Emory Goizueta wants to learn about your professional plans, alignment with the school’s core values, and ability to concisely convey this information through written essays. Additionally, the school’s video essay allows you to present yourself in a dynamic and spontaneous way. Don’t be fooled by the short length of Goizueta’s required essays. Their brevity requires you to make tough decisions about what key points and anecdotes to include and what to leave out. Write simply and directly to pack as much meaning and impact as possible into each word. Then, make sure that your video “personality” aligns with your written “personality.”
Ready to get to work on your Emory Goizueta application? Read on.
- Emory Goizueta application essay tips
- Emory Goizueta application deadlines
- Emory Goizueta class profile
Emory Goizueta application essay tips
Short Answer Questions (40-word limit each)
Answer all 3 of the short answer questions below. Each response should be no more than 40 words.
- What are your short-term post-MBA career goals?
- How will your professional experience and the Goizueta MBA help you to achieve those goals?
- What’s a fun fact about you that you would like the committee to know?
Emory’s short answer questions provide you with enough words to respond with direct, if succinct answers. To answer Question #1, the short-term goals question, make sure you provide specific information about the industry and function you are interested in and perhaps the name of a company or two that appeal to you. There is just enough room for you to provide some additional context about your goals as well. Question #2 gets at your understanding of how you will build on your professional experience; you must identify specific aspects of the Emory MBA program that will help you to upskill in preparation for your post-MBA position. As you think about your immediate goals for after the program, consider any transferable skills you have developed that are applicable to your career objectives. This level of self-awareness and your demonstrated understanding of the skills your desired job requires send a positive signal to the adcom.
Additionally, identify gaps in your skill set, and look for courses, activities, clubs, and other opportunities at Goizueta that will allow you to develop what you need to close the gap. The obvious challenge here is the word count. It might take a few revisions for you to refine your answers. Finally, Question #3 shifts focus to highlight a fun fact you will share about yourself. This gives you an opportunity to show a bit of personality and insight into an aspect of your life that might not show up on your resume or elsewhere in your application. Don’t be afraid to have a little fun with this one, but remember to use your best judgment when deciding what to share.
Essay #1
Goizueta Business School’s mission is to prepare principled leaders to have a positive influence on business and society. Identify a personal account of a time you effectively demonstrated your leadership skills. Respond to one of these two prompts:
- What about this experience made you feel proud of your leadership abilities?
- What did this experience teach you about leadership?
Principled leaders’ behaviors and actions are guided by their values, integrity, and beliefs. Essay #1 asks you to share an example of a time when you were an effective leader. The starting point for this essay is to reflect on the idea of principled leadership. Consider an example where you feel you made a positive impact (of which you felt proud) and experienced personal growth. Provide appropriate context as you set up your example, making sure to be specific about the actions you took and the results you achieved. Next, determine which prompt you want to discuss. Either focus on how you were affected by the experience in terms of your positive feelings about how you applied your leadership skills, or convey what you learned about leadership through the experience and how you’ve grown because of it.
Essay #2
Our lived experiences shape who we are and the aspirations we have. As a values-driven community, we care about what has shaped your life. Please share what or who has had the biggest impact on your life.
Each of us has lived experiences that have influenced our lives. This essay question is broad but invites a somewhat personal perspective, because you are required to reflect on experiences that have had a profound impact on who you are. The example you share can be from any area of your life, yet the impact of the event or relationship must be meaningful. Beyond the specifics you share about what or who has had the biggest impact on your life, the adcom wants to understand why it/the person has had a great influence on who you are, and how you are different as a result.
Optional Essay
Still have more to share? This optional essay is your opportunity to share something you couldn’t find a place for on your application. This is also where you should address anything the committee may question (e.g., gaps in employment, academic challenges, choice of recommender). You can use essay format or bullets. Please identify topics if more than one is addressed.
As part of the prompt, Goizueta provides examples of why you might want to submit an optional essay. Consider your entire application, and ask yourself whether you feel you have presented a well-rounded picture of your candidacy. What about your background? Has the application otherwise provided a place for you to share that you are a first-generation college student? Or that you grew up in challenging circumstances, perhaps as part of an underserved community? Providing additional insights into the obstacles you have overcome will allow the adcom to understand how you have persevered to get to where you are today. If you have nothing to add, you do not need to write an optional essay simply because it’s there.
Whether you use the optional essay or not, take the same care in providing your answer as you will with the other essays in your application.
Video Essay
Telling your story through written essays is an important part of the application, but the video essay lets us hear your words in your own voice. In the required video essay, every candidate will answer a “small talk” question to help the MBA Admissions Committee get to know you. The video essay instructions and link are located in your application portal.
