GMAT Club

Kate Richardson Reviews

Company: mbaMission

Kate Richardson earned her MBA from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business and has a BS in psychology from the University of Illinois. After earning her MBA, Kate worked for several years in management consulting at Axiom Consulting Partners, a boutique strategy execution firm. Kate’s work at Axiom focused on ensuring that clients had the right organization and talent in place to execute their business strategies. As a principal with the firm, she also co-managed its recruiting program, including hiring MBA interns, and mentored entry-level consultants. While at Chicago Booth, Kate was actively involved in the Business Solutions Group and the Dean’s Student Admissions Committee and was also an Admissions Fellow, reading applications and conducting on-campus interviews. Kate has remained involved in the Chicago Booth community since graduating by serving as communications chair for the Booth Alumni Club of DC and as an alumni admissions interviewer. Before attending business school, Kate worked in human resources for Pepco Energy Services and KPMG. Kate brings a passion for identifying and developing future business leaders to her work at mbaMission. Originally from the Chicago area and having spent most of her professional career in Washington, DC, Kate now lives in Columbia, South Carolina.


5.0 /5 Average Rating
Based on 100 reviews
June 03, 2024
User1588

Joined: Jun 03, 2024

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Kate is Amazing!

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Kate was an incredible consultant, and I cannot recommend her enough. While the MBA application process is extremely daunting, Kate's knowledge, thoroughness, and organization, coupled with her warm, calm presence made it feel more than manageable. With Kate's help, I was accepted to 4/4 of the schools I applied to, including Stanford GSB and Harvard Business School, and will be attending HBS this fall.

Kate was instrumental in focusing my application to highlight my strengths and holistically capture who I was as a person. Her extensive knowledge was consistently apparent whenever I had questions about schools, the application process, or how something in my essays might be construed by the AdComm. As a woman working in biotech, Kate ensured my application was powerful for any reader, regardless of their industry background, while also successful in communicating my expertise.

Kate's exceptional organization kept me on track and motivated throughout the entire application process. As someone who struggles with time management and rarely submits anything until the final hour, Kate's detailed calendar and review windows allowed me to progress the application in a timely fashion without last-minute, high-anxiety sprints. The application has a lot of moving parts and with Kate's oversight, I was always confident everything was accounted for.

Overall, I had an amazing experience working with Kate, I truly could not have done it without her.

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May 23, 2024
Catcher22

Joined: Mar 27, 2023

Posts: 13

Kudos: 8

5 Schools Done In 2-3 Months

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I did all my applications in a 2-3 month period that included studying for an exam retake, a bout of COVID, and full-time work.

Kate was absolutely fantastic and likely the reason I was able to submit 5 applications on time for R1. She was highly responsive and incredibly thorough with her feedback throughout all drafts of my essays and applications. There was a lot of back and forth between us on the edits and Kate was always receptive to brainstorming and changes in order to bring the best work to the table.

Additionally, she aided a lot in the organization of the overall application timeline and answered all of my questions about the process. She was available at all times to chat with and also helped prep throughout the interview process as well.

I can't recommend Kate enough.

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April 16, 2024
tanukimaster44

Joined: Aug 04, 2021

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

The Best Consultant Out There

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Kate was an unbelievably exceptional consultant.
One of my biggest concerns with the process was balancing work and the applications, but Kate made sure I was completely on top of all of my deadlines, regularly checked in, and ensured I was always on track.
As someone who very often gets stressed and anxious, Kate promptly provided extremely sound and logical advice to all of my questions (which I had a million of) and even emotional support. She was exactly the type of calming influence I needed. She always made me feel my concerns were legitimate and valued, was always available, and always willing to chat.
She has exceptional understanding on the schools as well and gave me so much advice on how best to approach each school, talking through with me and pulling out the strengths I had. I ended up being accepted to both the HSWs I worked with her on.
I cannot speak highly enough of Kate and I would very very strongly recommend her.

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April 12, 2024
rgeo3

Joined: Apr 12, 2024

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Highly recommend Kate!

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When I contemplated engaging an admissions consultant for my MBA applications, I was uncertain about the investment versus the value it would bring. But I wanted to learn what additional benefits admissions consultants had to offer. I talked to several folks, but Kate stood out more than anyone else. As an Indian male engineer, I recognized the competitiveness of my background. Kate helped me uncover my unique strengths, shaping a genuine and compelling narrative tailored to the schools I targeted. After experiencing her exceptional service with one MBA application, I was so satisfied that I chose to engage her for another school as well. And it doesn’t stop there. Kate has an amazing network of current and former MBA students. During the application process, she connected me with current MBA students at the schools I was interested in. This was extremely helpful in comparing MBA programs across culture, organizations, and career potentials. Even better, currently I’m going into my second year of the MBA program and trying to transition into product management (PM). Through Kate, I was able to connect with a current PM at the company I am going to intern with over the summer. I wholeheartedly endorse Kate as an admissions consultant. She offers comprehensive support from application to post-admission success, ensuring your journey to top programs is both fruitful and fulfilling.

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April 08, 2024
Thompo

Joined: Mar 13, 2023

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Verified GMAT Classic score:
770 Q50 V44

Endorsement of Kate Richardson - mbaMission

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Kate came highly recommended to me by several friends who had overwhelmingly positive experiences with her helping them gain admission to top / M7 schools. After being admitted to my top choice schools, I can safely say the experiences of my friends were not a fluke.

