Gatehouse Admissions Consulting Reviews

By way of background, I majored in statistics during my undergraduate studies (3.7 GPA) and have since spent the past five years working in consulting and private equity operations (710 GMAT score).

My education and career path haven't given me significant writing experience, so the business school admissions process and required essays felt out of my comfort zone and overwhelming. I began working with April Stewart from Gatehouse Admissions last Spring, enrolling in their 'Full Support Services' package for 3 schools, and having her as my counselor through this intense journey proved to be invaluable.

April's approach to essay writing was a game-changer for me. She didn't just suggest improvements; she inspired a whole new mindset. By teaching me to "show, not tell" and utilize the powerful "I" voice, April helped me delve into the essence of my personal and professional journey. Her encouragement guided me to uncover and articulate the deeper meanings behind my life's choices and experiences, while avoiding the professional jargon I use daily.

Another constructive aspect of working with April was her organization and reliability. Every Sunday I received a weekly action plan. This structure kept me on track and ensured that each of my essays underwent 1-2 rounds of her insightful reviews weekly and that my applications were submitted well before their deadlines. April's responsiveness was impressive, consistently replying to emails within 24 to 48 hours, and she was always just a phone call away when I needed immediate guidance or reassurance.

I am excited to share that, with April's unfaltering support, I will be joining Harvard Business School's class of 2026 this Fall. To any future applicants, I can affirm that April's dedicated support could make a defining difference in your business school admissions success as it did in mine.

Read More

Background: Caucasian male, 5 years experience (2 years consulting, 3 years big tech), 3.8 GPA, 750 GMAT
Results: Admitted to Wharton, Columbia

April was an essential partner and advisor in my admission journey. I decided to apply to business school (round 1) in August, and would not have been able to navigate the tight timeline without her expert guidance. When I began the process, I worried that I would not be able to meet the application deadlines, but April helped me develop a comprehensive timeline with milestones along the way to ensure that I got all of my applications polished and submitted with time to spare. She helped me determine which 4 schools best suited my interests and personality, and ultimately helped me get into my dream school, Wharton, as well as Columbia with a substantial scholarship. I owe this success largely to April’s outstanding coaching, dedication, and structured approach to building a winning application.

At the beginning of the process, April helped me brainstorm key experiences and learnings from all aspects of my life, and worked with me to develop compelling themes and motifs to emphasize throughout my essays. I leveraged these introspective insights when crafting my essays, which April edited scrupulously, challenging me to delve deeply into the impact of my accomplishments to date. When giving feedback, she was both empathetic and instructive, applauding my ideas, phrases, and word choices that worked well, while stripping down and reconstructing everything that didn’t work in my early drafts. April settled for nothing less than stellar, and once my essays earned her coveted approval, they were sent to the Gatehouse founder, Liza Weale, who had a similarly keen eye for detail, and often identified new ways for me to improve my essays. Working with Gatehouse admissions, and with April specifically, allowed me to perfect my essays to a level of excellence and introspection that I could not have come close to on my own. While my essays consumed most of our time together, April was similarly instructive with my short answer responses, helping me ruthlessly cut words in order to meet the typically stingy character limits, and my letters of recommendation, guiding me to ideate strong topics and anecdotes for my recommenders. Finally, she coached me through interview prep, ensuring that I entered each interview feeling confident and ready. Overall, April’s approach helped me stay on track to deliver strong applications despite a timeline that initially seemed impossibly tight.

I did not take the decision to hire a consultant lightly, and worried that the payoff would not justify the high cost. Seeing the number of hours that April put into our partnership (her feedback was so thoughtful and comprehensive that I often suspected it often took longer for her to review my essays than it did for me to actually write them), the expert advice and frameworks that April provided, and ultimately the payoff of being accepted into two elite MBA programs, I feel that I got outstanding value for my money. She played an essential role in my successful application process, and I cannot recommend April’s services highly enough.

Read More

(1) Background: 26 y/o white female; project manager in untraditional sector; int'l work experience; Ivy undergrad, 3.86 GPA, 166V 166Q (total 332) GRE

(2) Results: Admitted at HBS, Kellogg ($140K scholarship), Booth ($100K), Darden ($164K), Waitlisted MIT Sloan, No interview GSB

