Strengths:

- Knowledgeable, in-depth, and engaging videos
- Very practical tools and exercises that guide you from start to end of the application process
- Solid advice and insights on schools from a person who very clearly knows what she's talking about

Would make the product better:

- UX is a bit outdated and can be enhanced with AI. Doesn't detract at all from the quality of advice though

I got into Harvard and Stanford with $$$ in Round 1 of 2024 and it's largely thanks to Applicant Lab. Using Applicant Lab was the best decision I made. Its modules contain pretty much all you need to craft a strong application. The videos are also fun to watch since the creator (Maria) is quite entertaining. What's great is Maria also keeps regularly updating the content (e.g., when essay prompts change). With Applicant Lab you shouldn't even need a pricey consultant - it's probably better than most of them. Feel free to use this promo code for 10% off: https://applicantlab.refr.cc/default/u/gauraangbiyani?s=esp&t=wa

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Strengths:

Very thorough and exhaustive. Easy to use and understand. Extremely practical and action focused.

Would make the product better:

Optionality on Executive MBA pathways.

This is an outstanding product that I would recommend to anyone. It was the most helpful overall tool I found in my MBA journey! It walks you through every step of crafting your personal and professional story in a way that speaks to admission committees. I think it was well worth it to pay the additional add on fees for personal reviews on essays. The feedback I received was brutally honest, but trustworthy, and ultimately that feedback made my application exponentially more coherent and powerful. I'm extremely grateful to Maria and her team for the services they provided, as I ultimately gained acceptance to my top choice!

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Strengths:

- On-demand
- Thorough
- Relevant to what schools were looking for
- Accessible support
- Full-service (resume, essays and interview prep)

Would make the product better:

- Their consultants can be US-school oriented. I was shooting for top European schools. Some of the advice they gave was useful but not necessarily critical to schools I dealt with.

I was hesitant to pick a virtual service over an Admissions Consultant, but now that I have been admitted to every school I have applied to (with a mediocre GPA and GMAT score), I could not have made a better decision. ApplicantLab helped me re-frame my mindset that gave me the best shot at success. In addition to all of the online tools they have (to do everything from tailoring your resume to interview prep) they also have paid services which you can utilize for a second opinion of your admissions material. I found the resume editing service especially helpful. I highly recommend ApplicantLab (and they had a free trial when I used it, why not try it out?), and would not have made it into my dream school without them.

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Strengths:

Return on Investment
Best in Class advice on each school
One stop solution from self reflection to interview prep

Would make the product better:

Maybe UI is bit old - but works for me.

Subscribing to Applicant Lab—after my partner repeatedly encouraged me to do so—was possibly the most crucial decision for my MBA application journey. It completely changed the course of my applications for the better. The extensive resources that Maria has meticulously curated and the thoughtful process behind creating this marvelous platform simply cannot be overstated.

The process begins with deep self-reflection, but I believe the heart of Applicant Lab is the "Essay Advice" section. The depth and breadth of research presented for each school is truly exceptional. Maria literally includes school visit videos and directly quotes admissions committee members from various programs. This comprehensive approach helps you understand the unique culture and expectations of each school.

The return on investment cannot be expressed enough—for the minimal price, you get access to all the resources required for application, from the self-reflection platform to interview and waitlist preparation. This incredible value proposition sets Applicant Lab apart from traditional consulting services that charge thousands of dollars.

What makes Applicant Lab even more valuable—perhaps its best-kept secret—is that you can reach out to Maria directly for guidance. She generously offers ideas and addresses fundamental questions. I discussed my approach for at least one essay with her, and her advice was invaluable. When I was waitlisted at Berkeley Haas, I was heartbroken and immediately emailed her. She compassionately responded with a detailed 15-minute video message explaining how to approach the situation effectively. Fortunately, within a week of receiving the waitlist notification, I received my Wharton admission!

I cannot emphasize enough how much credit for my Wharton acceptance belongs to Applicant Lab. Maria is brilliant and consistently provides best-in-class advice. I wholeheartedly recommend Applicant Lab—choose it without hesitation, and you'll certainly thank me later.

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Accepted to Wharton, Booth ($$$), Sloan ($$), CBS ($), Kellogg

I was especially worried about applying to M7 MBA programs, especially with a below-average GMAT score (710 in my case). But thanks to ApplicantLab, I was admitted to five of the seven M7 schools I applied to, and I can confidently say it was the best decision I made during the entire process.

