MBA Admissions Essay - Failure Questions

Business school admissions essay section will teach how to structure and write your essay. This section also contains a number of sample admissions essays to help guide you.

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Failure Questions

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Describe when you were part of a team where the group process and/or intended outcome failed. What was your role, how did you contribute to the process or outcome, and what did you learn? - Wharton

Please describe a failure or setback in your professional or academic life. How did you overcome this setback? What, if anything, would you do differently if confronted with this situation again? - Carnegie Mellon

How can you admit a failure and still offer an answer that strengthens your application? Of course, showing what you learned and how you recovered is absolutely essential, but many people don't realize the importance of discussing a real, substantive failure.

Applicants believe that the slightest hint of weakness will ruin their chances. In reality, admissions committees know that you have flaws, even if you don't disclose them. You're better off being candid for the following reasons:

• Your readers will appreciate your honesty, and this perception will affect their opinion of your other answers.
• You show stronger self-awareness when you can identify real mistakes.
• Only by engaging with a substantive failure can you offer meaningful insights into the lessons you learned.

Instead of being forthright, most applicants will either choose a topic that hardly qualifies as a failure or write something generic or irrelevant to avoid admitting any substantive flaws. As an example that suffers from both problems, an applicant might describe a situation in which extenuating circumstances caused the failed outcome. The problem with this approach is that it leaves no room for self-examination and offers no insight into the applicant's character.

So how do you choose a topic that is substantive but won't make you look too bad? First, avoid any failure that reveals irreversible faults. In other words, it should be a mistake that results from inexperience and therefore can be addressed for future scenarios. For example, you don't want your conclusion to be that you are simply a poor leader or communicator. On the other hand, you could admit that as a leader you have pushed people too hard, because that's a specific point upon which you can improve.

Second, aim to find a failure that results from a good quality. For example, perhaps you failed because you're too independent and have difficulty delegating responsibilities to other people. Again, be careful that your topic leads to self-examination even if it's based on a typically positive quality.

Once you have a topic, you still have to reflect insightfully on it. The best way to avoid generic, obvious lessons is to demonstrate what you learned through action. Show how you acted differently later in a similar scenario. If you can only derive abstract insights, aimas alwaysfor complexity rather than relying on prepackaged ideas. "The importance of hard work" is simply no longer interesting, whereas "the limits of hard work in a mutually dependent relationship" can be.

SAMPLE ESSAY:

While working towards my PhD, I spent the summer of 1995 as an intern at Ford Research Laboratories (FRL). I was working in the industry for the first time, and I found every aspect of my internship to be exceptional. I had a supportive boss who gave me the freedom and resources to define and manage my project. In addition, I was provided a nice apartment for the summer and had great roommates. The whole experience was memorable.

By the time I returned to Wisconsin to continue my doctoral research, I knew I wanted to work at FRL. I planned to finish my PhD by the end of 1996, and I had been offered an internship at FRL again for the summer of that year. I accepted it, hoping that I would obtain an interview for a full-time position. Sure enough, my supervisor was extremely pleased with my performance and wanted to hire me. He asked me to stay on at Ford and finish up my thesis while he obtained the necessary approvals to interview me. Meanwhile, I was so sure this was where I wanted to be that I did not even search for other jobs.

Right at that time, Ford had a quarter of poor profits, and FRL announced a hiring freeze. It was November of 1996, and I had just submitted my dissertation. Since I was no longer a student, I could not use the university job placement services. Moreover, as an international student I had a unique problem: my employer had to agree to sponsor me for a work visa.

After searching for a couple of months, I was finally offered a position at ITT Automotive. It was a nice job, but definitely not one I had dreamt about. Besides, the position was in Ohio, and my wife worked in Detroit. I spent a year and a half at ITT as their in-house expert in metal casting and computer-aided engineering. I benefited from the experience and obtained a fresh perspective working in a smaller organization where I had to be versatile. But I still wanted to be in research, and my job duties at ITT offered no scope for research. To remain an active researcher in metal casting, I proposed research projects that would help ITT improve its process development capabilities. With the support of my management, I initiated these projects in addition to performing my assigned duties. Meanwhile, I kept in touch with my supervisor at FRL. A year after I joined ITT, he mentioned that he was moving to a different division at Ford and had recommended me for his spot. A month later I was interviewed by Ford and offered his job.

I enjoy being back at Ford and working in the same city as my wife. I realize that I was partly responsible for the problems I faced. I was obsessed with working at FRL. I lacked the maturity to understand that it never hurts to keep one's options open. I should have interviewed with other research labs while I was at school. Given the choice, I could always have chosen FRL.

Today, I do not see research as the only creative and challenging career path. I have enjoyed being in research, and now I desire to move on to other challenges.

COMMENTS:

This applicant describes a failure that resulted from lack of foresight. It was a mistake that had to do with immaturity rather than a severe shortcoming in any professional area. Nevertheless, there is a clear mistake that was made and relevant lessons to be learned. Interestingly, though it relates to the professional realm, this is really a personal failure, as his limited job search did not cause his employer any harm only him.

Note that the applicant never offers any excuses or expresses any resentment at his situation, instead taking full responsibility for the failure but also presenting an optimistic view of his current and future situation. It is vital for all admissions essays, even those that detail a negative event in one's life, to have an underlying upward swing like this. If you failed at your job somehow, make sure to demonstrate that you've grown from it and that you handle similar situations more gracefully now.