Everything you Need to Know About the Kellogg MBA Essays

Introduction

The Kellogg MBA essays can be the most challenging part of the school’s application process. But, in reality, they are an opportunity to showcase your authentic self to the admissions committee. In your essays, you can present what best separates you from the rest of the applicants - your personality.

While this may seem straightforward, it can be challenging to know the best approach to selling yourself as an applicant in your essays. Besides being familiar with your strengths, you must know what structure, craft methods, and information would be best to include in your essay for the best chances of admittance.

This article will tell you everything you need to know about the Kellogg MBA essays and provide tips on how to craft your essays for the best chance of a successful evaluation when applying to the Kellogg School of Management. 

Purpose of the Kellogg MBA Essays 

The written and video essays fall under Kellogg’s holistic review process, with no essay being more important than the other. The admissions committee is looking to fill the spots with students that will excel in the classroom and contribute to the community with the ultimate goal to create the most diverse class possible. The school values intellectual ability, leadership, impact, work experience, professional goals, and interpersonal skills, all of which can be displayed in your MBA essays. 

The Kellogg MBA essays consist of two written and three video essays. The written essays are meant to allow you to explain why you feel you belong at Kellogg. Many MBA programs are offered worldwide, so the admissions committee wants to ask you: Why Kellogg?

In these essays, you are encouraged to evaluate past experiences and consider how they influenced your personal and academic goals. This personal reflection will make it easier to discern your values and aspirations based on personal anecdotes and your reactions to adversity.

The three video essays are meant to bring the written essays to life. Personality can be hard to gauge through words alone, and this is remedied with the video essays. These videos will present your personality, highlighting your true authentic self. The video essays would also be another opportunity to reflect and share experiences that shaped you on your path to pursuing an MBA. These essays encourage you to be open and deeply consider how you got to where you are today.

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Top Tips for Crafting the Kellogg MBA Essays 

1. Only Use Meaningful Info

Both the written and video essays have specific guidelines for their formatting and structure. The written essays should be 450 words each, and the additional program-based questions range from 250-450 words. For such broad questions, this word count may seem too small to condense your thoughts effectively.

With this in mind, the information presented in your essays should be meaningful and imperative to understanding your essay's main focus. Each sentence used should build off of one another, with filler being discouraged. Any info you feel is essential for the admissions committee to know, but does not align with the essay question you are answering, should be expressed in the application’s additional information section. 

2. Be Open and Honest

Know that there is no right way to answer the essay questions. Each question is looking for an honest answer from you, with profound reflection being a key factor in its effectiveness. You could consider these questions a test of your intrapersonal skills.

Before sitting down to write these essays, think about your values and how they have influenced you in your professional and academic work. This reflection will allow you to choose the values that resonate with you most. You should also consider accomplishments and personal events that align with the values you selected. By doing so, you will provide personal anecdotes in your essays to convey your individuality to the admissions committee. 

3. Research Kellogg and Practice 

Researching the school’s programs, activities, clubs, classes, and professors will make it easier for you to discuss how you plan to contribute to the Kellogg community. This method applies more to the written essays, which will gauge the involvement and impact you plan to make as a Kellogg MBA student.

You can assess what programs and activities you want to be a part of based on your passions and interests. The professors and classes you are excited to take will highlight your motivation to be admitted and make you stand out as a well-spoken and knowledgeable applicant. 

For the video essays, Kellogg provides practice questions for you to become familiar with the technology and format. You will have 20 seconds to think about the video question and a maximum of one minute to give your response.

This time constraint makes knowing what you want to say and how you want to say it very important to ensure your answers are eloquent. The practice questions will be much like the video essay you will submit, except you can complete them as often as you need to feel comfortable.

By practicing, you will get the chance to rid yourself of possible application jitters and avoid saying information that may not relate to the question. It is also essential to make sure you are in a space where you will not be interrupted, as you will not have the chance to redo the official video essay questions.

Remember to be yourself and enjoy the process. The admissions committee wants to know you as a person, so feel free to present your personality. 

Kellogg MBA Essay Example 

The following example is a sample introduction, body paragraph, and conclusion based on a past Kellogg MBA essay question. The sample answers the question: 

‘Kellogg’s purpose is to educate, equip and inspire brave leaders who create lasting value. Provide a recent example where you have demonstrated leadership and created value. What challenges did you face, and what did you learn?’ 

