|
|
 UNDERGRADSMain Page2007 RankingsAdmissions Q&AsCareer Q&AsUndergrad ForumReading ListRecruiter Q&AsSchool Report CardsSchool ToursUndergrad 24-7Undergrad VideosNews HeadlinesPREMIUM CONTENT
| |
MBA INSIDER: SAMPLE APPLICATION ESSAYS UNC (Kenan-Flagler): Essay 1
The unique personal quality that distinguishes me from other candidates is my persistence. With no direction, no money and no goals, I graduated from college in May 1995 not knowing if I would find a career, which would give meaning to my life. I moved back in with my parents as college kids do. Before starting a career, I decided that I would first try to "find myself." After meandering in India for four months with out any answers, I came back and began to work odd jobs. Cooking had always been a hobby so I got a job as a pasta chef at the [deleted]. I would wake up at 5:00 am to make pasta all day for minimum wage and no tips. I then applied (and even got accepted!) to the [deleted] Culinary Institute. After a couple of months in the restaurant, I learned that even though I was doing something that I enjoyed, I was not influencing people's lives in a direct way. Since I also was not making very much money, my father suggested that I start looking for jobs in the private sector.
After doing everything from sorting mail, to being a receptionist, I found a position as a customer service representative for a National HMO. I was very excited because this was my first permanent position with full benefits. The first week on the job was shocking. With the rising cost of healthcare and the limited coverage options that HMOs provide, almost all of the customers that I spoke to were very angry. After a year of this exhausting position, I felt that I was ready for a promotion. My supervisor promptly denied my promotion. She felt that I was not ready for more responsibility due to my lack of experience. Even though I was extremely disappointed, I went back to speaking with angry customers until the HMO went out of business 6 months later. That was when I discovered that [deleted] was accepting new hires for an office that they were opening in [deleted] in the customer service department. With my over confident nature I thought that I would apply for a supervisory position, instead of a customer service representative (csr). I was again denied for the supervisor position, but was offered the position of csr. I took it with the hopes of moving up quickly because this was a growing division. Six months later, I applied again, and was again denied. My superiors felt that I would benefit from more experience. At the time, with each denial, I felt more and more disappointed. But I learned to like the direct contact with the customers because I had a very good understanding of the issues that concerned them. Once I finally got the promotion, success quickly followed, after two more promotions, I have met my current goal of being a manager. When I was finally promoted, I used the customer service experience to coach my team. The disappointments that I initially experienced have helped me stay motivated through the challenges of learning to be an effective manager. I still call or will speak to customers if they ask for me because it is a trait that keeps me in touch with the day-to-day operations of our business. Having developed an interest in health insurance benefits and waiting for my "big break", I decided to pursue a master's degree. The workload between work and school has been extremely challenging, and at times I have had to put one before the other. But this has been yet another learning experience that I hope to use to obtain an MBA. I have three years of managing my time wisely between school and work. I feel that all of the experiences that I have had so far, have helped me become even more determined to succeed in the face of resistance. 
BW MALL
SPONSORED LINKS
Buy a link now!Get BusinessWeek directly on your desktop with our RSS feeds.  Add BusinessWeek news to your Web site with our headline feed. Click to buy an e-print or reprint of a BusinessWeek or BusinessWeek Online story or video. To subscribe online to BusinessWeek magazine, please click here. Learn more, go to the BusinessWeekOnline home page  | | AUGUST Learn about your online education options |
 Copyright 2003, by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved.Terms of Use | Privacy Policy |
MBA Insider
Printer-Friendly Version
