How to Get Into MIT Sloan

Update: This article was originally posted on August 2, 2022. It has been updated with new information and tips below. 

As one of the best places for innovative, analytical minds to collaborate, MIT Sloan is one of the best places to prepare for a successful career in cutting-edge industries. Considering that Sloan offers one of the best-ranked MBAs out there, earning a spot at this school requires you to really stand out among the competition. 

In this guide, we will go through how to get into MIT Sloan. While many applicants think that simply marketing themselves well is enough to gain admission, successful applicants are the ones who understand a) who MIT Sloan is looking for, b) how MIT Sloan’s MBA program, community, and opportunities fit their profile and goals, and c) how to prepare an MIT Sloan-specific essay and interview. Read on for our expert advice on how to master these three things.

 

1. Understand who MIT Sloan is looking for

(Photo courtesy of @mitsloan on Instagram)

“MIT Sloan students are informed and responsible global citizens with the vision, drive, and practical experience to make significant contributions to their organizations and to the world.” MIT Sloan Admissions Team

As one of the prestigious M7 schools, the average MIT Sloan student tends to have a demonstrated track record of academic excellence and a high GMAT/GRE score. The ~400 admits to the Class of 2025 has a median GMAT score of 730. GRE verbal scores ranged from 155-1677 and quant scores ranged from 157-168.

However, with a major focus on diversity (it’s been the theme of Sloan’s interview essay for the past several years), it’s no surprise that MIT Sloan’s admissions team works hard to continually increase the diversity of perspectives present in its class. The Class of 2025 has 60 countries represented and included 28% of students from underrepresented U.S. minorities and 46% women. 

According to the admissions team, they also look beyond the numbers to ensure applicants fit with Sloan’s values. 

(Source: MIT Sloan’s Website)

In addition, MIT Sloan tends to favor applicants who demonstrate excellence and commitment both at the office and in the community. 

So, if this sounds like a community in which you’d be right at home, you’ll have to think of the ways in which you align with the main characteristics of MIT Sloan’s students. This means forming your business school brand, and then focusing on the aspects of that brand that align with collaborative leadership, analytical thinking, and a commitment to solving urgent issues in business and society. 

 

2. Know MIT Sloan’s program and how you can use it

The second thing you must do to get into MIT Sloan is to know the MBA program and how it applies to your career goals. If you want to get into Sloan, you really need to show the admissions committee why it’s a good fit for you (and why you’re a good fit for the community too)!

While you will have to do your own research to find the specifics of what aligns specifically with your goals and profile, below we are highlighting some of the main aspects of MIT Sloan’s MBA program so you can be informed about what makes it unique in comparison to other business schools.

 

Sloan’s Action Learning approach

In general, there are three primary teaching styles: case studies, experiential learning, and lectures. While Sloan’s MBA combines all three, the emphasis is on experiential learning, as is emphasized by MIT’s “learning by doing” motto. 

In particular, Sloan’s Action Learning approach is a teaching methodology that enables students to learn by applying classroom theory to business and management challenges at real-world organizations. There are a number of lab courses available in which students are able to gain experience consulting for real-life companies and organizations.

 

Excellence in tech, engineering, and analytics

Sloan’s reputation for excellence lies in its quality STEM offerings taught by renowned professors. And around half of any given MBA class has an undergraduate degree in a STEM topic. If you are interested in a career in data, analytics, engineering, or tech, MIT, where you will be surrounded by brilliant STEM minds, may be just the place for you.

 

Innovation and sustainability

Innovation and future-oriented approaches are the foundation of Sloan’s ethos. This is apparent through the many courses and extracurricular activities focused on forward-thinking solutions to current global issues. There are 14 labs available for students to collaborate on and test their ideas in these areas. Within these labs, students serve a range of industries across various functions and work with companies of all sizes and locations. Topics of focus range from sustainable business to global entrepreneurship.

 

Global opportunities 

MIT Sloan offers many global study opportunities for students as its Global Program reaches over 60 locations worldwide. These include the Strategic Collaborations offering, which allows students to work on transformation within public and private settings to promote regional impact in countries across the world. Additionally, the MIT Regional Entrepreneurship Acceleration Program (MIT REAP) offers the opportunity to engage with communities around the world to strengthen innovation-driven entrepreneurship and transform economies. 

Students can also organize trips through the study tours option. Tours are proposed by students who want to explore a topic they are passionate about in a global setting, and then partner with faculty and staff mentors to plan logistics. Trips consist of both classes and practical experience during a two-week trip where students meet, learn from, and exchange ideas with foreign business and government leaders.

Looking for more than just a summary of the MIT Sloan MBA? Luckily, we’ve created a complete guide on Sloan, including program specifics, MBA class profile, and MIT Sloan post-MBA salary and employment information. Additionally, we have dozens of sample MIT Sloan MBA essays (including interview essays and video scripts!) that got our past clients into Sloan, plus essays for numerous other top schools, all in one place. Click to join!

 

3. Prepare a winning MIT Sloan application

Last, but certainly not least, is knowing how to write an outstanding essay and prepare for a successful interview. Below are our top tips on succeeding at both of these key aspects of your MIT Sloan application!

 

Write an outstanding essay

Writing any admissions essay is a tough task, however, impressing MIT Sloan’s highly selective admissions committee is especially challenging. MIT’s “essays” are quite unique compared to other business schools: applicants must complete Sloan’s famous cover letter and a video essay question. Given the limited amount of space you have, you need to make sure every word paints a picture of your accomplishments and potential additions to the MIT Sloan community. 

The following analyses demonstrate how to do that.* 

*Though these questions are accurate at the time of publication, check out our Sloan Essay Analysis post for the most up-to-date questions and analysis

 

Cover Letter

MIT Sloan seeks students whose personal characteristics demonstrate that they will make the most of the incredible opportunities at MIT, both academic and non-academic. We are on a quest to find those whose presence will enhance the experience of other students. We seek thoughtful leaders with exceptional intellectual abilities and the drive and determination to put their stamp on the world. We welcome people who are independent, authentic, and fearlessly creative — true doers. We want people who can redefine solutions to conventional problems, and strive to preempt unconventional dilemmas with cutting-edge ideas. We demand integrity and respect, and passion.

Taking the above into consideration, please submit a cover letter seeking a place in the MIT Sloan MBA program. Your letter should conform to a standard business correspondence, include one or more professional examples that illustrate why you meet the desired criteria above, and be addressed to the Admissions Committee (300 words or fewer, excluding address and salutation).

Though it may sound obvious, approach this essay as though you are applying for a new job. A good professional cover letter opens by demonstrating your strengths and creating a strong picture of the value you can contribute to your future organization. 

You should begin your MIT Sloan cover letter by doing the same. First, consider your background and professional history. After choosing 2-3 examples that show you thinking outside the box and offering pragmatic solutions to challenging business problems, as well as examples that demonstrate your leadership skills, consider how you might tell these stories in a short yet powerful way.

Then, begin your letter. We suggest that you craft a compelling hook introduction that not only grabs the reader’s interest, but that also sets the stage for the themes you will explore in your letter. 

TOP TIP: Dedicate roughly 75% of your essay to your past examples. Make sure these are told in STAR format.

After you show MIT Sloan what you’ve already accomplished, you might want to mention a bit about your goals if it gives necessary context to why you are pursuing an MBA. In most cases, we find adding at least a brief summary of the mission or path you plan to explore in the future leads to a stronger overall cover letter.  

Then, end the essay by giving one or two examples of what kind of student you will be at MIT Sloan and why Sloan is the right choice to help you achieve your goals. You do not want to include a laundry list of classes and clubs, but a few, well-chosen examples and connections to how the MIT Sloan MBA experience will serve you well.

You can find a downloadable template for the cover letter by clicking here!

 

Video Statement

Introduce yourself to your future classmates. Here’s your chance to put a face with a name, let your personality shine through, be conversational, be yourself. We can’t wait to meet you! Videos should adhere to the following guidelines:

No more than 1 minute (60 seconds) in length

Single take (no editing) 

Speaking directly to the camera

Do not include background music or subtitles

Considering the short amount of time you have to make an impression on MIT, your goal with this essay is to introduce yourself to your classmates, and the best introductions usually contain a selection of interesting stories. 

We typically suggest that our clients devote the entire minute to one topic. However, if you have many different interests and would like to talk about several of them, this approach also works. Just make sure you are able to fully describe what you’re interested in and why it’s important to you – a laundry list of extracurricular achievements is not the goal here.

Finally, you might want to mention briefly how the theme you have developed connects to MIT Sloan and how you can contribute to the school. If your whole video is about your passion for social impact, you might want to briefly mention how you’d share this passion of yours with fellow Sloanies. 

