Context: I applied to B-school in the fall of 2014. Due to the last minute nature of my application and lack of confidence with interviews, I sought support from Katharine (Katy) Lewis at MbaMission. I wrote to her after hearing about her from a friend and after having a mock consultation with her – which left me with a strong impression of her knowledge of the two schools I was interested in (HBS and GSB). I took the hourly package and decided to reach out to Katy for support with my essay and interviews.

Things that stand out from my experience with Katy:

1. She knows the two schools that I applied to – Stanford and Harvard – EXTREMELY well. She understands the nuances in style/focus for the two schools and helps you package your essay accordingly.

2. Her knowledge of the two schools is particularly helpful in preparing for the mock interview. I did a mock interview with Katy before my GSB and HBS interview – both of which, as I realized later, differ significantly. The questions that she prepped me with for GSB and HBS had little in common and she was unbelievably spot on with the points from my resume/essay that the interviewers were likely to talk about. She made my interviews a smooth sail.

3. She is exceptionally responsive and goes the extra mile to accommodate your needs – be it in terms of responding to requests for calls/essay reviews/scheduling a mock interview/reviewing the post-interview reflection – she is a consistent, encouraging, and reliable partner through it all

4. She gives you enough room to speak about your ideas/doubts/fears and extract all that she can from you – in terms of the story for your essay as well as the interview. She then responds with very specific feedback to package it appropriately. There were times when she told me “this is perfect, you should go ahead with it”, she won’t give you advice/suggest modifications just for the heck of it. This is immensely helpful for one to remain genuine to one’s story and style throughout the process.

Result: Made it to both Stanford and Harvard (yet to make up my mind on where to go). Immensely thankful to Katy for this. She is also helping me make my decision given her deep insights into the schools.

My advice to applicants: Be thoughtful as to what you need help with when working with a consultant. Exhaust all free resources you can get access to – friends, free consultations, etc. – and then make the decision on whether or not to take help. Things that I find value in when it comes to working with a (good) consultant – validation of your theme, packaging of ideas customized to different schools, and mock-interviews.

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I worked with Katy on my Round 2 applications for 3 schools. By way of background, my stats are 770, 3.7, finance background but currently working in nonprofit. I was accepted at HBS and Haas and wait-listed at GSB.

I think the most impressive aspect of working with Katy was how intuitive and insightful she is in understanding me as a person. After I filled out the brainstorming questionnaire, Katy and I had an hour long call to discuss essay topics. She surprised me halfway through by saying "this is what I think matters to you" and then explaining my values to me better than I have ever been able to do myself. I found that essay topic picking was the most daunting part of this process so I was really greatful that she could help me sort my scattered thoughts out so effortlessly.

Regarding actual essay writing and editing, Katy was good at helping me cut my first draft down (it was twice as long as the limit) by helping me remove sections that weren't as impactful. She also definitely has a knack for rewording things to get the word count down. I started the round 2 process pretty early so my main Stanford/Harvard essay went through a lot of different iterations before I submitted and she definitely provided the big picture guidance that I was really looking for through those iterations.

Katy was also really helpful in prepping me for my interviews. Mbamission has a ton of data on prior interviews which was really helpful and the mock HBS interview I did with her definitely made me feel more prepared when I walked into the room on that one.

Katy also just has a lot of general knowledge about the admissions process which provided really helpful context throughout the process. She is clearly in the flow both through her personal experiences and friends at the schools I applied to, and she works with what seems to be an impressive clientele so she is seeing in real time how her clients' applications resonate with adcoms. Her follow up to our calls was always timely and professional and included materials we had discussed on the calls.

If you are considering working with Katy I would definitely at least have the free 30 minute convo with her, I got a lot of great insights from her just in that first call. Also the mbamission materials are relatively cheap and you should read all of them even if it's not exactly a beach read. Finally, I would just say that, other than being super effective and knowledgeable, Katy is just a truely lovely person who really likes working with young people who are trying to figure out what the heck to do with their lives.

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Based on a recommendation from my GMAT instructor at the time, I signed up for my free, 30 minute consultation with Jessica Shklar. I was just beginning to explore the application process, and was starting from square one. During that session, Jessica listened to my background, and provided thoughtful feedback and advice on how best to proceed. From the beginning, I felt as though she genuinely wanted me to succeed in the process - she was engaged and excited. She never attempted to sell or push any services or products – in fact, when I did decide to sign up with her, I had to convince HER to take me on, because she was in such high demand.

As a somewhat nontraditional candidate, I was extremely nervous to go through the application process - and I was also keenly aware of how much of an investment MBA Mission’s services are. However, as I began working with Jessica, the returns on that investment became clear right away.

