I approached Katy for a two school package about a month and a half before the round 1 deadlines for HBS and Wharton Lauder. As a Latin American applicant coming from a traditional finance background, I wasn’t very clear on the messaging that I wanted to convey in my applications. Katy was HIGHLY recommended to me by 2 Latin American HBS alums and she definitely exceeded all of my expectations.

Although I was relatively late to begin preparing my application materials for round 1, Katy was an incredible resource. She was very knowledgeable about both programs and always made herself available to answer all of my questions. We did a very thorough brainstorming session before beginning to write my applications which was key to the messaging I transmitted throughout each of the applications I submitted. She also worked closely with me to device a strategy on how approach my recommenders.

Once I began writing my essays and preparing my resume and other required materials, Katy was always available to review each draft and very quick to provide feedback until I had the perfect application for each school. After I received my interview invites for both programs, Katy's mock interviews were on point and her advice was critical to my preparation for that last piece of the application process.

I would HIGHLY recommend Katy to anyone applying to a top MBA program. I am very pleased with my final results and have to admit that Katy was instrumental to my acceptance to HBS and Wharton Lauder!

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I absolutely loved working with Melissa on a 2 school package. I did a lot of research on consultants, and Melissa stood out as a great fit based on mbaMission's reputation, and Melissa's professional experience and similar school selection. The biggest area she helped with was creating my story. mbaMission sends over a huge document to fill out your personal and career path, and Melissa spent 2 hours going through the document, asking probing questions, and by the end we had a consistent story that I was able to use at each school. I had an idea in mind of how I wanted my story to look, and she was able to point out the parts which might be problematic when applying, as well as the key areas to highlight when applying. We also had a school-selection discussion before this, where I was able to list what I was looking for in a school, and Melissa went through the pros/cons of each school which would be a fit. Melissa was incredibly knowledgeable and was able to provide school-specific insights that I don't think I would've been able to find myself. She was able to provide best practices in all areas of the application too, including how best to prime your recommenders, how/when to show interest in each school, and a clear timeline. One area I would like to see a bit more focus is on some of the "formatting" best practices, such as making all essays into PDF. Some of these are probably pretty self-explanatory, but I would want them to be more explicit. I was ultimately admitted to two schools and waitlisted at the third (I only applied to three schools).
Consultants are obviously very expensive, but I would 100% recommend Melissa to anyone who is looking.

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I purchased a two school start to finish package with Nisha and it was worth every penny. Her resume critique is the gold standard. She helped me develop a resume that allowed me to fully explain my story but still remain concise and not long winded. With the essays she helped me realize the nuances with every essay question. She also helped me realize that every essay must be as concise and to the point. Her interview prep was invaluable. After doing mock interviews with her, going into the real interviews was like doing it a second time, that's how good she is. In addition to that Nisha was very speedy when it came to essay feedback, even when she was traveling abroad! When it came it to scheduling for interview prep she was very flexible. I am on the east coast and she is on the west and the time difference did not prove to be an obstacle. Overall she exceeded my expectations, I did get into both of the schools I bought the package for.

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In May I signed up for a 5-school Round 1 package with Melissa. After our 30-minute consultation I knew she was the perfect fit, giving me the difficult-to-hear advice while also ensuring me that hard work could put me in the position I wanted to be in. At that point I had taken the GMAT 3 times and did not have a score that would allow me to apply to the business schools I wanted to attend. To make a long story short, 5 months later I had switched tests and taken the GRE twice; applied to Fuqua, Darden, Ross, Tuck; and was accepted to all four schools! None of this would have been possible without Melissa.

Although I had gone through two full GMAT courses and many private GMAT tutoring sessions, Melissa was the first person to encourage me to switch to the GRE. I took her advice and after taking the GRE twice I got a score that was well within my target school's ranges.

The essay writing process with Melissa was fun! Melissa took the time to really get to know me so the topics that we picked for each essay prompt truly reflected my personality, my reason for applying to business school, and my goals. I appreciated that Melissa asked me pointed questions, pushing me to dig deeper to "show, not tell" my experiences. In the end, I felt that my applications were a very wholesome story and I was very pleased and proud to submit them to my original list of target schools. In terms of process, Melissa far exceeded the expected turn around response time. From turning around essay drafts to responding to my questions on how to fill out other aspects of the application, Melissa was incredibly prompt, frequently responding to me within hours.

Melissa was very helpful in the interview prep process, spending an hour on the phone with me before each interview, critiquing my responses to her huge interview question bank. These sessions were incredibly helpful and gave me a lot of confidence walking into interviews.

Melissa is absolutely worth the investment, my process is proof. She is also a wonderful person who genuinely cares about her students, you're not another number with Melissa. If you're looking for someone who will get you from where you are to accepted to multiple schools by helping, guiding, and pushing you to put your best foot forward, Melissa is the best person for the job.

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Working with Katy for round 1 admissions this year has been great! The advice she has given me was invaluable for my applications, and helped me get accepted to two M7 programs, both of which with scholarship offers.

