Jessica Shklar and mbaMission was a tremendous help to me in getting into my top B-schools. I applied in the R3 to HBS last year and got dinged. I decided that I needed to "up my game" this time around if I was to be successful.

I did preliminary interviews with 3 different organizations before settling on Jessica and mbaMission. What made the different in selecting them was the personal outreach that the principle at the organization, Jeremy, made to me. I was very happy with my decision. Jessica has great insight into the admissions process, gets drafts back quickly, and has great suggestions on how to improve essays. When I had trouble getting beyond superficial material, she really helped me dig deeper to draw out the details of my stories. She has terrific insight into the interview process and is really able to help you prep for the different questions that schools ask. She also would keep on me when I wasn't getting drafts to her quickly enough.

In the end, I got into all of the schools I applied to – HBS, Wharton, Sloan, and Kellogg. I would highly recommend using Jessica to anyone considering a consultant.

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Hey everyone – I wanted to share my thoughts and experiences with mbaMission because I had such a wonderful experience that everyone should hear it before they make the decision to hire a consultant.

When I was exploring business school, I wasn’t sold that I needed to hire a consultant. After I had a free consultation with Monica at mbaMission (as well as a number of the other top admissions consulting firms) it became clear to me that even though I was capable of handling the admissions process on my own, there is a tremendous amount of value in the service and that mbaMission was the best-in-class in the business.

From the other reviews below you can get a very good understanding of what’s included in the package (as well as through the mbaMission website) but I’ll highlight a few of the more important benefits:

- Deep understanding as to how to think like an admissions consultant

- Avoid any simple mistakes that may make you less attractive to the admissions boards

- How to properly showcase your story – we’re all very interesting people and have a lot to share, and it’s important to cohesively craft your set of essays to highlight who you are

I had purchased the comprehensive package and I got my money’s worth. I used over 50 hours of consulting time working through every part of my application including the essays, the application itself, the resume, and interview preparation and Monica was always upbeat, professional, extremely helpful, and very knowledgeable throughout the entire process. She was happy to continue to work with me until I was 100% satisfied with how I packaged my application and my work product showed it. Looking back, it would have been worth 2x the cost for the services that I received throughout.

In the end, with the help of Monica, I got the payoff that I had worked so hard for – I was accepted to HBS in the fall! If you want to maximize your chances of getting into your dream school, you’d be foolish if you decided to do anywhere else except hire Monica and mbaMission.

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I used Jessica at MBA Mission.

My Story:

I applied R1 to one Top 5 school just to test the water and see where I was at. I did not get invited to interview but a good friend did. She advised me to use a consultant and gave Jessica an extremely
strong recommendation.

The main reason I was reluctant was the cost element. After my experience, I would equally pass on the recommendation to any potential candidates as I found Jessica's help tremendously beneficial.
Absolutely worth every penny.

I would recommend a consultant even more to those who, like myself, have less traditional
mba candidate background: European
male late 20s from legal background with some banking experience and a couple of post graduate degrees already.


So how did Jessica assist me:

First, after a thorough review of my story, she set realistic expectations from outset. i.e. it would be very difficult to get top 5 schools and maybe to look down the list.  This surprised me as even though I was a different I thought I had a great story so her
advice here made me understand the magnitude of the task and focused me even further.  I realized I would need to carefully select schools so after alot consideration, (I had already visited them before when i was on work trip to US and I also highly recommend this in order to get a feel of them), I focussed on two schools (both top 5) with strong finance faculties.

Then we did the brainstorming session which was extremely detailed and was the longest one our phone conversations. It's completely comprehensive and it is important that you prepare for it beforehand - you don't want to have to think about all the stories on the spot although Jessica will encourage and cajole ones out of you - some that i had even
forgot!  We picked the main questions I was going to answer and which stories would suit best. Then I started writing, and writing, and writing. I
can not emphasise enough how much time it takes.
While Jessica reviews and edits each version, it is up to you to do all the writing. I must say I thought maybe that it would be less work on my part - after all, i was paying for service - but service is not
an essay writing one. you have to do this yourself but Jessica's changes and suggestions to my essays were significant. She really assisted me in getting my story tight. Both applications were excellent although one suited my story a little better. I wasnt surprised then that this was the school which I got invited to
interview with. Again mba mission help you here and I felt I was fully prepared for this.  

