Sample Business School Essays

Studying business is a great way to gain valuable working experience across many industries. As such, many students
decide to further their education with a degree in business. To help set your business school application apart from
the others, having a stellar application essay can help tremendously. Before writing your own essay make sure you
explore our sample essays to gather a few ideas and thoughts on how you can make your essay unique and engaging.

This section contains five business essay samples:

Business School Essay Sample One

Prompt:

What are your career goals? What skills do you expect to gain from
studying at ABC Business School and how will they contribute to your professional career? (500 words).

Watching my brother transform from a man who had lost his ability to walk to a man who can play basketball with my
father kindled my fascination of the physical therapy world. The Bureau of Labor Statistics anticipates the field of
physical therapy to grow faster than average in the upcoming years. I hope to join this field during an exciting
time of growth, furthering the rehabilitation of those who have been injured.

Following graduation from ABC Business School, I intend to serve a marketing team in a local physical therapy
company, such as Ridgeview Physical Therapy. My short-term goal is to lead a team, furthering success in the
Ridgeview area. Due to the popular physical therapy company thirty miles from Ridgeview, much of the local
population is unaware of the quality services Ridgeview Physical Therapy has to offer. I hope to increase visits by
40 percent in the first 5 years of my employment. My long-term goal includes extending the company’s reach into
surrounding cities, and eventually beyond national barriers, becoming a global marketing manager.

I expect to gain skills and experiences from ABC Business School that will propel my short and long-term goals. I
hope to develop an experiential and diverse learning experience and have the opportunity to interact with different
groups of people to learn from their business insights and endeavours. From ABC Business School, I seek the tools
and resources needed to further engage in my marketing knowledge, perform professional strategic analyses, and
re-evaluate my past work experiences. I look forward to taking courses from Professor Jim. W. Reid, who has
published the research of the success of Matthews and Marketing in his book, “Matthews Commerce,” which has helped
me continue my career this far. I also look forward to taking the unique classes taught by Professor Rachel E.
Davis, introducing me to the physical therapy world and enriching my business skills in that area.

When my brother’s car accident in 2011 caused immobility in his left leg, he never thought he would be able to play
his favorite sport again. David Andrews, a 1994 graduate from ABC Business School, ensured that that would not come
to pass. I spoke with Andrews about his journey, and he told me that it was through the opportunities and education
he received from the professors and students at ABC Business School that helped him open his own practice. I hope to
follow in Andrews’s footsteps. With the passion I have for the success of Ridgeview Physical Therapy, and the
determination I learned from watching my brother, all I need to complete my goals is the knowledge available to me
through an MBA at ABC Business School. I look forward to completing my career aspirations using the tools received
from ABC Business School to contribute to my professional career.

The world of physical therapy is growing, and with my skills in marketing, I hope to grow the local Ridgeview
services across the globe.

In this essay, the applicant is assigned to answer the prompt in approximately 500 words. The admissions officer
expects a clear and concise essay that does not veer off the question and exemplifies quality writing, grammar,
and punctuation. In questions similar to these, the admissions officers are looking for:

• Student’s understanding and knowledge in answering questions: The writer explains his short and
  long-term career goals, referencing the future of the career (Bureau of Labor Statistics) and quantifying
  his goals (Increase by 40 percent within the first 5 years).
• A deeper look into who the applicant is: Writer shares personal information that also relates to
  answering the question (brother in physical therapy). Make sure that any personal information you share does
  not veer off of the question that needs to be answered.
• Proper research on the school to adequately answer the second question: Student mentions names of
  professors who have demonstrated help in the past (professor’s business research book) giving credibility to
  the student that he believes they will be able to help him in the future. Avoid flattery and only speak of
  the school in a way that shows proper research and answers the question presented.

Business School Essay Sample Two

Prompt:

Present evidence of your leadership
capacity and/or potential. (Approx. 550 words)

Nancy, the CEO of Jasmine Publishing House, bought me a coffee and told me I should invest in warm gloves as we sat
down at a corner diner for what would be a game-changing business meeting. As the leading publishing house in
Europe, Nancy informed me that JPH was interested in closing a multi-million dollar deal with our fashion magazine,
Zoelle, provided we changed the magazine’s appearance to attract a broader European audience.

