Oxford:
1. Main Responsibilities: Please provide a description of your job to include the nature of work undertaken, your responsibilities, size of budget and the number of employees under your supervision, details of any clients and/or products and results obtained. (Current Employment and Previous Employment)
2. Explain why you choose your current job. How do you hope to see your career developing over the next five years? How will an MBA assist you in the development of these ambitions? (maximum 1000 words)
3. Which recent development, world event or book has most influenced your thinking and why? (maximum 2000 words)
ISB:
1. Evaluate your application and provide a critical assessment of it. Outline factors that might differentiate you from others from a similar background. (600 words)
2. Discuss an ethical dilemma that you experienced first hand, and how you resolved it. (400)
3. It is said that successful leaders learn as much from their failures as they do from their successes. Discuss a situation in which you failed and what you learnt(400)
4. ISB places a lot of emphasis on teamwork. Tell us about your experiences in working as a part of a team. Your essay should talk about the difficulties that you faced and how you overcame them. (200 words)
5. How do you define leadership? Take the example of a leader you admire (living or deceased), and indicate that traits you like.(200 words)
6. Post ISB where do you think you would like to be professionally.
INSEAD:
1. Please give a detailed description of your job, including nature of work, major responsibilities; and, where relevant, employees under your supervision, size of budget, number of clients/products and results achieved. (250 words)
2. Please give us a full description of your career since graduating from university. If you were to remain with your present employer, what would be your next step in terms of position (250 words)
Personal Essays:
1. Give a candid description of yourself, stressing the personal characteristics you feel to be your strengths and weaknesses and the main factors which have influenced your personal development, giving examples when necessary (400 words)
2. Describe what you believe to be your two most substantial accomplishments to date, explaining why you view them as such (400 words approx.)
3. Describe a situation taken from school, business, civil or military life, where you did not meet your personal objectives, and discuss briefly the effect. (250 words approx.)
4. Discuss your career goals. What skills do you expect to gain from studying at INSEAD and how will they contribute to your professional career (500 words approx.)
5. Have you experienced culture shock? What did it mean to you? (250 words) or
What would you say to a foreigner moving to your home country? (250 words)
6. Is there anything that you have not mentioned in the above essays that you would like the Admissions committe to know (200 words approx.) Optional.
Cranfield:
1. Please describe your current duties, responsibilities and position in your organisation as clearly as possible so that we may understand the depth of your experience and the contribution you can make to the MBA Programme. If you have been in your present job for under 6 months you should also include details of your previous job. If applicable, include how many staff are responsible to you, your budgetary responsibilities and the position of the person you report to.
2. Please outline your career objectives and how the MBA will help you to achieve them.
3. What positions of responsibility have you held (not necessarily business related)? What have you gained from this experience?
4. What single event or achievement has been most significant in your life? What were the results of this event or achievement?
5. Describe an ethical dilemma you have experienced firsthand. Discuss how you thought about and managed the situation.
