I was originally a bit skeptical on working with a consultant, but after taking a free consultation with Michael Guttman at MBAMission, I knew within 5 minutes that I needed to work with him. I had taken consultations with a few other companies, but Michael has a unique ability to put his clients at ease, and did a fantastic job navigating me through the application process. Aside from all of his insight, the thing I appreciated most about Michael was his commitment to presenting the most authentic version of myself in my application package. He is truly gifted at maximizing the potential of his clients, and took great care in making sure I stayed true to the things that made me a unique candidate. He's able to do this because he takes a genuine interest in getting to know his clients, and asked questions that forced me to do some deep self reflection on who I am and why I want an MBA. I also really appreciated how considerate he was, often providing his feedback well before the MBAMission deadline so I would be able to maximize my revisions ahead of the Round 1 deadlines. While the anxiety ahead of interview invites is brutal, I am significantly more at ease knowing that working with Michael has enabled me to submit the best possible application I could.

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I began working with Dan after I had taken the GMAT and selected one school I wanted to apply to. I used my mbamission consult to discuss what other schools I should apply to within round 1, which was really helpful and then I decided to work with him via the hourly a la carte services.

I thought Dan was very straightforward and blunt, which was helpful to me as I tried to make a strong case for my application after a traditional career but having taken over a year off from full-time work doing travel and some freelancing. Dan helped me to focus my personal essays for the three business schools I applied to (all top 10) and let me know what areas were of most importance to each school. Throughout the process Dan had a quick turnaround and would often use a fraction of an hour to complete a review of an essay. He was also very clear about deadlines to review applications in advance of the actual round 1 deadlines.

I also worked with Dan to do a mock interview which gave me good confidence going into an unusual interview with an adcom person and a traditional interview with an alumni.

I would highly recommend working with Dan, as well as the hourly services if you have already begun some of your due diligence on schools (otherwise the school packages may be more appropriate).

Ultimately, I got into my first choice school, in no small part to Dan's assistance, and withdrew my other applications.

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Kevin and the rest of the mbaMission staff were an excellent help from my first meeting with them all the way through the waitlist process. I came from a non-traditional background in Education and Kevin worked very closely with me crafting my overall approach to the applications. He often went above and beyond what was expected with very quick turnarounds in consultations. A lot of the consultations were done around the holiday season, and Kevin was always willing and able to help out at any moment. I do not think I would have found such success without his help. Thanks Kevin!

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I started working with Rachel 15 months before submitting my application. In the beginning, we scheduled a kick-off call in which I told her about my background and why I thought I wanted to get an MBA. Upon analyzing my documents, she gave me a detailed roadmap. For example, as my undergraduate GPA was low, she recommended that I take summer courses. She thought that I lacked volunteer work and suggested that I try to find ways to give back to the community and my previous schools.

In parallel, we started working on my essays. I enjoyed the structure which she provided. We would brainstorm on the phone and then I would send bullets of my notes. After a few revisions, we would have polished essays. We worked on my resume and she provided me tips on how to approach people who would write me recommendations. In addition, we prepared for the interview.

I am now finished with the first semester of the program and a few of the first semester courses, such as Executive Leadership and Leadership and Organizational Change, required me to work on personal development plans. My previous work with Rachel became the foundation of these plans. What started out as an MBA application gave me the opportunity to take a strategic look at my career and personal life. I highly recommend Rachel as she has a unique talent to see through a person's core and reveal that in the application. As a bonus, during this process, you also have a chance to learn about what matters to you in life.

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Nisha helped guide my application journey from start to finish. With her help I was able to leverage my personal story and get into my target school. What I loved about working with her is how she pushed me to dive deep into my ‘why’ behind pursuing an MBA. She helped me communicate my purpose to the adcom in a way that was efficient and descriptive. Nisha is extremely thorough. I noticed this during our introductory consultation call. Her eye for detail was present throughout the entire process. She always had a great attitude, which was refreshing since applying to B-school can be draining at times. mbaMission also has a bunch of great resources, like their guides. I HIGHLY recommend Nisha to anyone who is serious about applying to business school. I didn’t realize how badly I needed her help until I started working with her. The monetary price I paid pales in comparison to what she provided. Thank you Nisha!!!

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I am in the unique position of having had the chance to work with Heidi twice on MBA applications (once for full time programs and once for part time programs). Prior to working with Heidi, I had elected to work with a "budget" (but still not cheap) service that did not provide the high level of service I would have expected.

While applying to full time programs a few years ago, I worked with Heidi on an entire three school package and added two additional schools via hourly services. Heidi provided good constructive criticism throughout the process. She was quick to provide responses, positive, and extremely knowledgeable. Over the course of working with Heidi, my essays evolved immensely, creating a cohesive and compelling story. Without Heidi's guidance, I would have never been as successful in my application process as I was (I was invited to interview at all five schools I applied to, interviewed and was accepted at one, and decided to cancel the remaining interviews). Unfortunately, due to work circumstances I decided not to enroll in a full time program.