(3) Experience: I was accepted to 4 of 6 top-tier MBA programs (most with full or near-full rides) thanks, in large part, to April. Here are the highlights: (1) Because I'm a professional project manager, I initially questioned the need to hire a dedicated (and expensive) admissions consultant. I’m glad I did: As a first-time MBA applicant, I relied on April’s deep knowledge about the admissions cycle and school-specific expectations, which freed up my time to focus on test prep (allowing me to cinch a great score at the 11th hour) and essay drafting. (2) I appreciated that April had strong, well-reasoned opinions about how to frame my untraditional background and approach each essay; she is assertive and direct, not a ‘yes person.’ My essays looked night-and-day different after 5-10 rounds of edits. On a scale of "prescriptive" to "lax," April is quite prescriptive. While her feedback was sometimes uncomfortable to hear (I also have strong opinions, and sometimes disagreed on her approach), she always had the right intention (i.e., getting me into every school I applied to). (3) Finally, I credit April with revealing the extraordinary parts of my story to the admissions committee. When I joined Gatehouse, I tended to underplay my contributions (lots of “I helped” and “It was a team effort”). April noticed this habit and elevated my profile through consistent coaching to make my stories about me. While I struggled with this mindset shift, I believe it demonstrably improved my admissions outcomes (esp. at HBS). All in all, the results speak for themselves.

Read More

Background: White female, 3.8 GPA at top liberal arts college (Williams/Amherst), strong extracurricular activities, 4 years of work experience at start-up, 660 GMAT.

Results: Accepted to Kellogg (+ received an interview invite at Wharton and was admitted to several other T15 schools with scholarship!).

I began seriously considering business school last spring but procrastinated on starting the application process until October because I wasn’t sure how to approach it. I was very set on attending school in the fall of 2024; however, being not the greatest standardized test taker, I was unable to improve my score in time for round two applications.

Knowing that my score was well below average for the caliber of schools I hoped to attend, I knew I’d need a consultant who could elevate other aspects of my application and provide much-needed guidance. Rachel did just that and more! She helped me convey my personality and experiences authentically in my essays and successfully navigate the challenges posed by a low test score. Plus, working with Rachel, I gained more from the application process than offers of admission — I developed a new skill set that I know will be invaluable in business school and beyond, including honing my career goals, improving my writing skills, and effectively preparing for behavioral interviews.

Above all else, Rachel is a genuinely great person to work with! She gave me the confidence to push forward with my applications, even in the moments when I felt discouraged. After I submitted my applications, she continued to support me, regularly checking in and wishing me luck ahead of decision dates. I can’t recommend Rachel enough to anyone navigating the business school process, whether you’re seeking direction from square one, or aiming to refine an already strong application. Her expertise, honesty, and support can enhance any application. I couldn’t have asked for a better partner through the process and wouldn’t change a thing!

Read More

As someone who previously found self-reflection and personal essays extremely difficult during the undergraduate admissions process, I gained a ton of valuable insights and guidance from Alex while working with him on my MBA admissions. I was accepted to 3 out of the 4 schools that Alex supported me on for R2 - Booth, Kellogg, and Haas - with $150K in total merit scholarship across the schools.

Alex was especially helpful in the following:

1. Helping ideate and connect past experiences into cohesive essays: From the day I started my applications to the day I submitted them, Alex listened to my thoughts, experiences, and perspective and recommended ways that I could powerfully tell my story. As someone who (successfully) went through this process himself and as an English major, Alex has a gift for storytelling and essay revising that would benefit anyone who works with him.
2. Establishing clear cadence and timelines: Starting my MBA applications, I initially found it overwhelming to workplan and hold myself accountable because the entire process seemed so vast and nebulous at the time. Alex took into account my busy work schedule, personal commitments, and school deadlines to craft a working cadence and interim deadlines that ensured I was always on track.
3. Going above and beyond during times of greatest need: I was rejected to my R1 schools and hadn’t put too much thought into R2 before receiving these rejections. This meant I had ~1 month before R2 deadlines. Needless to say, I was stressed, overwhelmed, and discouraged. When I reached out to Alex after these R1 results, he got on a call right away to gameplan R2 apps and to provide emotional support when I needed it most. For the schools with the earliest deadlines, Alex even provided revisions ahead of our agreed schedule to make sure we had ample time before these applications were due. This is just one of many ways that Alex has given 110% during our time together.

Background: I graduated from a top 25 US undergrad university with a 3.8 GPA. ~2 yrs. of work experience in MBB consulting. 740 GMAT.

Result: Accepted to Chicago Booth, Northwestern Kellogg, Berkeley Haas, with ~$150K in total merit scholarship across schools.

Read More

I was admitted into HBS, and I attribute a large part of this to the two mock HBS interviews I did with Brooke. The detailed feedback I received was incredibly helpful for course-correcting many of my bad habits. Yet at the same time, Brooke provided feedback in a confidence-building way, something that was critical for me as I approached my actual interview date. In addition, Brooke’s questions were so insanely accurate; several of them came up during my actual HBS interview! Not only the questions themselves, but the style and the flow of the interview–suffice it to say, I felt very prepared during the actual interview.

