Describe your career goals. How will an MBA from Ross help you to achieve those goals? What is your vision for how you can make a unique contribution to the Ross community?

Sample One

I have always been fascinated by the healthcare industry, observing how numerous companies interact with one another to deliver care and service to millions of people. This interest led me to work in the employee benefits area, which has shown me how employees and employers utilize the healthcare system daily. However, I want to impact healthcare in the US on a broader scale and believe I can best help shape the healthcare system as a healthcare consultant. By providing strategic guidance to top healthcare providers and companies I would be helping to impact millions of individuals and their quality of living. Consulting, in particular, appeals to me because I have enjoyed the analytical and client relationship work in my current consulting roles, as well as assisting more senior consultants with business development. Thus, my short term post-MBA career goal is to join a healthcare consulting firm, such as Camden Associates, and progress up the firm's ranks to a senior leadership position, where eventually I would become a practice leader in the healthcare provider segment, assisting large provider groups with the delivery of care to their patients. This specialization in the healthcare provider segment would allow me to directly contribute to the improvement of our healthcare system.

I am pursuing an MBA to enable my transition to healthcare consulting, and I believe that Ross is the perfect fit on a number of levels. Ross’ core curriculum will provide me with a solid understanding of key business subjects, and more advanced classes, like Healthcare Markets and Public Policies, will further prepare me to specialize in healthcare consulting. Also, the Business of Biology class would provide a great background in the constantly evolving fields of biotechnology and pharmacy.

I am excited by the MAP program as through working on a real-world project based in the healthcare industry, I will gain valuable knowledge and will be exposed to numerous problems faced by healthcare companies. It would also give me a head start in a healthcare consulting career, while further developing my leadership and client interaction skills.

I have never been content to sit on the sidelines and take a passive role, whether at work, school, or in my community. Despite my relocations due to employment, I have held leadership positions in several professional and service organizations, and my time at Ross would be no different. I would leverage my past HopeWell ComVMItee experiences of event planning and sponsorship by running for VP of Clubs, in the Student Government. I would also look to make an impact with the Healthcare Life & Sciences club by utilizing my networking and fundraising experience to solicit sponsors for the Healthcare & Life Science forum.

I believe a Ross MBA is instrumental to my future success as a healthcare consultant through its rigorous academic curriculum combined with the MAP program. Ross' strong student clubs and curriculum help make Ross the ideal MBA program for me. I look forward to contributing a great deal to Ross, while knowing I will be benefiting just as much.

Sample Two


My career goal is to create significant and lasting opportunities in underserved communities by merging my passions for entrepreneurship and philanthropy. My family’s entrepreneurial history fuels my passion for start-ups and I believe as future generations of ideological investors enter the market, pools of social capital will continue to grow, fostering the community-based economic redevelopment needed to help cities like Detroit rebound from decades of urban decay.

I want to help inventive social entrepreneurs and nonprofit organizations deliver transformative solutions to social problems. To that end, my short-term goal is to work as a portfolio analyst with a socially oriented VC firm or foundation such as Good Capital, Invest Detroit, or the Calvert Foundation where I’ll conduct due-diligence and performance analysis by evaluating business models and strategy, potential for growth, and public-private partnerships. As my career progresses I’ll take a more active role in managing and originating investments by serving on boards, recruiting investors, and launching new funds.

In the final stage of my career I’ll continue to give back in the nonprofit space, launching a boutique, nonprofit consulting firm for inner city social entrepreneurs. Ultimately, my business will help them position and market themselves to potential investors.

There are many reasons why Ross stands out as the ideal school for my MBA experience. Beyond first year classes where I’ll develop an advanced foundation of core business principles, I’ll prepare for a career in philanthropic capital by choosing elective classes from the Nonprofit and Public Management Center as well as the Zell Lurie Institute.

