ISB Essay Analysis, Tips, and Sample Essays for 2025 Admissions

This essay analysis article has been developed using the decade-long experience of the team of Former Admissions Officers at ISBmantra, drawing further learnings from their understanding of the ISB admissions process gained while reviewing thousands of real ISB applications as part of the core admissions team at ISB. 

ISB essay prompts offer an opportunity to present your profile in detail, focusing on key qualities and supporting them with relevant examples. As you craft your responses, it’s crucial to go beyond the literal meaning of the questions and provide a holistic view of your personal and professional profile, using the essay prompts as the foundation for your answers.

In this article, we will analyze and share helpful tips on how to write the ISB essays for the 2025 admissions and also share a few ISB sample essays to solidify your understanding.

Understanding ISB’s Expectations

ISB has consistently posed questions that help the school assess applicants’ core professional and personal qualities and professional plans post-ISB. According to Vikram Singh, Former ISB Admissions Officer – For the 2025 intake, ISB seeks to evaluate applicants in three distinct areas:

1. Applicants’ strengths & weaknesses
2. Their journey through success and failure
3. Motivation to pursue the PGP at ISB

To begin with, let us understand what ISB looks for in a candidate. A one-year program, competitive applicant pool, high academic rigor, and placement prep starting just over six months into the program – these are just some of the factors influencing the selection criteria of the Indian School of Business. Therefore, some of the aspects of your profile that you must effectively present through your essays include:

1. Quality of your past professional experience
2. Strong evidence of Resilience and Learnability
3. Ability to manage People, Projects, and/or Problems

These qualities are not only crucial for admission to ISB but also for assessing your potential recruitability post-MBA. Let’s build on these guidelines to develop strong answers to the essay prompts for the ISB PGP 2024-2025.

For the 2025 intake, you must answer 2 mandatory essay questions for the Post Graduate Programme (PGP). The word limit for both essays is 400 words. Additionally, the application provides the opportunity to answer an Optional Essay with a 250-word limit. If you are a re-applicant, you are required to answer a re-applicant essay in no more than 200 words.

ISB PGP Essay Questions for 2025 Admissions

The following are the questions for the ISB PGP application for the 2025 intake:

1. Contemplate situations that have shaped your personal journey. Present what these situations have taught you about your strengths and weaknesses, and how they have shaped your personal and professional journey. (400 words)
2. What intellectual experiences have influenced your approach to learning and have led you to pursue an MBA? Please describe using anecdotes from your own experiences. (400 words)
3. Given your previous experience and future aspirations, how do you plan to use the PGP at ISB to fulfil your professional goals? (250 words) – Optional

At ISBmantra, with our Core Team of Former ISB Admissions Officers, we have mentored 1000+ applicants over the last 10 years. Here is our analysis of the ISB PGP 2023 Application essays. 

ISB PGP Essay 1 Analysis

Contemplate situations that have shaped your personal journey. Present what these situations have taught you about your strengths and weaknesses, and how they have shaped your personal and professional journey. (400 words)

First things first – it’s a business school application and not an essay writing competition. Before you start compiling key points and stories to be communicated through this essay, ask yourself if these points and stories will be relevant to a business school. Evaluate if the admissions team at ISB will get to understand you better through these examples and make an informed decision about your ability to contribute to the class at ISB and your potential to achieve good career success post-MBA. With this understanding, let’s get to answering the question. 

To answer this essay question, break it down into three parts – 

1. Situations/experiences that you think are critical to your life story, 
2. Your strengths, weaknesses, and values so identified, and 
3. How you have demonstrated these strengths/values  

Once you have identified relevant incidents and stories, arrange them to present a comprehensive picture of your personal and professional self. Connect the dots for the reader, highlighting your strengths as well as areas for growth. The “emphasizing your strengths and weaknesses” part of the essay prompt doesn’t really require you to list your strengths and weaknesses like you would do if this were asked to you in a personal interview. In this essay, you are better off focusing on the right stories and relevant aspects of your life journey, touching upon your strengths and weaknesses in the process. 

