At first, I didn’t think I needed a personal coach because I was already in a pre-MBA program that helps with applications.. But an alum from the program told me I had to work with Kelsey, and I’m so glad I did.

It’s not only Kelsey’s ability to help you create such a strong story, but it’s her years of experience and knowledge in the industry that make you feel very confident every step of the way. She very much understands the admissions processes because she’s been apart of the team who reviews applications, and therefore is able to point out things you might’ve never thought about.

She supported me through everything, even when I was unhappy at my job and thinking of quitting before getting accepted anywhere. She immediately hopped on the phone with me, answered all my questions, and helped me think it through without pressure.

Whenever I felt stressed or unsure, she was there. I had a 3.1 undergrad GPA and a 310 GRE score, and I still got into Wharton off the waitlist and Duke who gave me a big scholarship. We focused a lot on making sure my essays really showed my personality, and we didn’t shy away from addressing gaps in my application.

Could I have done this on my own? Maybe. But I’m 100% sure I wouldn’t have submitted my best-application without Kelsey. She was my biggest cheerleader and I will continue to recommend her to EVERYONE I know applying!! Very excited that I’ll be going to Wharton and graduating class of 2027!

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Working with Kelsey was one of the best decisions I made during the MBA application process. With her support, I netted over a million dollars in scholarships (crazy right?!?). But beyond the money, what made her stand out was her responsiveness. I could shoot her an email and get thoughtful, helpful feedback so quickly, it felt like she was in this process with me every step of the way. She was so quick to jump on a call and chat through things live with me.

What I think makes Kelsey the best is that she didn’t just edit my essays (which is what I hired her for) but she took my story and made it stronger, while keeping my voice. She helped me pull out the pieces that mattered, frame them with intention, and kept the heart of it all intact. I used to spend hours trimming down my essay and trying to get it below the word limit but Kelsey would do what took me 3 hours in 15 minutes. Kelsey also pushed me to apply for schools I didn't even think I had a shot at and she was right, I got into an M7 with scholarship money!

What I appreciated most is that she was fair, fast, and just so good at her job. She works efficiently, never cuts corners, and her feedback is honest but kind. I never felt like she was trying to get more money from me, which I feel like is rare in this industry. For everything she brings to the table, she’s an incredible value—especially when you consider the ROI of those scholarship offers. Could not recommend her more and truly think it was the best decision I made in this entire process.

I got into 13/14 schools and am heading to a top 10 MBA with full tuition and a stipend. I'm so excited!

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Kelsey was absolutely amazing in helping me prep for my Wharton TBD interview! She’s a true professional with deep knowledge of the MBA admissions process and was incredibly responsive throughout, and that's something I really appreciated.

Heading into the interview, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But Kelsey guided me through every step from brainstorming a strong solution to the TBD prompt, helping me choose the right "role" to play, fine-tuning my timing and tonality, and most importantly, helping me stay calm and confident. I can say with confidence that I wouldn't have received my offer from Wharton without Kelsey’s support and expertise.

What truly stood out is how much she cares. Even after I received offers from multiple schools, she made time to hop on a call and talk through my options, what made the most sense, and how to approach the next step in my career.

If you're looking for support with interview prep, essay guidance, or full-on application strategy, I can recommend Kelsey without hesitation. She’s the real deal!

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If there’s one thing I’d tell anyone starting the MBA application process, it’s to work with Kelsey. The whole thing is stressful, overwhelming and honestly kind of a black box, but having Kelsey in my corner was the calm in the chaos. She brings a ton of experience as a former AdCom, but more than that, she’s just incredibly kind, accessible, and real.
Right from our first call—where she stayed on for an extra 30 minutes just to answer all my questions (even the silly ones)—I knew I was in good hands. She gives her personal number, responds super quickly (like, within a couple hours!), and genuinely makes you feel like you’re not doing this alone.
One thing I really appreciated was how honest and transparent she was. She never sugarcoated anything, but somehow always delivered tough feedback in a way that made me feel encouraged, not defeated. I always felt clear on what was working, what needed work, and that she was truly a partner in the process—not just a consultant, but someone who cared about my story and was invested in helping me tell it well.
Kelsey made a stressful process feel way less scary. She helped me tell my story in a way that felt authentic, and I always felt supported—through every draft, every interview prep session, and every little meltdown in between.

