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Judith Silverman Hodara Reviews

Company: Fortuna Admissions

Judith served as a core member of admissions committees at the University of Pennsylvania for almost two decades, most recently as Acting Director at the Wharton School’s MBA Program. She was also an Associate Director in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions.

While at the Wharton School, Judith’s multi-region expertise in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East helped her to shape the incoming Wharton classes from a competitive applicant pool of the world’s best and brightest.

Judith has also served as Director of Admission at the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania, and as the Director of Academic Affairs for the Rothberg School at Hebrew University. She holds an EdD from the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education.

5.0 /5 Average Rating
Based on 15 reviews
March 28, 2022
bdavis5896

Joined: May 22, 2019

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Verified GMAT Classic score:
750 Q48 V45

Working with Judith is exceptional

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I started working with Judith for the Wharton TBD and was blown away by her attention to detail, accessibility, and feedback. After one practice TBD and a review session with Judith, I felt 100% ready for the interview and felt as though I performed very well. Once admitted to the waitlist, Judith went above and beyond helping me fine-tune my story and set a game plan to prepare me for waitlist updates. The whole process proved successful, as I was admitted off the waitlist. A point that can not be understated is the importance of feeling that someone is in your corner during the highly stressful wait period of MBA admissions - Judith was all that and more. She was always ready with a pep talk and ready to brainstorm a new plan of action when things weren't going as expected. I cannot speak highly enough of Judith's commitment to her student's success.

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April 21, 2021
ajh258

Joined: Sep 30, 2017

Posts: 4

Kudos: 24

Judith is Amazing

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I interviewed a dozen consultants - all the top names on you can find online - and even worked on an hourly basis with another well-known competitor, but Judith is head and shoulders above her peers.

Her years of experience as an adcom really shows: she cuts through what is important and what is not, is very flexible around your goals and needs, and leverages experts from rest of the Fortuna network to fine tune applications for each specific school on your list.

Working with Judith was also seamless. She was very responsive all times of the week, and answered all of my questions (I probably had too many).

From clarifying career goals, to structuring approach to essays and interviews, Judith was there to support me every step of the way, and definitely made suggestions that helped contributed to my success.

Coming from an over-represented demographic, I was admitted to 4 out of the 6 M7 schools I applied to.

Don't hesitate. Work with Judith. She's amazing.

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March 28, 2021
Toluwase94

Joined: Mar 28, 2021

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Amazing

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Fortuna Admissions is great - I went with the hourly package as I only had a few pieces to focus on. I would 100% recommend Judith as a consultant. Judith is very kind and patient, which is super important in what can be a rather sensitive journey. I was a returning applicant and she really helped me find a unique story to tell in my re-applicant essay. I am so glad I went with her because I would have probably gone in a generic direction that wouldn't make me stand out. Her service is certainly a worthy investment in your future. 

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June 30, 2020
jschaef42

Joined: Apr 25, 2018

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Verified GMAT Classic score:
700 Q42 V42

Judith was incredible!

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Judith was so helpful throughout the admissions process. I had previously applied to CBS, HBS, and GSB, and decided last minute to submit round 3 applications to CBS / LBS. Judith had excellent thoughts on both my essays and my application as a whole, and really helped me highlight the areas in which I improved since my last application. She was also very quick to respond to questions and concerns, which was important given my tight timeline. Fortuna's process is top-notch and they are very familiar with the unique application processes at each school. I cannot recommend Fortuna and Judith enough!

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February 24, 2020
mbarch2022

Joined: Sep 22, 2019

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Verified GMAT Classic score:
730 Q48 V42

Amazing experience with Judith at Fortuna!

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I'm extremely happy that I chose Judith and the Fortuna team to work with me on my b-school applications. I had low standards for myself going into the process, and with Judith/Fortuna's support, I was able to get into my top choice school (HSW).

I worked primarily with Karen on my applications, but Judith provided valuable support throughout the entire process. When Karen was out of office at times, Judith did not hesitate to step in and provide her undivided attention. She was amazing from the start, coaching me on my recommender briefs through a short-notice phone call over a holiday weekend, to final checking my essays multiple times for each school. I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to work with Judith and would highly recommend her for anyone looking for an experienced advisor to boost your chances of gaining admission to the top business schools.

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December 20, 2019
bmcmahon126

Joined: Dec 20, 2019

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Verified GMAT Classic score:
700 Q44 V41

Unbelievable experience with Judith and Karla!