In your conclusion, you may highlight how your primary strengths (feel free to omit weaknesses here) have enabled you to make critical life decisions, grow professionally, and undertake challenging tasks, projects, roles, pursuits, etc..

ISB PGP Essay 1 – Sample Essay Structure

1. Introductory paragraph presenting the overarching theme of your personal and professional journey
2. Personal Story-1 with details about why it is important to your journey
3. Personal Story-2 / Professional Story-1 further presenting critical aspects of your personality
4. Professional Story-2 establishing other important qualities that you would like to present (if space allows)
5. Concluding paragraph how these qualities/strengths have equipped you to pursue challenging roles, take critical decisions, etc. 

ISB PGP Essay 1 Sample Structure

ISB PGP Essay 2 Analysis

What intellectual experiences have influenced your approach to learning and have led you to pursue an MBA? Please describe using anecdotes from your own experiences. (400 words)

This question is worded interestingly to explore the gaps in your current skillset and the intellectual experiences that have enhanced your knowledge, skills, and approach. Since the question directly connects these experiences with your decision to pursue an MBA, the anecdotes/instances/stories must balance presenting a strong candidature with the need for an MBA. 

The simplest way to do so is to present 2-3 of your best professional examples, where you were a part of some exciting project/initiative, how the projects were challenging and intellectually stimulating, how they allowed you to work with smart people/stakeholders, and how in the process, you discovered your own potential to do better by augmenting your skills. Be careful not to present yourself as an external observer while narrating these anecdotes. These are supposed to be “experiences”, and you would rather show that your involvement and contribution was significant enough. 

Can these “intellectual experiences” be from outside the workplace? Probably, yes! Preferably, no! If you have some non-work related stories that are worth telling, try your best fitting them in the first essay. But if you think that the story/experience relates really well with the need for an MBA, and connects fairly well with your future plans, then why not! 

Should this also be the place to present your career goals and why ISB? Well, there is the third optional (read recommended) essay that is purely about your professional goals and ISB. Therefore, we recommend using this space as much as possible to talk about the interesting and enriching projects and experiences you have been part of instead of getting too future-focused here. 

ISB PGP Essay 2 – Sample Essay Structure

1. Get rid of the introductory paragraph that you were planning and dive straight into your first story
2. Conclude the first story with how the experience enriched your learning, perspective, and outlook. Control your urge to talk about the need for an MBA already. Let this be a build up to the concluding paragraph.
3. Follow the Situation-Task-Action-Result format, but invest most space in detailing the challenges and your response to them
4. Transition to the next story or situation, again following the STAR format. Touch upon what you learnt and how you would like to further that learning to perform better
5. Add another experience/story if space allows
6. Pack a punch with a good summary of your experiences, how they allowed you to develop some exciting skills, opened you to the need for an MBA to challenge yourself further, and grow in your chosen field, industry, etc. (provide a line or two of specific details here).

ISB PGP Essay 2 Sample Structure

ISB PGP Essay 3 (Optional) Analysis

Given your previous experience and future aspirations, how do you plan to use the PGP at ISB to fulfil your professional goals? (250 words)

It is interesting that the Indian School of Business (ISB) has asked applicants to write an optional essay this year, with an essay prompt so well defined. The optional essay that’s truly optional is the one that asks for “anything else that you may want to communicate to the admissions committee”. This isn’t an “anything else” essay. 

With a clear ask, and given that the career goal essay has always been asked by ISB in the past, you would be remiss to not present your future plans. Another reason for not treating this essay optional is that it will really help the essay reader place all your stories in context if you are able to give them a hang of why you are taking this important decision of leaving your current employment and spending the time and money to pursue an MBA. 

Do not get too engrossed in detailing your plans for the “future and beyond”. The focus should be on what you want to achieve immediately after the MBA. Feel free to add a flavor of how you want your career to shape in the medium to long term.

