mbaMission Admissions Consulting Reviews

After using Manhattan GMAT prep to prepare for the exam, my instructor told me she would pair me with mbaMission's best consultant, Angela Guido. I was already impressed by the strong recommendation, but during the free consultation with Angela I was further impressed with the candor she spoke of my candidacy, the concrete advice she provided me, and the fact that she did not try to push her consulting services on me. I decided to work with Angela on a 2 school Complete-Start-to-Finish Package and I would highly recommend Angela to anyone comparing MBA admissions consultants.

Before the school applications were even released, Angela worked with me through 13 revisions of my resume. She dissected every sentence and we worked through every word, "de-jargoning" my resume. I later sent my resume to a friend (and Kellogg admissions fellow whose opinions I trust greatly), and he informed me that my resume was the best he'd seen. I attribute this praise to Angela solely.

Angela, was very responsive to my correspondence, often returning multiple drafts of documents within a single day. Aside from resume prep, Angela's greatest strength in my view is her ability to pick out the aspects of my background that led to major life decisions I'd made, and subsequently articulate these insights on my application.

I can't recommend Angela highly enough. If you plan to use mbaMission, Angela should be your first choice. If you aren't planning to use mbaMission, Angela Guido should be a strong reason to reconsider.

I was admitted to Wharton, Sloan, and Booth and I know that I couldn't have done it without Angela.

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I used mbaMission for my bschool application a few years ago. I worked with the consultant Adam Grossman doing hourly consulting. We had an initial phone call to understand my background and he spent a lot of time reviewing my essays and giving me ideas. I really liked the changes he helped me change on my address and he was very easy to reach and had really fast turn around time. He brought up some good points to add to my address that I did not think of, and he helped me polish the essay to make them sound consistent.
I think his guidance really helped me succeed in my applications. I would definitely recommend them.

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I was hesitant to hire an admissions consultant, but a good friend who got into HBS highly recommended Angela so I did a trial call. I quickly hired her.

I could speak of how she overhauled my resume – still 100% accurate but much more impressive, or how she understood me so quickly and what to highlight for my story, or the quality of her feedback that helped me shape my essay into the masterpiece I feel it is (my HBS interviewer told me “I love the way you write”). Yet I feel the most telling example is when Angela told me she woke up in the middle of the night and realized we HAD to add back a portion of the essay we just removed. That’s the kind of person you want to work with.

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Applying to business school was an overwhelming experience for me. I was a non-traditional applicant and struggling with how to present myself. I knew what I wanted schools to know about me, but wasn’t sure how to express all of that eloquently in essay form. When I contacted mbaMission, I specifically requested a consultant who would be comfortable working with an unconventional applicant, because it was important to me that I stay authentic to myself throughout the process.

Working with Kate was such a pleasure from day one. She is incredibly insightful and knowledgeable when it comes to what various schools are looking for, and is an outstanding editor. I applied to a giant number of schools (a total of seven in round one). She was extremely organized and kept me motivated while I was nearing the finish line, especially given all those different deadlines and essay topics. Kate was full of very honest and straightforward feedback, while still managing to be kind and encouraging. Most importantly, Kate was really able to draw upon my strengths to create compelling applications, and asked me all the right questions while I was working through the essays. After submitting each application, I was certain that I had put my best foot forward, and that confidence in myself and in my story would not have been possible without Kate’s help and expertise.

I am 100% convinced that I would not have had the same successes in being admitted to top business schools if I hadn't worked with Kate on every application. I’ve already recommended Kate to friends of mine going through the business school application process right now. Kate is such a gem for anyone applying to business school, and it was truly a pleasure to work with her.

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I had a wonderful experience working with Jen Kedrowski. I believed the weakest aspect of my application was my work experience and Jen worked very hard to help me highlight my accomplishments and address my weaknesses. We also spent many productive hours preparing for interviews, of which I had six in a two week period. I chose Jen because she received her MBA from Cambridge and I was most interested in LBS, but this does not mean that she has limited knowledge of the American schools. Jen helped me get accepted to Booth, Yale, and Cambridge, and waitlisted at Dartmouth and LBS. If you are looking for a consultant who is very diligent, enthusiastic, reliable, and detail oriented, I would highly recommend Jen Kedrowski at mbaMission.

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I worked with Angela on a two school package for both HBS and GSB.

What really impressed me right away was how she read into my personality so well. After reading through my initial brainstorming materials, and doing an 30 minute call, it felt like Angela had known me for years.

She was tremendously helpful in helping me brainstorm essay ideas and helping me frame my life story and interests in a convincing way! I was very happy with the end result of my essays and felt they really reflected who I was.

Angela was quick to respond to any questions I had over email, and always got drafts of my essays back to me in a timely manner.

Although I did not end up getting into either of my top choices, I was able to leverage the work I did on both schools into an application to Wharton and was admitted! Angela even helped me in my interview even though it wasn't one of the two schools I was working with her on. Talk about going above and beyond!