I was working on an extremely condensed timeline, and was studying for the GMAT at the same time. Jessica worked tirelessly to ensure that the applications I was able to put forth at the end of the process were the best they could be – and that they were a genuine representation of who I am as an applicant. If I had any questions, she was there with a quick response – from beginning to end.

What I appreciate most about Jessica is her honesty. I wanted a consultant that would be tough and tell me the things I didn’t always want to hear, or perhaps wasn’t capable of recognizing in my own work, and I certainly received that feedback from Jessica. If I came up with an essay idea that she knew wasn’t my best, she told me so. She never let me settle for less than my best, and that paid off immensely in the end. I am immensely grateful to Jessica for her encouragement and support during this process – and recommend her highly to anyone considering going through the application process.

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Navigating the MBA application process is quite daunting, it can be even more nerve-racking when you are short of time, have a busy life style, and have targeted only top business schools. It was exactly my case when I decided to work with mbaMission. I started the application process without GMAT and recommenders. I didn’t even narrow down my school choices.

I had couple of free consultation sessions, and with no doubt, Rachel Beck stood out immediately. Rachel was a terrific help throughout my application process, and in my opinion she is not only a great consultant, but also an incredible mentor. What I loved about Rachel was her creative mind, her enthusiasm to know my personality, and her true passion about my success. Rachel has a powerful writing skill, and truly engages with your story.

I worked with Rachel Beck on a two-school package (Wharton and CBS) and I have been admitted to both schools. Rachel has a great insight into b-schools and helped me from school selection process to the interview preparation.

She took time to analyze my educational and professional background, understood my stories and emphasized those stories that clearly illustrated my strength. That was impressive to see how she linked each pieces of my application together and produce a well-written application, perfectly describing my achievements and my vision for future.

The MBA consultancy is not just about writing flawless essays, it is really about helping you to learn about yourself and to build your professional brand that will stay with you for years to come. Rachel is simply the BEST at building your professional brand.

I owe her a big THANK YOU for her guidance getting me here. I wouldn't be able to make it without her.

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I used mbaMission for two schools. I thought my consultant was extremely helpful in guiding me towards constructing my career goals. I was able to clearly define how my past work experience connected with my future career goals, and how an MBA would get me there. I was pretty clueless when it came to this, and she made realize how specific you truly have to be and realistic. Almost every school asks a version of this question, so once you have this down, it is extremely helpful, not only for essays but for interviews. She kept me on track timeline wise, and was not afraid to send back essay draft after essay draft. She was clear in her instructions and I was able to craft some terrific essays. I wish we had spent some time thinking about school strategy, which schools and which rounds. mbaMission also provides some great school insight guides that are helpful when initially doing research on programs.

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After failing to score as highly on the GMAT as I had hoped, I sought the help of an admissions consultant to discuss my options. I scheduled two, 30 minute free consultations, one with Stacy Blackman, and one with mbaMission. The first consultation, with Stacy Blackman, lasted 12 minutes and I was treated as nothing more than a statistic. I was essentially told, with my GMAT score (620), I wasn't worth their time. I was distraught.

I decided to go ahead with the second consultation, and I sure am happy that I did! I spoke with Kate Richardson at mbaMission, and from the very beginning I could feel that her interest in helping me was genuine. She assured me that I had a unique and compelling story to tell, and that the GMAT is not the end all be all component of an application. While she didn't assist me with the GMAT, simply hearing her assurances provided me the confidence boost I needed, and 1 month later I had increased my GMAT score by 70 points.

I purchased the hourly services option as I was primarily interested in having my essays reviewed/edited. I worked with Kate on almost every application I prepared, and, with her help, was able to prepare concise and compelling essays that capitalized on the uniqueness of my situation. I was able to submit each application with the utmost pride and confidence in my work. She was honest, efficient (as I was paying by the hour, this was extremely important), and genuinely cared about my success. Thanks to her help, I was admitted to every school I applied to in round one, including the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon, with substantial scholarships from some, and just completed my interview with the University Of Michigan Ross School Of Business for round two.

Whether I get into Ross or not, I’m so extremely pleased with my success in this process. Having come from a non-prestigious university, with only a mediocre academic record, I never thought I would be able to attend a top 15 institution. I cannot recommend Kate and mbaMission highly enough, as without her help, none of this would have been possible.

