Admission Essay Help Samples : INSEAD MBA Application Essay Samples

INSEAD MBA Application Essay Samples

Question 1
Briefly summarise your current (or most recent) job, including the nature of work, major responsibilities, and, where relevant, employees under your supervision, size of budget, clients/products and results achieved. (200 words minimum)

Currently, I am working in an organization that deals in computers, and their accessories. I admire my job because I am working in sales where I meet many people daily. I am working in marketing department. In this department, one employee is under my supervision. Sometimes I assign my assistant different types of works such as creating lists of all our clients, the purchase history of clients, and their inclinations regarding our different products. My prime duty is to look after monthly sales, and report to marketing manager regarding sales increase and decrease. However, I also contact with new customers and brief them about our new products. Furthermore, I manage supplies by creating written and oral reports according to the needs, interests, problems, and activities of customers. In addition, I make calls and visit personally to our clients. In these visits, I bring the details of our new products. My presentations help our clients to understand their future needs. Moreover, I compare the products and services of our organization and notify advantages of our clients if they buy from our organization. Our organization is a medium size organization. Its budget is about 6 million dollars. Conclusively, my job is challenging and I am sure that I have a great future in sales.

Question 2
Please give a full description of your career since graduating from university. If you were to remain with your present employer, what would be your next step in terms of position? (200 words minimum)

After completing my university education, I did many jobs. Initially, I was not sure what to do because some of my family members wanted that I must join our family business. However, I wanted to do something from my own efforts. I did not want any help from anyone as I desired to evaluate my potential and I wanted to testify my learning. During this period, I had many arguments with my family members. Nonetheless, I did not give up. I joined a small construction company where I was working as personal assistant of the project manager. Nevertheless, I worked there just 5 to 6 months. Actually, this job was not for me because there was not much work I sat idly for hours. Then I joined a petroleum company. Though this job was better, yet I was not in sales department and I did office work such as filing and evaluating comparisons. Hence, I was going to involve in procurement, gradually. Clearly, my inclination was to work in sales department. Fortunately, my current organization offered me my desired position and I joined my current company, which deals in computers. I have no intention to leave my current job as I like it. Moreover, my current employer is excellent and honest. He admires my work. He has assured me a much better position with excellent prospective.

 

Question 3
Give a candid description of yourself, stressing the personal characteristics you feel to be your strengths and weaknesses and the main factors, which have influenced your personal development, giving examples when necessary. (200 words minimum)

I am a very talkative person, and in sales, it becomes an advantage. Moreover, I believe in honest and transparent dealings. I have never forced my clients to buy something that can be useless for them. You may call it my weakness because some of the businesses want their salespersons should present a deceptive picture of their products. It means, if I have to leave my current organization, I may not be able to join an organization that is not like my current organization. The leadership of my organization believes in honesty and straightforward dealings. Hence, strength in an organization can be a weakness in another organization.
Nonetheless, my talkativeness is my weakness as well. Some customers do not like too much talk. A lengthy description makes them feel that they are being deceived. It means my understanding of customers’ psychology is also weak. Clearly, I should have been able to evaluate different customers and I must treat them according to their desires. Usually, foreigner clients are different. They do not understand our language or they understand a little; therefore, they do not want much talk, they want the display of the product, they pay and go away. Moreover, they strongly believe in brands. Thence, they buy brands; therefore, they do not want many details.

Question 3
Describe what you believe to be your two most substantial accomplishments to date (if possible specify one personal and one professional), explaining why you view them as such. (200 words minimum)

I have mentioned earlier that my family runs a business. The business is not very big but every business teaches something similar. For instance, from my family members I learned how to talk with customers. In my family, everybody talks like a salesperson. Even when somebody asks for water, he/she uses salesmanship skills. In this environment, I have acquired various personal and professional skills such as talking, behaving, and negotiating. However, before the beginning of my professional life I have an appropriate skill of talking and negotiating. I consider this talking skill as my personal accomplishment. This skill has been very useful at professional level as well. Because of my excellent communication qualities, I have been able to sell the most outdated systems and accessories. Nonetheless, I had no intentions to deceive my clients. In fact, it is my belief that previously built systems and accessories are more reliable and durable. Nowadays, computer systems and their accessories are very sophisticated and fragile. Specifically, in countries where electricity is not stable, a minor fluctuation of electricity can disable some of the components of their systems; however, a decade old system can run smoothly in such environment. Unquestionably, it is my strong belief that my personal accomplishments such as my education and personality traits are attached to my professional accomplishments.