If you are interviewing at HBS, you need to do a mock interview with Brooke. I seriously cannot recommend it enough. I can personally say that I would not have gotten into HBS without Brooke’s help.

Read More

Background: In-state undergrad, 2 years of banking, 3 years of private equity. 750 GMAT. MBA being sponsored through my current fund

Result: Admitted to HBS; GBS; Wharton (with $55k per year scholarship). Chose HBS

Rachel is the best there is. I come from a very overrepresented background of MBA applicants and did my undergrad at my generic middle-of-the-pack state school. On paper, my resume looks very similar to many folks with my background, but Rachel was critical in helping me tell a compelling story that gave schools a deep understanding of who I am and allowed me to stand out in the ways I hoped. She guided me through all parts of each application and every single line (down to the 100 character entries on the online apps after you’ve uploaded all your essays) was thoughtfully crafted. Rachel got an incredible sense of me as a person over this process and then helped me think about the mosaic I wanted to build out with each aspect of my application (i.e. let Recommender A cover X, so you can use real estate in your essay to elaborate on Y). Most critically, she was able to see throughlines in my experiences that allowed me to have connected themes and narratives guide my essays. She had my back every step of the way and wasn’t afraid to tell me when to pick it up (either in my quality of drafting documents or in the pace of turning them to meet my target deadlines). She is a wonderful thought partner and an especially kind and caring person. I tremendously enjoyed working with her and couldn’t recommend her enough.

Read More

Background: Ivy undergrad, Consulting > Buyside, 760 GMAT, re-applicant (previously applied for 2+2)

Result: Admitted to HBS and Wharton

As a quant-oriented person, I was nervous about essay writing. Rachel guided me through the entire writing process and rounds of revisions. She helped tell my story in a way that highlighted my accomplishments, created a coherent narrative across my personal / professional life, and didn’t feel forced. For both schools, she coached me on what the adcoms are looking for – I didn’t realize how different my essays needed to be!

When I was given a “Further Consideration” decision at HBS, Rachel helped steer me through the process. She gave me the direct feedback that I needed to put together the best overall package possible. This ultimately resulted in being accepted to both schools that Rachel helped me with (my top 2 choices)!

I cannot recommend Rachel enough - I would tell anyone applying to business school to look no further!

Read More

Background: 2 years of Banking, 2 years of PE, 710 GMAT, Claremont McKenna undergrad with 3.6 GPA.

When signing up for a consultant, I did not know what to expect exactly. Rachel made the process incredibly easy and smooth for me. First thing Rachel did was truly get to know me. She took the time and effort to figure out my story to understand how we can make the best application possible. Rachel did not tell me to just do xyz, she really worked with me so I understood why we were doing what we were doing. This allowed me to tell the story that worked for me and my application.

When working with Rachel, you realize how much work your application really needs if you want to make it the best application possible. The MBA process is incredibly competitive, so it is important to put yourself in the best position possible to succeed. I truly think that Rachel did that, and she truly got me to a place where I felt like I had the best application possible and also felt prepared for my interviews.

You will only get what you put into it, and Rachel really made me feel that I got all that i put into the process. Truly would not have done it any other way.

Read More

Background: Mid-20s female, based in Boston, worked in healthcare private equity and then operations at growth-stage healthcare company, went to Colby College for undergrad, Spanish and International Relations double major, Economics minor, 3.8 GPA, 161V/162Q GRE.

Result: Attending HBS Fall of 2024 and admitted to Wharton

Working with Laura was an absolute dream. Laura’s firm, Gatehouse, came recommended to me through a former coworker who also had great success working with Gatehouse and is currently at HBS. I was given the option to “interview” a few consultants before choosing who I would work with throughout the process but I only needed 30 minutes with Laura to know I wanted to work with her. Between her background of working in HBS MBA admissions and also having been in my shoes at one point in her life as an MBA applicant, I was confident she was going to ensure that my application was as strong as possible and that I was over prepared for interviews and navigating the process in general.

What struck me most about working with Laura was her organizational skills and holding me accountable to our timeline. Laura gets straight to the point which I really appreciated. There are so many different work streams that overlap during the lengthy application process that it would be easy to get lost without someone with excellent time management skills guiding you through it. Her expertise in interview prep made me feel confident and prepared walking into my interview, and all of her advice paid off. I never had to worry about not knowing what was going on or feeling confused about the process because Laura had either thought ahead and prepared me with detailed documentation and materials or I knew I could reach out to her at any time with any question.

I am so thankful to have worked with Laura throughout the MBA application process. She was with me every step of the way. I would recommend Laura (and already have) to anyone applying to business school.

Read More