Using Work Stories on the Stanford App.
STANFORD :
Realistically, how am I going to talk about what matters most to me in my life by weaving in a project I led at work? The same holds for the career vision story.
Your instincts are right, the S. application is to some degree anti-professional, and as we have noted, S b school is actually the UN-Business school, well, as part of its stage outfit, in reality once you get past the smoke and mirrors of admissions, and get to faculty and kids, there is plenty of business going on.
But the smoke and mirrors of admissions is what we care about: You is right, they do not care about a bs work accmplshment like “leading a team of 14 fellow nerds from different parts of the nerd univerise on a really tight deadline for the Xp6Y-T box [described in 60 words of faux simplicity] I was able to reduce bug reports by 18 percent, and etc. etc. . . .” which is the kind of baloney a lot of other schools get, and apparently encourage. It is possible to talk about how the larger impacts of your work matter to you [impact on society, do-gooder impacts, jobs, employment, great products, etc] and also to carry over themes from what matters most to you, e.g. discovering your own values, connecting w. others, personal growth, etc. into work related incidents with peers etc. Also, some folks are capable of writing a pwerful essay about their passion for techology and e.g. lowering the digital divide, into a great essay which has a lot of great wort stuff naturally. In the career vision essay, it is possible to refer to work events as part of background for career vision, but I would go light here, they want to see, in that question, how good an inventory you can create about what you need in terms of technical and professional development + how you link that up to Stanford assets.
the actual Stanford Questions are
Essay Questions for the 2007/2008 Application Year
- Essay A: What matters most to you, and why?
- Essay B: What are your career aspirations? How will your education at Stanford help you achieve them?
- As a Stanford MBA student, you will be assigned a team of advisors who will guide both your academic experience and your personal development. Your team will include a faculty advisor, a career counselor, and a leadership coach. Use Essay B to help you prepare for your first conversations with these mentors.
- Essay C: Answer 2 of the questions listed below.
- In answering both questions in Essay C, tell us not only what you did, but also how you did it. Tell us the outcome and describe how people responded. Describe only experiences that have occurred during the last three years.
- 1: Tell us about a time when you empowered others.
- 2: Tell us about a time when you had a significant impact on a person, group or organization.
- 3: Tell us about a time when you tried to reach a goal or complete a task that was challenging, difficult, or frustrating.
- 4: Tell us about a time when you went beyond what was defined, established, or expected.
Essay Length & Format
Your answers for all 3 essay questions cannot exceed 7 pages in total, double spaced using a 12-point font.
Each of you has your own story to tell, so be sure you allocate these 7 pages among the essays in the way that is most effective for you.
We provide some guidelines below as a starting point, but you should feel comfortable to write as much or little as you like on any question, as long as you do not exceed 7 pages total.
- Essay A: 3 pages
- Essay B: 2 pages
- Essay C: 1 page each
Required Formatting
- Use a 12-point font, double spaced
- Indicate which essay question you are answering at the beginning of each essay.
- Number all pages
- Preview each uploaded document to ensure that the formatting is true to the original
- Save a copy of your essays
