Cambridge Judge 2012 - 2013 Essay Tips

What did you learn from your most spectacular failure? (200 words)

• The choice of the word spectacular is intentional; it is designed to invoke your most embarrassing or high-stakes failure
• 200 words is tight – describe the failure in a sentence or two, and then quickly get into what you learned from it

What are your short and long term career objectives? What skills/characteristics do you already have that will help you to achieve them? What do you hope to gain from the degree and how do you feel it will help you achieve the career objectives you have? (please do not exceed 500 words)

• You can start by describing what you’ve done so far, where your strengths lie and how they will help you achieve your goals
• A little writing trick for this essay –  first, write this essay without the second half (why the degree?).  Write your career objectives, and as you read them (or a reviewer reads them), it should be plainly obvious what your needs are.  Those needs should then be articulated in a few sentences for why Judge, why the degree, but those sentences should be a natural conclusion to your first half.
• The important thing is for the reader to be able to read your current assessment and the degree as a bridge to your goals as a coherent and persuasive story

If you could change one thing about your current organisation, what would you make different? How would you overcome obstacles to this change, and what impact would this change have in the short-term and long-term? (300 words)

• Be cautious - do not whine and complain about others in your company or specific people or policies
• Write on a positive note - what are some small quick wins and transformative changes that you'd like to see in the company?
• Remember to think through both the pluses and minuses of your ideas and acknowledge them