How To Prepare for Simon MBA Video Essay
Want to know how to prepare for Simon MBA video essay? In this post, we’ll share everything you need to know to prepare for Simon MBA video essay while also bringing you up to speed on what makes Simon MBA a standout MBA program.
The Simon MBA Edge
Founded in 1958 and located in New York, Simon Business School is the business school of the University of Rochester.
The Simon Business School has many firsts to its credit, including being the first MBA program to offer STEM designation for any specialization and being ranked Number 1 for having the most diverse student body among the top 50 US business schools.
Simon MBA is also ranked number 3 among the US business schools for giving the best Return on Investment (RoI).
Considered among the top 25 MBA programs in the USA, Simon MBA is ranked in the top 5 for specializations in finance and economics and has been bestowed with the top-notch “A” grade for its teaching quality.
Simon MBA – Proud of Its Unabashedly Analytical Bias
Simon MBA looks for applicants with well-developed communication skills and who are self-motivated individuals keen to enhance both their technical and personal skills.
Simon MBA has designed its classes to be small with an average class size of just 108-115 students because Simon believes a smaller cohort allows for greater sharing of diverse perspectives and opinions, preparing Simon students effectively for real-world challenges they’ll encounter once they join back the workforce.
Simon offers 10 specializations under 4 tracks –
Asset Management, Banking, Corporate Finance, Venture Capital & Private Equity under the Finance Track; Brand Management and Product Management under the Marketing Track; Operations, Pricing, Strategy and Technology under the Consulting Track; and General Management is the fourth track offered by Simon MBA.
With 93% of the cohort placed successfully with an average salary of $1,55,000, Simon MBA is a great choice for MBA applicants planning to do an MBA in the USA.
How Simon MBA Video Essay Fits in the Simon MBA Application Process
In addition to submitting your resume, essays, LoRs and GMAT or GRE scores, Simon also has provided its applicants with the option to submit a video essay.
Though Simon MBA video essay is an optional essay, Simon highly recommends applicants to submit one because it gives the AdCom a chance to know the applicants well and an opportunity to associate an applicant’s face and personality with her or his application.
Another reason why Simon introduced its MBA video essay was that it’s looking for more authentic responses from applicants, and it wants to assess whether applicants are able to think quickly on their feet and respond with clarity. Through the Simon MBA video essay, the school is also able to assess how proficient applicants’, (especially foreign applicants) English speaking and overall, communication skills are.
The video essay link will appear on your application portal, and you’ll have 24 hours to complete your video essay after submitting your application.
If you don’t submit your video essay within 24 hours, it’ll no longer be considered part of your application.
Note – In case, you don’t submit your MBA video essay, Simon will not penalize you because it’s an optional essay.
Format of Simon MBA Video Essay
You will receive a single question chosen randomly from the question bank.
And you will be given 30 seconds to think about your response and then up to 90 seconds to share your response.
You’ll have 3 tries to record your video essay but with each try you will get a different question.
And after three attempts, your video will be automatically submitted.
Note – If you manage to give your response in under 90 seconds, it’s fine to stop the recording as the school is interested in clear yet concise response rather than vague, rambling answers.
Technical Requirements For Recording Simon MBA Video Essay
You’ll require a secure internet connection, a computer with a webcam and microphone, and an updated version of Adobe Flash to complete the video essay. For browser, use either Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox.
How To Record A Great Simon MBA Video Essay
Here are 7 tips shared to help you record a great Simon MBA video essay –
Tip #1 – Breathe
Breathe well and relax. The video essay is to help Simon’s AdCom get to know you better, not to judge you harshly.
Read more tips on having the right body language for your video essay or your MBA interview in this post –\
10 Powerful Body Language Tips to Ace Your Business School Interview
Tip #2 – Be Authentic
Let your personality shine by sharing authentic responses, delivering them with confidence and humility.
Does that sound difficult?
In fact, it’s easy.
Focus on being likeable and personable, the way you are when you interact with people you like.
Tip #3 – Get Comfortable with the Recording Technology
Use the practice questions and get comfortable with the technology to record your video essay.
Make sure your camera and mic work fine and capture your face and your voice clearly.
Tip #4 – Find A Comfortable, Noise-Free Place
Create a quiet, distraction-free environment where you can peacefully record your video.
Tip #5 – Dress Well
Be careful about your appearance. Though you can dress up in casuals for your video essay, make sure you look presentable.
Tip #6 – Focused Response
Pay attention to the question asked and ensure your response is carefully constructed to respond to the question as clearly and logically as possible.
Provide clear real-life examples from your professional or personal life to substantiate your point of view while ensuring that the examples show you as the central character of your stories.
Tip #7 – Practice, Practice, Practice
With Simon’s video essay, you only get 3 tries which means you need to sharpen your ability to think on your feet and come up with a clear and compelling response to the question being asked.
The only way to truly get better at giving clear responses quickly is by practicing beforehand to different possible questions and having a database of stories ready.
This will give you a major confidence boost in handling not just straightforward questions but also any curveball questions because you’ll be able to quickly plug in an appropriate example or point of view in response to such video essay questions.
Read more from MBAEssayNation’s exhaustive interview preparation blog posts to know how to prepare well, be it for your business school interviews or for your video essays.
Sample Simon MBA Video Essay Questions
The Simon MBA video essay questions comprise behavioral questions, and here is a sample set of the questions asked-
- Describe a situation where you were a team member and not a leader. How did the result impact you?
- What is the best professional compliment you received?
- What is the best piece of advice that you have received?
- Describe an accomplishment that has given you the most satisfaction and why.
- Tell us about a difficulty you have faced in your career. How did you handle it?
- Give an example of a situation where you had to change your priorities due to an unexpected task and what was the outcome?
- Describe a recent unpopular decision you made. How did you handle it?
- What was the biggest learning experience you’ve had when you travelled to a new city/country? If you have not travelled to a new country, what do you think it would be like?
- Describe an academic or extracurricular activity that helped you shape your personality. What did you learn?
- Describe a time when you set a target which you couldn’t achieve and what did you do?
- Have you mentored another person to achieve their goals? What did you learn from this experience?
- What are your biggest passions outside of school & work? How are you involved in them?
- Tell us about an experience working with team where members didn’t get along well in the beginning. What did you do?
- How will you enrich learning environment among your peers at Simon Business School?
- Tell us about a failure. What did you learn from it?
To reiterate, the best way to truly get better at giving clear responses quickly is by practicing beforehand to different possible questions and having a database of powerful and compelling stories ready well in advance.
For Comprehensive Resources on Preparing for MBA Video Essays or MBA Interviews, check out MBAEssayNation’s exhaustive interview preparation blog posts
How To Present Yourself During Your MBA Interviews
5 Simple Ways You Can Beat Stress And Prepare for Your MBA Interview
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