My take on HBS essays

Well, this was the most fun part of the application process (up there with Essay A).
Seven essays asking you about various aspects of your life, but giving you not enough space (or so I thought initially). So how what was my strategy (again the disclaimer: I'm a R2 applicant and not yet rcvd. an interview call or an admit).

1) Start with the "important" essays - Leadership story - 3 accomplishments and Why HBS. I also bought this book from Amazon: 65 successful HBS essays. Gave me a great idea of what HBS essays are like.

HBS ESSAYS BOOK

2) HBS is definitely looking for leadership (which is an aspect of the school i like, as there is a huge leadership lacuna in my business ). It is important to highlight this trait in you, in some manner in all the essays that you write. If you refer to the letter which HBS sends to admitted students (read below, I got this from a BW forum), you can note that it welcome the future leaders on campus. This is the trait that DEFINES HBS and you should weigh your options about whether you want to pursue that belief (I do!).

3) Though this advice might be hard to digest, pretend that there is not word limit on these essays. Pour your heart (and head) out in the initial drafts and DO NOT focus on your wordcount.

4) Once you done that, start distilling out the less impactful/useless components of the essays. Use friends and family to get verbosity of the essays under check. For instance, I reduced my wordcount by appx. 20% using the wonderful English language skills of my wife, did not change content, just trimmed the fat.

5) Try to break your essays into 4-5-6 paragraphs. do not have 400 words put out in two or three paragraphs. I just believe that it makes the reading easier.

6) remember, you know your work well, the other person does not. Avoid using company/professional jargon.

7) Ensure that your essays have your touch. Breathe some passion into what you write.

8) What does one feel after reading the seven essays. Do they read like 7 different chapters of the same book or do they read like seven different books? One should avoid the latter.

When I started off, I thought that 400 words could not be enough to convey things I wanted to say. At the end of the process, I was amazed, how 400 words is ALOT of space to say what you want to convey. My tendency to be verbose (espoused by my past belief that more words = more content = better results) was conquered while writing these essays.

Any other thoughts/comments?

cheers
Ash

HBS Admit letter from the BW forum
(if I am violating some copyright law, please inform me and I will take it off)

Dear Ms. xxx:

Congratulations!
On behalf of Harvard Business School, I am delighted to offer you
admission to the MBA Program. Your admission recognizes your outstanding
record of accomplishment and your potential for future success.
Each year, the MBA Admissions Board selects a class from among the
brightest and most accomplished young individuals in the world. We
aspire to find leaders like you who have the highest standards of
integrity and who understand that leading is a privilege.
The Harvard MBA Program offers more than just an academic degree; many
find it to be a transformational experience. By immersing yourself in
the case study method, and by working with distinguished faculty and
students, you will teach others as you learn. You will build deep,
practical knowledge while developing your leadership capabilities. In
joining our community, you will become part of an influential worldwide
network of alumni who will support you throughout your life.
We hope that you will accept our offer and want to make sure that you
have all the resources you need to make this important decision. Our
Prematriculation Web site will be your main source of information over
the next few months. It will direct you to key activities that will help
you learn more about HBS, such as Admitted Students' Weekend; in
addition, it highlights key requirements and logistics related to
joining HBS. You can immediately access the Prematriculation Web site by
using your username: xxx, email domain: mba2008.hbs.edu, and password:
xxx.
Your offer of admission is exclusively for the MBA Class of 2008,
entering in 2006, and it is contingent upon the verification of your
transcript(s), verification of your employment history, a signed copy of
"Joining the HBS Community" (a document that highlights our Community
Standards), and a tuition deposit.
We believe that you have the potential to make a real difference in the
world and hope that you will decide to become a part of the Harvard
Business School community.
Sincerely,

Brit K. Dewey
Managing Director, MBA Admissions & Financial Aid