Thus, a few years later when I decided to apply to part time programs I did my best to track Heidi down in order to build upon our past experiences and work with her again. Once again, she was prompt and provided good criticism while helping me quickly and efficiently craft new applications from my old and some new material. With her help I was admitted to both programs I applied to.

Overall, Heidi challenged me throughout the process and not only helped my applications evolve but helped me become better as well. Without her assistance, I would have never been able to develop the well-rounded applications I ended up submitting.

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I had never used a consultant before applying to business school, but given my position as an untraditional candidate, I am not sure I would have gained entry to Columbia Business School without the expertise of Rachel Beck at mbaMission.

Despite Rachel's own standing as an alum of CBS, she knows a tremendous amount about the business school industry at large and was extremely deft at reading my own potentiality as an applicant from that first free consultation.

Before this experience, I had stereotyped consultants on being generalists under the guise of being experts, but Rachel learned my background more than any mentor even had. Even though she knew Columbia as a former student and as a consultant, she familiarized herself with minutiae of with the school's budding social enterprise club and leadership programs--two areas I was interested in.

Even though I used the "a la carte" services via mbaMission, Rachel answered my every impromptu question about the process--going beyond her job description and the services I was entitled for--and almost always she would respond within a 24 hour period to boot.

I primarily used Rachel as a consultant for honing my resume and essays, but she was instrumental in helping me prepare for informal interviews with staff and my official interview for Columbia. She was thoughtful in tailoring her responses to any question or situation for me Mollie as a candidate--I cannot emphasize this enough.

As stressful as this process is, Rachel helped me manage my own mental headspace and timeline.
Like others below, I recommend reaching out to Rachel in the early spring before your application is due. As a writer, I struggled with the composition of my written components--I was often too emotional and close to the subjects I was writing about and I was very attached to Columbia; I could not always see my deliverables objectively and that's where Rachel came in--she did not dismiss any part of my story or argument, but she helped me with an economy of language, she helped me with the "so what." We did about 7 drafts for each product and though it was humbling, I have never been prouder of an application in its completion. Speaking candidly, she can be blunt in her criticism of one's writing, but trust me: she's on the money.

In sum, Rachel Beck was a true part of my application to business school and she is part of my success in getting in.

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Jen provided really helpful feedback on essays and and my mock interview, helping me hone my story and tell it in a concise and compelling way. Our communication was mostly by email and she was always quick to respond.

If I had to offer one piece of constructive feedback, it's that I think Jen could have pushed me even harder by being more frank with her comments on the content of my essays. Her feedback on structure, wording, etc. was spot on, but I found several friends and family members who weren't afraid to tell me I had missed the mark in my response to a prompt and that I needed to alter my overall approach. In hindsight, I think Jen was a bit more forthcoming with feedback like this. (Important note, this may be a result that I was using Jen on an hourly basis, so she admittedly didn't know me as well as she might have if we were working together more extensively).

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I recently worked with Katy on my HBS 2+2 application. I approached Katy with a rough draft of my personal statement about a month and a half prior to the application deadline. Katy was extremely helpful in her ability to brainstorm the ideas I was trying to get across and suggest ways to better articulate the themes. I was especially impressed with how she did not work from a template, but rather devoted time to understand my story and express it on paper. With her guidance, my unorganized amalgamation of thoughts came together as a genuine and expressive essay.

As a college senior who did not have recommenders that were familiar with the business school process, I relied on Katy to help me optimize the impact of my recommendations. Katy advised me on how to provide my recommenders with insightful information about the message I was trying to get across. I am confident that my recommenders would not have been able to speak as well to who I am had I not worked with Katy.

In the end, I was thrilled to get into HBS. Katy went above and beyond to always respond quickly and thoughtfully to my many, many questions. This responsiveness, in addition to Katy's strong ability to understand the college experience and relate it to business school language, makes me wholeheartedly recommend her to students applying to 2+2.

I was very happy with my result and know that much of it is due to Katy!

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Helen is truly the best there is. Seriously!

She consistently supported me in finding my most authentic voice, and was an incredibly sharp thought-partner. As an hourly client, Helen was always cognizant of my time and I never once felt ‘short-changed’ by any of our interactions. She always pushed the extra mile to answer questions, and never hesitated to reach out to her to offer multiple perspectives when helpful. Her interview preparation was on-point and her ability to meaningfully instill confidence was unparalleled. Helen’s realness won my trust in an instant, and her thoughtful tough-love helped me to be my best.

Tactically, Helen’s speed and flexibility – even throughout the holiday season and peak R1 moments – was fantastic. With a complex international travel schedule, Helen and I always managed to find time to connect at any frequency and duration required. She swiftly answered quick questions and provided well-framed, strategic answers to more complex ones. In the chaos that is the MBA application process, Helen helped me feel in control.

Throughout this entire process, I not only got into my top choice school but also gained a true friend and champion in Helen!!

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