As production manager, my job was to lead and supervise a staff of 30 to match Nancy’s vision, working closely with
the design team, photographers, production staff and marketing team. After three weeks of heavy brainstorming, we
developed a fresh appearance for the magazine.

I invited Nancy to a meeting with me and three of our executive producers. I shared with her the strategy we had
created in order to solve our appearance problem, as well as estimated costs and complications. Nancy agreed that
the direction our magazine was going fit well with her vision and audience, and that JPH would be happy to work with
us within the next week.

Although the team was excited to accept the offer, I was concerned that we were not prepared to complete the project
so quickly. Though the executive producers did not understand, as our production team was to begin work on the next
issue the following day, I explained that there may include deep financial consequences if we rush into the process.
I wanted to ensure that JPH received a consistent layout from Zoelle magazine. Nancy agreed to wait until the
upcoming issue was complete before beginning work on the new look.

We began work the following Tuesday, after the latest issue was produced. I collaborated with an eight member
marketing team to develop new branding for our magazine and mediated this branding with the design team, ensuring
that it was able to blend well with their ideas and insights based on the first meeting with Nancy. I led the
operation of the first issue to be published via JPH, supervising 30 employees.

After the issue was published, our sales increased by 42 percent in the first week. After leading the Zoelle team to
a business deal close and a fresh start, I learned that with the proper leadership, a staff of varied talents,
insights and opinions can work closely together to produce a magazine that continues to increase its sells each
issue. My initiative helped provide Zoelle with its largest new contract that year, a $2 million deal. Customers
from Europe and the United States commented with positive remarks on the new look, showing interest in the
replacement of the former look, which had been being published for seven years.

After this leadership experience, I was able to see my potential as a leader. I can communicate effectively with all
members of a group and help connect them with one another to make a larger picture. I protect my business
discernment even against an upset crowd, and am able to properly persuade others to understand other perspectives.
Through learning more about leadership every day with my work in Zoelle, I hope to continue to strengthen these
abilities and witness the success they can bring to media production.

In this essay, the applicant was asked to detail her leadership abilities through the application of a relevant
example. She was asked to do this in approximately 550 words, using concise language and proper grammar and
punctuation. In questions similar to these, the admissions officers are looking for:

• Applicant’s ability to share leadership qualities with a relevant example: This writer shared
  leadership qualities of communication (brainstorming with different staffs and helping them connect their
  ideas together), listening (brainstorming and understanding staff concerns), delegating (ensuring each team
  did what was supposed to be done), and managing (managed and supervised a staff of 30) through the use of an
  example from her work with Zoelle Magazine.
• Proof of a potential growth in these leadership skills: The writer hopes to “continue to strengthen”
  her leadership skills. She provides examples of how she learned from previous leadership roles.
• How these skills will help further your career: The writer used an example from her current career
  and concluded her essay with a look into the potential of leadership in her field.

Business School Essay Sample Three

Prompt:

Describe a challenging situation you
have faced in the past. How did you overcome the challenge? (450 Words)

I looked across my celebratory cheesecake and beamed up at my new coworkers. I couldn’t believe I had finally landed
my dream job. All of the senior editors were having lunch in the cafe across the street from the bakery where the
finance team and marketing team shared dessert. I had been hired as a budget analyst at my favorite magazine. My job
was to work alongside the business manager to help create a more healthy marriage between the finance and marketing
departments, thus improving our sales and workplace environment. On my way home, I reflected on my relief in finally
having an exciting and secure career.

Just three months later, we met at the same bakery where I had celebrated my new job. Every department from our
small, close-knit staff was present. As the publication manager began to tell us the news, I remember how our faces
fell. Our publication company was going out of business, and every publication was to be shut down. She explained
that they had tried to find another publishing company without success.

Not only did I feel as though I failed the company, I also knew that I, as well as the other 17 employees, was out of
a job. We went back to our offices and packed up our things. Writers and designers were frantically calling around,
asking for open positions. An employee from the finance department began tweaking his resume, and the marketing
department apologized to the publication manager and editor-in-chief, who responded graciously.