My interview was quite tough but I got admitted to Top 5 school so am a very happy mba mission user.

Another area that I would like to highlight was the dramatic improvement in resume. While the content largely remains the same, the format is a dramatic improvement. It is incredible the improvement and
a number of people who have seen it have commented on it.

Finally, my last comment would be that if you are to use a consultant to start as early as possible. Jessica is extremely thorough and there will be so many drafts that it is much better to get it started early.
That is the only thing i would have done differently.

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Working with Jessica Shklar of MBAMission is the only reason I am headed off to the bschool of my dreams this fall. From the moment I first signed on with Jessica she was nothing but focused, dedicated and enthusiastic. Jessica was instrumental in determining what schools were appropriate for me to target, leveraging both personal and professional experiences to create unique and differentiated essay story lines, editing my resume/application and keeping me on pace to complete a number of applications. Without Jessica’s help I would have had a great deal of trouble overcoming my abnormally low GMAT score. I am far from “the perfect bschool applicant” but under Jessica’s tutelage I was able to write a well balanced and well rounded application…and as I already mentioned get into the top 10 school of my dreams!

Jessica’s intellectual ability and dedication to her clients is only matched by her knowledge of the MBA process and individual business school programs. If you are serious about giving yourself the best possible chance to be accepted, get serious and hire Jessica Shklar + MBAMission.

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I started working with mbaMission after I had a free 30 minute consultation in their NYC offices where we discussed my career goals, resume, target schools, etc. I recommend doing this (especially since its free) to get a bearings of where you are at in the MBA application process.

After the consultation I signed up and worked with one of their admissions consultants, Dan Richards, on my Columbia Business School application. Dan was extremely helpful throughout the entire application process, from start to finish.

For me, the biggest benefit was for the essays - the brainstorming and ideas discussions were very beneficial in terms of conveying the core themes of my application and how I wanted to portray myself to the admissions committee. Dan was very easy to get in touch with and responded with essay comments well earlier than the agreed upon time frames.

Overall, it was great to have someone with a lot of experience with putting together successful top-tier business school applications. His help was invaluable and I highly recommend their services to anyone looking to put together an excellent b-school application.

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I worked with Angela Guido on the end-to-end package for three top-5 schools. Though I came from a typical b-school-feeder background (consulting) and had good numbers (3.7 GPA / 740 GMAT), with Stanford as my dream school I felt I needed help on telling a compelling story to separate me from the pack. My result was that I received interviews at all 3 schools, was accepted to 2/3, and will be attending Stanford in the fall.

I spoke to multiple firms to choose a consultant and felt an immediate connection when I spoke to Angela. A few thoughts on why I found her so helpful:

- I had a number of things I wanted to write about in my essays and for my overall "narrative". Instead of just spitting out a story that sounded good, Angela really took the time to listen to my disparate stories and help me weave together a compelling narrative around what was most meaningful to me, not just what would be interesting to adcoms
- Instead of just writing FOR me, Angela pushed me to communicate what I was trying to say in more straightforward and meaningful language. She really helped to cultivate my own skills in communication and self-expression, and turning those into meaningful essays
- There were many times where we had short timelines to work on, but throughout the process Angela was always punctual and reliable in terms of when she would get things back to me. This helped me to keep my work on track and lessened my already-high stress level!
- Having someone who is so knowledgeable about the b-school admissions process as a coach was absolutely invaluable just in itself. Angela helped me think through what the most impactful stories to tell for each school were and was always there to reassure me that we were on-track and making good progress.

Through my work with Angela, I not only accomplished my goal of getting into my dream business school, but I developed a keener sense of myself and how to present myself in my communications, which is a skill that will serve me well throughout my career. I highly recommend working with MBAMission and Angela!

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Please note: I am not one to write reviews. However, I feel compelled in this situation. Jessica was simply wonderful.