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I worked with Helen Summers at mba mission and she was absolutely amazing! I did the full school package for 5 schools. She helped me narrow down schools I should apply to based on fit / feasibility, helped me find a great GMAT tutor, and really took the time to get to know me and why I wanted an MBA. She pushed me hard to dig deep when brainstorming essay topics, wasn't afraid to call my BS when she knew I could be doing better, and was constantly providing valuable and critical feedback in a timely manner. She was also great at helping me get out of my comfort zone with the essays and really telling my stories in a eloquent and unique way. Without her help, there is no way I would have gotten into 3 top schools!

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After first approaching the application process on my own, I came to the realization that some good guidance could go a long way for me. With long hours at work, I knew that I would need to work efficiently to meet my MBA goals. Enter, Susan Kaplan.

Though I began working with Susan somewhat late in the process, her focus on the building blocks of my application was outstanding. In particular, she worked tirelessly with me to craft and re-craft my career goals to align with the rest of my story. Given my varied interests and aspirations, this was easier said than done.

Susan's essay feedback was also critical to my success. She was hard on me -- like that teacher that you resent at times but ultimately gets the most out of you -- but was also caring and invested in my success. Working on applications every night after long days at the office is a grind, but Susan kept pushing me to iterate, improve, and ultimately submit my best work.

Her response to my being accepted into my target school - a top-10 program - was fitting: "WOO-HOO!!!" We were in it together from the start.

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I worked with Katy for both my round 1 and round 2 applications and was admitted to 4/5 of the schools I applied to, including HBS and Wharton. Working with Katy was a pleasure from beginning to end and a major factor in my admissions success. Throughout every step, Katy was there to answer my questions and give me the encouragement and support that’s so critical throughout this emotionally stressful process. Before I started the applications, I had no idea what my story would be or how I would approach the essays. Katy helped me find the real answers to “why” – why business school, why now, why me – which proved invaluable as I wrote my essays and went through my interviews. With Katy, you’re not only getting someone with incredible knowledge of the schools and admissions offices, you’re getting a life coach! If you want to give yourself the best shot at a top business school, work with Katy!

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I highly recommend hiring some kind of consulting service to help you with your MBA application. It's a great tool and is just as important as taking a GMAT prep course (if not more).
When it came down for me to choose my consultant, I turned to MbaMission mostly because I read one of their books and a friend who got accepted into NYU Stern recommended them.
I was applying to and Executive MBA program, so I wanted a consultant that would best fit my particular needs (more experienced and geared towards an executive admissions process). One of the great things about MbaMission is that they have great profiles on each one of their consultants (including a video). This allows you to read up on all the consultants before choosing one. Almost like interviewing them – and since you’re about to pay them a lot of money, you should definitely conduct this “interview” process!
I ended up working with Katharine Lewis, which was one of the best choices I made in my whole application process. I chose her because she seemed a bit more refined, knowledgeable, confident, and all around the type of person you would expect to run into in an executive program. Her background was also very impressive; she got her MBA from Harvard and actually spent two years reading MBA applications at Stanford... is there any better person to have on your side than an actual admissions officer?!
Working with Katy was not a letdown! My two main concerns were my very tight schedule (I had less than a month to go from nothing to a completed application) and the fact that I was not applying to a typical full time program, but rather an executive program. In general, I felt like most resources out there (including consultants) where focusing on full time MBAs and very little attention was given to Executive MBAs, even though the requirements are very very different.
Needless to say, Katy addressed both issues very well. She was very responsive and an impressively quick reader. She worked very late hours and even weekends so she always found time to talk to me and meet tight deadlines. She knew exactly how to attack an EMBA essay and really gave me confidence that she had my back. If I had to choose the two most important things Katy has to offer (other than experience) I would say that
1) Besides doing an exceptional job, she really makes an effort to support you emotionally and to boost your confidence. This seems trivial, but I really felt comfortable with her. Even though I'm a very confident person, an MBA admissions process really critiques every aspect of your life and it's very nice to have someone be your cheerleader. Katy does just that while staying honest.
2) This one is a big one... she really encourages you to flood her with material and then she takes care of the filtering and editing. This is huge! It really makes your essays bring out who you are. Instead of wasting your time limiting yourself and filtering out information that you don't think is relevant, Katy pushes you to focus on putting it on paper and worrying about the sorting later. I am a very self-aware person, but this process gave me more than a few "AHA" moments when I held something in that Katy was able to bring out and to mold into a strong point.
An MBA can really change your life and is a very important key to your future, so make sure you give yourself all the tools to achieve success. A consultant is a no brainier.
I ended up getting accepted to my first choice EMBA program at UCLA Anderson. I worked with Katy on an hourly basis and she really did her best to give me as much input for every hour I purchased.
WARNING: the process is by no means cheap (in-fact it's pretty pricey), but at the end of the day it's an investment and well worth it. GOOD LUCK!

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