I had to leave my apartment not long after losing my job. I stayed with a friend on the north side of town as I tried
to find a job in a shrinking economic suburb. It took six months to find a position, and though I had to move and
leave behind my dream, I found a new way to work toward my new dream.

From this experience, I learned the importance of adaptability. Only through my ability to embrace the change
happening around me was I able to find a new job and start a new life with new visions and goals. Applying for my
MBA would have sounded bizarre to the disheartened, homeless idealist who lost her dream. But now, after finding in
me the strength to persevere, I am able to take what I learned from my previous job and pair it with what I learn
from the university. This knowledge will help me ensure that the future companies I work with will not have to
endure a similar fallout.

However, if there comes a time when I am again involved in a lost company, I know how to repair. I know how to
restore.

In this essay, the applicant was asked to recall a challenging situation to which the writer overcame the
boundaries. The writer was asked to do this in approximately 450 words, using concise language and proper
grammar and punctuation. In questions similar to these, the admissions officers are looking for:

• Applicant’s ability to identify a challenging moment in her life: This writer uses a relevant example
  of a challenging situation, describing the challenge of losing a job, losing housing, and having to move to
  a different city.
• Examples of how the applicant overcame these challenges: The writer cites her “adaptability” as the
  reason why she was able to overcome this challenge. Instead of giving up, the applicant tells of applying
  for other jobs, even ones that were out of her comfort zone and in another city.
• Brief insights to what the applicant learned from the challenge: This writer learned how to maintain
  strength, perseverance and adaptability in challenging situations. The applicant tells of continuing the
  learning process in her MBA program and allowing it to help future companies.

The below two essay samples were provided by EssayMaster.

Business School Essay Sample Four

Prompt:

Write about a person that has helped inspire your journey and efforts

“Gallery Furniture saves you money today!” As a child, these words rang out to me, sandwiched in between the
episodes of Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh that I gleefully watched every Saturday morning. During commercial breaks, an older
gentleman known as Mattress Mack would dominate all 24 inches of my cartoon box with his signature
hundred-mile-per-hour pitch, reserved for sputtering off the praises of American-made furniture sold at affordable
prices. Mattress Mack reigned as a household favorite in the Greater Houston area; in fact, my cousin and I made
games out of memorizing his lines and spitting them out as fast as we could whenever his ads came on TV.

Mack’s distinctive elevator-pitch talking style stemmed from the financial difficulties he faced at the start of his
career. At that time, Mack invested his entire life savings in a single ad that aired on two stations. While
watching the ad himself, he grew unhappy with the producers’ work and ad-libbed a rapid pitch which would be later
recognized as one of his greatest sparks of unconventional genius. Mack’s unique re-branding has taught me to
recognize the value of bootstrapping and developing creative solutions to solve problems.

Beyond his unorthodox sales strategies, Mack also had a heart that was truly the size of Texas. In August of 2017,
Hurricane Harvey made landfall and caused $125 billion in damages, and several people that I personally know lost
everything. While most of us worried solely about our own survival, Mack opened his two biggest showrooms and
provided food to those who needed it most. His heroic actions eventually earned him his own day, August 26th,
appropriately named Mattress Mack Day. He has inspired Houstonians just like me to pursue entrepreneurship
opportunities that put social focus on the forefront.

As Harvey pummelled through the Gulf Coast, I noted the amount of devastation the hurricane has caused for our local
automotive industry. This sparked an idea. As a passionate watchmaker and a car enthusiast, I partnered with my
co-founder to create one-of-a-kind wristwatches from wrecked supercars with stories to match. A portion of each sale
would then be donated to Habitat for Humanity to rebuild communities affected by natural disasters. My dream came to
fruition, and over the last two years, the work I did has gained the attention of Mayor Turner, Capital One Bank,
and various other notable individuals and organizations across Texas, Florida, Switzerland, and the UK. Born from a
company bootstrapped with a $10,000 award from Capital One Bank, we are now projected to take in a revenue of $500k
in the coming year.

Mattress Mack’s unconventional business approaches have taught me that tackling problems with limited capital yields
the most innovative solutions and that the numbers, albeit essential, are not the end-all-be-all of a company. His
ability to see equal importance in their lesser-noticed counterparts -the people his business serves and the
community he resides in- are what sets him apart from traditional bosses as a truly effective leader. His actions
have taught me that marrying unconventional problem-solving skills to a strong moral code is the key to greater
personal success.

