Stacy Blackman Consulting MBA Admissions Reviews

I found SBC through a thorough online search, and requested information on their services. Conversations went smoothly and soon enough I was paired with Bill Chionis.

I could not have been more fortunate to work with Bill. He understood what specific MBA programs look for in their candidates and helped me tailor my message and story so my strengths would reflect what the program was looking for. Before working with Bill, I was not able to organize my thoughts or outline my admissions process in a linear manner. Bill was the best at helping me gather my thoughts, polish my story with the right narrative, and prepared me for what came at every single step.

Apart from being extremely knowledgeable, Bill made sure to look out for the individual. During 2020 times were hard/discouraging and he was supportive throughout the process. I cannot thank Bill for his support, and I would 100% recommend!

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Accepted: LBS, CBS, Oxford, & HBS (interviewed awaiting decision)

Christina's advice was invaluable navigating a brutally competitive 2020 application cycle. As a candidate coming from a less-recognized undergrad program and a non-MBA feeder industry, Christina helped me expertly position my background and goals to compete for top-tier MBA programs. Her expert opinion also helped decide which programs I ultimately applied for.

Beyond the standard essay brainstorming/editing and interview coaching (she is stellar at both), Christina takes a passionate interest in developing her candidates. She proactively identifies profile weaknesses and recommends specific extra-curriculars and opportunities to address them. She genuinely cares for her clients and champions them, offering support when overwhelmed and a kick in the butt when needed.

Christina is extremely hard-working, organized, and communicative, striking the ideal balance of frequent phone calls while offering space when life gets too busy. She is a perfectionist and pushes her clients to be their best selves through a methodical and highly-personalized approach. I cannot recommend her enough!!!

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Chris was invaluable as I progressed through the MBA admissions process. I initially worked with Chris on my Kellogg application. However, because of Chris' flexible and relevant feedback, I was also able to leverage Chris' guidance in completing the rest of my applications. With Chris' help, I received admission to Kellogg and four other schools, though I ultimately decided to enroll at MIT Sloan.

In what is a very stressful time, Chris is a calming influence. He is incredibly responsive - often I would send him updates to my essays and he would have comments back to me within hours. Chris' prior work experience in the Kellogg admissions department resulted in him having an answer to almost every question, even the 'gray-area' ones. Chris really helped me draw out the most salient points of my application story and gave me crucial guidance in how to weave those points in throughout my interviews.

I would recommend Chris to anyone looking for a true veteran in the MBA application sphere. His writing skills, accessibility, and expertise were critical throughout my application journey.

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I purchased the 2-school all-in package with SBC for my R1 applications. I worked with Dione for over 2 months revising my resume, brainstorming essays, and crafting a compelling narrative across my application. Dione was an incredible resource that not only provided me with strategic advice but also moral support throughout the stressful process. When I hit a road bump with laying out my career path, Dione checked in on me frequently and provided solid guidance for me to get past the bottleneck. Every step of the way, Dione prepares thoughtful documents detailing an actionable plan, from constructing an overall application strategy in the beginning to picking and requesting recommendations to preparing for interviews. Dione is efficient in reviewing essays and other written materials. She usually responds to emails within hours. When problems and unforeseen circumstances popped up during my application, she utilized resources at SBC, consulted her colleagues, and gave me valuable advice. Beth, who was a previous Kellogg admission officer, was my flight tester. She was a great set of fresh eyes and provided me with much confidence in my application. With the help of the consultants at SBC, I was admitted to CBS August entry through ED. It was a great experience working with Dione and SBC. They made the whole application process a lot more manageable and less stressful.

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Kim helped me in many ways but predominantly by "demystifying" the MBA application process… being an international applicant, I was full of questions and concerns. Kim was able to break each step down into manageable and meaningful pieces, with each step bringing me closer to a polished application. She helped me alleviate my insecurities and guided me through the process. I especially appreciated Kim's straightforward and honest feedback, which enabled me to truly reflect about my strengths and areas for improvement. Through candid brainstorming sessions and iterations of my essays with her, I was able to paint a story of my life and accomplishments with pride and confidence. I can recommend Kim to anyone who is looking for a consultant that pairs competency with honesty. I could not be more grateful for all of Kim's help. Teaming up with her for my applications was the best investment I ever made and is already changing my life. I got into my dream school and will be part of the class of 2023, at one of the best ivy league MBA programs in the country.

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With Deanna's guidance, I had someone who is both knowledgeable of the MBA application process and attentive on my side helping me stay on track and focus on what's important. Deanna was my primary partner and I'm happy to report that I was admitted at my top choice, Duke. She responded quickly to my questions and provided thoughtful feedback. She also made suggestions, such as taking the executive assessment and taking a math class that helped shape my application in the best possible way.
Overall, I had a positive experience with SBC. In addition to her guidance, there was team based influence and support throughout the process with Esther as my initial contact at SBC and my flight tester, Caryn, who is a former admissions officer.
I had initial consultations with two other companies- Veritas Prep and MBAmission. I ultimately moved forward with SBC because they made me feel positive about my candidacy and that getting into my dream school, Duke was possible. From the first contact to my admit day, Deanna was really invested in my success and I would highly recommend her to a friend.

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SBC

My journey towards an MBA is long and winding (ca. 3 years), but working with Joey at SBC finally resulted in my acceptance to my first choice program (M7).