If you’re wondering whether an online platform can truly provide the same level of guidance as an expensive admissions consultant—don’t be skeptical. I did not use a consultant, and I am so glad I didn’t because ApplicantLab gave me everything I needed and more. The platform is incredibly thorough, insightful, and designed to help you craft the strongest possible application—without spending thousands of $$$.

From the start, ApplicantLab helped me write essays that would stand out. I kept rewatching the videos, which helped me brainstorm, nail down my story, figure out the flow of my essays, and refine them—something I wouldn’t have been able to do with just a couple of back-and-forth conversations with a consultant. The ability to revisit the guidance whenever I needed allowed me to iterate and make adjustments as frequently as I needed, ensuring my essays were as strong as possible before submission. The platform also guided me through revamping my resume into an MBA-specific one.

What truly sets ApplicantLab apart is its tailored, school-specific advice—insights I couldn’t have found even with extensive research. Maria (the founder) has spent years attending admissions events, consolidating what each school looks for, and distilling it into actionable advice. Beyond essays and resumes, ApplicantLab provided invaluable guidance on everything from tactical decisions (e.g., whether to re-request a CBS interview after an unlucky first round) to seemingly small but critical details (e.g., where to submit my additional math transcripts to make up for my low quant score). The platform even helped me strategize my Wharton Team-Based Discussion topic, ensuring I presented my best self in group settings.

Another useful section of the platform was the interview prep. My initial responses aligned with the platform’s "what NOT to do" examples—thankfully, ApplicantLab’s detailed guidance and sample responses helped me refine my answers. It even answered my questions about whether or not to wear makeup or what time of day I should schedule my interviews for. Because I could rewatch videos at my own pace, I continuously iterated and improved until my responses were polished. I have no doubt this was a key reason I was admitted to every school I interviewed with.

Even after acceptances rolled in, ApplicantLab provided thoughtful advice on choosing the right program, factoring in scholarships, post-MBA goals, and the environments where I’d thrive.

Every step of the way, ApplicantLab reaffirmed that it was the best investment I made in my MBA journey. If you’re debating whether an online platform can truly provide the level of insight you need—trust me, it can. I’d choose ApplicantLab again in a heartbeat. If you're applying to business school, this is the single best resource you can have in your corner.

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Strengths:

1) Gives structure to a highly draining and complicated process of applying to schools
2) Great value for money (both, for the product and the consulting services)
3) Fantastic team that is always available to answer questions
4) Diverse team of consultants - if you use this well, you can get a range of feedback on your essays, which I found to be very helpful

Would make the product better:

To be honest, nothing much to improve.

If I am being very very picky then maybe the UI could be a bit more modern, then I sometimes "failed to see" some of the content on the platform (maybe I was being lazy). OR, now that I think about it, AI-powered search on the platform would be a great feature.

In general though, I think the product and the consultants available are fantastic.

Tldr: If you are a self-driven person, I would highly recommend using the tool. It is great value for money, and provides great structure to a complex process. Further, I would highly recommend making use of the consulting services that they offer (super-detailed feedback, presented in a very efficient asynchronous format). If I had to redo my applications, I would stick to the same approach.

My detailed review:

I subscribed to the Lab, when I was getting overwhelmed and swamped with a massive checklist of stuff to-do for MBA applications. It was hard to figure out where to start, how do I approach essays, how do I select schools, etc. I decided to give the Lab a shot, and in hindsight it has been the best decision that I could have made during the MBA application process.

I found the initial brainstorming that the LAB forces you to do as part of the "Why MBA / Why you" sections to be very helpful - gave me a lot of clarity and made the whole essay writing especially useful.

I worked with Austin from the team on refining my CV & getting feedback on my career vision - again, super helpful exercise and gave me further confidence to approach the essays.

The Lab's advice on how to approach school-specific essays is absolutely fantastic. Very detailed and spot-on advice.

I worked with Ken, Carin and Luqzan on applications for various schools. Initially I was a bit sceptical because there is no opportunity to "speak to them" and the communication mode is asynchronous. However, after my first review I realized that the feedback that you receive via video + an edited word-doc is highly detailed and is much more efficient than discussing on a "live call". I work with a different consultant for every school primarily so that I could get a variety of opinions. If you are someone who deals well with constructive criticism, then this is the ideal platform and set of consultants to work with. The advice is to the point, crisp and highly relevant - they will not mince their words if you have not done a good job, and at the same time also be quick to point out the "strengths and good sections of your application".

Special thanks and credit to Maria for answering all my questions along the way! She was always available to engage on a quick brainstorm on a plethora of topics.

Subscribing to the lab was the best decision I could have made during my applications, and would highly highly recommend the software + team to anyone who is still deciding how to approach MBA applications.

