"Best" admission consulting companies?

I used the Veritas Prep full package for three schools based on a recommendation from a friend and had an excellent experience. PM if you want more details about my consultant--she was great. Their interview prep service was also really nice. My consultant wasn't a lead for any of the schools I applied to (my fault, not their's) but I was mock interviewed by an alums from those schools, which was a great service because they really knew their schools head to toe. I was rejected by HBS, but so are a lot of folks, and have been accepted by Notre Dame and Texas. I'm still waiting on Michigan, but that was easily my best application and interview.

I think it's important to have realistic expectations for admissions consultants. I began my process before schools published their essays by working on my resume and getting that down. Then I tackled essays as they came out and had finished products by the beginning of September. I went in expecting someone to help me refine my message, prevent any significant mistakes in my message, and act as a high-priced proofreader. A consultant can't change your GMAT score, undergrad GPA, or work experience, so purchasing services isn't going to instantly make you an attractive candidate at HBS. However, if you put the work in early on in the process, a good consultant can really help you tailor yourself to each school and make you (in my opinion) more attractive.

As an experienced applicant I have to say and underline - go with a team instead of a single consultant and go with one of the teams that has a high number of reported successes and a high % of success vs failure. The Admissions 411 should help you find the two teams that are best at what they do - MBA Exchange and MBA Mission. Those stats are the truest criteria I have seen so far. One-consultant practices may get overstretched and may be weak in one side of the process vs another. A one-consultant practice may also not be held accountable for what they do. The teams have people who are strong in Editing, Consulting, Career Goals mentoring, etc. and you get the best in each. They are also usually accredited members of a professional association of consultants which holds its members accountable for ethical practices. A good consulting team should never tie you to a certain way of writing essays, write stuff for you, or in any way take away your personality from your application. Instead they should spend ENOUGH TIME to get to know you (something one-consultant practices often can't afford to do), get you to dig deep in your experience for your best stories, and make sure you don't shoot yourself in the foot. Also, a good consultant's job is not to know the latest scoop on a school, but to help YOU find the strongest sides of YOU which can sell you at ANY SCHOOL (that your profile and credentials qualify you for). You all can do the research on your own in the forums, and it doesn't usually help since things change quickly and the the school doesn't care how much you know about them, they care to know you. Even if you can afford to get a good consulting team, make sure to visit each school you care about, contact alums, current students, and/or faculty and TALK TO THEM IN PERSON. Good luck!

If anyone has any recommendations regarding consultants, and could PM me, I would hugely appreciate it! With deadlines approaching, I have to make some decisions quickly. (Were it not for a recent GMAT re-take that went way better than expected, I would not be applying in this round in the first place. But now, no time is better than the present!)

lately, I have been hearing a lot about Amerasia consulting group. So, I scheduled an appointment with Paul, its founder. He did go through my profile completely before the call and based on the schools I wanted to apply, he gave excellent suggestions. The way he said I should address my weaknesses and highlight my strengths really made sense. I had Wharton, Columbia and Cornell in my mind and he really seemed to know what it takes to get to these schools. If you, as an applicant, have some drawbacks in your applications and still have some time before you apply, I would definitely suggest that you talk to him and see where you can improve. He seems to be really good at differentiating you from other applicants, especially if you are from an overrepresented applicant pool. The resources that he would provide you with, will give you a very good idea on how to draft essays (before his review).

Overall, I would definitely recommend scheduling an initial consultation with him.

Thanks for the feedback! I would definitely recommend scheduling a call/consultation with any of the admissions consultants you plan to use. They all may be great but just the style may not be what you are looking for.

HBS Guru.

www.apexwriters.com


desi service for indians - I like english editing service -where they fix grammar etc in essays

I would like just to reinforce this topic and kindly ask guys who have been admitted recently to post here with which consultants did they work.

I am currently considering to hire an admission consulting company/consultant and I am targeting 4-5 schools.
I plan to apply in R1 fall 2011.

Please provide your feedback and if you want to remain provate just send me a pm.

thank you.

Hey srinathreddy:
I appreciate the props.
In other news, one of my clients just got admitted to MIT Sloan this week. He just called me, so I am pumped. He had a fairly typical background - from a Big 4 firm and a low 700 GMAT.

Anyway, if anyone is interested in speaking with me via an initial consultation, please email me at mba@amerasiaconsulting.com. I have also listed a couple of promos for GMATClub members -

For those applying in the late rounds (Round 3 Guarantee) - http-www-amerasiaconsulting-com-contact-mba-admissions-consultant-los-angeles-new-delhi-108601.html#p862627
For those applying in round 1 of 2011-2012 - round-1-promotion-108602.html

Respectfully,
Paul Lanzillotti

I am not finished yet but I have had a wonderful experience with Stacy Blackman Consulting. This was my second time applying - last time I used another firm. This time has been smooth right from the start - I got what I signed up for and I am now receiving interviews so have a lot of confidence that I put together a great application. It was a big investment up front but after that I have had so many people to support me and such expert guidance - it's been great. I have really enjoyed working with my consultant and the whole team there.