As an older international applicant with a non-traditional background, I was nervous about the experience at first. One should not underestimate the amount of work that goes into this process. I worked with Joey at SBC on two occasions - once on an hourly basis, once as part of the “All-in” service. If in doubt, definitely go for the latter.

My first attempt resulted in a ding - lesson learned is that one cannot complete three sets of apps in a few weeks, although Joey’s help was immense every step of the way. Despite the odds, we arrived at a quality final deliverable. Although a major setback, Joey took the time to go through a post-mortem and we devised a new strategy.

I signed up for the “all-in” service, which meant that we could spend a lot more time going over the application materials and strategy. It’s hard work for everyone involved, but in particular, for Joey. He was also immensely helpful in helping me prepare for my Zoom interview. An incredibly useful tool that SBC offers is the “flight test” of the application, which helps to uncover any last-minute mistakes (yes, I had a typo on my resume). A few weeks ago, I received my acceptance letter from my first choice school.

What did I learn from all of this?
1. Get a consultant. Especially get a consultant if your background is non-traditional.
2. Take the time to get to know the person you are working with. Joey was an absolute delight - he knows his stuff, challenges bs where he sees it, and having worked with him over the course of a year, he was the #1 champion for my candidacy. This is important!
3. SBC knows what they are doing. I spent some time looking at different firms but landed on SBC quite early on. They are responsive, they do not take you on as a client if they don’t think you have a chance. No false promises - it’s a thoroughly professional approach throughout.
4. MBA admissions is a difficult game with both incredible lows and highs. With that being said, I am convinced that I could not have done this without the guidance of Joey (my consultant), Esther (our matchmaker), and the rest of the SBC team. I am so grateful for all their help!

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Having done my due diligence on a couple of firms and a handful of consultants, I found myself gravitating back to Bill Chionis who was acting as the gatekeeper/broker to the roster of SBC consultants when we first spoke.

Although his colleagues were undoubtedly competent and experienced, I felt a personal connection to Bill, and felt as though he truly understood how my profile and future intentions were well aligned with Columbia's JTerm in particular, and I'm happy to say this was the correct instinct!

Given Bill's wisdom and ability to empathize with the Adcom, I was able to put my best foot forward in drafting my application, while eliminating unforced errors.

Essentially, if Bill were a soccer coach, his team would score more goals than otherwise, while having fewer scored upon them.

Just as a good coach needs a strong support staff, the rest of SBC were up to the task. I was able to improve my messaging further through working with a former Columbia adcom member as part of the Flight Test offering (included in my All-In package), and another former Columbia adcom member for my Interview Prep (additional hour purchased by me).

All said, if I had to start the process again, I would hope to first be drafted by Bill & his team!

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I was referred to SBC from a friend who has used their services the previous year. I spoke to Esther who understood my needs and recommended I speak with Christine Hawkins, whom she thought she would be a perfect match.

I had my intro call with Christine and being a CBS alum, she had amazing insights to share and was super friendly. She was super sharp, broke down the entire admissions process for me and gave me some super valuable feedback. After our convo, I couldn’t have asked for someone better so immediately pulled the trigger on an all-in package with Christine.

Christine was truly outstanding - there is no way I would have gotten an admit without her help. Right from the beginning, she laid out the entire plan, we discussed deadlines and off we went. Resume, Recommenders, Essays, Interviews - she really was a godsend throughout the process. She really pushed me to self-introspect, think hard about what I want to do and why. She was kept an open mind but prodded me to be better each time. My test scores weren’t the best, so Christine really helped me to make sure that the rest of my application stood out.

Regardless of my CBS admit, I am super glad to have worked with Christine since I came out much clearer on what I want to achieve in my career.

At some points of my application, I was super anxious about certain things and Christine was always there to answer my emails proving to be a great emotional support and a shoulder to lean on.

The Flight Test process with Lisa was outstanding where my entire application packet went through a mock adcomm review and gave fresh perspective and feedback on my application. My mock interview with Christine was a massive confidence booster for me before my actual one.

I could not have asked for anyone better than Christine, she is someone I’d love to stay in touch with and I would most definitely recommend her to everyone!

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I found out about SBC through a referral, and after my initial consultation with Esther I could tell SBC was going to be the right choice! I went for the all-in package and could not be happier with my choice! I was accepted into 3 of my 4 schools (the 4th was a waitlist), including HBS!! Something I never would have thought possible prior to going through this process.


Caryn was amazing! She previously worked as an admissions officer and had tons of knowledge, not only on the program she had worked for, but on all the schools I applied to. From the beginning, she took the time to genuinely understand me, my experiences, and my goals. She helped me figure out which schools would be the best fit and was with me through every step of the application process, helping me craft my story as a non-traditional candidate. The application process can be very intense, and having Caryn on my side made it so much better! She was always very honest, and provided very constructive feedback (with a quick turnaround) throughout the process and kept me on-track.

SBC has a ton of helpful resources and lots of officer intelligence in-house. Not only did Caryn have experience as a former admissions officer, but Beth (also fantastic), conducted my “flight test” prior to submitting my first application. I also worked with Erica to prepare for my HBS interview, and went in feeling very prepared.

I have already recommended Caryn and SBC to my friends considering applications, and will continue to do so. Absolutely fantastic experience!

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