UPDATE: This article was originally posted on September 15, 2022. It has been updated with new information and tips below.
In the past few years, an increasing number of business schools have instituted video essays as part of their applications.
Unlike written essays, video essays give you the chance to show your personality, passion, and interpersonal skills to the admissions committee. In many cases, such as at INSEAD, this will be the only time the admissions committee has direct contact with you.
For your video essay to succeed, you must effectively communicate how you fit in with the school’s community and culture. We know that this can be a challenging task — that’s why we are sharing our top 5 tips on how to create an outstanding MBA video essay that earns you a spot at your dream school!
Tip 1: Be concise
For most video essays, you will only have around 1 minute to give your responses. This means that getting to the point of your examples as soon as possible is key.
What does this mean, exactly? Well, first, you want to avoid spending too much time on context and setting up your answer. Though the consulting project you worked on had many complex aspects, you should only focus on those that directly answer the question.
Instead, what you want to prioritize is showing what you achieved in the example you’re giving and what results you obtained.
The best way to structure your answer is using the STAR-format.
Like with essay writing, you want to make sure to first give us the situation. What was going on at the beginning of the story you are sharing? Keep this concise – remember that all details you share here must be relevant to the action and result you’ll present.
Then, walk your audience through the task you needed to accomplish and the clear steps you took towards achieving your target. This is the meat of your answer!
Finally, end with a stellar result that shows both what the outcome of the story was, as well as what you learned from the experience (if you have time left).
For example, let’s say you are asked to share a time that you had to work with a difficult colleague/client/superior. You might structure your answer like this:
“Last year, I was sent alone to Chile to lead a regional transformation project. I welcomed the opportunity to lead the client’s employees in reinventing their marketing strategy. To do so, I conducted sessions to generate ideas, then taught them how to structure these ideas, estimate their value, and design efficient implementation plans. However, leading this group of older Argentine men proved immediately challenging, as they resisted being led by a younger Brazilian woman.
I decided to push past my comfort zone and creatively engage the group. Firstly, I met with the Marketing Director, who strongly opposed my presence, and explained my goal of collaborative problem-solving, with the added benefit that the transformation’s success would boost his standing at the company. This led to his enthusiastic involvement, and he firmly encouraged his employees to also collaborate. To further facilitate communication, I dedicated myself to quickly becoming fluent in Spanish to remove any potential barriers to our team’s success. By opening these lines of communication and earning the support of a key leader within the company, we were able to meet 100% of our target, structuring initiatives that will lead to millions in additional revenue for the company.
This experience taught me that creating transparent work environments that facilitate honest conversations is critical to turning adversaries into allies.”
Tip 2: Make sure you’re the protagonist
Another common mistake we see our clients make while drafting their video responses: maintaining too much focus on colleagues and teamwork rather than their own efforts. Especially because you have such limited time, you want to make sure that your response maximizes the number of insights that the viewer can learn about you, not your team members.
So, make sure you’re the protagonist of your answer. Of course, you can absolutely include stories involving teamwork and collaboration. However, when detailing your results and actions, don’t talk about what your team did, talk about your specific role in the team’s achievements. What did you contribute to the success, and how did this impact the overall results? What approaches and ideas did you come up with that might set you apart from other candidates? Answering these questions will ensure that you leave a memorable impression in the adcom’s minds.
Tip 3: Choose examples that add value to your application
Throughout the MBA application process, you’ve most likely brainstormed plenty of examples that illustrate your strengths, skills, and values.
Of course, you have probably used some of your proudest stories in your written essays already. And while these examples are surely impressive, it’s best to diversify your stories rather than let them overlap. In this context, that means using new examples for your video essay that don’t overlap with ones that you’ve used in other parts of your application.
Try to think of what you have already illustrated about yourself — what strengths, characteristics, skills, and values have you already shown in your written essays? Are you missing anything, or is there anything else that you think needs emphasized, especially when thinking about what the particular school is looking for?
Ultimately, you want to choose examples for your video essay that add additional value to your application. Use this as a strategic opportunity to show another aspect of yourself and your achievements that you haven’t been able to show in other parts of your application!
Looking for real video essay questions to practice for your on-screen debut? Our MBA Resource Center has countless questions for all the top MBA video essays to make sure you shine!
Tip 4: Think about presentation
For the video essay, it’s important to consider how you and your surroundings look.
You should record the essay in a relatively quiet and well-lit area. If your apartment is located near a busy street with audible traffic, you may want to find a different place to record. Similarly, if you choose to record at your place of work, make sure to find a time when few people are likely to interrupt you. Remember – there are no redos.
To ensure the best results, set yourself up in front of a relatively neutral background. We recommend you do not use a Zoom background filter, as this can be very distracting. A piece of art or an organized shelf with a few items in the background is ok, but busy or distracting backgrounds will pull the attention away from the main attraction (YOU!) and should be avoided.
Finally, though you don’t need to “dress up” for the interview, you should look presentable and professional. If you feel most comfortable wearing a suit and tie, however, this is also acceptable.
Tip 5: Practice being personable
Being personable on camera may come as unnatural to many of us, but it’s an essential aspect to master for the video essay. The best way to do this is to practice recording yourself and time yourself as well. Go through the questions you have, take your planning time to think and plan, and then record yourself for the time given to respond.
If you mess up, keep going. You can’t stop and try again in the real thing, so don’t do it now. Continue your answer and fake confidence if necessary!
Then watch yourself back. Were you making eye contact with the camera? Did you smile? Did you look friendly? Bored? Annoyed? Scared?
Chances are, the first few takes you do won’t be great, but keep going — remember, practice makes perfect! You might also like to pretend you’re something of a TV presenter. This can help you to bring your personality forward and be more engaging. You don’t want to seem flat in the recording, so be a little bit brighter and friendlier than you think you need to be, and see how big of a difference it makes to your recordings.
Furthermore, be mindful of your body language. If you’re slumped over or look bored, the admissions committee will get the impression you’re not engaged with the task or, worse, that you’re not passionate about their MBA!
This also goes for your tone of voice. Vary your tone of voice and make sure to project your passion for your interests and for their business school. If you’re not naturally good at this, you may want to seek out help from friends or record yourself multiple times until you’ve nailed the brief.
If you’re still struggling, you may want to do more research into what being personable is all about or even schedule time with an interview expert to ensure you’re selling yourself well on camera.
A good interview coach can not only help you match your answers to a particular school’s fit but can also help you communicate more clearly and make a winning first impression during your interview.
And most importantly, don’t forget to smile! Though this may sound cliché or outdated, smiling really is one of the best — and easiest — ways to be memorable and to create a positive first impression.
Make sure you shine
You have stressed about every aspect of your application, and now you are ready to record your video essay! With the right preparation, this can be your chance to shine and get a highly-coveted spot at your top-choice school.
However, maybe you don’t know where to start in preparing, or maybe you ramble on and lose your focus while answering. Maybe you’ve even downloaded the sample questions and written out your answers. The problem is, when you try to apply these templates to your own story, it doesn’t quite work.
Our video essay prep focuses on helping you determine how to present yourself to the admissions committee while using appropriate, impact-driven language without being artificial, or, worse, robotic.
That’s why 98.9% of our clients are admitted, like our client Georgia, who recently secured admissions to INSEAD with a €20,000 scholarship. Here’s what she had to say about the preparation process: Georgia Marmonti Questions
Want to put the Ellin Lolis advantage to work for you?
Schedule your preparation session with our team of interview experts today!
Real MBA Essays That Got People In
School-specific sample essays that got our clients accepted