Provide specific details about the industry, function, etc., pertaining to your post-MBA dream role. Do not get into designations. You may very well be made the CTO of a company with 5 employees – but is that what you want? It helps to keep your short-term goals consistent with your past. The recruiter is going to value your experience until now; hence do not underplay it. The idea is to demonstrate your intention of effectively leveraging the experience and exposure you have gained until now. You may want to move to a different function or industry. Focus on the transferable skills that will equip you to perform in your new role.

If you recognize that the role/industry you want to enter is a bit too competitive, it may be a good idea to also present a Plan B. But both your Plan A and Plan B must be consistent with your long-term plans. 

Conclude by validating the indispensable need for an MBA and why you think ISB precisely resonates with your aspirations. Remember not to go overboard with ‘why ISB’, since it would be too simplistic to expect to be selected just because you were able to list several clubs, electives, and the faculty at ISB. The essay is more about you and how ISB remains the most relevant choice in your scheme of things.

ISB PGP Essay 3 – Sample Essay Structure

1. Briefly establish your career progression to date and the skills that have been developed
2. Present your career aspirations, focusing on your short-term goals, and adding a flavor of your long-term plans
3. Talk about specific aspects of the ISB PGP that will equip you to achieve your career goals

ISB PGP Re-applicant Essay Analysis

How has your profile changed from the time you last applied to the ISB (200 words max)?

Since your last application to ISB, did you create opportunities to enhance your skills? You presented certain career goals in your last application. Did you take up professional initiatives and self-learning opportunities to move towards your professed career goals? Did you assess what might have gone wrong, talk to alumni and industry experts, and attempt to position yourself better this year?

If your GMAT score was not good enough, were you willing to push yourself and retake the test? If you end up scoring the same again – the school will still appreciate your intent and your commitment to the goal of doing the MBA at ISB.

Talk about the new projects, new learnings from these projects, things that you got to do for the first time, and interactions you have had that had an impact on you and your career plans. Do not forget to include the experiences that helped you refine your core and soft skills further.

If you presented a goal or a career plan last year that you failed to justify in the interview; or if, after more thorough research, you have decided to opt for an alternative plan that you can validate, do not hesitate to make a statement.

Feel free to present the specifics of the research you engaged in to arrive at a more rational career plan. For all logical purposes, this is a better approach than presenting the same career plans again, when you are not too confident about being able to substantiate them in the interview.

ISB Sample Essays

Essays are the most powerful tool for you to narrate your story. It is an opportunity for you to highlight the important information, building a convincing point on why you are a good fit for the ISB MBA program. When you start writing your ISB essay, it is important to keep in mind to answer the entire question and not just a part of it.

Here are a few essay questions asked by ISB in the past few years:

1. Enrolling in a Business School is an important career decision. Critically look at your career to date, the choices you have made, the key influences behind those choices, your goals for the future and how do you think ISB’s PGP can help you in achieving your goals.
2. At ISB we value diversity as it enhances both the in-class and out-of-class learning experience. Tell us how would you contribute to the same.
3. Describe with examples the most important personal quality that you possess that significantly enhances your prospects of being successful as a leader.
4. What are your short-term and long-term career goals? How will the Post Graduate Program at ISB assist you in achieving your goals?
5. Peer Learning is a major building block of PGP at ISB. Help us in understanding how will you be able to add value to the PGP peer group through your personal and professional qualities/capabilities?

Based on our analysis of ISB Essay questions from previous years, we understand that ISB typically asks these categories of questions:

• Why you?
• Personal/professional qualities with examples
• Your career plans post-ISB
• Why ISB?

Here are two ISB Sample Essays, which will give you further insights on developing holistic ISB PGP Essays. Do note that these essays do not directly answer the current year’s essay questions, and are presented here to help you understand the right approach. 

