CMU's words are in black; mine are in red. 

CMU Tepper 2007 Application Deadlines and Timetable

Round 1:    November 6, 2006

Round 2:    January 8, 2007

Round 3:     March 19, 2007 (Final deadline for international applicants)

Round 4:    April 30, 2007 ( Final deadline for US citizens and permanent residents)

CMU Tepper 2007 Application Essay Questions

Required Essays

A. What are your short-term and long-term goals? How will a Tepper MBA help you to achieve these goals?

BTW, Tepper's suggested length is two, double-spaced pages.

Straight-forward goals question. What do you want to do immediately after earning your MBA? What do you want to do 5-10 years down the road? Yes your longer term goals can be fuzzier, but you should be able to show clear direction.

Then discuss how Tepper's program (not ranking, reputation, or other generalities that apply to all top programs) will help you achieve your goals. I am working currently with a client through LAMP and he is interested in attending a school with a very specific kind of international programs. When he writes his essays, he will be able to point to the specific programs at his target schools and reveal  how those particular elements will help him achieve his goals. That's exactly the information CMU is looking for from you in this essay.

As you do your research, attend info sessions, and visit campuses, look for the distinctive pieces to any MBA program to both help choose the schools you will apply to. Then use that data to demonstrate how well you know the program and what a great fit you are for the given school.

At CMU, you may want to refer to the Management Game or its mini-semester structure or its MBA tracks and cross-campus curriculum . Explain how any or all of these elements will help you achieve your goal. If professors are prominent in your area of interest, discuss how their research jives with your professional interests. Your ability to connect these details and your goals contributes to a stellar goals essay.

B. How will your academic and professional background, personal characteristics and life experiences contribute to the diversity     of the Tepper community?

Diversity can be ethnic, geographic, or professional. It can be experiential, political, philosophical or religious. It can be recreational or artistic. Don't think of it in narrow terms. It is individual. It usual requires focusing on something specific because it is the details that distinguish you.

C. Please answer three of the following five questions or statements (your three answers should equal a total of two pages).

Choose the three that allow you to reveal what's most important to you and distinctive about you. Focus on the facets of your background and experience not portrayed in the other essays and the rest of your application.

1. Describe an ethical dilemma that you have faced in your professional life, how you dealt with the situation, and what the outcome was.

Please see #3 on Solving the Puzzle.

2. Describe a failure or setback in your professional or academic life. How did you overcome this setback? What, if anything, would you do differently if confronted with this situation again?

Please see #4 on Solving the Puzzle and Flaws Make Your Real.

3. What do you consider to be your greatest achievement and why?

Please see #2 on Solving the Puzzle.

4. Describe your most challenging experience while working in a group?

5. Of what skill or talent are your especially proud?

Additional Information 

D. Is there anything additional that you think we should know as we evaluate your application? Note: if you believe your credentials and essays represent you fairly, you should not feel obligated to answer this question. This essay is intended to provide a place for you to add information that you think is important but is not covered elsewhere in the application.

 You must complete this essay if you answered “yes” to the additional information questions on the [page 3 of the CMU application].

Use this optional essay,  or lose a great opportunity to provide even more reasons for Tepper to admit you.

If you would like help with your CMU Tepper MBA application, please consider Accepted.com's MBA essay editing and admissions consulting or a CMU Tepper Comprehensive Package, which includes essay editing, interview coaching, consultation, and a resume edit for the CMU Tepper MBA application.