2024-2025 Harvard MBA essay analysis and tips

Harvard Business School (HBS) stands out for its rigorous case study method and commitment to developing leaders who make a difference in the world. For the 2024-2025 admissions cycle, HBS has outlined three distinctive essay prompts designed to delve into the depths of applicants’ experiences, aspirations, and growth. The essays provide an opportunity to showcase your unique qualities and potential to contribute to the HBS community. 

Harvard Business School (HBS) has modified its MBA application essay questions for the first time in over a decade. The three shorter essays this year have replaced the open-ended, 900-word “What more would you like us to know?” piece. HBS looks for proof in these essays that candidates are growth-oriented, business-minded, and leadership-focused.

This article offers an in-depth analysis of each essay prompt and provides practical tips to help you craft compelling responses.

In this article, we have outlined a few guidelines that you should keep in mind while writing your essay. By following these guidelines, you can maximize your chances of crafting an essay that will make a lasting impression on the Harvard admissions committee.

Harvard MBA application deadlines 2025

For the 2023 HBS admissions, there are two rounds of intake. The Round 1 deadline is September 4, 2024, and the Round 2 deadline is January 6, 2025.

Please note that the application should be submitted online by 12 Noon Boston Time.

Harvard MBA Essay Prompts for 2024-2025 Admissions

Business Minded Essay

Please reflect on how your experiences have influenced your career choices and aspirations and the impact you strive to make on the businesses, organizations, and communities you plan to serve. (Text box, 300 words maximum)

Leadership Focused Essay

What experiences have shaped who you are, how you invest in others, and what kind of leader you want to become? (Text box, 250 words maximum)

Growth Oriented Essay

Curiosity can be seen in many ways. Please share an example of how you have demonstrated curiosity and how that has influenced your growth. (Text box, 250 words maximum)

Business Minded Essay

Understanding the HBS Business-Minded Essay Prompt for 2025 Admissions

Please reflect on how your experiences have influenced your career choices and aspirations and the impact you strive to make on the businesses, organizations, and communities you plan to serve. (Text box, 300 words maximum)

The Harvard Business School (HBS) essay prompt for 2025 admissions asks applicants to reflect on how their experiences have influenced their career choices and aspirations and the impact they will have on businesses, organizations, and communities they plan to serve. This essay, limited to 300 words, requires applicants to concisely articulate their career plans post-HBS, emphasizing the anticipated impact they aspire to achieve. In this article, we will explore what the admissions committee seeks in this essay and provide guidance on how to write a compelling response.

Part 1: What the Admissions Committee Seeks

HBS elaborates on the meaning of being business-minded by noting, “We are looking for individuals who are passionate about using business as a force for good – who strive to improve and transform companies, industries, and the world. We are seeking those who are eager to solve today’s biggest problems and shape the future through creative and integrated thinking.”

This statement highlights several key qualities that HBS values in applicants:

1. Passion for Positive Change: Applicants should demonstrate a genuine commitment to using business principles to drive positive change in companies, industries, and the broader world. This goes beyond personal career advancement and focuses on the broader impact on society.
2. Problem-Solving Orientation: HBS seeks individuals who are not only aware of today’s significant challenges but are also eager to address them through innovative and integrated thinking. This requires a mindset geared towards identifying problems and developing creative solutions.
3. Impactful Aspirations: While detailing post-graduation plans, applicants should emphasize the anticipated impact of their career choices. This is crucial for conveying long-term goals and the broader significance of their professional journey.
4. Authenticity and Realism: The admissions committee values authenticity. Applicants should avoid tailoring their aspirations to what they think HBS wants to hear. Instead, they should reflect sincerely on their goals and how they plan to achieve them, ensuring that their plans are ambitious yet plausible.

Part 2: How to Write the Business-Minded Essay

Writing a compelling essay for HBS requires a strategic approach to effectively convey your experiences, motivations, and aspirations within the 300-word limit. Here are key steps to guide you:

1. Reflect on Your Experiences:
   • Consider personal, professional, extracurricular, or community-oriented experiences that have significantly influenced your career choices.
   • Identify specific moments or situations that sparked your interest in your chosen field or career path.
   • Focus on “cause and effect” to create a clear connection between your experiences and your professional decisions to date.
2. Articulate Your Career Goals:
   • Clearly describe your short-term and long-term career goals post-HBS.
   • Emphasize the impact you aim to achieve in your career. This should be a central theme in your essay, reflecting how you plan to use your HBS education to drive positive change.
3. Use Anecdotes to Illustrate Your Points:
   • Instead of listing titles and companies from your resume, dig deeper into specific influential actions or situations that reflect your motivation for your career and goals.
   • Personal anecdotes tend to have more impact on the reader and make your essay more engaging.
4. Be Authentic and Realistic:
   • Avoid discussing aspirations that you think the admissions committee “wants” to hear. Authenticity is key.
   • Reflect sincerely on where you can make a positive difference and express that vision with authenticity.
   • Ensure your plans are ambitious yet realistic, showing a clear path to achieving your goals.
5. Focus on the Anticipated Impact:
   • Highlight the broader impact of your career choices on businesses, organizations, and communities.
   • Explain how the roles you have identified for after your MBA experience will allow you to achieve this impact.
   • Discuss the skills, relationships, and knowledge you will gain through HBS that will enable you to make a positive difference.

Leadership Focused Essay

What experiences have shaped who you are, how you invest in others, and what kind of leader you want to become? (Text box, 250 words maximum)

The HBS leadership-focused essay is a unique opportunity to showcase your personal and professional journey, your investment in others, and your vision for the future. By thoughtfully reflecting on your experiences and articulating your aspirations, you can create a compelling narrative that aligns with what HBS seeks in its candidates. Remember, this essay is not just about what you have done, but also about who you are and the kind of leader you strive to become.

