ISB PGP YL Essays: Analysis & Tips for 2025-26
If you’re planning to apply to the ISB PGP YL (Post Graduate Programme in Management for Young Leaders) for the 2026 intake, you are probably introspecting on how to approach their application essays. Unlike standard MBA essays that rely heavily on professional achievements, the ISB PGP YL essays are designed to uncover potential.
These essays are your opportunity to present these traits through authentic experiences. Let’s break down each of the ISB PGP YL essays, what the admissions committee expects, and how to approach them with clarity.
How ISB Evaluates PGP YL Applicants
According to ISB’s official admissions page for PGP YL, the school is looking for Young Leaders who demonstrate qualities like achievement orientation, lateral thinking, leadership mindset and innovative & entrepreneurial spirit.
Unlike the flagship ISB PGP, which evaluates candidates mainly on leadership experiences at work, managerial impact, and career progression, the PGP YL admissions process is designed to assess early potential rather than accumulated experience. Since most PGP YL applicants are still in college or at the very start of their careers, ISB focuses less on what you have already achieved in the workplace and more on how you think, learn, lead, and grow.
In other words, the admissions committee is asking: What kind of leader could this person become over the next decade?
Achievement Orientation
A strong track record of academic performance and initiative beyond the classroom through projects, competitions, internships, entrepreneurial efforts, or meaningful community engagement.
Lateral Thinking
Intellectual curiosity and the ability to approach problems creatively, question assumptions, and offer fresh perspectives rather than default solutions. ISB values applicants who can bring fresh perspectives to classroom discussions.
Leadership Mindset
Evidence of initiative and ownership, stepping up, influencing others, and creating impact – essentially leading beyond authority. Show how you motivated others, took responsibility, or drove outcomes without formal titles.
Personal Qualities & Program Fit
Clear communication, self-awareness, and collaboration. Strong essays demonstrate maturity, humility, and the ability to learn from others. ISB looks for candidates who will actively contribute to peer learning and thrive in its highly collaborative ecosystem.
Vision & Growth Potential
While ISB does not expect fully formed career plans at this stage, demonstrate clarity of purpose, openness to learning, and a genuine intent to grow into a leader who creates long-term professional and societal impact.
Required Essay 1: Leadership
Describe a specific personal situation in which you assumed a leadership role without formal authority. How did you motivate and influence others during this experience? What challenges did you encounter, and what insights did you gain about your leadership abilities as a result of this experience? (400 words)
What ISB is looking for
This prompt is about influence without authority, one of the strongest markers of natural leadership potential. ISB wants to see:
- Initiative without being told
- Responsibility when it wasn’t assigned
- Ability to inspire or convince
- Authentic reflection on challenges and learning
You don’t need managerial experience or fancy titles. You need a story where you stepped up because you cared.
How to approach it
Pick one meaningful situation. Avoid listing multiple small examples.
- Context – What happened? Why was leadership needed?
- Actions – How did you motivate others? What specifically did you do?
- Challenges – Lack of support, conflict, time pressure, failure, reluctance from peers
- Outcome – What changed because you stepped up? Even small impact is fine
- Reflection – What did this teach you? How did it shape the leader you aspire to be?
Leadership and being a ‘manager’ are not the same thing. For PGP YL, leadership can come from:
- College clubs, committees, cultural events
- A classroom or research project
- Community work or volunteer efforts
- Sports teams or competitions
- A small initiative you independently started
What matters is whether you took initiative to solve a problem, influence people, created impact and learned something meaningful about yourself. Focus the essay on:
- Self-awareness — you understand your strengths and blind spots
- Emotional intelligence — communication, collaboration, empathy
- Resilience — how you handled difficulty
- Mindset — the kind of leader you want to become
Leadership without authority is a sign of inner drive. ISB values that highly.
Read this detailed guide on how you can showcase leadership skills in your MBA application.
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Required Essay 2: Diversity in Thought
What unique experiences and perspectives do you bring to your class? How do you intend to contribute to the diversity of thought and ideas within the programme? Please provide specific examples to illustrate your points. (400 words)
What ISB is looking for
This essay is not about demographic diversity, but about intellectual diversity. ISB wants students who:
- Think differently
- Will challenge/enrich the classroom with diverse perspectives
- Bring exposure to ideas outside typical business settings
- Have curiosity and breadth in their worldview
Have had unique experiences that shaped their values
How to approach it
Identify what makes your thinking different. These can be:
- Academic interests beyond your degree
- Cross-disciplinary exposure
- Cultural or socioeconomic background
- Entrepreneurship or independent projects/internships
- Sports, arts, research, nonprofit work
- Unconventional hobbies or side hustles
Explain how these shaped your perspective and connect it to classroom contribution like case discussions, group projects, clubs and campus initiatives. Focus on:
- Share real anecdotes/experiences, not generic statements
- Show how these experiences shaped your thinking
- Explain how you will use your unique perspective to contribute to ISB’s diverse, collaborative ecosystem
- Demonstrate maturity, openness, and curiosity
Example contribution statements
- My experience running a sustainability project will allow me to bring an impact-driven lens to marketing and strategy discussions.
- Having self-taught Python to analyze cricket data, I bring an analytical, experiment-driven mindset to problem solving.
- As someone who has worked with rural schools, I hope to bring conversations around social equity and grassroots innovation to the classroom.
This essay is your space to show that you are not only willing to learn, but also ready to enrich your cohort.
Required Essay 3: Post-Programme Plan & Impact
What impact do you aim to create after completing the PGP YL programme? Please share your medium to long-term career plans, including any specific challenges you anticipate facing along the way. (250 words)
What ISB is looking for
Clarity of vision is something ISB values in its applicants. The adcom wants to know how intentional and purposeful you are in your career trajectory. While the they realize that your goals may evolve, they want to know that you have planned your career to the best possible extent.
How to approach it
- Outline your short-term goal – Consulting, product management, analytics, entrepreneurship, social impact, family business, fintech, marketing, etc.
- Describe your long-term impact — what problem do you want to solve or what space do you want to influence in the long-term?
- Mention realistic challenges you expect — skill gaps, competition, market uncertainty, transition from theory to execution
- Show how PGP YL and ISB will help you bridge those gaps – courses, electives, clubs, projects, etc
Demonstrate clarity, self-awareness and purpose to write a stand out essay.
I have discussed several strategies to differentiate your MBA application in this post.
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Tips Across Essays
- Be story-driven but concise: one strong example is better than five weak ones
- Evidence-backed statements: don’t make generic statements; demonstrate through concrete examples
- Quantify outcomes where possible
- Avoid repetition, use fresh angles across essays
- Make every sentence purposeful
- Show evolution, what you learned matters as much as what you did
- Demonstrate community mindset. ISB values peer-to-peer learning
- Think beyond yourself: how will your presence benefit others?
- Link essays: Taken together, the three essays should form a coherent profile.
- Align with ISB values: achievement, curiosity, leadership, innovation
Final Thoughts
Across all three essays, ISB is looking for authenticity, maturity, and a mindset for growth. Your stories should reveal:
- Leadership Mindset — ability to influence and inspire
- Lateral Thinking — curiosity and creativity in solving problems
- Achievement Orientation — ownership, initiative, hustle
- Entrepreneurial Spirit — willingness to act, experiment, and learn
You don’t need a perfect profile. Show self-awareness, clarity, and purpose to stand out.
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