If anyone is on the fence about hiring a consultant, I highly recommend you spending 30 minutes (free consultation!) on the phone with Angela!

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Before I ever met Melissa Blakeslee, I was excited to work with her because of her experience working on the other end of the admissions process, as an executive director of admissions at Rice University’s Jones Graduate School of Business. More than helping me craft essays and applications that would appeal to the admissions officers though, Melissa helped me build an authentic application because she was completely committed to getting to know me. Equal parts therapy session and brainstorm, our first meeting was a 1.5 hour call where we talked about everything from my upbringing to my work experience. During our next brainstorming session, she continued to bring up ideas that evolved some of the topics we had discussed 2+ months earlier.

When it came time to practice for my interview, Melissa was the ultimate resource because she knew me as well (if not better) than I knew myself. She suggested answers that I hadn’t considered and reminded me of experiences that I had forgotten. In the end, I was perfectly set-up for an interview that told one cohesive story, rather than a series of disjointed, one-off answers.

More than anything else though, in searching for an admissions consultant, I was looking for a real partner to guide me through a pretty overwhelming process. Someone who’d be as invested in my success as much as my mom or dad might be. In Melissa, I found exactly that. When it was crunch time, I was incredibly grateful to have Melissa with me in the trenches. She provided feedback on my essays quicker than I could edit them and was the only reason I got everything in on time. After a poor interview, Melissa gave me some much-needed perspective, helping me parse the emotional from the rational. And when I found out I had been admitted to my dream school, Melissa was my third call (after my parents and grandma). If I could go through it all over again, I wouldn’t do it with anyone else but Melissa.

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I worked with Angela from MBA mission for a 2-school package for R1 (Tuck, Haas), and then decided to add a third school for R2 (Harvard). I applied R2 to Wharton and Kellogg on my own as its a numbers game.

My background - Deals from the Big 4, 720 GMAT, 5 years of work experience, good (but not great) extracurriculars in college and afterwards.

This is the 3rd year I applied to business schools. 2 years ago did R3 at Harvard (looking back I had no shot), last year I did R2 at H/W/Tuck. All dings, with interview invite at Tuck. Over the summer I felt that this was realistically my last shot to apply, and I just didn't want to gamble with my chances.

A guide in the process. Just like you wouldn't trek across the desert on your own, you probably shouldn't apply to business school without help. You might get to the destination in the end, but youll probably take a wrong turn at some point. Last year I would spend weeks crafting a an essay, only to realise at the end that even though it was written well the story didnt work and I needed to restart (I got up to 20+ revisions last year on some essays). This time around with each revision I knew I was on the right track (only about 5-8 revisions per essay). This was INCREDIBLY useful as I could see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Positives
- STORY CRAFTING. Angela helped me dive into my career and college to pull out the best stories. About half of them were ones I wouldnt have included originally, but looking back now they are some of my most powerful. She also helped me get under the skin of each school and essay question so that I could change perspective and tell the same story from multiple viewpoints depending on what was required.

- TIME SAVINGS. She knew the process and always had the answer. The previous two years I constantly read online forums and books on application strategy. This killed my time and restricted how many applications I did. I also would read advice in one place, and have it contradicted somewhere else.

- SUPPORTIVE - Angela was really my champion throughout the process. She was honest in schools I didnt have a shot at (Stanford) - but also encouraged me to stretch myself and go for my dream schools. She also provided much needed encouragement when I was sick of the process and wanted to give up.

- Consulants are the only ones with truly OBJECTIVE FEEDBACK. Angela called me out when my essays were crap and I needed to change direction at the start. Family and friends aren't objective and don't understand the process. They should provide feedback on the essays (at the end of the process when its being tightened), but they are not the best help crafting the theme and story.

Advice I wish I could have given myself a year ago
- Speak to consulants as early as possible. I started in July and really felt like I should have started earlier to ease my stress levels as the deadlines loomed.The best consulants get fully booked months in advance, this wasnt something I was aware of going into the process.

-Personality fit is also really important and something I didnt consider as much when I started the process. Even within the same company its likely you will connect really well with some consultants, and may not well with others.

- She wont do the work for you or chase you. She guides you in the process but wont carry you. At the end of the day, its your voice, your stories - she just makes sure your best stories are picked and they come across as polished as possible.

I have been accepted to Kellogg!!!!! (and interview invite is TBD at Harvard) Although Kellogg wasnt one of the school's I worked with Angela on, there were many areas that overlapped (my "theme", interview advice, resume, letter of recs, some parts of the essays). Generally my thought process had also changed from previous applications (i.e. show - dont tell). Ironically, my Tuck application was better than my Kellogg application, goes to show sometimes its just a bit of luck.

Overall - HIGHLY recommend both Angela and MBAmission - I wouldnt have been accepted without using her. Simple as that.

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In July when I was agonizing over which consultant to choose, my conversation with Melissa B. at MBAMission sealed the deal. But when I decided to go with MBAMission, Melissa recommended Kate to me after knowing my background and my target universities. I wanted to work with an admissions consultant especially because I didn’t have many people around me who had applied for business school in my circles.

Right from school selection to first understanding my story before we went into any application, Kate was AMAZING! She was particular that I not set my sights too low and yet be pragmatic about my chances which made me apply to a range of schools in the M7 and few outside of it, especially being an international student. I finally ended up choosing 4 M7 schools and 1 non-M7 school to work with MBAMission.

I got rejects from three schools and got admitted into Booth (one was still pending at the time of writing this). What’s funny is I chose to work with Kate because I thought that it would be an advantage while writing my Booth essays. Yet, Kate’s knowledge and insights on other universities were amazing. She would always supplement my research during my essays.

When I look back at my rejections, I know very well that it was NOT because of my essays but rather a question of profile / fit / round. That said, ‘all you need is one!’ and I know fully well that my applications would be nowhere as good without Kate’s help. Her attention to detail was awesome and it always amazed me how she would transform my essay, with essentially the same story and build-up, into something absolutely different.

During my interview preparation with Kate, she gave me some truly invaluable tips which I know I will be using going forward as well! Not just that, if I felt my essays needed an additional spark, Kate would always reach out to other consultants at MBAMission and get their thoughts as well which was not something I ever expected out of her.

I think what really stood out to me while working with Kate was just how amazing a person she was and was genuinely interested in my successes and failures. That is really important while working with a consultant since you are going and pouring out details of your life story to someone whom you haven’t met before and you need to be really comfortable doing that. My calls and frequent e-mails (trust me when I say frequent!) never disappointed and I always felt comfortable and relaxed during the entire process.

Lastly, the thing that stood out to me most was when I got my rejections, she gave me additional material to prepare for my Round 2 essays if I ever needed them and ensured that I planned ahead even though I wouldn’t be working with her. Before I received my Booth acceptance, I was able to complete my essays for 2 other universities as a backup all because of Kate’s push. Thankfully I never had to use them :-D

I really can’t overstate how much I recommend her services.

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After researching a few different companies and interviewing 3 different consultants, I did not hesitate to work with Angela, and I still consider hiring her as one of the best things I did to prepare for the long process of applying to business school. She is upbeat, down to earth, kind, and the type of person who will tell it like it is and tell it how you need to hear it. Now that the process is over, I would definitely go back and choose her again in a heartbeat.

I am a non-traditional applicant- first of all, I am a 38 year old mother, so from the perspective from many Adcoms, I may as well have an AARP card. The stats for my admission to any top tier school were not good just based upon this fact alone. I am also military (I had a long commitment), but I had a late start to my career due to some flailings in my personal and professional life in my early 20’s. My extracurriculars were nothing spectacular and my college GPA was 3.3. I did, however, have a 740 GMAT, so I decided that maybe a school or two may overlook my faults if I could sell myself correctly, and this is where Angela came in.

I knew that I would give this one shot- no reapplying next year, so I wanted to make it count. I bought the 5 school comprehensive package and paid the nearly $10,000 fee (gulp!) With her advice, I decided to apply to MIT, Yale, HBS, Kellogg, and Foster (U of Washington). Here are a few of thoughts about my experience with Angela:

1. I am an extremely private person, yet I felt completely comfortable sharing things with Angela that even some of my closest friends don’t know. Not only is she not judgmental, but I also felt that in sharing certain things with her, she was able to understand me as a total person, which was key when helping me craft compelling narratives.

2. She was ALWAYS on time and NEVER missed a deadline or phone call. Ever. She was always prepared for the call.

3. I am not by nature a procrastinator, so I did not hire her to help me stay on track. I hired her because she knows what she is doing. She did not disappoint.

4. I had one minor recommender-related crisis that occurred half way through the process that I freaked out about. Angela was on the phone with me almost immediately and talked me down off the ledge and gave me some much-needed direction.

All of this was still hard work on my part. Having Angela as a consultant did not mean less work for me- on the contrary, it probably resulted in more. I had anywhere from 3-6 drafts on each essay, but as a result, my applications were WAY better than they would have been had I not been working with her. There are so many ways to screw up an essay, and I probably would have if left to my own devices.

I ended up receiving a full scholarship to Yale and a $40K scholarship to Foster. I was offered an interview to both MIT and HBS but was waitlisted at MIT and rejected to HBS. I was rejected to Kellogg (they interview everybody). All in all, not too shabby for someone with my stats! I probably would not have gotten into Yale at all or Foster with such a large scholarship without Angela. So the way I see it, this was a great ROI on my initial 10K. Aside from the economics, working with her just made the process… well, better. It was nice not to have to bug my friends to read my essays and I liked having a totally unbiased opinion. I looked forward to our brainstorming sessions and I felt like she really got me. All in all, I would do the same exact thing and hire Angela again if I had to re-do this process (which I don’t, thank goodness!).

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