INSEAD MBA Application Insider: Requirements, Eligibility And Essays

INSEAD is consistently ranked among the best business schools in the world. A former world number one—the internationally renowned institution ranked second in the 2024 Financial Times MBA Ranking.

INSEAD was founded by a Harvard Business School professor in 1957 aiming to bring people across the world together through business. It has since expanded and now has campuses in France, Singapore, and Abu Dhabi, as well as an innovation hub in San Francisco. 

INSEAD has an entrepreneurial pedigree: ross it's various program offerings, 73% of alumni embark on entrepreneurial ventures after graduation. Known as the 'Business School for the World', INSEAD’s MBA program is home to 110 different nationalities. 

The school is a keen promoter of diversity, and INSEAD MBA classes seek to promote this diversity with students placed into study groups of five-to-six with varying ages, gender, and experience. 

As well as looking for diversity across the cohort, INSEAD also seeks a high standard of applicant. Candidates typically have high GPAs and test scores, while the class averages at six years of work experience pre-enrollment. 

A large class, INSEAD MBA hopefuls can apply for intakes in either January or September, with around 500 students accepted in each intake.  

Successful applicants for the 10 month, full-time program will be taught a variety of different skills. A Personal Development Program begins before students even land on campus and runs throughout the course, with one-on-one coaching and group sessions teaching responsible leadership. The program also has recently been updated to incorporate sustainability within the various core business areas all students cover during their studies. 

An INSEAD MBA is a great step for graduates toward a successful career. Among the two graduating classes of 2023, 88% received a job offer within three months of graduation, with over 260 recruiting companies located across the world. 

So, what does it take to ace your INSEAD MBA application? We spoke with Virginie Fougea (pictured), the school’s executive director and former global director of admissions and financial aid, to find out.

What do you look for in INSEAD MBA candidates? 

The first key criteria we look for is international motivation. This is very important to us because of the diversity we have in our classes. We want to see how open applicants are to other cultures and how sensitive they are to different cultural contexts. 

It doesn’t mean you need to have traveled extensively or spent most of your life outside your home country. What’s important is that you’ve worked with people from different cultures and can interact with cultural awareness.

The second piece is the ability to contribute—work experience and academics remain important. 

We truly believe in the importance of having people in our community who are keen on learning from their peers, on challenging their thinking, people who will thrive in a multi-cultural context and who are capable of reacting in culturally sensitive ways.

READ: INSEAD MBA Interview Questions: What To Expect

What are the INSEAD MBA application essay questions? 

We have refined the motivation essays to give applicants the best opportunity to showcase their unique strengths. 

Essay number one is a candid description of yourself—your personal story, what makes you tick, your values. 

The second essay now focuses on what you’ve learned through challenges or setbacks. We’re not so much interested in the situation itself but in the learnings from it. We want to see how applicants have grown from these experiences.

We also have questions related to candidates' job experience. Questions also focus on the applicant's career journey and goals.

What is the biggest mistake you can make in an MBA application? 

A common mistake is being too superficial in the first essay and only using examples from the professional environment. 

It’s important to show the whole person. If the examples only come from the work context, we miss out on understanding who the applicant truly is.

What is the strangest thing you have ever seen in an MBA application? 

The strangest thing was a letter of recommendation written by the father of the applicant who was in fact not supportive at all but was on the contrary explaining why his son should pursue other avenues than an MBA program!

Which exam scores can candidates submit with their applications? 

We’re now fully onboard with the new version of the GMAT exam. More and more people are sending scores from this new version, and the admissions committee understands the different skills it tests. 

We also accept the GRE. 

What is the target GMAT score? 

We don’t work with a specific target score. We are flexible and look at other elements in the application. We take a holistic approach, so we never isolate the test result from the rest of the application. We consider the university the person attended, whether they have an undergraduate degree, and their work experience.

We also look at the individual sections—verbal, quant, and the new data insights section. If someone’s quant score is lower, we can look at their data insights to assess whether they’ll handle the finance courses in the program. So, we really break it down—we never isolate the total score from the rest of the application, we always look at it as a whole.

Tell us one thing about the application process at INSEAD that most people wouldn't know? 

We’re door openers, not gatekeepers—we look for reasons to bring people into the program rather than reasons to keep them out. Sometimes, it’s the smallest detail that makes us think: "This person would add something special to the classroom."

We’re looking for people who want to share and give, not just take. It’s about building a community where everyone helps each other.