Columbia Business School Application - Admission/Application Essay Example

1. Given your individual background, why are you pursuing a Columbia MBA at this time? Judo has taught me what business acumen is! Hitting the opponent (problems) at the right spot and at the right time! The practical applications of my business experience have taught me the importance of timing and adaptability to the changed circumstances, new technology that makes the current systems outdated in no time, and the inevitability of adoption of the revised procedures, to remain well ahead in the race. With this perspective I wish to pursue MBA in International Business. Why Columbia? The answer is simple and straightforward. That which is evident needs no elaboration, explanation or appreciation. For example, light is bright and it is evident. Milk is white and it is evident. As such, simply say Columbia and everything is evident. The nooks and corners of business all over the world proclaim that Columbia is Business! My praising Columbia is just like a candle holding the light before the sun! Financial diagnoses are the two watchwords for a business executive. After completion of MBA in Columbia, my professional plans is to further strengthen and expand the family business, the first pharmaceutical company in North Africa, significantly growing and getting international in all of Africa and Europe. All the experience that I would get in Columbia will focus on this purpose and during the course of study I hope will have opportunities to interact with some of the alumni of this university. I also wish to pursue my ancillary love of microfinance projects and establish a company in Morocco, as service to the downtrodden sections of the society is the view and way of life for me. Without that perspective no business venture is complete. My microfinance projects will have multicultural workforce as they are the best ones to identify the local problems. I have also plans to open an investment fund that will be among the first Moroccan privately owned by locals. Through this new venture, we will strive to promote capitalism and entrepreneurship while funding projects that will aim at increasing Morocco’s standards of living. Though I stand by capitalism, the same cannot prosper side by side with the poverty of the people. As such my organizations, howsoever giant they may be in capital structure, will be responsive to the basic needs of the common man like food, clothing, shelter and education of children. Though success and profits are important aspect of business, I strongly believe that we need to change the definition of success which must lead to social good. Furthermore, my current field of study, Masters in International Business, has made it possible for me to acquire and understand the aspects of doing business on a global scale, which led me to pursue my journey with MBA in Finance, with major in fusions and acquisitions. New York has always been a dream destination for me. Having been attracted and truly interested in American culture for a long time, I believe that I would fit in to the environment with my capacity to adapt rapidly, my asset being my past experience, which led me to evolve in various countries like Morocco and Switzerland .I am now in France completing my last year of Master`s degree in International Business Management, at INSEEC Business School in Paris, France. I have also travelled from Shanghai to New York. My expertise in Judo and other sports activities needs to be understood in this context. There is a relation between business acumen and sports skills. The two Moroccan championships that I have won are not mere suffixes to my name. They mean a lot to me. Learning martial arts has led me to a better understanding of my body along with controlling my emotions and stress. Furthermore, I truly believe that sports in general bring peace of mind and wellbeing that are critical for personal and professional achievements. A healthy mind in a healthy body has been my credo since the beginning of my educational journey. Furthermore, culture has always been at the center of my education. Music, cinema and reading are such life-partners that provide me with a way out from the day-to-day hectic activities. I have managed to discover and appreciate culture through songs, movies or books, from different countries. Books are like the windows to study the life patterns of people of different ethnic groups. My extensive travel experiences have broadened my vision as to why the world is one family. Essay 2: Columbia Business School is located in the heart of the world's business capital - Manhattan. How do you anticipate that New York City will impact your experience at Columbia? To me business is the mission, and not commission! My desire to engage in Microfinance projects is for a socio-economic purpose to help the poor African people in my country to start with. I read a book “There are no Children Here” by Alex Kotlowitz about the living conditions of black children and women in Harlem ghettos which baffles definition. Childhood is blessing for the children, but not in this area. The Constitution of America stands suspended here as if! Violent crimes, social separation, drug wars, unemployment and the problems multiply with each passing day and their life stands devastated and the children and the combustible younger generation remain directionless and destination-less. They have to live in ill-maintained housing projects. The drug syndicate is so strong, the rivalries’ between the gangs are so intense, drug lords openly trade in the abandoned buildings and the police have no willingness to enter the ghetto for the fear of their own safety. Children live with no hope and no values. The contents of the book have deeply impacted me. Before I leave for Morocco, after completion of my MBA from Columbia, I will visit some of the microfinance companies in New York like ACCION USA, Business Center for New Americans and get tips from them about the ground realities related to the micro-finance projects. The mighty sky scrapers on one side of this great business hub of the world New York, and the stark poverty in ghettos have worried me much. I would like to find solutions for such imbalances in my own country first by perfecting a formula for wealth creation for the poor families. 3. What will the people in your Cluster be pleasantly surprised to learn about you? My Chinese girlfriend is someone special to me. She is soft-spoken, sensitive and highly principled. Though she belongs to a fairly rich business family, she has a passion for literature. Her special ‘weakness’ is roses in pairs, meaning two roses. Her T-shirt will always have her personal ‘logo’ of two pink roses. A single rose irritates her. We friends in the hostel decided to throw her the birthday party and give token presents. Reluctantly she agreed to participate, but ‘no cake, just a get together’ she said. We agreed. We friends mutually discussed. ‘Remember even the token presents need to be in pair’. Two chocolates, two pens, two books etc… That was scrupulously followed by seven of us who felicitated her on her birthday. When it was my turn, I greeted her with the words “shēng rì kuài lè” (Happy Birthday) with as perfect pronunciation as was possible for me. Though she knew that I was a linguist, being fluent in Arabic, French, English and Spanish, my knowledge of Chinese surprised her. She blushed! Her rosy cheeks reddened with her smile. That was my turn to give birthday present to her! I gave her one pink rose, pretending to be nervous! My friends exclaimed, “One rose?” She was a bit confused. She asked politely though, “Where is the second rose?” I had a close look at the reddened cheeks of that extraordinary beauty standing in front of me, now half-smiling, now half-angry! With words filled with admiration and to the clapping of my friends, I said with dignified humor, “THE SECOND ROSE IS YOUR POSE!” “Your smile is like the fresh honey from the bee-hive, It keeps million hopes alive! My friends cheered by thumping the desks! Read More