How to bring collinearity in your post-MBA goals?

If there is one constant in every MBA application, no matter what School you target, it is the essay question about your post-MBA goals. 

Just about every top B-School is gonna ask: “DISCUSS YOUR SHORT AND LONG-TERM CAREER ASPIRATIONS WITH AN MBA?”

But why do they do so?

The truth is that Business schools are looking for very passionate people with strong personalities trying to bring an Impact using MBA as a tool. Hence, this question is one of the most important aspects of your application, and if you cannot convince the admissions committee of the goals you have written and the need for an MBA, you lose the game, no matter how strong your profile and application is!

Now let us understand what Collinearity is and why is it crucial in your post-MBA goals?

Collinearity is all about aligning your current experience, short term and long-term goals.

It’s very simple; suppose you bake bread now, after working for years, you decide to start baking other things like buns, waffles, cake, etc. Finally, you choose to open your bakery to expand your business and Bingo! That’s how collinearity works. Now being a baker, you can’t go all the way to start processing jams, no matter how delicious it may sound! Such a long-term goal is most certainly unrealistic and close to hypothetical. 

SHORT TERM GOALS

Short term goal is defined as something that you will pursue right after your MBA, which derives its relevance from your current work experience. An MBA curriculum directly helps in providing you with transferable skills or upgrading your skillset to help achieve your short-term goal. 

And hence it must be collinear with your past work experience.

When you talk about your Short term goals, they must have the following three elements. 

Location

Industry /Domain

Function

Among the three, post your MBA; usually, you should only change two of the above three. This is because it helps make your case stronger. Of course, you can change all three elements, but then, you really need to connect the dots so strongly that it positions your goals strong and, at the same time, reasonable.

You need to get into adcoms shoes to understand this; What do they care about the most in your post-MBA goals?

The annual career report is certainly one of the most important things. Now try to link this career report with your employability.

It is much more critical to focus on making your short-term goals realistic. Since an MBA is very critical to reach your short-term goal post MBA, this will have the most immediate impact on making your case strong in your B-school applications.

Let us take an example to understand the concept of collinearity in your Post –MBA goals. 

Suppose you are someone who works as a Program Manager, under R&D for, say, Computing & IT industry.

Now for your short-term post-MBA goal, a career as a product manager in an R&D group for the same industry makes sense.

You can also choose to become, 

A Senior Analyst – Product Management or 

A Senior Consultant – Product Management 

The main aim is to bring about your strengths and make sure your short-term goal capitalizes on skills learned in the past. Like, For a successful product manager, you need good leadership abilities, communication skills, teamwork, and planning & organizing skills. 

Moreover, be sure to mention what excites you most about working as a program manager, how your current work would impact the industry’s future, and how an MBA would help amplify your impact by handing out new opportunities.

Get beneath the layers! Mention why you chose that school due to its extensive core coursework, opportunities provided to apply learning to real-world problems, its culture of engagement, alumni network, and ensure a lifelong network through extracurricular & social opportunities, which would help build camaraderie.

LONG TERM GOALS

Long-term goals help you establish yourself as a visionary. Your long-term goals are what can be stated as your ultimate professional desires. Your whole application derives its direction from these. One of the most important things to understand is that your MBA doesn’t directly shape your long-term goals; however, it definitely helps develop your personality and knowledge base, which becomes critical in the long run. Furthermore, long-term goals help the admissions committee learn about your character, vision, principles, and the impact you can create in your industry, domain, or community. This is your opportunity to project yourself as a global business leader they want to boast about.

Hence, while determining your Long term goals, it’s necessary to keep in mind the time frame. So, when you start thinking about your long-term goals, first try to see yourself approximately 5-6 years post your MBA.

COLLINEARITY IN YOUR SHORT & LONG-TERM GOALS

Let us reconsider the above example itself. With your current position as Product Manager in an R&D group for a Computing & IT company and Senior Analyst as your post MBA goal, for long-term goals, you can choose to be an executive leader at a high level – technology strategy for any of the famous technological institutions.

That’s how you link your long-term goals to your short-term goals in order to make them collinear.

What’s more intriguing is that if you have previously worked as an engineer in the IT sector or have a tech background, then voila! You have created a fairy-tale roadmap that is more than just vague intentions of an aspiring candidate; it’s a piece of work of someone with a creative & sharp vision. 

Remember that your long-term goals must be aligned with your past work experience & short-term goals to highlight the positive impact you can have in the classroom and post-school. At the same time, your Long term goals should aim toward redefining the business and creating an impact in the industry you wish to work in globally.