw out information from the candidate that helps our admissions team determine if they will thrive at HBS and contribute positively to the HBS community.”

“Our hope is that the new essays help candidates narrow their focus, but also give them the space to share their most meaningful experiences and aspirations. The essays are directly tied to the admissions criteria, and this is by design,” Gadhia wrote.

Although this change has only been instituted for the 2024-2025 application year, the school has left open the possibility that it will be used for future admissions cycles based on current feedback from HBS members.

“As we worked on these changes last spring, we engaged with faculty and current HBS students and incorporated their feedback,” Gadhia wrote. “We are now in the middle of our round 1 application season and have been encouraged by responses to the new criteria and essays.”

Only after prospective students move on to the round 2 interview and round 3 post-interview reflection will the HBS admissions team be better able to holistically assess the impact this year’s application changes have had.

“Changes to the application are typically communicated when the application opens for the next cycle in early summer,” Gadhia wrote.

—Staff writer Kyle Baek can be reached at kyle.baek@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @KBaek53453.

—Staff writer Ava H. Rem can be reached at ava.rem@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @avar3m.