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With the presidential campaign in progress, I thought it would be relevant to share this scenario: let's take a minute and imagine you are running for political office. You are going to need a campaign manager to help you organize, to plan your campaign route (schools you want to apply to), and to help you articulate your speech and platforms. Applying for business school is no different from running for office; you are trying to tell admission committees that you are the best candidate to vote for. In my case, Ryan was my campaign manager; he did a very thorough job understanding my background and what makes me tick. While I have a strong undergraduate GPA , a master's degree, and solid work experiences, there are weaknesses in my profile, e.g. my average-at-best GMAT score, traditional work background, etc. Ryan helped me capitalize on my strength and on my diverse upbringing. I enjoyed working with Ryan, because he is organized, thoughtful, and honest with his review comments. As a busy professional, you would want someone there to hold you accountable, keep you on track, and provide guidance. While the process was very stressful, Ryan made it bearable and painless. Most MBA admission consulting services come with a hefty price tag; the way I think about it is - why do you think Fortune 500 companies hire consultants such as McKinsey, Bain, and BCG to help solve their problems, despite very high fees? I would recommend SBC and Ryan because they do a very good job creating a admission strategy, one that's specifically tailored for you. A daring entrepreneur, Ryan has a wide variety of experiences; he had experiences in MBA admission at top 20 schools, management consulting, personal coaching, and local political campaigns. And that's exactly why I chose Ryan to be my partner during the MBA admission process. I would highly recommend Ryan to any aspiring MBAs.
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I worked with SBC on an hourly first arrangement and then quickly converted to the comprehensive service once I realized the value. I worked with Rebeka on the SBC team. She was incredibly attentive and insightful and her former MBA Admissions was an incredible advantage. I also had another former Admissions Officer review my application. I received a critical report from Lisa and that was really helpful, as Rebeka and I used that feedback to polish the application before submitting. Rebeka guided me on every step in the process. I am a "non-traditional" applicant as I worked in nonprofit in NYC. I needed to explain why the MBA and why now because I already had another Masters degree. Ultimately, while the investment in SBC is costly, I don't think my application would have come close to the quality without SBC's influence. Rebeka didn't write my essays-- it was entirely my own voice. But, she made sure I addressed glaring issues and identified my greatest strengths--- that perspective is impossible to have without the help of a consultant who has placed volumes of applicants. I felt very confident going into my interview because I knew my value as a MBA candidate. My experience was fantastic and don't think I would have been accepted to Kellogg and Tuck without the inside knowledge and active mentorship and dedication of the SBC team.
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Consultant Yvette (SBC)
I worked with Yvette during my SBC experience and it was thanks to her guidance that I developed a successful application package.
I knew the MBA was the next step in my professional development, but coming from a non-traditional background (e.g. non-business undergrad, GRE, non profit work) I needed help creating a compelling story that tied my background to my career goals.
Yvette's feedback and insights helped me refine my career vision and brought focus to my keen interest in international brand development. It's thanks to the hours we spent reviewing and refining my application that I'll be joining an Ivy League MBA program this fall!
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Consultant Jordan (SBC)
A friend that had used Stacy Blackman when he was applying to MBA programs recommended that I do the same. He said the services provided were excellent, and they helped him get into the program of his choice (Ross). I, admittedly, was skeptical. Did I really need assistance doing this? Is the price worth it?
The short answer: absolutely. During my initial assessment, I described exactly what I was attempting to do, where I feel I would need the most help (my story), etc. etc. I was partnered with a consultant that had graduated from Anderson a few years prior. Working with him was fantastic. I approached this process with a very no-nonsense demeanor, and from our first meeting he said that he wasn't there to babysit me, I knew what I had to do, and he would help me along the way. We clicked immediately.
I knew the difficulty was going to be telling my story. How do I tell my story, and how do I tell it correctly? How to I describe the path that I will take to achieve my goals, and how will an MBA help? How will I, a humble broker in Philly, who dreams of being a Hollywood Power Player ascend to greatness, and what path will I write about in my essay?
Re-write after re-write, meticulous tweak after meticulous tweak. Six drafts. It was done. The tutelage and partnership had helped me produce what seemed like a successful essay. The submit button was hit in late 2015, and the acceptance call to my dream school came in March.
So, was Stack Blackman Consulting worth it? Without a doubt.