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I approached Kelsey after having spoken to 4 other consultants. Given the investment involved, I was skeptical about the value an admissions consultant would add to my applications. Making the decision to engage with Kelsey on my applications was one of the best decisions I've ever made.

From the first intro call, I could tell she was different from other consultants, not only did she have strong experience as an adcom at CBS to draw from, but she also brought her unique way of going about the application process. Coming into the process, I wasn’t super confident about my odds at the top schools. But Kelsey was great at helping me organize my thoughts and highlight my strengths. She’s really good at helping you weave a cohesive narrative and framing your background and accomplishments in the strongest way possible, regardless of the school.

The MBA admissions journey is long and has quite a few moving parts. Kelsey helped me compartmentalize each step, helping me stay focused and not stress. She is a great sounding board for ideas and will be honest when she thinks something is not going to work or will help frame something that has legs into something compelling.

Kelsey was super quick with turning things around and answering my many questions at any time of the day. She is generous with her time and I never felt rushed when talking with her. If you want someone who is professional, knows her stuff, and part therapist you cannot go wrong with Kelsey. I was very happy with how my admissions cycle played out and I truly believe I couldn't have achieved that without Kelsey.

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Ten months ago, I knew almost nothing about the world of business school. Now, thanks to Square One Prep, I’m admitted to Michigan Ross with a $100k scholarship, Cornell Johnson with a $30k scholarship, and Tuck! Clearly my investment paid off, and I am so happy that an MBA is in my future.

I first spoke to Kathryn in June 2024, ahead of starting my Round 2 application process in October. At the time, I knew little about what to expect, what these schools looked for, or how to properly steer my career. Kathryn patiently walked me through Square One’s process, which I could tell would be both rigorous and thorough in solving the gaps in my knowledge, while taking a big load off my plate with prepping the materials. One of the first things that struck me was how quickly Kathryn and her team would respond to me, and how generous they were with their time when it came to answering my questions and reviewing my work.

I selected Square One’s premium tier, and after being onboarded, I worked with Kelsey, who I felt both understood me as a person and who had deep expertise in what business schools look for in their applicants. This made it easy for me to be forthright with her about anything that came to my mind and to trust her advice. Much of this was also thanks to a thorough assessment she did with me where she learned every detail of my undergraduate, extracurricular, and work experience. As we created my resume, my essays, and my application, I felt like she was my second brain. Her edits made sense, we were able to move the process along with each school efficiently, and I felt comfortable reaching out to her whenever I had a question. I especially appreciated how we were able to integrate my artistic background into my application materials, leveraging them as a strength. Our interview prep went just as smoothly given our rapport.

After creating each application component with Kelsey, Kathryn’s second layer of tweaks would give my materials an extra sparkle—ensuring that my strengths as a business school applicant stood out, even to someone just skimming through the materials. Occasionally Kathryn would send back an essay for rewrites, having me and Kelsey revisit the drawing board. But even this was something I ultimately appreciated because I could feel that the entire team was invested in giving me the strongest application possible.

What really brought it home was how I continued to feel both Kathryn and Kelsey’s investment even past the school acceptance stage. They helped me negotiate higher scholarships and they even met with me to discuss a waitlist strategy for two business schools that I am trying to convert into acceptances. They help review the monthly updates I am writing to those schools. I feel that this is well beyond what I might normally expect from an admissions consultancy, and I am deeply grateful for their dedication well past the time of my acceptance. I still feel like I have access to both of them, and am able to hear back about any questions very quickly.

I also want to give a special thank you to Horatiu, who helped shape my career narrative and guided me on what to research to become a knowledgeable and credible candidate for the industry and function I hope to enter. His insights were essential not only for my goals essays but for my interviews as well.

Honestly, I can’t imagine an admissions consulting experience more comprehensive than the one I had with Square One. They helped with the whole journey, and then some. There should be no doubts in your mind. Working with Square One was one of the best decisions I’ve made.

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After being waitlisted by my dream program and rejected by the rest in Round 1, I was devastated and lost. A stranger on Reddit recommended Kelsey, saying she had helped convert their waitlist. I was skeptical—my previous consultant experience hadn’t been great—but I decided to give it a try.