The video essay allows you to present yourself in a different way to the application readers and gives the entire adcom an opportunity to get a sense of you personally. With the video essay, members of the adcom that you did not have a opportunity to meet at an MBA fair, on campus, or through the interview process will be able to see and hear from you directly. For nonnative English speakers, this video also serves to give the adcom an impression of your English-speaking abilities.
Although you won’t know the question ahead of time, the description of it as a “small talk” question gives the sense that the committee wants to hear from you authentically. That said, there are a few things you can do ahead of time to feel more prepared for the video essay:
- Consider your background.
When getting ready for the video essay, make sure you are mindful about what will be in the background of your video. A simple, decluttered setup is what I recommend. You don’t want anything to distract the viewer from you and your response.
- Research “small talk” prompts.
Write down eight to ten “small talk” prompts on individual pieces of paper. Think of things you might talk to someone about at a cocktail party – questions like “What is your favorite restaurant or movie?” and “What kind of music do you enjoy?” Fold the pieces of paper up, and put them in a container. Then use these prompts when simulating the video essay.
- Practice by recording yourself.
Using Zoom or Google Meet, you can set up a meeting to record yourself as a way of simulating Goizueta’s video essay. I suggest that you wear business or business casual attire for your practice sessions as well as the official video essay. Follow the same timing restrictions you will have for the actual video essay. Set a timer for 30 seconds and another for 60 seconds.
Begin the simulation by selecting one of the questions you wrote on the pieces of paper you prepared. Click on the 30-second timer and collect your thoughts for your answer. At the end of 30 seconds, click on the 60-second timer and begin recording.
Start your answer by introducing yourself, and don’t forget to smile! Provide your response to the “small talk” question you selected. You can end your answer by thanking the viewer for the opportunity to share a bit about yourself. Be sure to smile as you are thanking them.
The instructions for the video essay indicate that you can use the entire 60 seconds or stop recording when you feel you have answered the question.
- Review your recording and critique yourself.
Play back the recording, and notice how you come across in the video. Are you smiling? Was your camera at eye level, and did you look at the camera while talking? Is there anything distracting in the background? Note anything you want to tweak, and set up another practice round.
Although you do not want to appear over-rehearsed, this simulation exercise will allow you to get used to the process you will follow when you record your actual video essay for submission.
Reapplicant essay #1
What will professional success look like immediately after your MBA experience? Please describe where you would like this degree program to take you professionally. Include information such as desired job title, responsibilities, company, impact, and/or industry. Explain how your professional experiences and personal strengths align with your post-MBA goals. (200 word limit)
This is the same goals essay that first-time applicants must submit. Please refer to our analysis of it at the beginning of this blog post.
Reapplicant essay #2
Explain how you have improved your candidacy for Goizueta Business School’s MBA program since your last application. (200 word limit)
The adcom is interested in knowing what has changed since you applied last. Consider any enhancements to your candidacy from both a career and an academic standpoint. Professionally, have you taken on additional responsibilities? Were you promoted? Did you earn any certifications or other accolades? Academically, did you complete any additional coursework? Did you retake the GMAT or GRE?
Emory Goizueta application deadlines
| Application Deadline | Decision Notification | |
| Round 1 | October 2, 2024 | December 4, 2024 |
| Round 2 | January 6, 2025 | March 12, 2025 |
| Round 3 | March 19, 2025 | May 7, 2025 |
Source: Emory Goizueta website
***Disclaimer: Information is subject to change. Please check with Emory Goizueta directly to verify its essay questions, instructions, and deadlines.***
Emory Goizueta class profile
Here is a look at Emory Goizueta’s Class of 2025 (data taken from the Emory Goizueta website):
Class size: 125
Average GMAT: 709
Average GPA: 3.47
Average years of work experience: 6
Women: 34%
Underrepresented U.S. minorities: 25%
LGBTQ+: 9%
International: 49%
Countries represented: 17
You’ve worked so hard to get to where you are in life. Now that you’re ready for your next achievement, make sure you know how to present yourself to maximum advantage in your Emory Goizueta application. In a hotly competitive season, you’ll want a member of Team Accepted in your corner, guiding you with expertise tailored specifically for you. Check out our flexible consulting packages today!
As the former executive director of admissions at Carnegie Mellon’s Tepper School and assistant dean of admissions at Georgetown’s McDonough School and the University of Pittsburgh’s Katz School, Kelly Wilson has 23 years’ experience overseeing admissions committees and has reviewed more than 38,000 applications for MBA and master’s programs in management of information systems, computational finance, business analytics, and product management. Want Kelly to help you get accepted? Click here to get in touch!
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