Stratus Admissions Counseling Admissions Consulting Reviews

I have been thinking about getting an MBA for a few years. After taking my GMAT for the third time I was unsure about my prospects of getting in with a 690 score. I met Melisa during a 30 min coffee session. She was so nice and didn't make me feel pressured into doing anything (getting an MBA or using a consultant). I started with the strategy package which EVERYONE NEEDS TO DO, even if you don't do an MBA. This 4 week exercise took a comprehensive view of every from my past (starting from my childhood) and leading up to my 5 and 10 year career goals, and boiled all of that down into a comprehensive 1-pager to understand my entire profile and what I needed to achieve through an MBA. Through this exercise I felt confident to apply this year. I purchased 4 comprehensive schools, all M7, and in total applied to 8 T15 schools. I was accepted with a full ride and several scholarships. After applying I was waitlisted from 3 schools, 1 being my safety. After having this devastating turn of events, I was completely down. Melisa helped me by having my talk to other clients she had with similar outcomes who got into great M7 schools off the waitlist. I was eventually admitted to my top choice MIT which I will be attending this fall. While I did eventually get a 710 GMAT, I wouldn't have gotten in anywhere without the guidance and support from Melisa and the stratus team!

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I had a really positive experience with Stratus admissions consultants. One of the key aspects was the availability of multiple experts to engage with throughout the process, in addition to my primary consultant. This added level of expertise and diverse perspectives enhanced guidance received and Stratus made sure to introduce me to an expert on their team that had experience with my target schools. I found Stratus to be flexible and accommodating, making their services not only valuable but also affordable. If you're seeking a dedicated team that genuinely invests in your success, I would definitely recommend considering Stratus for your admissions consulting needs.

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I wholeheartedly recommend Donna as an MBA admissions consultant. Throughout my application journey, Donna's expertise, dedication, and guidance were instrumental in shaping my success.

From the very beginning, Donna showcased her profound understanding of the MBA admissions landscape. She took the time to deeply understand my strengths, experiences, and aspirations, allowing her to best help me craft my tailored application strategy that truly highlighted my unique qualities and goals.

One of Donna's exceptional strengths is her meticulous attention to detail. She provided invaluable feedback on my approach to applications and essays, helping me refine my thoughts and strengthen my presentation with clarity and impact. I can’t thank Donna enough for her commitment to ensuring that my application best reflected my candidacy and goals.

Furthermore, Donna's expertise in navigating the waitlist process at my top-choice program was amazing. Her guidance on how to effectively communicate my continued interest and commitment to the admissions committee was truly invaluable and help.

In conclusion, Donna’s expertise, attention to detail, and genuine dedication to her clients' success make her an exceptional resource. With Donna's guidance, I not only crafted a strong application strategy and essays but also successfully navigated the challenging waitlist process, ultimately securing acceptance to my top-choice MBA program. I am immensely grateful for her invaluable support throughout the process.

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Background: I am an Indian, who studied engineering. So I am part of the most oversubscribed demographic. The aim was an M7. With this in mind, I went into my consultant search, and after speaking to a few, I felt everyone was great, but when I spoke to Jennifer, I was really impressed with her positivity and encouragement. The whole experience felt like a mentor-mentee relationship, rather than transactional.

She made me feel very comfortable and confident, something that definitely kept me going through the tough process.

I also appreciated the Stratus team based approach, along with Jennifer, my material got reviewed by a school specific reader as well as a proofreader. Getting everything in one place made it easy to focus on the important stuff. Their documentation and guides are extremely detailed and helpful.

Jennifer was very helpful in brainstorming ideas, without influencing or changing the narrative. She always asked good questions and pushed me to think deeper about my motivations and intention, giving valuable input wherever necessary.

She helped me keep on schedule, and was always prompt with her replies and feedback. I always looked forward to speaking to her, along with discussions on the applications, she would just give that extra boost of confidence that kept me going.

When I got interview invites, she immediately scheduled mock interviews. I mock interviewed with her almost 5-6 times, each time it was school specific. She even gave me some advice for schools I decided to apply on my own. When some initial rejections hit, she was very supportive, and kept the morale high.

It was a tough application cycle. I applied to 10 schools - Got interview invites for 6, and finally got into 3 schools. I finally decided to go to Kellogg.

If you are looking for someone who can bring out the best in you and keep your confidence high throughout, I would blindly go for Jennifer. The entire Status process is very comprehensive, and the team is very credible and supportive.

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I am so grateful for Jennifer's support throughout the MBA application process. Her guidance helped me get admitted to HBS and several other Top 10 schools with significant scholarship money.

In September 2022, I connected with a few consultants from other firms, looking for guidance on how to craft my application in time for R2 deadlines. I felt incredibly overwhelmed and stressed out when speaking with consultants from other firms. At the time, I was working diligently to boost my GMAT score and really needed someone to support me and hold me accountable on my applications.