Moderator: first post of user, low credibility

Hi all, really wanted to put my 2 cents in here too:

I used Amerasia consulting for my applications to two top ten schools because while I am reasonably confident in my application, I work in a quantitative industry and wasn't too sure I was going to express myself clearly on paper. Also, I lacked a staple of a perfect application: a decently high percentile GPA from my undergraduate institution. Finally, as we all know, business school is a life-changing decision, so I wanted to make sure my applications were top-notch, well thought out, and fully represented my strengths.
 
I spoke to a few consulting firms, and quickly found Amerasia to be by far the most helpful right off the bat. During other free consultations, I was told the usual: I have a decent profile, they can set me up with a consultant, I just need to sign and pay. Amerasia was completely different; I took 5 pages of notes during my 1 hour free consultation (with the actual consultant I would be working with), and could quickly discern that I was getting valuable, useable advice. Also, I found the fee to be reasonable, and I also liked the fact that they do not charge you for interview counseling unless you actually get the interview.
 
During the application process itself, my consultant was incredibly helpful. He listened to my life story, helped me pick out my biggest strengths, and really saw to it that these characteristics were well represented in my essays. He was not afraid to tell me bluntly that sometimes my first drafts wouldn't work and that I would have to write another. I also procrastinated greatly during my month of application writing, and my consultant kept me on track by shooting me quick emails, reminding me to stay on track and get certain drafts/revisions done. I've heard that other consultants seemingly get swamped during busy times, but mine was thoroughly consistant and timely in terms of returning comments on essay drafts, emailing me answers to my questions, and just generally keeping me on track.
 
When I was invited to an interview with my top choice school, my consultant yet again saved me. Having a mock interview beforehand was more helpful than I could've imagined, and his knowledge of admissions practices/commonly asked questions/school-specific questions was instrumental in my preparation. When I had a strange and unique post-interview situation and had no idea what to do, the first thing I did was email my consultant, who immediately responded with helpful and correct advice.
 
To make a long story short, I highly recommend Amerasia Consulting for MBA admissions. The money was well worth it to be admitted to a top 10 MBA program of my dreams. If you have any questions about any of this, feel free to PM me.

I shopped around quite a bit and used Precision Essay. I only applied to top 16 schools, and two admits later and one waitlist (including a full ride to Haas) I can vouch for Jon and his team 100%. I did start with ample time to work together and I think this definitely makes a difference - if you are rushing to finish when everybody else is crunching then the result is obvious no matter where you go. In the end, I did end up in a time crunch situation for a few schools, but the response time was amazing - a few times I chatted with Jon at 4AM in the heat of the app season, while stressing out about something in my application. I also talked to him on the phone when he was travelling overseas in china at some crazy local time.
The service isn't for everyone--they make you work HARD to bring out your story and your voice - there were times where I was thinking OH COME ON GUYS, another edit, wasn't that last one good enough? It's one of those processes where you get out what you put in it - no consultant can (nor should they) do all your writing and have a pre-packaged story ready for you. By the way, I haven't heard of half the consultants who post here--new ones seem to pop up every day. The only way to really tell what consultant is right for you is their track record, and to reach out to them and speak to them personally, get a sense of their response times, and see if you match with them personality wise. To me what set them apart was personalized responses that were specific to me, not some cookie cutter "your profile looks good, but theres areas we have to work on" generic email. Feel free to pm me or talk to the guys directly. If you do talk to Jon and his crew at PE, I am sure you'll see how amazing they are.

Hi, I've landed on very exciting offers from top 10 schools and I owe a great deal to Precision Essay (“PE”).

Anyone can churn out sentences and paragraphs for your essays but PE gives you a view of what goes on in peoples’ heads. His blog entries and exercises (google “Precision Essay”) are very insightful and if followed, leads to an introspective experience. I, like other applicants, would have gone through weekends and Xmas going through the essays and perhaps complain about it to my friends, but secretly I believe that I have found the application experience rewarding because I just got to know myself more and got a renewed sense of direction, PE's advice and feedback, was instrumental for that experience. I'd go for them to get you into a top school, but also for the tough (he'd scrutinise your choice of words and write a whole paragraph as to why a word is inappropriate) but rewarding application experience.

Hi,
I am looking for your feedback on Veritas Prep consultation for 3-4 schools!


Thank you so much

Researching/shopping for consultant for next year. Very interested to know of people's success'. Profiles, admitted schools, etc. would be helpful.

PM me if you are not comfortable submitting openly.

Moderator's warning: User's first post. lower credibility.

Edited to add: I've been a long-time reader of this forum but didn't feel compelled to post until now. My review is legit. Feel free to PM me for more details. =)

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I think an admissions consultant is invaluable in the MBA application process. First, my background. I'm 31, with 8 years of experience in finance, female, 3.7 GPA from a public university, and 720 GMAT. I'm looking to transition out of finance and into entrepreneurship.

In round 1, I applied to Harvard, Stanford, and Chicago without a consultant. I got dinged from H/S and interviewed at Chicago.