This essay opens with a highly visual example of entrepreneurship dating back to the candidate’s childhood. One
can be said to easily visualize “Mattress Mack’s” infomercials. Then, the candidate goes on to demonstrate a
humanitarian streak, starting with the inspiration provided by Mattress Mack and going on to explain the
candidate’s own community service. Overall, the essay is quite visual.

Business Sample Essay Five

Prompt:

Write about your aspirations and how you will commit yourself along the way to reach them.

Fuqua was the first business school I visited at the beginning of my application journey. No one in my family has
ever attended college, let alone business school, so my visit opened a new world of opportunity for me. I sat in the
auditorium with 300 other Management Leadership for Tomorrow (MLT) fellows soaking up facts about Fuqua’s
collaborative culture, global perspective, and distinguished faculty. My most vivid memory of the experience was at
the end of the first day when the Black and Latino MBA Organization (BLMBAO) came on stage and helped me understand
what it truly means to be on “Team Fuqua.” Dancing, cheering, and wearing their Blue Devil gear, the students made
it easy to see a cohesive community for students of color – one that I have not felt so palpably at any other
business school since. As I sat in that auditorium, I began to imagine myself as a part of “Team Fuqua,” and after
the visit I became more confident that there was a place for me at Duke. For these reasons, I am seeking a spot in
the entering class of 2022.

Post MBA, I plan to work as a Product Manager in an innovative digital healthcare company focused on using
technology to transform patient care. Specifically, I would like to work in wireless tech and data analytics focused
on chronic disease management similar to Twine Health, a platform integrated into patients’ Fitbits to monitor
diabetes-related vitals. In preparation for a career in healthcare, I plan on being a part of Fuqua’s Health Care
Club (HCC). I look forward to contributing to this community through my perspective in healthcare consulting as well
as my experience in the health insurance marketplace. By participating in the HCC, I will leverage the insight from
2nd year students as I navigate the healthcare recruiting process during HCC life line sessions. In time, I hope to
return the favor by helping new students navigate recruitment, coursework, and life in Durham. Particularly, I am
excited to gain valuable insight into the healthcare industry through programming coordinated by HCC such as the
Duke MBA Health Care Conference and panel discussions throughout the year. HCC will not only provide me the
knowledge and professional aptitude for a meaningful career in the healthcare sector, but will also grant me a
life-long network of Fuqua healthcare leaders. To further promote health, I want to take part in the Fuqua Running &
Triathlon Club. As a cross country athlete in high school and college, I look forward to exploring the
Raleigh-Durham area and sharing my love of running.

Beyond my involvement in the Fuqua healthcare community, I also plan to join BLMBAO. It is very important for me to
be part of a collective of leaders of color that empower each other to reach their full potential in business. For
this reason, I am interested in joining the leadership cabinet of BLMBAO and shaping events such as the MBA Minority
Business Conference. I want to continue BLMBAO’s work of increasing the visibility of underrepresented minorities,
engaging Fuqua on issues of race and inequality, and being an advocate for women of color in business. For example,
as a Fellow and alumna of MLT, I will commit myself to building a pipeline for Latina prospective Fuqua MBA
students. This will include holding workshops that focus on the application process and challenges specific to
Latinas in management.

In the end, Duke is the ideal place for me to become the business leader I know I can be. The opportunities in
healthcare at Fuqua with HCC in conjunction with the school’s close proximity to the research triangle are second to
none. A Fuqua MBA will give me the opportunity to learn, grow, and lead among lifelong friends. As a part of the
incoming class, I will continue to learn more about Fuqua and expect that the “Team Fuqua” spirit will stand out in
all of my interactions within the larger community. Just as BLMBAO students inspired me on my first day at Fuqua, I
hope to one day inspire a young Latina professional setting her sights on business school.

The applicant does a fine job bringing out the positive aspects of her candidacy: her diversity, her
well-thought out future plans, and her participation in sport. This is a candidate who has a lot to offer and
who doesn’t shy away from pursuing her path to success. Overall, the portrait is of an appealing candidate.

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