Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. I like my mom's stuffing, getting together with family and friends for Thanksgiving dinner, and the theme of the day. Physically and philosophically, it's my kind of day.  For loosely analogous reasons, my all -time favorite blog post was last year's Thanksgiving post.  It combined beliefs I hold dear, a good story, AND admissions advice. Blogging nirvana. I received more compliments on that post than on any other post in 4.5 years of blogging.

This year, I intended to simply wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving whether you are in the United States, which is celebrating this uniquely American holiday, or not. The themes of appreciation and gratitude associated with Thanksgiving are universal -- even on days when the headlines scream terror attacks and recession. Or perhaps especially on days when the bad news outweighs the good we need to count our blessings. 

However, a few days ago I received an unusual thank-you from a former client and applicant. Our clients frequently thank us when we finish working with them and/or when accepted, but this woman wrote roughly four years after working with us. Consequently this Thanksgiving I want to share one of the nicest notes of appreciation Accepted has ever received.

"I am writing to you today because I want to give you a testimonial for use on your website for the law school essay [editing] services. I know your service must receive testimonials from people who have just received their admissions. I, however, am now an attorney and can see the long-term value of using your service, which is why I share this with you now.

"I worked with, if I recall correctly, Linda Abraham in the Fall of 2004 in writing essays that would help explain that I left law school [earlier] for family reasons, and why law schools should have taken a chance on me a second time. Linda really helped me distill my reasons for wanting to return to law school into clear, achievable goals. This process not only helped me write a terrific personal statement, but also helped me once I got into law school in keeping a clear focus on my long-term goals. This, in turn, truly made me very successful in law school, which allowed me to procure the most exciting and meaningful professional experience of my life, my current position as an associate with a wonderful law firm.

"In short, the money I spent to work with Linda was the best $1,000 I ever spent in my life. That $1K turned into over $75,000 in scholarships over my three years in law school, and, more importantly, got me into a school that really worked for me, which turned into a job that now pays me market rate. Talk about a return on investment!

"Thank you."

JS

While I would like to take credit for the work that so helped this applicant, I can't. She worked with an editor who has since left Accepted to pursue other professional interests, but any one of our staff would provide the dedicated support that this client received.

Thanks to all of you for sharing your dreams and aspirations with us, for letting us into your lives. Wishing you a Happy and Healthy Thanksgiving!

Although this week everyone seems a little preoccupied -- Thanksgiving, recession, the transition in US administrations -- the MBA admissions world stands still for no one and nothing.

For Round 2+ Applicants

• Admissions directors advise again and again, that good applications require time and reflection and time and rewriting. Now is the time to move forward with your Round 2 applications. Time is a key spice for great essays, and it will rapidly disappear if you are applying to several schools in January. Take advantage of Accepted's November special on MBA admissions consulting and editing: $100 off any order of $2000 or more placed on or before Nov. 30. Buy now and receive expert editing and mentoring. Wait until Monday --  the discount and the long weekend are both gone. (Use coupon code SAVE100 during checkout.)
• Thanks to all the MBA telethon participants. It was our best telethon ever.

For Round 1 Applicants

I previously declared November "International MBA Interview Month," and the world took notice.

• Interview feedback is flowing into the MBA Interview Feedback Database. Check it out before you interview, and please share your interview experience after you do so.
• It's a 10! Contest: Provide your interview feedback and you'll be automatically eligible for valuable prizes - http://www.accepted.com/mba/contest.aspx.
• We are receiving more and more requests for MBA interview preparation.
• MBA I.V.: MBA Interview Questions & Tips, Maxx Duffy's and my ebook containing interview tips and questions organized by school, is 20% off through Nov. 30.
• MBA applicants are signing up in droves for our popular free e-course "MBA Interview Prep."
• The Wharton MBA Interview Chat is online.
• Fellow AIGAC members have also provided excellent interview tips:
  • Clear Admit has a thoughtful post on what to ask the interviewer. I would also like to suggest that you google your interviewer, if you know who it will be ahead of time, or look her up on LinkedIn. A little info may help you connect.
  • MBAMission examines the pros and cons of on-campus and off-campus interviews. I completely agree with MBAMission's conclusion "If time and funds are not at issue, candidates should elect to travel to campus, as they can “kill two birds with one stone” — they can experience and evaluate a target program that is within their reach, all the while revealing their personal interest to the program itself."