To learn more about Sloan’s essays (including how to complete its optional essay) and check out sample essays that got our clients into MIT, click here!

*Note: these are the latest essay questions as of the date this guide was published, but we suggest that you check for recent changes, as schools often update their essay questions closer to the round 1 deadline. You can access Sloan’s essay questions and more application info here.

 

Prepare a winning interview

After you’ve submitted your application and essays, you must wait to see if you get an invitation to interview. If you do get to the interview phase of the MIT Sloan application process, congratulations! This is an exceptional achievement. 

 

Interview essay

First off, MIT Sloan requires candidates who are called to interview to submit an additional essay. This year, MIT Sloan’s interview question is as follows:

Required Question #1 (Diversity)

The mission of the MIT Sloan School of Management is to develop principled, innovative leaders who improve the world and to generate ideas that advance management practice. We believe that a commitment to diversity, inclusion, equity, and well-being is a key component of both principled leadership and sound management practice. 

In 250 words or less, please describe how you, as a member of the MIT Sloan community, would work to create a campus that is welcoming, inclusive and increasingly diverse. Details for submitting your response will be included in the interview invitation.

We suggest you start by considering the brand you are presenting to MIT and examine which examples about diversity you can share that will add value to the stories you told in your cover letter and video. Then, make sure you narrow this list down to your single best story. In a 250 word essay, you won’t have time to fully explore multiple examples, so limit yourself to one killer story. 

Required Question #2 (Data)

We are interested in learning more about how you make data-driven decisions and communicate results. Please select one of the following prompts to respond to. 

• Please select an existing data visualization and in 250 words or less explain why it matters to you. The data visualization should be uploaded as a PDF. Examples may come from current events, a business analysis, or personal research (e.g. climate change, COVID maps, etc).
• In 250 words to less, please describe a recent data-driven decision you had to make, and include one slide presenting your analysis. The slide may include a data visualization example and should present data used in a professional context. Your slide must be uploaded as a PDF.

With this question, MIT seeks to understand how you are able to use data to make important decisions. MIT states that this example should come from data used in a professional context, so keep this in mind. When designing your slide, remember that you’re being judged on how you present the information visually, not on the data itself.

In your essay, make sure to explain how you analyzed the data and used it to make a decision. If you are not able to show how you applied the insights gained from the data you presented in a clear, concrete way, you may want to consider a different approach. 

 

The Sloan interview

During MIT Sloan’s interview, the admissions committee member is actively trying to gauge how solid your motivations for wanting to pursue an MBA are, how interested you seem in the MIT Sloan program, and if you fit well with the program’s values. 

The interviewer will have read your entire application and will have seen your one-minute video. Past reports indicate that interviewers develop specific questions based on your application, so make sure to take the time to review what you presented. Interviewers often also ask many standard MBA interview questions, as well as questions designed to gauge your self-awareness and ability to be part of a team. 

Our clients who have interviewed with MIT in the past say that the interviewer was very friendly and prepared questions specifically tailored to their profile. As such, some clients received questions that were far more personal in nature, while others focused strictly on their academic and professional achievements. 

At a maximum of 30 minutes, the MIT Sloan interview tends to be one of the shortest interviews in the MBA world, so don’t panic if your interview doesn’t last the full 30 minutes!

 

Make sure you prepare a successful MIT Sloan application

Getting into the MIT Sloan MBA is no easy feat. 

With multiple essays, numerous letters of recommendation, and admissions interviews, a successful application to MIT Sloan requires that you carefully think about all aspects of your profile and craft the most cohesive, compelling narrative possible. 

Starting from scratch, though, can leave many applicants like you feeling confused and uncertain they are developing an application that will impress the MIT Sloan admissions committee. 

That’s why we created our MBA Resource Center, which includes everything you need to get into the MIT Sloan MBA, all in one place. This includes dozens of sample essays, recommendation letter questions and guides, sample letters of recommendation, MBA CV templates, interview mock sequences, and even sample answers to the most common interview questions. In short, our Resource Center puts the Ellin Lolis Advantage into your hands, giving you exclusive access to the materials we used to help maintain our 98.9% success rate.

The Ellin Lolis MBA Resource Center has helped countless applicants around the world get into MIT Sloan. Sign up today to put this competitive advantage to work for you. .