Smart Ways to Use AI for Your MBA Application

Between prepping for tests, writing essays, updating your resume, and managing deadlines, the business and grad school application process can be overwhelming. Thankfully, AI tools can be a valuable resource for students who are navigating this process, and today we’re going to show you how to ethically and strategically use AI to sharpen your grad school application. Let’s begin.

Brainstorming and Structuring Your Personal Statement

Writing a personal statement can be one of the most daunting aspects of the application process. You’ve got to be persuasive, personal, and professional, and it’s got to be done within a limited word count—yikes.

Indeed, the personal statement aspect of an application is where many applicants freeze. You want to be compelling and unique, but how should you start? Here is an example prompt and response from ChatGPT to help you get started.

Example prompt: I’m applying to top MBA programs. I want to write a personal statement that highlights my experience in product management, my interest in sustainability, and why I want to pivot into ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) consulting. Can you help me outline a strong structure for my essay?

ChatGPT:

• Introduction: Brief anecdote or moment that sparked your interest in ESG.
• Professional Background: Highlight product management skills, leadership, and results.
• Transition: Why you want to move into ESG and how your skills align.
• Why MBA/Why Now: Tie in goals and program fit.
• Conclusion: Reaffirm your vision and values.

When it comes to devising prompts to feed AI be as descriptive as possible, as this will get you the best results.

Editing and Refining Essay Drafts

Even the strongest writers can benefit from another set of eyes. AI tools can be helpful if you can’t find anyone else to take a look at your draft, or if you’ve found yourself in a crunch and need to edit your essay on the spot.

Once your essay is written, AI can help you polish it without compromising your own unique voice. Here is an example of a prompt requesting help on editing a personal essay.

Example prompt: Can you review this MBA essay for clarity and conciseness? Please point out any grammar issues or awkward phrasing, but don’t rewrite it completely (include essay in prompt).

ChatGPT: Consider changing “I was responsible for managing” to “I led” to strengthen the sentence.

The AI tool may also make suggestions to help keep your essay clear and concise.

ChatGPT: This sentence is 42 words long. Consider breaking it into two for clarity.

It’s important to remember to instruct the AI tool to maintain your tone of voice, as detailed in the above example prompt. One of the most important aspects of your personal essay is your unique personal touch, as it showcases your personality.

Tailoring Your Resume for Graduate Admissions

Your resume isn’t just a list of past jobs, it’s a snapshot of what you bring to a grad program. MBA programs in particular want to see leadership qualities, results, and career progression. AI tools can help you organize and frame your experience effectively. Check out this example prompt and response.

Example prompt: Here’s a resume bullet point from my role in operations: “Managed supply chain logistics for a mid-sized retailer.” Can you help me make this sound more results-driven and leadership-focused?

ChatGPT: Led supply chain operations for a mid-sized retailer, optimizing logistics processes and reducing delivery delays by 18%.

Something to watch out for is the way AI tools like ChatGPT like to “embellish” from time to time. Take a look at the above response. Here, ChatGPT has quantified the bullet point from the example prompt with “18%,” despite the prompt not including any quantifiable information.

If you have quantifiable examples, include them in your prompt. If you don’t, you can either tell the AI tool in your prompt or you can alter the response to omit any quantifiable examples the AI adds. For more on how to write a resume without quantifiable examples, check out our previous advice here.

Researching Programs and Planning Your Application Timeline

You can also use AI tools to help you get organized early on in the application process. Instead of manually combing through websites, you can use AI to summarize program offerings, compare core curricula, or generate lists of application deadlines.

Example prompt: Can you compare the core curriculum and leadership development programs at Harvard Business School (HBS), Stanford GSB, and Wharton?

ChatGPT: HBS emphasizes general management through the case method. Stanford GSB focuses on personal leadership development with the "Leadership Labs” and “TALK” series. Wharton offers flexible curriculum paths and quant-heavy electives with the McNulty Leadership Program.

Practicing for Admissions Interviews

For many, the interview portion of the application process is by far the most nerve-racking. Preparation is key when minimizing interview anxiety, and you can use AI tools to create a simulated interview scenario.

Example prompt: Can you ask me MBA interview questions and give feedback on my answers?

ChatGPT:

• Why do you want to pursue an MBA now?
• Tell me about a time you failed.
• What is your leadership style?
• How would your colleagues describe you?
• Why do you want to go to this school?

Here’s an example of a user providing an answer to “Tell me about a time you failed” along with ChatGPT’s edited version:

Unpolished Answer: “During a group project, I was responsible for compiling everyone’s sections into the final report. Because two people were late turning theirs in, I had to stay up all night and the final product wasn’t as strong as it could’ve been. Our professor gave us a B.”

ChatGPT: “During my final year in college, I was leading a team on a research project where I was responsible for compiling the final report. I assumed everyone would submit their sections by our agreed-upon deadline, but I didn’t account for delays or follow up in advance. As a result, two sections came in late, and I had to rush to finish the report the night before it was due. While we still earned a B, I knew we could have performed better.

That experience taught me the importance of proactive communication and contingency planning. Since then, I’ve made it a point in both academic and professional settings to create buffer deadlines, confirm progress regularly, and build in time for review. This shift helped me successfully manage later group projects and even lead teams during my internships with far better results.”

As you can see, the AI tool (in this case, ChatGPT), expanded on the unpolished answer and included information about how the misstep became a lesson. Using AI in this way can help you learn how to strengthen your answers to interview questions.

To be clear, you should never rely on AI tools to write your application materials for you. Admission committees value authenticity, and generic AI-written essays are often easy to spot. Besides, writing your essay and putting together your application is part of the process of building your future career—if you start off based on a lie or through cheating, you’ll only be setting yourself up for disaster later on.

AI tools are great for brainstorming ideas, getting unstuck, polishing grammar, or getting organized, but it’s critical that you put the work in and use AI only to help you learn. Think of AI as a sort of assistant, not a replacement for your own skills.

Rob Porter is an Editor at Vault.