Before our first call, I sent Kelsey my application materials. During that call, she immediately pinpointed weaknesses in my application—everything from small details like not listing the class year of alumni I had spoken with, to deeper concerns about how I framed my career goals. These were issues my previous consultant had never once mentioned. And the best part? She shared all this feedback on a free call, not knowing whether I would choose to work with her. She then walked me through what it would be like to work together and guaranteed that she would support me through the entire process. By that point, I was 100% sold. Kelsey helped me craft three waitlist update letters, did one yield call prep, and kept me sane throughout the entire process. She’s proactive, resourceful, incredibly experienced, and will always be there for you.

I ended up converting my waitlist way earlier than I expected. My only regret is not finding her sooner. Having worked with multiple consultants, I can recommend Kelsey with my whole heart!

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Working with Kelsey was, without a doubt, the best decision I made during my MBA application journey. I was accepted at HSW even with below average test scores and a non-traditional background. Kelsey helped me highlight my differentiating factors—my leadership experience, uniqueness of my non-traditional background, and the impact I’ve made. Her ability to see the bigger picture helped me shape compelling, authentic narratives that truly reflected who I am.

Kelsey’s breadth of knowledge across multiple industries was incredibly valuable when it came to refining my short and long-term goals. She pushed me to be specific, strategic, and realistic. She knew exactly how to position my goals in a way that resonated with each program, tying together my past experiences and future ambitions, which was key.

Even though I knew she had other clients, it always felt like I had her full attention. Her responsiveness and turnaround times were incredible, especially during crunch time. I genuinely don’t know how she does it.

I also did two mock interviews with her—one focused on general MBA and behavioral questions, and another more advanced session that dug into the "why" behind my professional and personal life choices. That second interview was especially helpful in giving me a framework to approach a wide range of questions with clarity and confidence.

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As a non-traditional candidate from a company with zero name recognition, work gaps, etc, I was nervous about my chances at top MBA programs. I had intro calls with almost 10 consultants, big firms and solo, but most of them told me I was not top-school material. Some straight-up said I should be ready to get my heart broken and brushed me off.

Kelsey was different even in the intro call. She told me, “No matter who you go with, make sure you work with someone who understands you.” I wanted to work with someone who believed in me, so I decided to work with her.

I live halfway across the world, so the time difference was inconvenient. But Kelsey was always super prompt (whether it was the weekend, a holiday, or even when traveling in Japan). That level of commitment was wild to me. Also, I have to say that her pricing is super reasonable compared to others in the space, especially with her being a former adcom.

Her feedback was very honest and efficient. I broke my head for GSB's WMM essay topic for weeks, and she helped me figure it out in like 30 minutes. I thought I had to present myself a certain way to adcom to sound “impressive”, but Kelsey immediately called out that it came across as generic. She helped me dig deeper and find the parts of my story that were me, things I didn’t even realise were worth highlighting.

Post-submission, I kept doubting myself until the interview invite came (late in the cycle), and Kelsey kept reminding me that I was still very much in the play. She told me she expected me to get an interview,w and I did! Her gut from the ADCom experience was obvious.

I am sure I would not have gotten into my school without her. Yes, you need to bring your stuff because things have to be real, but on 'how you tell it', Kelsey nailed it. I highly recommend her to anyone like me.

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I think Kelsey's biggest strength is she helps you define and frame all aspects of your story. I find a lot of applicants, like myself, have interesting stories and background to share, but struggle to convey it in a relevant and compelling manner. Her experience in admissions shines in this area she is able to pick out and refine the highlights of your background. She did not hesitant to shoot down aspects of my background that weren't as interesting and also helped me flesh out other parts that I may have overlooked.

Additionally, Kelsey's process is highly structured and helped me set timelines and goals for myself when applying. We set dates for work to be completed by and she would follow-up quickly with updates/comments. She has an efficient organization system for breaking down different pieces of work to be down by school and how to re-use certain pieces and ideas for different applications.

She is high touch at every step of the process from LoR, essay, resume, application submission, interview, and wait-list. She will review everything you submit. Her expertise shines as you work with her and it made a huge difference for me when I was trying to get off the wait-list. I am thankful and grateful for all of Kelsey's hard-work and highly recommend her as an consultant.

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