Founded in 1898, the University of Chicago Booth School of Business is one of the oldest and most prestigious business schools in the world. The school is known for its rigorous academic programs, cutting-edge research, and its distinguished faculty. Chicago Booth has a long history of intellectual exploration, nonconformity, and innovation.
The Full-Time MBA Program at Chicago Booth is known for its analytical approach, and many economists teach courses on theory and practice.
Students have a lot of leeway in choosing courses because there are no major requirements. Chicago Booth’s MBA program is considered one of the most flexible MBA programs in the world. If you are interested in applying for the 2026 intake, please see below for upcoming deadlines as well as Admit Expert’s advice on how to answer the Chicago Booth MBA essays.
Application Deadlines
| Round | Deadline | Decisions |
| Round 1 | September 16, 2025 | December 4, 2025 |
| Round 2 | January 6, 2026 | March 26, 2026 |
| Round 3 | April 2, 2026 | May 21, 2026 |
All applications are due by 11:59 PM CST.
Chicago Booth MBA essay questions
The Chicago Booth essay questions for 2026 applicants have been confirmed. Both questions have remained unchanged this year. There are two MBA essays at Chicago Booth, each with no strict word limit.
All candidates are required to submit responses to the following two questions:
- How will a Booth MBA help you achieve your immediate and long-term post-MBA career goals? (Minimum 250 words, no maximum.)
- Chicago Booth appreciates the individual experiences and perspectives that all of our students bring to our community. This respect for different viewpoints creates an open-minded environment that supports curiosity, inspires us to think more broadly, and take risks. At Booth, community is about collaborative thinking and learning from one another to better ourselves, our ideas, and the world around us.
The photos below represent some of the values described above that we uphold at Chicago Booth. Select one and share how it resonates with one of your own values. (250-word minimum)
Optional question
Is there any unclear information in your application that needs further explanation? (Maximum 300 words.)
Reapplicant essay
Reapplicants must answer the following question:
Upon reflection, how has your perspective regarding your future, Chicago Booth, and/or getting an MBA changed since the time of your last application? (Maximum 300 words.)
These essays emphasize both your personality and your professional objectives. The focus of the first essay is your career objective and the focus of the second essay is your interests.
Also take note that while most institutions offer a maximum word count for the required essay responses, Chicago sets a minimum word count. Therefore, Chicago Booth requests that you consider your answers to these MBA essays and ensure you have adequate room to do so.
Essay 1
How will a Booth MBA help you achieve your immediate and long-term post-MBA career goals? (Minimum 250 words, no maximum.)
This Booth MBA essay is a straightforward essay about your career objectives, both short-term and long-term.
What should you do before you start writing the essay?
Before you start writing the essay, examine your career accomplishments to date. Ask yourself these questions:
- What did you discover?
- How did you use your past accomplishments to guide your present endeavors?
- How can a Booth MBA fill in any gaps after that?
- What courses will you enroll in? Competitions, placements, location, Professors, etc. who can advance your objectives?
- How will you interact with your peers and clubs?
This question asks for both short and long-term goals, so answer with your long-term path in mind. Ideally, your short-term goal will lead directly to your long-term goal, and an MBA is required for both. Examples from previous roles will help you achieve your goals with the necessary education and experience.
How should you write essay 1?
Start by giving a quick overview of your professional background, highlighting the successes you had and the skills and information you have acquired. Describe how your future job aspirations are influenced by your past professional experiences and personality traits and qualities.
Please keep in mind that a thorough understanding of the Chicago Booth MBA program and its offerings is essential for an effective response to this question. Explain how the skills, knowledge, and experience you will gain at Booth will help you build on your previous knowledge and skills, bringing you closer to your goals.
Share your short-term objectives now. Indicate the role, position, industry, and 1-2 firms that you would like to work for when describing the position that you hope to occupy right after earning your MBA.
Please keep in mind that your post-MBA goal should be a logical extension of your current skill set, personality traits and knowledge gained through an MBA degree.
Your objectives should be both ambitious and realistic. That is, if you want to work in technology or consulting, you must demonstrate that you already have some skills/experience in those areas and are looking to improve them.
Similarly, if you are a career changer, you should demonstrate how your current skill set will aid in this transition.
Then, you’ll want to go over your longer-term (5–10 years) goal, outlining not only the position you intend to hold but also the overall impact you hope to have. Your short-term objectives should naturally lead to your long-term objectives, which may or may not be specific.
The next logical step would be to discuss how an MBA will help you achieve these objectives and why Booth is a particularly wise next step. Give examples of program offerings that are pertinent to these goals to highlight this fit.
You can maximize the quality of your essay by doing a thorough study on the Booth MBA program—either by visiting an info session or interacting with students and alumni.
To learn more about what Chicago Booth is looking for and how to make your application stand out, get in touch with us at contactus@admitexpert.com
What should be the length of the essay?
Given the open-ended nature of this Booth MBA essay, it could be tempting to incorporate achievements or details that aren’t related to the question or to give extra information about your aspirations, but remember to stay on topic!
