Essay 1
 
Explain how obtaining an MBA at the McCombs School of Business will assist you in achieving your personal and/or professional life goals. Why is now the best time for you to pursue this degree? Your explanation should include, but is not necessarily limited to, a description of both your intermediate and long-term career goals, as well as a current vision of your desired employment upon graduation.
Four years ago, I left my homeland for Japan in search of career advancement and a chance to see the world outside of China. As an IT professional, I have achieved a high level of success, my salary has increased every year, and the company has been very satisfied with my rapid career progress. But after four years, I have realized that my short and long-term career goals cannot be realized through my current career path. Now is the time to earn my MBA degree from your highly respected program and return to China to become a successful leader in business.

My short-term career goal, immediately after earning my MBA degree, is to earn a leadership position in the IT department of a transnational financial firm in China. This career ā move will allow me to further hone my management skills while continuing to build a network of relationships, which is one of the most important factors in doing business in China. After learning as much as possible about the financial industry in China, my intermediate career goal is to open my own IT business, focusing on serving the financial trading needs of domestic and multinational customers as they conduct business in my home country. My dream and long-term career goal is to use the knowledge that I have gained through my business experience as well as my MBA training to put together a team that can construct a nationwide, full-service financial trading and stock exchange network that will become the market leader in the Asia-Pacific region. The Chinese stock market now has thousands of enterprises and millions of investors, with regulations continually being relaxed to make it easier for domestic and foreign investors to become involved. My plan is to build this national financial network to facilitate the exchange of resources and monitor the economy to lead the market in the correct direction. This is an ambitious goal, but certainly not an unreachable one given the current conditions and potential growth of the Chinese market. To reach my long-term career goals, I need to expand my vision and knowledge from that of a technician to that of a business manager. As an IT professional with eight years of experience, I have takenā part in the management, design and implementation of many projects, mainly in the areas of banking, settlements and capital markets, but my contributions were mostly technical in nature. I need to earn my MBA degree to understand the big picture – not just the technicalities but the business and strategies that the technology supports. With China’s entry into the World Trade Organization and rapid progress towards an open market, it is time for me to earn my MBA degree and return to China with both technical expertise and expert MBA knowledge gained from the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas.

Out of the thousands of MBA programs available, I have chosen to apply to your school because it is recognized worldwide for excellence, as evidenced by the top ten worldwide ranking by The Wall Street Journal this year. I believe that I can also contribute to the excellence of your program by bringing my extensive business experience and the Chinese perspective to the classroom discussions. My learning will not only come from your excellent faculty but also from my classmates, who are among the best and brightest people in the world. I understand that your program combines excellent classroom theory instruction with extensive case studies that give real-life examples of both good and bad business decision-making. The combination of classroom learning and the friendships and relationships that I will develop duāring my MBA studies in your program will prepare me to become the best business leader possible when I return to China. I will do my best in all aspects of my life and career to become an outstanding example, in the most populous country in the world, of the benefits of earning an MBA degree from the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas.