Melissa is a thoughtful, caring, and diligent consultant who will put you in the best position possible to get accepted to your dream MBA program. Melissa was able to extract insights about me and my story throughout the process that I would never have been able to surface on my own. She is an extremely talented essay editor and knows what admissions committees are looking for when they read your personal statements. Without her, my essays would have been much weaker, and I'm not sure I would have gotten the results I did.

More importantly, Melissa provides deeply caring and personalized mentorship. She was always extremely accessible and knew my story inside and out, despite working with many other clients at the same time. She is a straight-shooter and gives actionable feedback, which also means that when she tells you how awesome something is, she means it! She is very honest and pushes her clients in all the right ways. I can't say enough good things about Melissa.

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I worked with Heidi Granner during the Fall 2018 application cycle. I purchased the "start-to-finish" package for four schools and it was the best investment I have ever made.

Heidi was extremely easy to work with, always available, and turned documents around promptly - often before the official turnaround window. Her feedback was always clear and insightful. The MBA application process can be brutal, and working with Heidi made the process significantly less stressful. I am extremely thankful to have worked with her.

In brainstorming and writing essays Heidi was invaluable in helping me to clarify my thinking and find my unique stories/experiences. When it came time to interview she had me better prepared than I could have ever hoped for. Overall, Heidi was a crucial partner in my MBA journey and I absolutely could not have done it without her.

Thanks to Heidi I will be attending my dream school, HBS, this fall.

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Katharine Lewis was a joy to work with as my MBA Application Consultant! During the essay writing process, Katy was a huge help in helping me refine my story while still maintaining my unique voice. I especially recommend Katy if you're applying to Stanford or if - given her wealth of professional experience - you need extra guidance in clarifying and refining your career trajectory for your applications or in general.

During the process, Katy will be a cheerleader and a friend in addition to a supportive consultant. I found that she truly goes out of her way to help you throughout the applications and interview stages.

You want Katy on your side during the admissions process!

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I was referred to Katy by a friend who had worked with her and had a very successful outcome. From our first call, I could tell Katy was someone I wanted on my team. In that first call she gave me confidence that I could stand out as an applicant, something I didn't think likely given my overrepresented IB / PE background.

Among a host of other benefits of working with Katy, two stand out: (1) Katy helped me identify common themes in my life and helped me articulate a life mission of sorts, and (2) she was a skilled guide who helped me navigate the daunting MBA admissions process.

During our "brainstorming" call, I was shocked that she could understand me and my life experiences, motivations, and aspirations on a deep level, and then help me articulate those ideas in my essays while maintaining my own voice. All along the way, Katy was a trusted mentor, but she also gave me the frank criticism that was tough to hear.

I ended up applying to several top business schools in the US in round 1, and I was ultimately accepted to four. I think Katy's clients find that she does everything she can to help them achieve their goals. She did that for me, and I would highly recommend her!

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I was what you would consider an untraditional applicant - I didn't come from a business background and didn't know anyone who was familiar with the MBA process. I had no idea where to start and I really needed someone who would be there to guide me every step of the way. That's when I requested to work with Melissa Blakeslee, and it was by far the best decision and investment I've ever made.

I signed up for a seven school package with Melissa, which was a huge investment, but one that was worth every penny and every social outing I had to say no to over the summer. I didn’t have the most amazing stats (690 GMAT, 3.3 GPA) and I had no idea how to approach the essays, but Melissa placated all my worries from the start while still being honest about my candidacy. Prior to our initial brainstorming call, she had me complete an intense questionnaire/brainstorming doc that really forced me to think deeply about who I am, what makes me tick, and what I want out of an MBA. Melissa and I discussed my responses at length and even got into some of the more personal experiences in my life, which would ultimately serve as inspiration for many of the essays I would write. She was amazing at weaving my stories (professional or personal) into a cohesive narrative that got to the heart of every essay question. It was not easy at first – I had to delete and re-write a lot of things to really show the HOW and WHY, but it was so worth it when I had the finished product. It was almost addicting to see an email from Melissa with her thoughtful revisions. She is truly a word ninja – I have no idea how she does it, but she is an amazing storyteller. She’s also lightning fast and always available for help via email or phone. She sends revisions back much sooner than the 48 hour turnaround time, and I never had to worry about waiting to hear from her.

Of the seven schools I applied to, I applied to one Early Action and the rest in R1. I received invites to interview at five including my EA school (the remaining two did not release interview invites until much later), and Melissa was right by my side helping me prep for each interview. I was so scared and shy when it came to interview prepping, but Melissa was a rockstar and walked me through every question that could possibly come up for each school. She helped me gain confidence in myself and ultimately crush every interview.


By mid-October, I was accepted to my EA/top choice school with a scholarship! I immediately withdrew from the other schools, but did keep myself in the running for one super reach M7 school I applied to and another school that would have been close to family for me. Although I got dinged from the M7 school, I did get an acceptance call from my final school (Anderson) which was still extremely exciting!

Melissa was instrumental in not just helping me craft my story and guiding me from start to finish, but keeping me sane and positive throughout the entire process. She is totally dedicated to you and is the best wingwoman you could ask for. You will be doing yourself a HUGE favor by working with Melissa. Take it from someone who comes from a laid back, non-traditional industry who thought they had little chance of being admitted to b-school. Melissa is not just an amazing consultant, but she is an equally funny, non-judgmental, and wonderful human being as well. I’ll always be grateful to her and will think of her when I start at Fuqua this fall!

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To summarize simply, Katy is amazing. You won’t find anyone more supportive, kind, and knowledgeable. She is truly invested in your future and success from beginning to end. I was a Round 1 applicant and I, like many applicants, had lofty goals of attending some of the top schools but with the fear that I wasn’t good enough: typical finance & strategy experience, below average scores and non-pedigree state school for my undergrad.

When I filled out my “brainstorming” document, I wondered how unique I could possibly be. However, during our conversation, as she asked in-depth “Why?” questions, she got to the core reasons of why I made the decisions I had made. Katy was instantly able to pinpoint unique themes in my story – something I would have never been able to do on my own. By the end of that call, I knew that Katy was truly my friend, ally, and part-therapist.

In all, the application process is no-joke. I went through many ups-and-downs wondering if I would even get an interview at these schools, but Katy was there for it all. It’s a long process but she breaks down the marathon into clear deliverables over the course of a couple of months. Katy knows what these schools are looking for, how to position your story the right way, and what to do to prepare. She's always on call to answer any question you may have.

In the end, I was accepted to Harvard (my first choice) and two other top 5 programs. I truly am thankful for all of her help and cannot recommend her highly enough to anyone who’s looking for not only a consultant but a cheerleader and friend throughout the process.

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I absolutely loved working with Kate, and could not recommend her more!!

I purchased 5 ad-hoc hours to start for 5 schools, intending to use them primarily for essay review. I ended up purchasing 5 more hours later in the process for more essay review / interview prep. Even though I had a good idea of my "story", we started out with brainstorming, which was actually very helpful. Kate pushed me to think of strong, personal examples and worked with me to bring them through in my essays. When editing my essays, Kate gave very tactical recommendations for what elements were essential/nice to have/missing, which I really appreciated. Kate was extremely helpful during interview prep, and she definitely asked the hard questions, which prepared me well. I got interviews for 3 schools and did a mock practice with her for each one of them.

Kate always provided quick and thorough responses to my emails, which I really appreciated during the stressful application period. Moreover, she would always get edits back to me as scheduled or even earlier.

At the end of it all, I'll be going to Wharton, which was my first choice, and couldn't have done it without Kate's help. I would highly recommend Kate for those applying from any industry or function!

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I first approached Katy through a free 30 minute consultation and immediately knew I needed her support and experience throughout the application process. Katy was the one consultant who truly boosted my confidence that I could meet my target programs despite self-reservations around my GRE score and relatively young age. I chose to purchase the 5 hour package. I knew which schools I wanted to apply to and wanted some guidance around essays, resumes, and mock interviews. One of most important, yet sometimes overlooked document is the resume. I was struggling immensely to fit all my experience in one page. Katy provided timely and efficient feedback, and provided insider guidance into what schools look for in a resume. She helped me fit what I wanted in one page. Then came the essays! I first started with a robust brainstorming document and gave my first drafts to Katy. What Katy truly excels at is allowing you to retain your own words and template, but optimizing it in a way that resonates with schools. Every essay I wrote, I retained 100% my thoughts and beliefs and Katy helped me articulate that in an efficient manner. Lastly I conducted a mock interview with Katy. She came prepared with school specific interview questions and gave me tangible feedback to improve upon after the mock interview. Katy has a knack for capturing real-time guidance and providing you that document to serve as a guidance moving forward. All in all, working with Katy was the best investment I made. I knew from the first free consultation that Katy would not only be my consultant, but a genuine mentor looking to help me achieve my dreams. I was able to get admittance and several interviews in the top 20. Without Katy's guidance, this entire process would have been exponentially more stressful. Choose Katy, you won't be disappointed.

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In April, I signed up for a 3-School Round 1 package with Melissa. Melissa was amazing throughout the whole process. She wasted no time getting all the information she could from me and assigning me homework in order to get for us to get the best essay stories possible.
It is worth noting that I was also studying for the GMAT while working on my essays with Melissa, and she was very conscious and respectful of my study time. She often helped push me to study more and do better by providing words of encouragement. After I took the GMAT, she was one of the first people to reach out asking how the test went, but never applied too much pressure to make me feel as though if I didn’t do well on the test that we were in trouble.
Melissa and I worked on 3 schools together, but I applied to 6 programs in total. Melissa was a huge help when deciding which programs to apply to, whether she was going to help me with that school or not. We immediately got to work writing for my target schools, which actually was pretty fun compared to typical essay writing. Melissa always responded with in depth comments, and structural notes that really helped my essays paint a clearer picture. Communicating with Melissa is seamless. Our phone calls always felt very relaxed and natural while being extremely informative. I believe MBAMission has a 48 hour turnaround period for all materials, but Melissa usually responded to all my requests with a day, sometimes in just a few hours for random questions and asks.
After receiving my interview requests, Melissa and I would spend an hour on the phone a couple days before each meeting. I was always very nervous about these interviews, but Melissa really helped calm these fears, while also helping me prepare. I think this was a huge reason I ended up getting admitted to my programs.
Melissa is definitely worth the investment. I believe my time with her made me a better writer, and a stronger candidate. I believe she was a huge reason I ended up getting a scholarship from my school of choice, and admitted into multiple programs. Melissa really helped calm my nerves during this extremely anxious process. Melissa is a great asset to any MBA application process, and I would absolutely recommend her to any and all people looking for someone to help their application make a splash.

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When I was considering business school, I had a lot of questions about whether it was the right next move. I was already working in investment banking, so I knew that for the return on my investment to work, it would have to be a top school. After doing some research, I scheduled a call with Melissa and she helped walk me through every aspect of the process and figure out if the schools I was interested in were attainable. I could tell that she really knew what she was talking about, and she definitely was on my team from day one. After our discussion, I knew that despite the somewhat off putting price tag, it was worth it given my busy schedule.

Once I was signed up, Melissa was by my side every step of the way. She was incredibly responsive and kept my application process moving very efficiently. She played a key role in helping me narrow down a list of schools into a targeted application strategy, and then craft a compelling story tailored to each program that would really highlight my strengths. I was surprised a few times when even after several months, she would recall facts or stories that I had mentioned and prompt me to work them into my apps--she made me feel like I was her only client. Melissa did a great job of pushing me to improve areas that were weak and to really focus my essays on "showing" and not "telling". I leaned on Melissa every step of the way, and by the time I was ready to submit applications, I knew that I was putting my best possible foot forward.

A few key parts of the process where Melissa really shined:

- School Strategy: Melissa really helped me pick realistic and stretch schools, offering insights on culture and recruiting that gave me a lot of confidence in my ultimate choices
- Brainstorming: I found it hard to translate my experiences and background into a cohesive story, and Melissa was fantastic at working with me to filter out the unnecessary parts and keep the good stuff
- Essays: Melissa was very prompt, almost always flipping drafts back to me next-day (sometimes the same day) and helping me make consistent progress
- General Support & Advice: Any time I had an application-related question (seriously, any time... I had a ton of questions), Melissa was more than happy to talk and help me work through it. She was 100% on my team, and gave me a ton of confidence in my processes

Overall, I couldn't recommend her enough! Melissa pushed me where I needed it and supported me the entire way, and definitely played a key role in my admissions (with fellowships) to Wharton and Columbia.

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