It's obvious that Kate cares about the success of her clients on a personal level. Aside from providing thorough feedback of my resume and essays, she kept me in the loop about information and happenings relevant to my choice schools. She administered a mock HBS interview which I ultimately found to be highly representative of the actual interview. I come from a relatively niche career background, but she performed thorough research to give specific, focused questions and feedback.

Well past the application reviews and interviews, she remained in constant contact to provide thorough answers to my questions and updates. Ultimately, I gained admission to my top choice / M7 schools - despite my GPA starting with a "2".

I strongly endorse Kate to anybody pursuing admittance to the MBA program of their choice.

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February 09, 2024
darklord91

Joined: Feb 17, 2020

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Elevating Applications: The Transformative Influence of Kate!

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Kate is an exceptional MBA admission consultant, possessing extensive experience and expertise in the field. I had the pleasure of working with Kate for applications to both Booth and Kellogg, and I am thrilled to share that I gained admission to both institutions, with the added bonus of receiving a scholarship for Booth.
Throughout our collaboration, Kate remained unwavering in her support, demonstrating a keen understanding of my challenges, such as my lower-than-desired GMAT score. She provided invaluable guidance, recommending alternative exams like the Executive Assessment to meet stringent application deadlines. Despite my demanding work schedule, Kate consistently delivered prompt feedback on my essays, ensuring that I stayed on track with my application tasks.
Kate's commitment to my success was truly remarkable. Her ability to deeply listen, identify my strengths, and craft compelling narratives played a pivotal role in strengthening my applications. Working with her was a pleasure; her calm demeanor, organizational skills, and diligence were evident in every aspect of the application process.
I wholeheartedly endorse Kate as one of the best MBA consultants I've had the privilege of working with. Her exceptional qualities make her a top choice for anyone seeking guidance in their MBA journey.

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December 21, 2023
annie456

Joined: Dec 21, 2023

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Katei Richardson - MBAMISSION

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Currently I am a woman in Consulting who was looking to get an MBA to focus and pivot to Technology. Kate was an incredible resource to help me figure out my MVA goals. She guided me through the process all the way from choosing schools, submitting applications, and writing letters for merit scholarships. Kate's deep understanding of the various programs combined with insightful discussions about my career goals ensured that I shaped my applications tailored to the schools. Kate's unwavering support made the MBA application process less daunting - providing a detailed calendar view of all next steps in order to stay on track. Through essay help, mock interviews, and continuous engagement, Kate provided an outstanding experience, and I could not recommend her more.

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May 26, 2023
alexsirgo

Joined: May 26, 2023

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Thank you Kate!

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Kate is truly an exceptional consultant/guide/advisor. The MBA application process is very daunting and one of Kate’s many strengths was helping me manage all of the moving parts that go into an application. From our initial consultation, Kate helped me identify areas of my profile that needed attention while helping me identify schools/programs/career paths that would fit well into my profile and story. As an applicant from a nontraditional background (engineering/STEM), Kate was invaluable in guiding me to hit the sweet spot of showcasing my skills and experience without sounding like an engineering textbook. Something that I think really helped with my application was having Kate review my letters of recommendation. Kate worked directly with my recommenders to help them better understand what areas needed to be highlighted in their letters. It made me feel much better knowing that someone as experienced as Kate was reviewing the part of my application that I had little control over. Additionally, Kate helped me prepare for interviews (which I highly recommend) and acted as a sounding board for when I had to choose where to enroll out of the 4 amazing programs I was admitted to. I would not be where I am today without Kate. Thank you so much!!!

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March 07, 2023
ead2012

Joined: Mar 07, 2023

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Verified GMAT Classic score:
720 Q48 V41 (Online)

Highly Recommend

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As a nontypical applicant (social science undergrad, career in nonprofits, gap in my work history) I recognized that I needed a consultant to partner with for the business school application process and my friends had recommended mbaMission. After exploring consultants online, I knew I wanted to work with Kate because of her experience and interest in working with those from nontraditional backgrounds, which proved to be invaluable. She helped me craft my personal story to cater to the unique aspects of each program, and identified key points to highlight my strengths and enable me to condense my essays to fit the strict word limits. Most importantly, she was the level-headed cheerleader I needed during this demanding process. She set realistic expectations, provided constructive criticism, celebrated achievements both big and small, and eased video essay and interview-related anxiety. Kate also worked with my three references (colleagues and mentors in the nonprofit sector who had never written business school recommendations) to ensure they successfully conveyed my potential as a future business leader. In the end, I was accepted to two out of the three M7s I applied to, including my first choice program. I doubt this would have been possible without Kate’s expert guidance. Applying to the top MBA programs can be a confusing and grueling process, so if you are wondering whether to hire Kate to support you, the answer is yes!

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August 01, 2022
golfingafterthis

Joined: Sep 20, 2017

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Fantastic end-to-end application support

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I worked with Kate during the 2021-22 application cycle. I started out the MBA application process largely unsure of where to start. Kate provided immensely valuable end-to-end guidance, including school selection given my stats and background, potential essay narratives based on my story, resume clean-up, essay review, and ultimately interview prep. Having an expert to provide direction along the way gave me the confidence I needed throughout the entire process!

My outcomes were extremely positive – I applied to 4 M7s, received 4/4 interview invites, and was ultimately accepted to Kellogg (my top choice) and CBS. I was thrilled to say the least and attribute so much of my success to Kate’s support! I can’t recommend Kate enough!

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4 Older and Non-Verified Reviews for Kate Richardson