I had the pleasure of working with CP at Stacy Blackman Consulting. From the very first call CP was always very responsive and extremely helpful every step of the process. During my time working with her, she was always honest (which I think is one of the most important qualities you can ask for in your consultant) and insightful. She was not only helping me refine my application, but pushing me to dig for aspects that would really make my application unique. Thanks to her I was not only able to submit a much better application, but was also able to be confident every step of the way knowing she was on my team. I would absolutely recommend SBC to anyone looking for application consulting services.
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Consultant Sherry (SBC)
I signed up for the comprehensive service from SBC and was almost immediately matched with Sherry. We had a great working relationship and she was great about working with me off the bat to identify how we could best work together. I really hadn't done my homework on where I wanted to go and why, but Sherry helped me figure it out.
Her biggest help was with ideating my essay topics and making sure they both answered the questions and were able to convey what I wanted to convey. Between essay help and navigating the whole process (deadlines for finding recommenders, writing essays, etc.), I wouldn't have ended up as successful as I was without Sherry.
The only reason I am giving four stars and not five is that Sherry went on vacation for two weeks at the end of August, right before Round 1 applications were due. Granted, she let me know about the vacation well in advance, but it's still unfortunate timing. She responded to emails occasionally, but it still seemed a little unreasonable. Despite this, I'd still HIGHLY recommend Sherry to anyone considering SBC.
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Consultant Erin (SBC)
I was admitted to Booth and Columbia because of SBC’s services. I loved my MBA experience at CBS and went through the program with focus and productivity in large part because of the mentorship and career coaching from my SBC consultant, Erin. I would say that the ROI of the consulting engagement is not only the MBA admits but also the level of self-awareness I gained through the relationship. I knew exactly what I was going to achieve during my MBA experience and after as a result of the guidance from Erin. As I got to know my peers at CBS, it was clear that most students took the help of MBA consultants. I had the added advantage of working with a former Admissions Officer…..and there was another former Admissions Officer, Lisa, who reviewed my application to give me a different perspective. So, this type of inside knowledge was incredibly valuable. I have remained in touch with the SBC team because they were integral to my success during an important time. Thank you, Erin, Lisa and all at SBC!
STACEY BLACKMAN IS AMAZING
I credit my acceptance into an Ivy League school to them. Heres why they are amazing.
1. first they get your life story and craft and general outline
2. then they plan and conquer! that means making sure that your essay, references and resume contain the RIGHT PIECES.
3. From there its all about perfecting you application. Essays and resumes go though countless iterations until your app is near perfect.
SBC is professional and focused. they have clearly been doing this for a long time and understand what it takes to get into an amazing school
I cant thank you guys enough!!!
Lindsay was amazing to work with, she was able to bring a calming presence to a highly stressful process. Coming from a consultant background I’m still amazed with the devotion Lindsay gives to each one of her clients. She makes you feel as though you were her only client by developing such an incredible understanding of your individual situation and background. Throughout the process her honesty was refreshing and reassuring, she helped set attainable goals and build a strategy that set me apart from other candidate. My undergrad GPA was not the strongest and it was a major concern of mine. Using her in-depth knowledge of my past she was able to develop a strategy that highlighted my weak GPA in a way that made it less concerning to the Adcom. Lindsay was a pleasure to work with and I’m grateful for her help. I highly recommend SBC and Lindsay.
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Consultant Maureen (SBC)
I had a fantastic experience working with Maureen from SBC. I honestly believe that I put my best foot forward in my applications and, in large part, I have her to thank. She helped me with everything imaginable: decisions like whether to retake the GMAT, essay and short answer editing, recommender management, and interview prep. Maureen is also just generally a good human and was an incredible sounding board for my reservations, fears, and anxieties throughout the process.
One of the best parts of working with Maureen was her incredible essay editing skills: she made me work harder and probed me to dig deeper. She also really understands the lens through which admissions committees view essays and the entire application. I found my interview prep with Maureen to be especially helpful. My practice interview for HBS was nearly identical, in style, pace, and types of questions, to the real HBS interview.
And in the end there's proof that Maureen is awesome: I was accepted to all the schools I applied to including HBS, Columbia, and Kellogg. The b-school admissions process is long and hard but having Maureen by my side made it not so bad.