Sample Introduction:

“To marry my passion for art with my fervent desire to have a positive impact on society, outside my full-time job as a management consultant, I founded an NGO called [NAME] in 2015. Leveraging my strong business acumen, I ideated [NAME's] entire value chain - underprivileged women in [CITY] would be employed to make artisan jewelry, which my team of five peers and I would package, market, and sell to boutique fashion stores. All proceeds from this enterprise would go back to the women. “

This paragraph would be considered a successful introduction. Not only does it perfectly describe the leadership position in question, but it also provides some insight into who the applicant is in the first sentence. From the introduction alone, we know that this applicant has a passion for art and the desire to impact society positively.

The rest of the introduction describes the leadership position and what role they had in it, along with its purpose. The applicant provides this explanation concisely, with every sentence essential to the reader’s understanding. 

Sample Body Paragraph:

“Leading [NAME] has thoroughly challenged my grit, character, and ingenuity. My first major trial came just weeks after our inception. Social norms forbade many women from working, and getting raw materials to them proved to be a logistical nightmare. This started to take a toll on the team. Morale fell, and disagreements brewed.

That was when I realized the importance of persuasive communication as a leadership trait. I organized a weekend retreat to realign the team to our greater mission, especially since impact, and not money, would be our enabler. I ensured that learning from and empowering each other became the team’s mantra. Rejuvenated with a newfound cohesiveness, we convinced over 60 women to join us and creatively leveraged neighborhood suppliers to source raw materials.”

This is a successful and effective body paragraph, answering the last part of the essay question. This paragraph uses a structural approach that states and describes the challenge, lists the effects of said challenge, states the solution, and lists the solution’s outcome along with what they learned.

By structuring the body paragraph this way, each part of the question is answered thoroughly and is imperative to understanding the challenge presented. The section also highlights the applicant’s leadership qualities with a detailed personal anecdote that applies to the essay question; these qualities are what the admissions committee will be looking for.

Thus, by shining a light on your leadership ability and how you applied what you’ve learned, your essay will stand out from the rest. 

Sample Conclusion:

“To date, [NAME] has had a lasting impact on the lives of over 300 women. I am undoubtedly one of them. I am wiser with my learnings and more excited, inspired, and confident than ever to lead teams and leave a positive impact in the years to come.”

While this conclusion is concise, it provides everything needed to answer the essay question. The applicant provides the impact the challenge had on them, what they learned, and their desire to apply it to their future endeavors. The first sentence also highlights the impact the leadership position had on other people. This conclusion answers the essay question and sells the applicant as someone willing and excited to excel at Kellogg. 

FAQs

1. When will I be able to submit the video essays?

The link to submit your video essays will appear on your application status page after submitting your application and application fee. 

2. When are the written and video essays due?

The written essays are due with your application, and the video essays are due 96 hours after the application deadline. Kellogg has three application rounds. The first is usually mid September, the second is around the beginning of January and the third is around the beginning of April. The applications are expected to be submitted no later than 5pm Central time on the date of that rounds application deadline. International students are encouraged to apply in the first two rounds to allow time for visa processing. 

3. What qualities is the Kellogg admissions committee looking for in applicants?

The admissions committee is looking for intellectual ability, work experience, professional goals, leadership, impact, and interpersonal skills. You can display these qualities in your written and video essays. 

4. Is work experience required to apply to the Kellogg MBA program?

While work experience is not required, it is recommended that you have at least two years of full-time work experience. Kellogg believes this will improve your academic experience at Kellogg and enrich classroom discussion. 

5. When is the best time to submit my application?

Applications are accepted in all three rounds, but the prime time to apply would be in the first two rounds. This early application allows time for visa processing and will enable you to stand out in the applicant pool. 

6. Are there different essay requirements for reapplicants?

Reapplicants must answer the same essay questions as first-year applications. They will also be required to submit their response to an additional reapplicant essay question that asks for an update on their professional and academic career since they last applied. 

Conclusion

Writing the Kellogg MBA essay can produce feelings of angst and nervousness. But with the necessary personal reflection and proper planning, this nervousness can seem silly by the time your application is submitted. By being yourself, researching the university, and providing meaningful answers when crafting your essays, you are sure to produce an essay that makes you stand out in the applicant pool.

Remember, there is no right way to answer the questions, and the admissions committee is looking for an authentic personality. So relax, be yourself, and you’ll be sure to succeed on your journey to becoming a Kellogg admit when you’re writing the Kellogg MBA essay.