What the Admissions Committee Seeks

Harvard Business School’s admissions committee is renowned for seeking candidates who not only possess strong academic and professional achievements but also demonstrate exceptional leadership potential and a collaborative spirit. The leadership-focused essay prompt for the 2025 admissions cycle encapsulates this perfectly by asking applicants to reflect on the experiences that have shaped them, their investment in others, and their aspirations as future leaders.

This prompt offers a platform for candidates to showcase their resourcefulness, persistence, and the journey they’ve undertaken to reach their current position. It’s a chance to provide insights into their personal and professional maturity, illustrating how they have evolved through various experiences. HBS values candidates who are supportive, collaborative, and capable of making a meaningful impact within the HBS community and beyond.

Key Elements the AdCom Looks For:

1. Self-Awareness and Reflection: Demonstrating a deep understanding of how past experiences have shaped who you are today.
2. Investment in Others: Highlighting specific instances where you’ve supported or mentored others, showcasing your collaborative nature.
3. Vision and Leadership Aspirations: Providing a clear and bold vision for your future leadership and how you plan to make an impact.

How to Write This Essay

Writing an effective response to the HBS leadership-focused essay prompt requires a balance between introspection and concrete examples. Given the 250-word limit, every word must count. Here’s a structured approach to crafting a compelling essay:

1. Identify Key Experiences

Start by brainstorming pivotal experiences in your life that have significantly influenced who you are. These could range from personal challenges, educational milestones, professional achievements, to impactful interactions within your community. The goal is to select experiences that reveal your core values, character, and leadership potential.

2. Highlight Investment in Others

Select one or two illustrative examples where you have invested in others. This could be through mentoring, leading a team, supporting a colleague, or contributing to a community project. Be specific about the actions you took and the impact they had on others.

3. Define Your Leadership Vision

Reflect on how these experiences have shaped your leadership aspirations. What kind of leader do you want to become? How do these past experiences inform your future goals? Tie this reflection to your career plans, ensuring it aligns with the vision HBS looks for in its candidates.

Growth Oriented Essay

Curiosity can be seen in many ways. Please share an example of how you have demonstrated curiosity and how that has influenced your growth. (Text box, 250 words maximum)

The “Growth-Oriented Essay” is your chance to showcase your curiosity and how it has driven your growth. By structuring your essay around a clear example and focusing on your passion, actions, and resulting growth, you can present a compelling narrative that aligns with what HBS seeks in its applicants.

What the Admissions Committee Seeks

Harvard Business School (HBS) is renowned for its case study method, which emphasizes active listening, participation, and a collaborative approach to learning. The admissions committee (adcom) seeks candidates who exhibit open-mindedness, a drive for personal and professional growth, and the ability to adapt to dynamic environments. For the “Growth-Oriented Essay,” HBS wants to see your curiosity, problem-solving skills, teamwork, and evidence of personal growth.

The case study method requires students to approach problems from various angles, work with diverse teams, and be receptive to different perspectives. As such, HBS looks for applicants who demonstrate a genuine interest in learning and growth. The “Growth-Oriented Essay” is an opportunity to showcase your curiosity and how it has fueled your personal and professional development.

How to Write the Growth-Oriented Essay

The essay prompt asks you to share an example of how you have demonstrated curiosity and how it has influenced your growth. Given the 250-word limit, it’s crucial to structure your response concisely and effectively. Here’s a suggested structure to guide your writing:

1. Situation

Set the stage by describing what sparked your curiosity. What issue or topic intrigued you? What was the context or background? Who was involved? This section should provide a clear picture of the scenario that piqued your interest.

Example: “During my tenure at a tech startup, I was fascinated by the potential of AI in transforming customer service. Despite having a non-technical background, I was determined to understand this emerging technology.”

2. Action

Detail the steps you took driven by your curiosity. Highlight specific actions that demonstrate your proactive approach to learning and problem-solving. Did you engage in teamwork, exhibit leadership, or gather knowledge through research or courses?

Example: “I enrolled in online AI courses, attended industry conferences, and initiated a cross-departmental project to implement AI-driven chatbots. I collaborated with engineers to understand the technical aspects and worked with the customer service team to identify key areas for improvement.”

3. Outcome

Summarize the positive results of your actions and how this experience contributed to your growth. Focus on the skills you developed, the knowledge you gained, and how it influenced your perspective or career trajectory.

Example: “The project led to a 30% increase in customer satisfaction and a significant reduction in response time. More importantly, I developed a deep appreciation for technology’s role in business innovation and decided to pursue further studies in AI and data science.”

Final Thoughts

Crafting your HBS essays for the 2024-2025 admissions cycle is a process that requires introspection, clarity, and strategic storytelling. The “Business-Minded Essay” prompts you to reflect on your career choices and aspirations, emphasizing the impact you aim to make. The “Leadership-Focused Essay” asks you to delve into the experiences that have shaped your leadership style and how you invest in others. Lastly, the “Growth-Oriented Essay” invites you to showcase your curiosity and how it has driven your personal and professional growth. By carefully considering these prompts and following the provided tips, you can present a well-rounded and authentic portrayal of your candidacy, aligning with what HBS seeks in future leaders.

The answer to the Harvard MBA essay question is not something we can provide or explain in a single blog post because we need to know different aspects of your personal and professional life. It must be unique to each of you. For individual guidance please reach out to us at contactus@admitexpert.com