What Reviewers Look For in the MBA — Anderson Application Essays
This rubric reviews whether your goals are specific, your reason for pursuing an MBA is tied to a clear need, and your Anderson resources are connected to that need. It also looks for credible examples behind the qualities you want classmates to see, a concise personal introduction, and three answers that add up to a consistent picture without repeating the same material.
What We Check
Whether the goals essay names a short-term goal with a desired role, an industry, and example target companies, plus a long-term direction that follows from it.
Whether the goals essay states what the MBA must supply for your path and names the Anderson resources you would rely on for it.
Whether the classmates essay backs each quality or value you want to be known for with something you have done and something you will do at Anderson.
Whether the 50-word answer gives one particular fact about you that a classmate could repeat after hearing it once.
Contradiction and substantial repetition only across the three submitted Anderson answers.
Mistakes We Flag
- Goals without target companies
- The goals response needs a desired role, industry, and examples of target companies. A broad goal without employers leaves part of the requested answer missing.
- Generic MBA or Anderson explanation
- Saying you need business skills or listing resources without explaining their use does not show what capability, access, knowledge, or experience you need for your path.
- Qualities listed but not shown
- Claims such as collaborative or resilient need a past action that supports them and a concrete way you will demonstrate them as a student leader and community member.
- A résumé-style first introduction
- The 50-word response is better used for one specific human detail than for a job title, test result, or career goal already reflected elsewhere in the application.
- Reusing one story in every response
- The three answers should fit together, but the same project or anecdote should not have to do the work of all three. Each response should contribute a different detail or purpose.
How this rubric reads your essay
- Built from published reader guidance — the sources are listed below.
- Scored per section against defined criteria, not general impressions.
- Calibrated for consistent scoring, so a better draft shows up in the score.
References
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the goals essay need to include?
Address your short- and long-term post-MBA goals, including your desired role, industry, and examples of target companies. Also explain how an MBA supports your path and which UCLA Anderson resources you expect to rely on most.
How specific should my Anderson resources be?
Name an Anderson resource and connect it to a stated gap or need in your path. A list of resources, Los Angeles, weather, or industry name-dropping without a stated use is not enough.
Do I need an elected leadership role for the classmates essay?
No. Student leadership can include informal actions, such as organizing a study group or supporting a classmate. Show what you have done and what you plan to do as a student leader and community member.
How should I approach the 50-word question?
Choose one particular fact about yourself that a classmate could remember and repeat. Keep it introspective, genuine, and succinct rather than trying to fit in several facts and a lesson.
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