MIT Sloan MBA Essay Tips & Deadlines [2021-2022]

This year’s MIT Sloan MBA application, like most MIT applications in the last fifteen years, includes its signature cover letter and resume. It also retains the video component.

MIT Sloan MBA cover letter and resume

MIT Sloan seeks students whose personal characteristics demonstrate that they will make the most of the incredible opportunities at MIT, both academic and non-academic. We are on a quest to find those whose presence will enhance the experience of other students. We seek thoughtful leaders with exceptional intellectual abilities and the drive and determination to put their stamp on the world. We welcome people who are independent, authentic, and fearlessly creative – true doers. We want people who can redefine solutions to conventional problems, and strive to preempt unconventional dilemmas with cutting-edge ideas. We demand integrity and respect passion.

Taking the above into consideration, please submit a cover letter seeking a place in the MIT Sloan MBA Program. Your letter should conform to a standard business correspondence, include one or more professional examples that illustrate why you meet the desired criteria above, and be addressed to the Admissions Committee. (300 words or fewer, excluding address and salutation)

MIT helpfully provides insight into what it’s looking for in the cover letter. Like all cover letters, this one is a marketing document. If you apply for a job, you research the firm to learn what it values and is seeking. Based on your research, you send your resume with a cover letter designed to make you as attractive to the company as possible, one that shows you have what the firm wants.

Similarly, your MIT Sloan cover letter should show that you have what MIT is looking for. Make your case for admission using your accomplishments, specifically those where you show the qualities mentioned above. How do the talents revealed in your examples demonstrate fit with the MIT Sloan program, its tight-knit community, and its innovative, culture of doers? Your resume should reveal above-average progression on the job and increasing responsibility, as well as the creativity and contribution that MIT Sloan requires.

In making your case and mentioning your accomplishments, highlight your role and the impact on the entities you contributed to. Those results are “your stamp on the world” so far.

Note: this is not an essay. Make sure your letter is formatted as a professional letter with a date, address, header, salutation, and close.

Please submit a one-page resume. This will help us easily track your academic and career path. Try to focus on your work results, not just your title or job description. Here are some pointers on formatting: 

• • One page limit
    
    
  • Times New Roman font
    
    
  • Size 10 font
    
    
  • Word or PDF formats only

Provide the following information in reverse chronological order:

• • Education: Please include relevant awards, scholarships and professional societies
    
    
  • Work Experience: Please include company name, title, results-oriented bullets that demonstrate your skill set, and dates
    
    
  • Additional information: Please include extracurricular activities/community service, technical skills/certifications, and special skills/interests, and languages spoken (if applicable)

For the MIT Sloan’s detailed resume formatting instructions, visit the MIT Sloan website.

In your resume, go beyond mere job descriptions to highlight achievement. If your title is “consultant,” saying that you “consulted on diverse projects globally” is redundant and uninformative at best. Writing that you “Led a 6-member team working on a biotech outsourcing project to Singapore with a budget of $X; it came in on time and under budget.” conveys infinitely more.

Quantify your impact as much as possible. You want the reader to come away with a picture of you as an above average performer on a steep upward trajectory who has the creativity and hands-on, problem-solving focus that demonstrates you belong at MIT Sloan.

<<Applying to MIT Sloan? Listen to our podcast interview with the Director of Admissions>>

MIT Sloan MBA video statement

Introduce yourself to your future classmates. Here’s your chance to put a face with a name, let your personality shine through, be conversational, be yourself. We can’t wait to meet you! Videos should adhere to the following guidelines:

• • No more than 1 minute (60 second) in length
    
    
  • Single take (no editing)
    
    
  • Speaking directly to the camera
    
    
  • Do not include background music or subtitles

The video statement was introduced at MIT Sloan about five years ago. Your goal here: deliver your statement with poise and presence. I suggest you outline a 60-second statement that you would use to introduce yourself to your classmates (not the admissions committee members; they’re just important flies on the wall who happen to be listening in).

Don’t be too casual; your classmates are your future professional network and social group, but do be friendly and remember to smile. What would you tell them about yourself? What would show that you are already a member of MIT’s community – you just don’t happen to pay tuition yet?

A few tips for the video part of this exercise: Practice in front of a webcam so that you get used to talking to a little lens that has no affect, feedback, or expression. Recording yourself on video is not the same as talking on Skype with another human being. I suggest you put a smiley face beneath or above the camera to remind you to smile at appropriate points in your statement. Then view your practice videos looking for poise and presence. During some of the practices, maybe have a friend present to encourage you, but also practice without anyone else in the room. We at Accepted are happy to help you prepare too.

For the real video statement, dress in business or business casual attire. If you’re not confident that your attire is appropriate, it probably isn’t; dress more conservatively. Make sure your location is quiet and that roommates, pets and children are in a location where they won’t be heard or disturb you. Make sure your background is neutral and not a distraction. Blank walls make a great background.

MIT Sloan at a glance

MIT Sloan average GMAT score: 720

MIT Sloan average GPA: 3.54

MIT Sloan acceptance rate: 14.6%

U.S. News ranked Sloan #5 in 2022.

For expert guidance with your MIT Sloan MBA application, check out Accepted’s MBA Application Packages, which include comprehensive guidance from an experienced admissions consultant. We’ve helped applicants get accepted to MIT Sloan’s MBA program and look forward to helping you too!

CREATE A SUCCESSFUL MIT SLOAN MBA APPLICATION! >>

MIT Sloan application timeline for August 2022 entry

	Application Deadline	Decisions Released
Round 1	September 28, 2021	December 15, 2021
Round 2	January 19, 2022	April 4, 2022
Round 3	April 12, 2022	June 1, 2022

*Applications must be submitted by 3:00 p.m. EST

Source: MIT Sloan website

Stay on top of MBA deadlines with the MBA Admissions Calendar!

[Click here to add the calendar to your Google calendar; or here to add the calendar to another app.]

***Disclaimer: Information is subject to change. Please check with individual programs to verify the essay questions, instructions and deadlines.***

Related Resources:

• Fitting In and Standing Out: The Paradox at the Heart of Admissions, a free guide
• What’s New at MIT Sloan’s Competitive Full-Time MBA, a podcast episode
• How to Practice for a Video Interview or Essay

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