For all MBA Applicants

• The MBA Tour is sponsoring a Photo Essay contest that runs from now until Feb. 10. The photo essay should present your view of the future of global business. Lots of great prizes.
• HBS takes a critical look at the MBA degree in "Harvard Business School Discusses Future of the MBA." Other than a slight overdose of "rah-rah Harvard," it is a thoughtful piece.

If you are applying to a competitive MBA program, you will have the opportunity (or, as some may see it, the dreaded task) of writing about a noteworthy achievement. Not only that, many schools will also want you to reflect on what you learned from that achievement. In most cases, it makes sense to write about a work-related achievement, unless you have a non-work related one that is especially remarkable or have discussed professional accomplishments in other essays. 

But how do you convey all the creativity, time-management, leadership, and innovation that went into your trophy event? After all, you will have about 700 words at best to paint this picture; sometimes, you may have as little as 300 words. In that case, even writing about an impressive achievement in such short space is an achievement in itself!

Here are some tips that will help you tell this story most effectively:

1. Be specific, but don't get bogged down in detail.

Don't burden the adcom with your industry-specific lingo or acronyms that you commonly use at work, which they may not even understand. Before you write, it can be very helpful to describe your achievement out loud to your editor, or even a friend, as if you were explaining it over coffee, to ensure that you can summarize it conversationally. When you can explain it simply to an outsider, you can write it simply and clearly. For example, "Our company was losing market share to a newer competitor because of their superior marketing materials and staff." Or, "Our client was facing lawsuits because their out-of-date patient correspondance software was generating letters to deceased patients." Try to keep the basic problem to no more than two sentences.

2. Highlight only the most significant aspects of the story.

You won't have room to list every meeting held, or every hurdle you had to overcome in getting the job done. Highlight the major steps you took in your achievement, looking for opportunities to highlight your creativity, persistence, interpersonal skills, and hard work along the way. These could include boning up on the problem/solution on your own time; buying lunch for the team members whose "buy-in" was essential; communicating the importance of the goal to associates and bosses. Show a progression of events, but again, keep it simple.

3. Quantify results. 

Don't just say that your new software program or sales pitch saved the company a "significant" amount of money. Whenever possible, put it in dollars and cents, whether it was in savings or increased sales. If the work was for a client who was so pleased with what you did that they hired you again for an even bigger project, say so.

Remember that "less is more" in writing, so don't feel bad that you don't have room to talk about that great speech you gave during one meeting. By zeroing in on the key parts of the story, especially where you can show concrete progression toward your goal, you'll make your significant achievement essay an achievement in itself! 

By Judy Gruen, award winning author and experienced admissions editor.

After writing the four or five required essays that most business schools ask for, my clients often ask me whether they really need to write another one for the optional essay.

My short answer is, “It depends.”

It depends on the individual’s background, how the school phrases the question, and whether there is anything else to say that would materially add to the application.

The optional essay is not an option if there is a weakness or inconsistency in your application. If your grades plummeted your sophomore year in college, this is the place to explain that you underwent surgery that semester. Or, if there is a gap in your employment, you provide the explanation. In other words, don’t leave the admissions committee guessing or assuming the worst.

When using this essay to address a weakness, keep it short and keep it simple. State the facts, the pertinent reasons surrounding the facts, and what you learned or what you did subsequently to improve or change, to the extent possible, the outcome. A straightforward presentation is the goal. Keep in mind, it is important not to make excuses for actions for which there is no excuse.

Let’s say you have no such weaknesses. Your next step in deciding whether you need to write the optional essay is to look at how the school defines it. Read the instructions carefully. Does the school say this essay is to be used only to explain gaps and problems? There’s your answer: If you have no inconsistencies, do not write the optional essay.

Most schools, however, are not as blunt, and allow you to provide additional information that would be helpful in reviewing your application. Note that schools do not ask for a summary of your essays, so take a look at your entire application. Have you presented a well-rounded picture of your candidacy? If you have nothing to add, then you do not need to write an optional essay just because it’s there. Are your essays heavily weighted to professional experiences? If yes, use the opportunity to showcase another dimension of your life, perhaps your community service activities or involvement in a sport. If you are still uncertain, consider what you could add that provides another reason to accept you.

Use or do not use the optional essay to your advantage to add value to your application.

It is with great pleasure that I welcome Natalie Grinblatt to Accepted's staff. Natalie previously served as:

• Assistant Dean at Arizona State University's W P Carey School of Management.
• Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at Cornell's Johnson School
• Director of MBA Student Affairs and Enrollment Management at the University of Michigan (where she also earned her MBA).