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Strengths:

Well-detailed explanation on what each school is about, their values, and what they look for in applicants.

I first knew about ApplicantLab from a GMAT Club, and I was skeptical about how efficient an online MBA preparation resource could be. But, boy, was I wrong. Maria gives an in-depth analysis of each school's culture and her experiences with the school's admission committee members. She's also very responsive to questions, sometimes within an hour.

ApplicantLab requires you to do a lot of self-reflection and soul searching upfront, making the actual essay writing process that much easier. But my absolute favourite bit of using the platform is Maria's humour. She makes everything sound so funny and light-hearded, while still driving home her points, and the results speak for themselves. Despite a below-average GMAT and coming from an over represented demographic, I got into my dream school: Kellogg!

The interview prep section was also very useful for me and helped me structure my answers in a way I could remember and that felt genuine. If you're on the fence about ApplicantLab, just give it a try! You won't regret it.

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Strengths:

Helps you get the brainstorming done in advance so you have a pool of stories to use in your essays.

You can then map the stories to the traits that each school is looking for in a very organized fashion, then you can pull those in for the essays.

Very structured notes for each essay by school.

Would make the product better:

Recommend to possibly add functionality or dates to each application by school meaning a planning tool for applicants that when they choose the schools they can also see application deadlines for those schools. This helps as applicants are applying to more schools every year 5+ so they can see the roadmap for the entire project of essay writing.

Secondly, some videos are not up to date or may require updates, for example the Foster video is using a website that is dated, not to say that the advice is irrelevant.

Lastly, I think you have this in beta, grammar errors or editing could possibly be automated in the tool....I am not sure if there are plug ins or what essay writing looks like 5 years from now so this forward is looking advice only for longer term.

Thank you.

I got Applicant Lab after I wrote the GMAT and started prepping for application season.

I would actually recommend that you get a subscription while you prepare for your GMAT, this way you can brainstorm your stories slowly in parallel, say a story a week and by the time you have your score you will have 12-16 stories to choose from.

This is a solid tool in the sense that you do the hard work upfront in terms of why MBA, why a particular school, why now? and these things are important for you to understand before you commit to applying.



Helps you get the brainstorming done in advance so you have a pool of stories to use in your essays.

You can then map the stories to the traits that each school is looking for in a very organized fashion, then you can pull those in for the essays.

Very structured notes for each essay by school.

Helps you get the brainstorming done in advance so you have a pool of stories to use in your essays.

You can then map the stories to the traits that each school is looking for in a very organized fashion, then you can pull those in for the essays.

Very structured notes for each essay by school.

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I started using ApplicantLab in 2022 when I was barely three years into a career in an Oil and Gas service company. I had an engineering degree from a top engineering school, albeit a state school. Coming from an ORM, I only had a 720 GMAT, and I was very selective with my MBA schools - I applied to Kellogg, Tuck, Yale, and Duke and was ultimately rejected from waitlists at Tuck and Duke, and the feedback was very clearly the lower GMAT (from Tuck.)

Even though I didn't get an admit the first time, the process that I went through with ApplicantLab was super helpful in understanding what kind of skills that business schools are looking for. As a first-generation student working at a place without many MBAs, these nuanced insights were super helpful in my beginning to take on leadership roles at work.

I ultimately made the career switch to Climate Tech, which I wanted to do post-MBA, but I still felt the need for an MBA. So, I resubscribed to the service and got a TON out of it. I knew what I was talking about during interviews. Luqzan was super helpful with his essay reviews and resume reviews -- reading about my leadership skills from my resume and my previous application, he pushed me to explore new topics for my essays, which I ultimately think made a huge difference. Maria was always prompt and thoughtful in her email responses.

ApplicantLab played a big role in my getting Kellogg and Booth MBA admitted for the weekend program with considerable scholarships, which is rare for part-time programs. They played a big role in getting this kid from a small town in India to learn, lead, and network in the big leagues!!

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I cannot express enough how incredible my experience was with ApplicantLab. From the very start, Maria went above and beyond in answering my questions. Her dedication and responsiveness made me feel supported and confident throughout the entire application process. The platform itself was fantastic – user-friendly, well-organized, and intuitive. It made the daunting application journey not only manageable but also very enjoyable. Investing in this service was hands down the best money I ever spent on my MBA application journey. It was truly my favorite part of the entire experience. The personalized support and the high-quality platform all contributed to getting into the school of my dreams! I highly recommend ApplicantLab to anyone embarking on their MBA application journey!!!

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