Schools
12 programs. 12 rubrics.
Every MBA program reads essays differently. Pick yours to see the rubric we use, the official prompts, what admissions actually looks for, and the most common pitfalls.
HBS reads for leadership impact — what you caused to happen, not what you worked on. Stanford GSB reads for authentic values and "what matters most to you, and why." Wharton reads for collaboration and quantitative confidence. Booth reads for intellectual rigor. Kellogg reads for collaborative leadership. MIT Sloan looks for evidence-driven storytelling. Columbia screens hard for fit with New York and the global network. Tuck wants warmth and cohort fit. Yale SOM rewards mission-driven candidates. INSEAD and LBS prioritize international mobility and team experience. Cornell Johnson reads three essays as one — and the Back of Resume essay decides close calls.
Each school page below covers the official prompts, the rubric we score against, the five most common ways essays fail at that program, and a "what good looks like" example. Already drafting? See a real HBS sample critique, read how the critique works, or browse our essay guides.
Targeting another program?
Ross, Darden, Haas, Duke, IESE, IMD — any MBA program.
You still get a full critique. We grade against a general MBA essay rubric — leadership impact, clarity, fit, authenticity, prompt alignment — calibrated to the same standards as our 12 bespoke rubrics. Same depth, same $79.
Grade an essay →