UPDATE: This article was originally posted on September 2, 2020. It has been updated with new information and tips below.
Located in one of the most important up-and-coming cities for entrepreneurship, the IE MBA continues to rank as a top-choice school for globally-minded innovators who seek to use business school as a step toward greater career success.
However, with a highly customizable yet rigorous 1-year program (45% of the course is customizable), a strong focus on online learning (IE’s liquid learning methodology was created pre-COVID, giving them a leg up when it comes to online learning!) and a Tech-focused MBA, competition to join IE’s elite MBA is more difficult than ever.
That’s why we’ve prepared this guide to help you use your IE admissions essays to stand out. We’ve rounded up our best tips to ensure you give your IE application your best shot.
1. Who is IE looking for?
(Photo courtesy of @iebusiness on Instagram)
“We seek motivated, creative and high-potential candidates who stand out for their academic and/or professional achievements, as well as interpersonal skills. We take a holistic approach when evaluating each candidate in order to bring in the most talented people into our international classrooms.” IE Admissions
Every year, IE literally searches the globe (more than 44 nationalities are represented in a class that is 92% international) for the outstanding professionals given the honor of joining one of its two annual classes, each composed of around 350 students. With a strong emphasis on diversity, there is no “typical” IE student, yet the average admitted student is 30 years old.
Beyond the impressive statistics, though, IE is looking for candidates who want to make a positive impact on the world through their careers. That’s why, in addition to strong academic performance (demonstrated through the GMAT and university grades), IE seeks candidates who:
QUESTION THE STATUS QUO
and open your mind to new ways of thinking as a member of a diverse, global community.
DARE TO BE DIFFERENT
and focus on transforming yourself to face new career challenges head on
ACT OUTSIDE YOUR COMFORT ZONE
and discover that there are no limits to what you can do.
BELIEVE IN YOURSELF
as a future Dream-Doer, with your sights set on success for both yourself and those in your network.
HAVE AN ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT
that pushes you to explore boundless avenues of collaboration and success.
If this sounds like a community in which you’d be right at home, you’ll first have to prove you’ve got what it takes by successfully answering IE’s admissions essay questions.
2. How should I answer the IE essay questions?
Writing any admissions essay is a tough task. However, in an effort to streamline their application process this year, IE raised the bar by presenting a new, highly open-ended question.
Keep reading for a more in-depth look at how to turn this rather open-ended task into a standout essay!
2.1. Essay 1 Tips
As an admissions consultant who encourages clients to use the MBA application process to reflect on past accomplishments and future ambitions, I personally think this question can be an excellent exercise in self-reflection.
The open format allows you to include plenty of information about the experiences and examples you think make you unique.
At its core, this essay is focused on allowing IE to get to know the person behind the data, understanding how you have demonstrated leadership and excellence in your life, as well as showing off your fit with IE’s highly global MBA program.
That means your first task is to decide what you want IE to know about you. Consider the fact that they have read your letters of recommendation, your CV, and all the information you typed into the online forms. If you’re not sure where to start, review IE’s mission statement here.
Good examples would include — but are certainly not limited to — how you created a new volunteer initiative in your community, how you navigated complex work situations, context for the decisions you made, motivations behind your professional choices, difficult challenges you faced and overcame, how you acted as a leader at work and/or at school, etc.
No matter what you choose, each example should add something new about you to the mix.
In addition, business schools in general often prefer essays that incorporate good storytelling techniques. In the past, some of our most successful clients have been those who select a defining theme and connect their examples to this theme.
Finally, though you may choose to focus on a single example, the word count flexibility does give you space to mention several examples. If you choose to include several stories, make sure they connect to each other to present a cohesive image of who you are.
TOP TIP: You do not have to choose the multimedia format to be admitted. We have had many clients submit written essays only and be highly successful. However, if you feel a creative format better allows you to express yourself, go for it!
Need more guidance?
Our MBA Resource Center has dozens of successful essays all top global MBA programs, detailed essay brainstorms, interview tips and mocks, CV templates, and recommendation letter guides. Click to join!
2.2. Video Essay Tips
This year, IE has added a video essay component, designed to help them get to know you better. In their words:
“Kira Talent Assessment is a way for us to get to know you better. We are looking to learning more about your personality and communication skills.
During your Kira assessment, you will have to do a series of live questions, 2 in video and 1 in written format. The questions are about general topics around the values of IE: innovation, diversity, entrepreneurship and humanities.
You’ll be able to record your responses from the comfort of your home, and you can do so in your own time.”
We have written extensively on how to prepare for video essays. You can find our best tips here!
3. We Make Your Story Shine
One of the most common mistakes we see in MBA essays is that candidates fail to tell compelling stories. This is important because if your stories are not compelling, they will not be persuasive. At the same time, they must be backed by strong examples that establish a track record of success and prove to the admissions committees why you belong at their school.
Striking this balance between content and creativity can be tough, however, as succeeding means not only choosing the right stories but ensuring they are told in an optimal manner.
This is why our iterative developmental feedback process here at Ellin Lolis Consulting helps you mold your message through the application of our storytelling expertise until it reflects exactly what makes your profile stand out and show fit with your target program.
That’s the approach we took with our client Carlos, who was admitted to IE. In his words:
“I was looking for someone that could help me to achieve my goal of going to an MBA abroad, so a friend of mine recommended Ellin services. At first, I was a little suspicious because I thought that my only need was for someone to review my essays before sending them in the application process.
But, when I met Ellin, I understood that I had the wrong idea of how she could help me. She is not the basic consultancy services that will help you to go to your dream MBA reviewing your English, she is the person that will help you to understand what you are trying to achieve. This difference makes her services outstanding because to do that she had to understand my profile deeply.
That’s why I would recommend that anyone who is trying to get into a top business school, especially people who do not know exactly what they are looking for, call Ellin. Ellin opened my mind with so many good options besides the ones that I was looking for and helped me to build a plan to achieve my goal.”
Not only can you take advantage of our editing expertise through multiple edits – you can also benefit from it after a single review! If your budget is tight, our editors will be happy to help polish your text as much as possible and leave “bonus comments” so you can keep working on it on your own!
No matter how long we work with you, we will always ensure your essays shine. Sign up to work with our team of storytelling experts and get accepted.
4. IE Deadlines
IE admits students on a rolling basis and has both January and August intakes each year. You can access the online application here.
Real MBA Essays That Got People In
School-specific sample essays that got our clients accepted
