Hey there, everyone. I don’t know how many of you noticed my post from earlier this week about the three GSB students who recently passed away, but I still can’t get my mind off of it. The GSB community is a tight-knit one and, even though I didn’t know those kids, their passing has hit me as if I did. I just can’t stop thinking about how I would have reacted if something similar had happened while I was in school. Life is such a wonderful thing, but tomorrow is never guaranteed so I hope all of you take this as a sign to live life to the fullest. Please keep the Stanford GSB community (students, staff, and alumni) in your thoughts and prayers because I can attest that we’re all feeling this loss right now.
OK, now to the entry for today…it is from a kid who is applying to the GSB and wants guidance on writing the “What matters most to you and why?” essay question. As a rule, I don’t help people with their admissions essays because that’s supposed to be a personal process for applicants, but I did try to give him some high-level advice on how to approach it. Let me repeat that…I am not willing to help people with their application essays, so please don’t ask me to do so.
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MS wrote:
“Hello Marquis,
I’m looking to apply to GSB this year and I’m having trouble setting the tone for my essay ” What matters most to you, and why”. I’m trying to do some heavy duty soul searching and am not exactly sure what to put into the essay. How much should I bare? Is the question trying to figure out my value set? Can I have more than one thing that matters most to me? I believe this “thing that matters most to me” should potentially be a unifying thread that binds the many decisions of my life that have brought me here! Any pointers regarding the line of attack would be appreciated!!
Regards,
MS”
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My response:
MS,
Thanks for checking out my blog. Unfortunately, I’m not going to be able to be very helpful to you because I have a policy of not giving guidance on application essays. The application is a very personal think that one should get through on their own. With that said, here are some high-level thoughts:
- I always tell people to reveal as much as they’re comfortable sharing in the essay. But, keep in mind that this may be your only shot at applying to Stanford, so it doesn’t help you to leave anything on the table. I put all kinds of personal stuff in my own essay because it all actually contributed to what mattered most to me. In this instance, I’d recommend to do what you feel for this essay.
- be as honest as possible when writing the essay. I’ve talked to so many kids who attack this essay by writing what they feel the admissions people want to see. To be blunt, I find that to be an awful approach. The whole reason for the essay is to give the admissions people a chance to know you. Trying to run game and not putting your true self out there in the essay is, in the words of Whitney Houston, “all to the bad”.
- if you’d like to write about more than one thing in the essay, you might want to think about a prevailing theme that ties those things together. I’m not saying that will guarantee a great essay, but it could be a decent approach so you don’t have to leave out anything important.
Take care and good luck with your application to the GSB.
-Marquis
OK, now to the entry for today…it is from a kid who is applying to the GSB and wants guidance on writing the “What matters most to you and why?” essay question. As a rule, I don’t help people with their admissions essays because that’s supposed to be a personal process for applicants, but I did try to give him some high-level advice on how to approach it. Let me repeat that…I am not willing to help people with their application essays, so please don’t ask me to do so.
——-
MS wrote:
“Hello Marquis,
I’m looking to apply to GSB this year and I’m having trouble setting the tone for my essay ” What matters most to you, and why”. I’m trying to do some heavy duty soul searching and am not exactly sure what to put into the essay. How much should I bare? Is the question trying to figure out my value set? Can I have more than one thing that matters most to me? I believe this “thing that matters most to me” should potentially be a unifying thread that binds the many decisions of my life that have brought me here! Any pointers regarding the line of attack would be appreciated!!
Regards,
MS”
——-
My response:
MS,
Thanks for checking out my blog. Unfortunately, I’m not going to be able to be very helpful to you because I have a policy of not giving guidance on application essays. The application is a very personal think that one should get through on their own. With that said, here are some high-level thoughts:
- I always tell people to reveal as much as they’re comfortable sharing in the essay. But, keep in mind that this may be your only shot at applying to Stanford, so it doesn’t help you to leave anything on the table. I put all kinds of personal stuff in my own essay because it all actually contributed to what mattered most to me. In this instance, I’d recommend to do what you feel for this essay.
- be as honest as possible when writing the essay. I’ve talked to so many kids who attack this essay by writing what they feel the admissions people want to see. To be blunt, I find that to be an awful approach. The whole reason for the essay is to give the admissions people a chance to know you. Trying to run game and not putting your true self out there in the essay is, in the words of Whitney Houston, “all to the bad”.
- if you’d like to write about more than one thing in the essay, you might want to think about a prevailing theme that ties those things together. I’m not saying that will guarantee a great essay, but it could be a decent approach so you don’t have to leave out anything important.
Take care and good luck with your application to the GSB.
-Marquis
