Although there is no particular recipe for admission, there are a few guideline criteria that admissions officers like to see from their applicants.

But first off, don’t apply right out of undergraduate – let yourself get a few years work experience first. This not only indicates your seriousness, but also gives you that extra confidence boost – you really know what you want from business school at this stage.

Decide what your priorities are

Heading to B-School isn’t an inexpensive decision. Before applying make sure you’re ready for the expense and the time commitment that this new challenge will pose. Once you’ve figured this out, do your research thoroughly. Make sure that what you are telling the school is in line with the programs they offer, and the programs you want to take advantage of.

Emphasize your diversity

This doesn’t mean just being culturally different, it also means you’ve made yourself stand out in a way that is different from all the other hundreds of applicants. Whether your prior job background is that of a telephone wiring engineer or an accountant or consultant, just be sure to give your experience some colour. What did you learn from it, and how will it work for you in your future goals post business school?

Express Yourself

Be able to talk about your background as if it were a story you are narrating. What is your past about? What have you achieved, and why was it important to you? What do you want from your study experience? And what will this give you for your future? List out your answers as bullet-points before you start writing. Incorporate all this into your essays. And be realistic, telling an admissions officer that you are the only person who can solve the global banking crisis really isn’t going to do much for your application, even if you have stellar GMAT scores.

Get a Second Opinion

You’ve spent so much time with your application that by the end, you may have lost sight of any errors that may have appeared on the form. Get a parent or friend to check it through for simple spelling and grammatical errors, and quiz them on whether they understand the jist of what you are trying to get across in your application – and whether they think it answers the questions you were asked.