For the interview prep, I contacted Stacy Blackman Consulting, Sandy, and Amerasia. Sandy was booked up; I spoke to a woman at Stacy Blackman and Adam at Amerasia. The woman at Stacy Blackman was nice but I didn't feel we connected. When I spoke to Adam, he gave me pointers on Booth and didn't pressure me to sign up for his services. This was really nice, 'cause I had a million things going on and couldn't make a decision anyway.

Adam's pointers on Booth were spot on. Unfortunately, due to my crazy work schedule, I didn't adequately prepare for my interview (I worked until 3 AM the night before my interview). I didn't have time to get excited about the school and went into my interview with a lackluster attitude. Needless to say, I wasn't admitted.

In round 2, I hired Adam for his essay and interview services. I applied to Wharton and Kellogg, schools that he noted were friendlier to older applicants. Here's how the essay writing process went: I turned in a first draft for Wharton, he (very nicely and bluntly) told me it had to be completely re-worked. My essays painted me as unfocused, and my reasons for transitioning from finance to entrepreneurship weren't well-supported. It took about 3-4 drafts before I got it right. My essays pre-Adam and post-Adam were dramatically different; my friends commented that my post-Adam essays drastically improved. Here's what I consider to be Adam's biggest strengths in essay prep:

- He's very good at helping you organize your story and painting you in the best light. He knows immediately when something sounds wishy-washy and will help you re-work it. He understands the strongest aspect of your application and will help you highlight this.
- He's good with essay structures and will help you break down your story into a concise, easy-to-follow narrative.
- He provides solid advice on how to attack each essay, what to avoid, what to focus on, etc.
- Lastly, Adam is great to work with. His upbeat attitude and follow-up emails helped me stay on track during the grueling process.

On Monday, I found out I was admitted to Kellogg. I also received an interview invite from Wharton, with decision still pending. My only regret during this process is not hiring Adam earlier in round 1. I am so grateful to Adam, not only for his help in essay-writing and interview prep, but also for being a cheerleader, a great motivator, and for keeping me focused when I was being pulled in so many different directions. For anyone considering a consultant, I strongly recommend Adam.

Now that my journey is almost over for the business school applications, I would like to provide my perspective on admission consultants to prospective applicants. Maybe it will be of some help.

I was so impressed with the feedback from some GCers on couple of the consulting companies that have their own thread here, that I decided to interview both of them. I will not disclose their names here publicly as I am not here to promote or ruin their businesses. I am here to share my experience objectively, so you guys do not make some of the same mistakes that I made.

So I emailed one sample essay for edits to one company and scheduled the free hour consultation with the other. The essay edit was good, but the guy basically told me that I should apply to tier 2 schools given my GMAT (710) and my background (Tech Strategy Consulting). But I really liked how he went deep inside and edited most of the essay. The initial call with the second one was very impressive as he went over my profile, gave me some ideas etc and I was sold. I signed up for 3 school package with this consultant initially. Lot of money! I thought it was an investment, so I decided to take the hit.

I have to say, I really liked the first few weeks when he worked with me on a weekly basis. He gave some decent edits, and I liked some of his ideas. As soon as the busy season started, things changed. I understood that all consultants get busy during this time and I cut him slack initially. Here are some things that I did not like -

Response to emails and phones drastically reduced
Weekly meetings were re-scheduled or delayed most times
Updates and edits would only be sent to me 30 minutes before the meeting time and I had to wait at least a week before I could get any response back from this consultant. Other companies offer 48 hour return, but I wasn't lucky here. This to me was the worst part

I however thought he was trying to help me (which he did as I really liked working with my consultant), so I decided to spend another 2k with him and bought another 2 schools. Things started getting down hill as I missed deadline for one of them and I was very very upset about that. I would still have to wait a week before I got the edits. This brought my momentum down significantly because I had to wait 6 more days to see what my consultant has to say or comment. Also, as time passed by, the quality of edits on other schools significantly decreased and I just was not happy about that. On one of these schools, I had application initiated interview. I called the consultant the day before the interview to get some basic advise. He gave me 15 minutes worth stuff on the phone and I was very happy to have talked and gotten some bullet points. Next thing I know is I get this 300 dollar bill for interview prep. I guess it was my fault not to understand that nothing is free (even after I had spent 5k with him). If I would have known, I would have used the whole 60 minutes worth for those 300 bucks. I did pay him though.

Cutting the story short, I ended up getting dinged on all of them. 0/3 They were top ten schools, but I thought I had a good shot. I did work on 3 schools (top 5, top 10, top 12) on my own without any help from consultants and I feel those essays were not as polished as the ones my consultant helped me . I got into 2 of them and got dinged on one with interview. It is just ironic IMO.

From my experience, I would say that though having consultant help on your side is important, you must not spend so much money on consultants without doing your own due diligence. Also, do not get sold on the first calls/free edits/marketing stuff. Be smart and set agreements before hand so you do not experience the same problems. Also, do not go by the first time posters here who probably are inflating their experiences with consultants.

Any specific questions on application process, PM me. And remember - do not let consultants tell you what you cannot do. One reason why the other guy did not get my business.

Good luck in your endeavors!