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I first started my business school process without a consultant. I applied to 8 different schools and got denied by all 8 without 1 interview invitation. I realized that I needed to do something different and did some research online about MBA consultants. I chose the top 3 consultants based on reviews and had a preliminary call with all 3. Fortuna was far and beyond the most impressive, not just in terms of knowledge, but in terms of optimism and energy. I knew it was the right fit. I had Karla Cohen for HBS and Judith Hodara for Wharton. I cannot say how grateful I am for the work they did on my application. I have probably spoken to both of them on the phone for 50 hours each at this point! I would even joke that they were my co-therapists. Both of these consultants take the time to really get to know their clients so they can shape each application in a unique way. The relentlessness both Judith and Karla demonstrated in the pursuit to get me into a school was nothing short of astonishing. They went above and beyond what I asked of them and next fall I am headed to Wharton. If you are considering any top tier business school I implore you to give Fortuna a shot, you will not be disappointed.

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April 21, 2019
skendall1990

Joined: Apr 01, 2019

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Highly recommended for final profile review

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I was super confused when looking for an MBA admissions consultant – I wasn’t entirely sure about shelling out a ton of money on top of the ridiculous amount that I spent already. I decided to do a handful of the “free consultations” with various companies before finding Fortuna and talking with Matt. He was super clear, transparent and genuine in how he viewed my profile in the 30-minute call – he didn’t try to sell me on the full package (even though it was the MUCH more expensive route). He was transparent that he thought I didn’t need the full-school package but rather could reach out to him/Fortuna later for a more “ad hoc” engagement. I really appreciated what didn’t seem at all like a sales pitch and rather a genuine conversation.
Onwards to me doing my applications myself…after I completed the vast majority of the applications and decided to reach out to Fortuna for a “last minute check” on the school I considered my top choice. I was connected with Judith at Fortuna and send her my entire application. She thoroughly reviewed all 4 of the essays and other “qualitative comments” sections of my application and provided very useful improvements, one of which was to entirely re-write one of the short response essays. All communication with Judith was via email and a phone call. The final application review process with her was very efficient and really did provide the outside expert view on how to make the essays really “pop”. The end result was me getting accepted to this school (my top choice) with a substantial merit scholarship. Would highly recommend Fortuna, especially with my positive experiences with Matt & Judith.

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March 31, 2018
cyb

Joined: Sep 17, 2015

Posts: 6

Kudos: 10

Verified GMAT Classic score:
760 Q50 V42

SO WONDERFUL

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I'll keep it short and sweet... Judith is an outstanding admissions consultant. She is at once a coach, advisor, therapist, and best friend. She can course-correct you with just a few sentences. She knows the top programs inside and out. She helped me craft essays that not only got me into my dream schools, they made me proud and fully represented me. I sincerely hope I get to work with Judith again soon.

Gmat Club is requiring me to write more words on this review. But seriously just hire her. She is awesome. Seven more words required. Thank you Judith!!!!

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January 16, 2018
GB1305

Joined: Feb 24, 2014

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Verified GMAT Classic score:
740 Q49 V40

Could not have done it without her

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I worked with Judith Hodora right before my group interview. From my first touch point with Judith, she was compassionate and encouraged me to focus on my strengths which definitely helped me calm my nerves. We also discussed specific ideas I could undertake on the interview day to tackle aspects I had missed. She was definitely invested in my success and even volunteered to go out of her way to give me extra coaching on the Sunday afternoon right before my interview !! This was quite heart warming and really made me feel like I was ready to ace D-day. Her experience having seen numerous candidate profiles really comes through. I would 100% recommend working with her throughout the process. Great mentor to have !

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August 10, 2017
flc17

Joined: Aug 10, 2017

Posts: 0

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Fortuna and Judith - Strongly Recommend

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My experience working with Judith was great. I was initially drawn to Fortuna after speaking with both Judith and Matt, her business partner. I had spoken with multiple consulting firms, and Fortuna really impressed me with their attention to detail on my background and what I was hoping to accomplish.

Judith gave a lot of great insight into the admissions process at the various schools, drawing on both her own experience in admissions as well as that of her colleagues. I wasn't sure how much detail was needed for each of the essays. During my first pass at an essay, she came back to me and said that I really needed to go deeper and provided a handful of helpful questions and comments that forced me to get super specific with that school. Throughout the process, she was willing to look over essays and answer last minute questions, and overall was an incredibly useful and calming presence throughout the process. Additionally, she held interview prep sessions for both 1-1 and group interviews, all of which were invaluable.

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