ISB Sample Essay 1

I have deliberately explored beyond the traditional boundaries and outside my comfort zone, in the effort to evolve more comprehensively, as an individual and as a professional. Be it launching my footwear venture while still in college, stepping into a fundraising role at Cerestra, a niche private equity firm, or moving to a new country where the orientations and regulations were unfamiliar, I have measured up to every challenge and performed commendably, in every domain I have operated in. The appetite for quest and learning is the defining feature of my personality.

Working in one of the most internationally diverse cosmopolitans, Dubai, has taught me to respect and embrace diverse cultures and ethnicities, in the workplace and outside it. My international experience will serve to add global perspectives to classroom discussions with the diversely accomplished peer group at ISB. I hope to share valuable insights and perspectives, culled from my professional journey, during experiential learning and case study sessions.

I learned the dynamics of the Real Estate industry in an emerging economy through my stint at Cerestra, the first ‘education real estate’ focused private equity in India. I furthered my understanding of the industry in a developed economy, through my work in the Corporate Finance team of Sobha Realty, one of the largest real estate developers in the Middle East. I hope to leverage my knowledge of the industry while participating in and leading the SREI Infrastructure Club of ISB. By organizing networking sessions and coffee chats with industry stalwarts and treks, and site visits to leading companies, I want to further the club’s objectives and provide a practical platform to promote the development as well as the investment aspect of Real Estate.

I was introduced to long-distance running 3 years ago and founded ‘The Barclays Global Markets Running Group’. As a team of 15 colleagues, we participated in various 10 km and 21km marathons in Mumbai. I hope to continue the trend at ISB and introduce the Running Club. 

Having had the opportunity to interview for the ISB YLP even with a 640 GMAT score, during college, I have remained focused and driven by my ISB dream, and plan to consolidate and draw from my professional experiences post-college, to contribute to the learning of my peers even as I enhance my own knowledge and skills in the process.

ISB Sample Essay 2

Working with Barclays allowed me to engage proactively, in Finance, the domain that fascinates me immensely. Leveraging my CFA Level-2 learnings, I embraced FinTech and complicated marketing strategies, while transforming into a mature professional. Targeting the sought-after ‘buy side, I learned the impact and mechanics of ‘socially relevant’ investments at a niche private equity, Cerestra, which exposed me to the core and core plus investment strategies. Impelled to explore the mammoth Real Estate industry, I joined the Corporate Finance team of Sobha Realty, Dubai. Collaborating with CXOs to start new verticals induced a steep, learning curve.

Post-MBA, I hope to operate as an Associate at a prestigious Private Equity or Asset Management firm, where I can specialize in Real Estate. Working with companies like Aditya Birla Group, Kautilya Finance, or Shaporji Palonji Investment, I can hone my skills in identifying the most rewarding asset investment opportunities. After consolidating my competencies, I aspire to launch a crowdfunding venture to fund Indian developers, who focus on affordable housing. I aim to provide low-cost capital to affordable housing projects, by pooling investments from the growing middle-class segment. 

The ISB PGP will acquaint me thoroughly with the theoretical and application-oriented aspects of business functions such as Operations, Marketing, Technology, and Strategy while allowing me to imbibe multidimensional skills from the richly diverse peer group. I hope to collaborate with the Punj Lloyd Institute in research on Crowdfunding Real Estate. The Practicum Courses will enlighten me about mid-sized firms in fundraising. Scanning student blogs, researching college facilities, observing the profiles of reputed faculty, and conversing with alumni like Anubhav Chakrabortty (ISB’19) and Shailesh Chandak (ISB’12), about their transformational journeys at ISB, I reaffirmed my belief that ISB is the best equipped and most enabling platform for me to accelerate my onward journey.

Breaking down the ISB Admissions process with Former Sr Admissions Manager:

Richa Agarwal, Sr Admissions Manager at ISB, shares insights about how to get an admission at the Indian School of Business, speaking about various topics such as: 

• Standing out from the rest of the PGP applicants 
• How to deal with a low GMAT/GRE score
• What does ISB look for in its candidates and much more

Make sure you watch the video if you are  applying to ISB this year –