Background: I only applied to one school (dream school). Since the rifle approach is not exactly the smartest way to apply to school, I decided to seek counsel and hire a consultant. Jessica came highly recommended from a friend she helped in the 2012 class cycle. She is incredibly smart and hard working. She understands the process and really spends time understanding your candidacy. She is thorough and takes the time to develop a strategy and package you appropriately. Nothing deceitful – just maximizing what you have already accomplished and communicating it effectively and efficiently.
She helped me articulate why I made each career choice, placing it in the context of my broader career goal (including why B school choice was meaningful).

While hiring a consultant is expensive, I urge you to think of it as an investment in your future. Jessica gave me the best possible shot. I was admitted and I simply can’t thank her enough. She will spend a great deal of time with you; she really invests herself in your story. She cares deeply and I know finds great satisfaction in her job. Really a pleasure to work with.

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I did a lot of research into programs, and decided that MBA Mission would be the group I would use. They exceeded my expectations and were truly fantastic. I considered myself a mediocre candidate off the bat - just two years of work experience, OK GMATs and academic record. The team at Manhattan GMAT helped assess my entire profile to help find the angles that would be most effective to tell my story. I found them to be well worth every penny. They provided very powerful upfront materials - a resume and personal statement guide, interview tips, and a brainstorming document to help pull out the parts of your background worth telling through your application.

The consultant I worked with Regan Clarke was terrific - she was a pleasure to work with and really knew her stuff. I highly highly recommend both her and the MBA Mission team. She could sniff out the BS in my essays, asked questions that probed me to think harder and work smarter. I couldn't have asked for a better consultant to work with and am very grateful that I will be off to my top choice program in the fall, a school I never expected to get into in the first place. Thank you Regan and the MBA Mission team - the best in the business.

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I chose mbaMission after an info session I attended. After consulting with Jeremy Shinewald about my candidacy I gained the confidence I needed to go ahead with the application (my GPA was strong but my GMAT was below the top schools’ average). I signed for a 4-school package and contacted Rachel Beck, my advisor, to schedule a brainstorming session. Rachel is an incredible consultant: she has insightful comments, keeps you on track, presents wonderful ideas, and most importantly always there for you with quick responses to your questions and essays drafts (trust me, when crunching time arrives this is one of the most important attributes you should look for in a consultant).

What I valued most about working with mbaMission and especially Rachel is that beyond the professional ideas and advice her belief and support in my candidacy really pushed me to work hard and reach my potential.

The bottom line is that I was rewarded for my investment and was accepted to Wharton. My advice is to go for an info session, in which you will find out for yourselves that mbaMission is the company you want to work with, and Rachel Beck is the consultant you want by your side in this long arduous process.

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I reached out to mbamission after going 0/2 last year from 2 "stretch" schools. My consultant was Akiba Smith-Francis who I selected after reading several glowing reviews. I didn’t have a whole lot of cash to splash so I selected 1 school and added another later.

I asked her which schools should I use her for and she suggested the ones that I find most difficult. She could have easily suggested the easier ones.

So I started off with two sets of applications where I didn't know where to begin as I'd used all my best stories and material last year. I was totally stumped and this is where my consultant came into her own.

We did a series of brainstorming sessions in which she pushed me to bring out some answers that truly answered the questions at hand. This only got better as she got to know me better for the second application. Akiba was so helpful in explaining which parts of my profile would be worth mentioning in my essays and which parts wouldn’t – often contrary to what I was expecting. I was very focused on what I wanted to do post MBA and what parts of my profile might help me get there, Akiba pointed out several experiences in my past that would be interesting to adcoms. By the end of these sessions I had a plan for what I’d write for all the essay questions, writing the essay was just like filling in the blanks.

In the end I had two sets of applications that were far better and focused than my previous applications. While I was waitlisted at one of these schools, my GMAT and GPA were far below the averages of these top 5 schools, and my work experience is distinctly average.

Akiba is an extremely bright woman able to frame responses in a way that will resonate with adcoms. She is very popular and I only got to use her as she had a last minute pull out, so I suggest if you are keen to engage her then start early. I highly recommend her, I don’t think I could have had anyone better!

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