Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School offers a 12-month full time MBA in Dublin, Ireland. For the Fall 2021 intake, following are the deadlines, essay prompts and its debrief:
| Round # | Deadline |
| # | Rolling Admissions |
Essay Debrief
Essay 1: Beyond what is outlined in your Curriculum Vitae, what will be your unique contribution to your MBA class? (Max. 300 words)
Let’s try to paraphrase this question:
Why you?
If there were only one more seat available, why should we offer it to you?
Speak about your unique achievements?
Basically in this question, you need to speak about unique things about you which are not apparent in your curriculum vitae. Understanding the Smurfit community and its values will help you speak about your achievement/skills that are aligned with Smurfit’s. Just think of stories in light of leadership, teamwork, community involvement or any clubs that aligns with your skillset and write this essay.
Of course, I have oversimplified by paraphrasing the questions here. And you have to be careful to write sentences aligned with the phrasing of the original essay question. Be mindful of the word limit.
Essay 2: What in your opinion is UCD Smurfit Schools’ responsibility to you as an MBA student and what is your responsibility to the School? (Max. 300 words)
Smurfit has cleverly asked you to introspect and do a reality check here. When you start penning down what do you expect from a school you understand where your expectations may not be reasonable. Here are some expectations – getting a good education, international exposure, migration, better job, networking opportunities, etc. You may also loop in your Why MBA answer here.
Just as you expect certain things from a business school so does the business school. You will become an ambassador of Smurfit and your success will be a reflection of Smurfit’s quality. In the second part, you have to write about how do you plan to participate and give back to the community of Smurfit. Do you understand Smurfit’s values and culture? How will you uphold them? Research of Smurfit is the key to getting insights into clubs, case competitions, etc.
Essay 3: What are your career expectations in the 3 years post MBA? (Max. 300 words)
Smurfit is asking for your career expectations in the next 3 years post MBA which means they’re asking your short-term goals. However, unlike other short term goal essays, you have to speak about them for 300 words. So let’s divide this question into industry, function and geography. And speak about them individually. Which industry? What is the scope you see in this industry you have chosen? Which function? Why do you think you’ll be successful in it? And finally Ireland? Why is Ireland a good destination for your post-MBA goal?
Essay 4: Which of the following statements do you most identify with and why? (Max. 300 words)
1. A UCD Smurfit MBA will give me the status and respect I seek
2. A UCD Smurfit MBA will enable me to gain international exposure and access to employment abroad
3. A UCD Smurfit MBA will enable me to advance in my career with minimum disruption to family life
4. A UCD Smurfit MBA will enable me to reinvent myself
5. A UCD Smurfit MBA will enable me to achieve a fulfilling career and will ensure financial stability
6. A UCD Smurfit MBA will improve my leadership skills to have greater impact at work
7. A UCD MBA will enable me to succeed as an entrepreneur
You have to choose only 1 statement and explain why you have chosen that statement. For the brevity of this blog, I’m not going to individually explain each statement. I would be happy to discuss it with you if you need some guidance on your chosen statement. However, all the statements point to your reason for pursuing an MBA and why you have chosen Smurfit as your target school.
Apart from the essays above Smurfit application requires:
- Two References
- Video Essays
- Two Optional Essays
If you’d like to discuss your profile and know whether Smurfit Graduate Business School is the right school for you or not then fill out this form and we can have a FREE call. Check out our tool MBA Matrix, where you can search and compare more than 300 MBA programs. MBA Matrix contains deadlines, essay questions, all rankings, average GMAT scores and a lot more all in one place. You can say nice things to me on What’s App or comment below!
Happy Writing!