3 Rejects to Stanford, Harvard Dual-Admits

Would make the product better:

Kathryn's website, and Square One Prep's overall branding are pretty light on details. The real magic of the process came to life for me during the intro call, and moreover in seeking client reviews. The initial 4-8 hour onboarding of her asking deep questions, just listening, reflecting and taking notes made my essays, resume a breeze. So in short, the process is way better than the branding from the outside. Honestly, I know it sounds like a cop-out answer, but the process was really that much better than the branding!!

After three painful rejections with previous consultants, I was hesitant to try again. Working with Kathryn completely transformed not just my applications, but my sense of self. As an Indian applicant working at a T-1 Venture Firm in the Bay Area applying to elite programs a third time, I was burned out. I needed someone who could energize me as well as help me find the authentic voice that had been missing from my previous attempts.

Kathryn flipped the script in one cycle: Harvard Business School + Stanford GSB admits and a 50 % tuition scholarship. I cannot recommend her enough! As I told her at the end of submitting my applications, the new sense of self and professional clarity were worth enough to me. The dual admit later on was just a cherry on top.



Many things set Kathryn apart from my prior consultants:

First, she has a rare balance of empathy and decisiveness. Rather than simply polishing my essays, Kathryn guided me through a process of self-discovery that clarified my personal narrative, professional direction, and unique value proposition. *She spent 8 hours getting to know me over the first 2 days*. I felt deeply heard, and challenged, by her. She asked me “Why?” until we unearthed two foundational personal stories I’d never have put on paper. Those moments became the spine of every essay and ended up being quoted back to me in my HBS interview and by the GSB Dean of Admissions on Admit Day. Compared to prior quick rejections, I was thrilled with this outcome.

Kathryn often reminded me what my prior apps, and most people miss: that admissions committees and alums are human. They want to _feel_ something when they read your work and sense that they are truly getting to know you (fun fact: we even included little personal, emotional tid-bits even in formal places like my resume). This is just something my prior apps were missing. The materials Kathryn and I created together moved even my parents to tears - capturing an authentic, graceful power in remarkably few words.

The end result: During my collaboration with Kathryn, I experienced a profound shift in confidence that friends, family, and professional colleagues noticed before I did.

Second, Kathryn makes surgical, candid edits and has a “pen-down” discipline. Every draft—resume, essays, even recommender packets—came back dripping with color-coded notes. Some tweaks, some brutal truth. Zero guesswork. When she felt I was over-working pieces, she stopped me. For example, because we completed our work well in advance of the deadlines, I kept unnecessarily re-working essays. I still recall making some 2 a.m. perfectionistic revisions and sending them to her, only to get an immediate reply: “Stop and realize it is time to trust what you have created: Submit tonight.”

Third, Kathryn went the extra mile at every stage. From those initial calls when I was on the fence about reapplying to working with me painstakingly and patiently on my application components ," to coaching me for the interviews – three rounds that were tougher than the actual interviews. Her guidance was both comprehensive and precisely calibrated to my needs.

The results speak for themselves: admits to both Harvard and Stanford after previous rejections. But like I’ve said, the true value transcended admissions results. After trying two other consultants who charged $10K each, I am so glad I went with Square One Prep. I enjoyed their unique approach to first build a stronger me, transform how I look at myself in the mirror, and only then use the newfound clarity and confidence to write a winning application.