 

Question 4
Describe a situation taken from your personal or professional life where you failed. Discuss what you learned. (200 words minimum)

Life is full of success and failure stories. Every day we enjoy some success with the seasoning of failures. All the time attainment of success makes you stubborn, and proud. I have studied various stories where failure paves the way for an infinite success. Success and failure go along and both are essential in every industry. A salesperson comes across countless customers daily. Similarly, I meet and talk with various customers. Generally, these people are friendly and they have a lot of time to discuss and evaluate a product. However, sometimes a customer does not have much time or he/she is in a hurry. Their hurriedness makes them impolite, stubborn, and touchy. During my selling experience, once I came across an old woman. Though she was in haste, yet she talked and argued about a computer hard disk. She wanted to buy a particular brand but unfortunately, it was out of stock. I offered her another reliable brand but she was highly conscious about her selected brand. I could not pursue her and I became angry. My manager came, observed the situation, and interfered. Tactfully, he handled the old woman. He told her either she would have to come after one or two days or she would have to buy another brand. Surprisingly, the woman agreed to buy another brand. Later on, the manager told me “you cannot argue with the customer.” This was a great lesson and I learned that customer is always right.

Question 5

a. Have you ever experienced culture shock? What insights did you gain? (100 words minimum)
b. Describe the ways in which a foreigner in your country might experience culture shock. (100 words minimum)

1. Yes, definitely, I have experienced culture shock. Generally, a tourist experiences a culture shock. First, it is important what culture shock is. According to Oxford Dictionary (Diane, 2015), when a person comes across a different way of life and becomes a subject to an unfamiliar situation then he/she experiences culture shock. Once, I visited India. Though I was familiar with some of the Indian traditions and culture, yet it seemed me that I was unfamiliar to everything such as communication, customs, values, social roles, food, dresses, language, weather, and landscape. Actually, I had to go to some of the remotest part of India. Specifically, the food was horrible for me. I could not eat for days except fruits and juices. However, later on I discovered that I should have studied about the culture and food. This would help me to prepare for the shock or I could bring some of my native food in tin packing. However, this experience was not terrible. I can still remember and laugh on it.

 

1. As I have mentioned culture shock is generally related to customs, values, social roles, food, dresses, language, weather, and landscape. Even in my country, a foreigner can experience culture shock. Though a foreigner can experience many types of culture shock, yet in my view, if a foreigner buys a car in Singapore the culture shock would be terrible because in Singapore the price of a car is unbelievable. In Singapore, you can buy a car in just 60,000 to 70,000 USD, and a foreigner can drive it only 10 years! Moreover, after buying an imported car the next culture shocks are requirement of different types of permissions and 150% tax!

 

 

Question 6

a. Discuss your short and long term career goals… (200 words minimum)
b. and how studying at INSEAD help you achieve your vision? (200 words minimum)

1. My family members also ask this question. A decade ago, my short and long-terms were different. I was interested in my family business. However, after doing some jobs, I felt that I could do many things. Hence, my short and long-term goals changed. Nonetheless, my college education played a significant role to consolidate my short and long-term goals. In my college, I had great interest in business presentations, projects, and planning. My short-term goal is to polish my skills of computing and business math. Moreover, English language is another problem for me. Definitely, I would need to give some extra time to language to refine it at certain level. In addition, I want to enhance my communication skills, as I know in a senior position I would need an advanced level communication skill.
   

My long-term goals are attached with my further study. If I would be able to finish or accomplish my education with distinction then I could hope for a senior executive position in a multinational corporation. Moreover, my working in different companies will enhance my skills and for achieving my long-term goals their importance is significant. I know my long-term goal of obtaining a managerial or leadership is achievable.

1. The question is why one chooses an institution like INSEAD. The answer is not difficult to make his/her life better and admirable. Everybody knows that corporations need highly educated and experienced people. Undoubtedly, INSEAD is a place where I can fulfill all my dreams. This is the place where top talents from different countries are studying. In this environment, among so much talented people, I have the opportunity to develop my personal and professional skills. Here, I can learn how to behave with people, how to communicate with customers, and how to work in a multinational organization. I can do my MBA from any other Business School but it would not be reputable. From INSEAD, I can clear my vague concepts, and international contexts; moreover, I can enhance essential vocabulary. My professional development is very important matter for me and for my family; therefore, I want to study in INSEAD. INSEAD is a perfect place for studying and growing. This is the place where I can minimize my weaknesses and I can enhance my strengths. Only INSEAD is able to fill me with great knowledge, practice, and it can groom me for corporate environment. Hence, with the help of INSEAD, I can achieve my long-term goal of working in a multinational corporation as a manager.

 

Question 7
Is there anything that you have not mentioned in your application that you would like the Admissions Committee to know? (100 words maximum)

I have mentioned every aspect of my life such as my family background, my working in different companies, my strengths and weaknesses, my hopes, desires, and my goals. However, I did not mention about my personal hobbies. I spend most of my free time in reading and writing. I love reading because I know reading makes a complete man. Generally, I study all kind of stuff per se literature, stories, fiction, academic journals, newspapers, and I even read brochures and leaflets. The habit of reading has saved me from some bad habits. I do not drink, I do not smoke, and I do not have many friends except my books and some old classmates.

 

References

Diane Schmidt. (2015). What is Culture Shock? Moving to Another Country and Culture Shock. Retrieved from http://moving.about.com/od/internationalmoves/a/culture_shock.htm