The application instructs you to “use your judgement,” and therefore while deciding the length of your response think about the volume of applications adcom would be receiving. So, your first consideration must be to make their life a little easier.
You can also get an idea about the preferred length from the optional essay’s 300-word word limit. You are certainly welcome to use more words than 300, but make sure they are meaningful. A punchy 400 words would be short and to the point. If you must write more than 500 words, which is pretty common, make sure each word is required to respond to the prompt.
Essay 2
Chicago Booth appreciates the individual experiences and perspectives that all of our students bring to our community. This respect for different viewpoints creates an open-minded environment that supports curiosity, inspires us to think more broadly, and take risks. At Booth, community is about collaborative thinking and learning from one another to better ourselves, our ideas, and the world around us.
The photos below represent some of the values described above that we uphold at Chicago Booth. Select one and share how it resonates with one of your own values. (250-word minimum)
Essay Analysis
Chicago Booth is testing more than your writing skills here — they want to know how you align with their core values of curiosity, open-mindedness, collaboration, and intellectual risk-taking.
- Prompt Core: You must select one photo (they provide them in the application) and tie it to a personal value and story that highlights your character.
- What Booth Seeks:
- Authenticity — show who you are and what you value.
- Reflection — connect a Booth value (collaboration, risk-taking, curiosity, respect for diverse perspectives) with your own lived experience.
- Storytelling — use a real-life anecdote that demonstrates how you embody this value.
- Booth Fit — subtly connect how this value will enrich the Booth community and how Booth’s environment will amplify it further.
Remember: Booth is big on data-driven problem solving + collaboration, but this essay is personal, not just professional. Use warmth and humanity, not just logic.
Framework to Write a Winning Essay
1. Introduction (50–75 words)
- Open with the photo you chose and why it caught your eye.
- Establish your personal value that resonates with it.
- Example: “The image of [photo X] immediately resonated with me because it reflects my belief in [value, e.g., collaboration through diversity].”
2. Story / Anecdote (150–200 words)
- Share a specific, personal story that demonstrates this value in action.
- Structure:
- Situation: Context (personal, academic, or professional).
- Challenge: What was at stake?
- Action: How did your value guide your response?
- Outcome: What changed, and what did you learn?
3. Reflection (100–125 words)
- Explain why this value is core to who you are.
- Discuss how it shapes the way you interact with others, solve problems, and take risks.
- Connect the story back to Booth’s values (open-mindedness, collaborative thinking, curiosity).
4. Connection to Booth (100–125 words)
- Show how you will bring this value into the Booth classroom and community.
- Mention how Booth’s culture (data + dialogue, openness, collaboration) will both challenge and reinforce this value.
- Example: “At Booth, I see myself engaging in [study group dynamics, student clubs, LEAD program, or cross-disciplinary collaboration] where this value will help me contribute and grow.”
Tips for Writing:
- Keep it personal first, professional second. Don’t just make this about work.
- Choose one strong value — don’t try to cover too many.
- Make sure your story has emotional depth + reflection.
- Balance storytelling with analysis (not just what happened, but why it matters).
Optional Essay
Is there any unclear information in your application that needs further explanation? (Maximum 300 words.)
This optional essay is open-ended, so you can provide as much relevant information while keeping in mind the word limit. Consider writing this essay if there are any gaps in your profile that need to be filled. Have you had any academic difficulties or gaps in your work experience? Then this is the place to go into more detail.
Your response shouldn’t come across as you’re trying to cover up a profile weakness; instead, it should be upbeat, honest, and fact-focused. Your character’s strengths should be highlighted by your weaknesses.
For instance, When describing your employment gap you should say that you were doing something productive like traveling, volunteering, or taking care of your family, like dealing with a medical problem in your family at that time.
However, if there are no gaps you can still leverage this essay if you have a compelling personal story that wasn’t covered in the other essays. It’s worth telling if it helps the admissions committee understand you better. You may also have a compelling leadership story or a meaningful extracurricular activity to add context to your MBA application.
You can also choose to skip this question and concentrate solely on the two mandatory essays if your profile is without any flaws or needs any justification or explanation. There is a word limit on this question, unlike the mandatory questions. Do not disrespect it.
Reapplicant essay
Reapplicants must answer the following question:
Upon reflection, how has your perspective regarding your future, Chicago Booth, and/or getting an MBA changed since the time of your last application? (Maximum 300 words.)
This is an intriguing re-applicant question. Because, rather than asking how your candidacy has improved, Booth inquires as to how your perspective has shifted. Better test scores, a promotion, or a new job would still be beneficial information. However, the emphasis is on reflecting on yourself and your goals since applying to Booth.
Consider what has changed since your last application when writing this essay. Have you, for example, learned more about your career path, formed new relationships, or altered your career goals? This is also an excellent essay for demonstrating self-awareness and leadership qualities. Another important aspect is conveying a realistic sense of how the Booth MBA will fit into your future professional plans.
To stay within the word limit, you must be extremely precise in presenting your case and make every word count.
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