When I met with Jennifer for a consultation, I could immediately tell I was in good hands. I worked on 3 schools with Jennifer and always felt that I could count on her honest, candid feedback. She is incredibly encouraging, knowledgeable, and effective in helping each client reach their goals. Jennifer pushes candidates to dig deep to reflect on what inspires/motivates them, and she provides exceptional support in clarifying your personal mission in a way that highlights your unique attributes and authentic voice. She is incredibly professional and responsive (I got always got a response 48 hours!), and a wealth of knowledge on what adcoms are looking for across MBA programs.

I found Jennifer's advice to be incredibly candid, encouraging, and growth-oriented. She helped me build confidence in my story throughout the application/interview process. Her deep understanding of the HBS process in particular helped me with the interview and helped me to be VERY well-prepared for all the types of questions that they can ask.

For anyone who feels unmoored by daunting MBA application process, working with Stratus will provide the structure and support you need. I am so excited to be starting at HBS in the fall -- many thanks to Jennifer! 10/10 would recommend investing in yourself and working with Jennifer.

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I had the privilege of getting to work with Susan as my MBA Admissions consultant. Susan was recommended to me by a friend who worked with her last year and spoke so highly of her that I knew she was someone I could trust to get my MBA applications across the finish line. Prior to working with Susan, I had written my MBA essays on my own the previous year with the plan to submit my applications without an MBA consultant. I had doubts about my ability to get my story across in my applications and I ultimately decided that working with an MBA consultant and waiting another year would give me the confidence I needed to put my best foot forward. Susan was living proof that I had made the right decision.

During my time with Susan, I had the chance to start over with my MBA applications and use the Introspection exercises to really reflect on who I was, what my passions were, and why I ultimately wanted to get an MBA. She helped me identify themes that represented who I was and channeled these themes throughout my application, essays, and recommendations. There were certain experiences I shared with her that I had not considered highlighting in my application but she saw those experiences differently, which allowed me to share a unique perspective of myself. Susan also leveraged her network and her Stratus teammates, such as Melisa Prevost (huge shoutout!), to help connect me with the right resources and chat with previous clients about their MBA admissions journey.

When it came to feedback, whether it was my essays, my resume, or interview preparation, Susan was thorough and upfront, which made such an impact for me to not be afraid to change my content entirely or start over. She pushed me to go beyond my comfort zone with conveying my emotions in my essays and helped me to refine my resume bullet points and my interview responses to be succinct.

Overall, I can say that Susan was one of the best investments I could have made with my MBA admissions journey. Because of her, I was able to get into multiple M7 schools, including Wharton, my dream school, where I will be matriculating at this year! Susan walks the walk and talks the talk and I could not be more thrilled to give her the highest of recommendations.

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I had a fantastic experience working with Joe as my admission consultant. He truly went above and beyond in every aspect of the application process. Despite the 15-hour time difference between China and the west coast of California where Joe was based, he was always prompt and responsive in answering all my questions, providing feedback on my essays, and guiding me on school selection.

I remember having multiple drafts for my essays, and Joe took the time to provide detailed feedback for every single one of them. He patiently answered all my questions, even though I had a lot of them, and provided valuable insights and suggestions for improvement. As the submission deadline approached, I was amazed and truly grateful for Joe's quick turn-around time, even sacrificing his sleep to provide feedback during odd hours, sometimes as late as 3 am or 4 am his time in the Pacific time zone.

Joe's dedication and commitment to his clients were evident in every interaction. He was not only prompt in his responses but also went the extra mile to ensure that I was confident and well-prepared throughout the application process. His encouragement and support were invaluable, especially during times when I felt underconfident.

Overall, Joe is the most responsible and dedicated admission consultant I have ever worked with. His expertise, commitment, and encouragement helped me put forth my best application. I highly recommend Joe Farr to anyone seeking expert guidance and support in their MBA application journey.

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Joe was a great help in figuring out what should be included in the application and what should be left on the cutting room floor. The applications give so little space that it is not easy to make yourself stand out in so few words, and Joe always reminded me to think of how every word built towards the final product. He was also good about keeping me on track and turning comments on weekends as we got down to crunch time.

Joe was also incredibly calm through the application process, which is great if you are inclined to stress out. Overall, would highly recommend using Joe if you are considering an applications consultant.

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I'm so glad that I worked with Melisa and with Stratus more broadly. I originally opted to work with a freelance admissions consultant, and got so frustrated/overwhelmed that I almost bailed on applying to schools entirely. I decided to give one more try with Melisa and I'm so glad I did. Melisa (and the rest of the consultants I worked with at Stratus) was so helpful throughout the process - she genuinely listened and cared about my story and was incredibly helpful in thinking through the best way to structure and convey that story. She was the best cheerleader, even on schools I didn't work with her on and seemed to really care about my getting into the right school for me. Thank you so much for all of the help and support throughout this process!!

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I got accepted to my dream school and received a generous scholarship offer, despite having a GPA and GMAT score lower than the school's average and I could not have done it without the help from Sophie and the rest of the Stratus team.

Sophie was an incredible mentor throughout this whole process, she help me frame my story in a way that was genuine but also highlighted characteristics that would leave an impression on the admission committee.

Stratus was the best investment I made during this whole application process and I would absolutely recommend Stratus Consulting to anyone who wants to get into the best B-school possible.

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