When I was at the beginning of the application process, I had 30-minute free consultation sessions. In these sessions, I connected very well with Katy and she gave me incredibly helpful advice upfront, before I had even chosen to work with her. I was not feeling great about my chances at top-tier schools, and Katy made me fee more confident. Once I decided to work with Katy, we held a brainstorming session where she not only helped me decide on my list of schools, but also went deep into my background and helped me narrow down really solid, coherent stories for my essays. Without this help, combined with her amazing assistance on my essay drafts, I would not have had nearly as clear and comprehensive essays. Her advice also extended to interview prep. She has incredibly deep experience with the interviews at all of the top schools and helped me refine my interview answers, making me feel much less nervous about the interviews.

Without Katy’s help, I do not believe that I would have gotten into Kellogg MMM or Sloan. I would definitely recommend her to anybody considering applying to business school.

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Top-down message: Katy is a very experienced and fantastic person and you should take Katy if you want to get in to top MBA programs such as HBS or Stanford GSB.

I was not sure at the beginning if I needed admission consultant to help me with my applications. I thought that I could easily read all the tips online, ask my friends and create a strong MBA profile. I could not be more wrong. Application process at top MBAs is very competitive and complex. There are several factors that may influence decision whether or not people are accepted. Katy, as ex-consultant, is very structured, takes care of all details and put a lot of effort even in creating perfect short answers in the application. She was able to use 100% potential from my story resulting in acceptance to Stanford Graduate School of Business.

I was impressed from the beginning how she created my story during first brainstorming session. She helped me differentiate from overpopulated pool of management consultants by bringing several insights from my personal life. During the process, she was not only my real advisor, but also a friend, who helped to keep me up during the process.

I am very grateful to her (best decision I could make!) and I recommend Katy to anyone, who would like to study at top MBA program and need some additional guidance.

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In 2018 I decided to apply to various MBA programs, and I wanted to an expert to help me and guide me through the process. I researched and interviewed a lot of consultants in various companies around the world, and once I had my 30-minute free consultation with Katy, I was sure that I wanted to work with her. Not only was she kind and patient, she was honest and enthusiastic.

Katy believed in my story and I can honestly say she was an invaluable in my application to GSB, my dream school, which I got accepted to! As many of us know, applying to an MBA is a complicated process. Finding the stories you want to tell was one of the most difficult aspects for me during the application. Katy patiently listened to my story and helped me identify those stories that made me unique. I was born, raised, and currently live in Colombia, so I first thought that a consultant from a different country would not understand my story as well. Katy was amazing!! She helped me realize that coming from a different country was a special part of my story.

Katy provided wonderful insights during my essays. She was VERY patient with my constant emails and questions on next steps and new ideas I had for my applications. Also, she was very supportive whenever I had doubts about myself, and once I got invited to my interviews, I felt that she was genuinely happy because she truly believed in me. To me, Katy is a consultant that truly believes in her clients and their individual stories. She was incredibly helpful in my interview prep as well, making sure I stayed true to myself.

I want to conclude by saying: Katy was spectacular! I wholeheartedly recommend her as a consultant and if I were to do it all over again, I would choose to work with her!

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My time working with Melissa Merchant and the mbaMission team on my applications was incredibly productive and rewarding. The guidance, insight, and feedback provided the foundation for me to effectively create and submit my applications on time and with minimal stress.

Melissa did a great job of being proactive. She provided me with resources and guidelines very early on in each step of the process. This helped reduce the anxiety that comes with meeting first round deadlines for multiple schools. Also, her ability to structure a narrative about me, my career aspirations and my experience was robust and concise.

I would highly recommend working with Melissa on your application journey. She is patient, helpful, and will challenge you to put your best foot forward with your applications and interviews.

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I can’t say enough positive things about Nisha. I knew I wanted to work with a consultant for the one school package. Given the steep price tag, I needed to find the perfect match for me: someone with experience in my industry, expert insight into my top choice program, and the ability to lend personal support throughout this daunting process. Nisha provided all of those things and more. I felt a genuine warmth in our first meeting which helped me decide to work with her and that positivity has carried through to the end. From a materials perspective, Nisha knows the need inside and out. I actually came to her with a resume that I already thought was in pretty good shape. Looking back now at that first draft versus what I submitted, the improvement in content and writing style is spectacular. The same goes for my essays. Together we shaped a clear story that captured everything I wanted to share with the adcom.

During the application cycle, I was also balancing a tough work environment and plans to retake the GMAT twice. Nisha’s partnership throughout this experience has been the smoothest part of an extremely stressful time period. I would highly HIGHLY recommend Nisha to anyone considering an admissions consultant. You’ll leave with so much insight and the best admissions package you can imagine!

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Start-to-finish, I worked with Katy for 11 months on a six-school package with the result being accepted at five top MBA programs and accepting an offer to attend HBS. I cannot thank her enough for all of her help nor think of a better partner throughout the entire process! I can confidently say I would not have had near the success I was able to without all of her guidance and support to help turn my disparate collection of plans and ideas in to a carefully crafted admissions story.
Coming from a non-traditional background, one of one of the areas I was most nervous about was being a burden to recommenders - neither of whom had written MBA rec letters before. For me, this was one of the most helpful areas to have Katy’s support – she not only made it an easier process on them, but also allowed me to not worry as much about this part of the application. I’ve talked to both of my recommenders since the process ended and they couldn’t rave enough about how beneficial it was to have Katy’s guidance, and both rec letters were brought up by my interviewer at my HBS interview as well.
I can’t say enough about how thankful I am to have had her help throughout this process and would recommender her to anyone embarking on the MBA application journey.

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