What is the most important thing in MBA admissions?

Almost every day I get emails and phone calls from new clients who say something like this: “I have a 2.9 GPA, a 680 GMAT, and four years of consulting work experience. are my chances?

MBA hopefuls want to know what the most important part of the business school application is. Is it the GMAT score, the undergraduate transcript, the essays, the interview, the letters of recommendation, or something else entirely?

Everyone wants to know what to focus on in their application and how their personal circumstances qualify. However, the best business schools do not admit it based solely on their statistics.

It’s true that solid numbers can help get your application considered. While a GMAT of 550 or a GPA of 2.5 will raise a red flag in an MBA program like the Stanford University Graduate School of Business, a GMAT of 700, and a GPA of 3.6 make him a strong candidate. But even a GMAT score of 800 and a perfect GPA can be turned down in an elite MBA program.

Ask most admissions committee members and they will tell you that it is the sum of many pieces, there is no “most important” part. The best schools want to know who you are, and statistics and a summary don’t tell them that. It is the essays, interviews and recommendations that finally reveal the person beyond the role.

Compelling essays, recommendations, and interviews can provide context for a low GMAT or GPA score, but the reverse is not true. Strong numbers will never make up for weak essays or a disorganized negative recommendation.

Some say that the most important part of the application is the so-called weakness of the first “weakest” part that could completely change the way admissions committee members perceive your application. In fact, in a recent blog post, Yale School of ManagementAssistant Dean and Director of Admissions bruce del monico he urged applicants to be honest about their weaknesses.

“Everyone has weaknesses,” he stressed. “We’ll see them, so it’s better to acknowledge them and incorporate them into your app than expect us to miss them.”

While I doubt any business school admissions committee would formally endorse this statement, you would have to vote for essays as the most important part of your application. Essays allow the admissions committee to really discover who you are. It’s where you write why an MBA makes sense as the next step in your career path and how you differ from all the other people who also scored 700 on their GMAT.

Essays are your chance to present your strengths, explain your weaknesses, and generally convince the admissions committee members that you have a lot to offer the program and that you belong in their class.

The essays are also consistent across all applicants, making them less difficult to assess and compare. All candidates are given the same set of questions and reviewed by the same group of admissions staff, creating a level playing field that can simplify the review process.

Interviews are very different; some are conducted over the phone, others in business school, and all are run by different types of people with different approaches.

Recommendations also vary. While all applicants do their best to find good recommenders, some people work with MBAs who understand the process. Others work with people who have no idea what to write about.

Rehearsals are each individual’s opportunity to speak about their true selves. You should know that most of the applicants to the best schools are qualified, in the sense that they would be able to handle the curriculum and benefit from the program.

However, to be admitted, you must prove that you are more than qualified. It’s the story you build about your goals, passions, and previous experience, and how business school fits into the mix, that will make all the difference for you. Once that story is put together, I can better answer the question, “What are my chances?”