The aim of every piece of write-up that you submit with your application is to tell the University something about you. They ask for essays not because they want to judge your writing skills, but they are interested in knowing you and understanding how well you will fit in their community. Since ages, we have been focusing on normal text essays. There is no doubt that they are the easiest way to pen down your thoughts, but the University loves the candidate who strives to make a difference, who is able to think out of the box. Most of the essay topics judge you on your ability to go beyond the mundane, innovate and excel, and when you choose a video format for your essay over the normal text format, you have already showcased an ability to innovate.
The video essay provides you an excellent platform to showcase your creativity and innovative thinking skills. You excel by ‘creating’ an essay rather than ‘writing’ one.
University of Maryland often asks for a video essay wherein the candidate is required to present himself/herself as a suitable candidate for the program. They need to highlight why they want do this program, how they will benefit, how they intend to contribute etc.
We would also like to share an interesting question asked by Babson Olin on these lines:
Define Your Difference
Help us learn more about the multifaceted and talented person you are by picking 3 of the 6 questions below and responding to each one in 150 words or less. If you prefer, you may answer any of these questions in a more creative format such as video, infographic or presentation. (Please clearly identify which question(s) you are answering. If using a video format, the response to each question can be up to 1 minute in length.)
- What is an innovative/creative idea or change that you are most proud of implementing personally or professionally?
- Tell us about a time when something in your life felt particularly challenging and how you were able to respond to that challenge.
- Tell us three random things about you beyond what is already apparent from your application.
- Describe the most constructive feedback that you have received and how you implemented this into your personal and/or professional life.
- Describe a past experience when you were trying to learn or master something new.
- Which of the Babson Learning Goals do you find most appealing and why?
Though, at the outset, it may seem a daunting task to create a video for any of these responses, trust us, the impact it creates is worth the effort. Many of us are camera shy, but for once, if you can shed your inhibitions and present yourself, your accomplishments and your aspirations creatively through the video essay to the university, you would create a niche for yourself.
Also remember not in case of every university, you will have this interesting opportunity to convey your thoughts. So, go ahead and click that perfect shot!