I desire an academic experience that blends theory with real-world practice in a collaborative environment, which is why Ross’ action-based learning model is particularly attractive. I can’t imagine a greater experiential learning opportunity than the Multidisciplinary Action Project. In MAP, I’ll look for a project in the non-profit or public sector, testing not only the knowledge I’ve gained in the classroom but my ability to collaborate and use that knowledge to develop a real-world solution to a real-world business problem or opportunity.

To advance my goals of fostering urban rejuvenation and to aid my career transition to philanthropic capital management, I’ll target specific electives in my second year. There are many classes that stand out such as Urban Entrepreneurship, Social Entrepreneurship, Finance and the Sustainable Enterprise, and Solving Societal Problems Through Enterprise and Innovation. Ross clubs and other co-curricular activities will also be an important part of my MBA experience. I’d be eager to take on leadership roles in Ross’ renowned Net Impact chapter and to help local nonprofits through the Board Fellowship Program. Additionally, Ross provides a unique opportunity to gain exposure to philanthropic capital through participation in the student-led Social Venture Fund.

The vibrant culture of leadership, the emphasis action-based learning, the intellectual capital at both the Zell Lurie Institute and the Nonprofit and Public Management Center, infused with countless opportunities to grow academically, personally, and professionally make Ross the ideal school to pursue my goal of reviving underserved communities through philanthropic capital.

Sample Three

In my dream I see that Pakistan has been transformed into a global economic center with its cities studded with dazzling skylines, massive infrastructures, and flashing neon signs. Thirteen years ago when I left Pakistan, it was a poor country facing numerous social and economic challenges, but my recent trip to Pakistan left me with an optimistic feeling. My ultimate goal is to become a partner at a venture capital firm interested in incubating technology companies to help Pakistan develop a “startup” mentality – to take risks, be innovative, and create opportunities.

An MBA from Ross will be the ideal bridge to connect my strong analytical skills with a business perspective. In order to succeed as a venture capitalist, in the short-term I plan to complete an MBA from the Ross School of Business and work as a management consultant for a strategy firm specializing in technology companies. Having worked in Silicon Valley, I understand that the nexus between competent leadership and innovative idea is the key to a successful startup. In order to succeed, I need skills in finance, Human resources, and creative strategy development. My in depth technical knowledge will provide me invaluable insight in understanding potential niche markets, while my business training and high-level strategic thinking will give me the knowledge and experience to incubate competitive business ventures.

Some of the most exciting components of the Ross School of Business are its initiatives to prepare business leaders to work in South Asian Countries. The Center of Global Resource Leverage – India will provide me with an excellent forum to share my goals, as well as collaborate with and learn from similarly motivated people. The seminars and research forums sponsored under the umbrellas of Future Tech and Asia Business conferences, and the Zell Lurie Institute will deepen my understanding of business trends in Asia while providing opportunities to forge relationships with Asian business leaders for future ventures. My familiarity with the school, having earned my Masters degree from the University of Michigan, makes Ross an ideal place for me.

Outside of the classroom, I intend to join the Out for Business club and run for office. I have particularly enjoyed my discussions with Bill Marks from the Out for Business club and Jason Oct from the Entrepreneur and Venture club about the supportive and collaborative environment Ross promotes. I plan to host student cook-offs with the Michigan Gourmet club, and hone my consulting skills by assisting Ann Arbor’s nonprofit organizations through a lead role in the Business Organization and Development club.

I am a true believer in action-based learning. I learn the most in a “laboratory” setting, applying my knowledge in real innovative applications, making mistakes, and learning from those mistakes. Action-based learning will provide a similar “laboratory” to apply my classroom learning to real life business situations.

After seven years of work experience, I have reached the apex of my technical career, and am ready to pursue my next goal. I am excited about the prospect of attending Ross and gaining the knowledge and tools that will enable me contribute to Pakistan’s development. Several years from now, I want to wake up and realize that my dream of Pakistan as a global economic center is a reality.