Here are the major milestones from my GMAT prep journey...

1. I took my first diagnostic exam and got a 530. I was pretty disappointed. As the editor of my school journal and an engineering major, I didn't necessarily think I was going to ace the test my first try but I also didn't think I was going to have to fill a gap of 200 points to reach my goal score.

2. I spent 4 fruitless months studying on my own with MPrep books. At this point, I had plateaued to around 660 (Q44/V38). Quant-wise: I was spending all my time trying to understand the NUANCES of the HARDEST quant questions. Afterall, the questions weren't hard, I just needed enough time. I couldn't figure out why I could understand complex engineering calculus but not a simple GMAT trig question. Verbal-wise: I honestly had no idea what I was doing. I spent every night doing bricks of 10 questions and making literally 0 point progress from my initial diagnostic exam. Not going to lie, by this point I thought maybe I wasn't cut out for the GMAT...

3. I finally bite the bullet and signed up with Mike. After 3 months, I jumped 70 points and scored a 730 on my first official GMAT exam! I ACTUALLY cried in the car on my way home that's the amount of relief I felt. Quant-wise: Mike helped me realize how ridiculous it was I was spending insane amounts of time on the hardest questions and then shooting myself in the foot on the easy questions. Verbal-wise: Mike taught me to eliminate answers based on clear grammatical mistakes, which means, sometimes the most incoherent answers may still be grammatically correct!

Honestly, Mike is a life saver! His help allowed me the freedom to apply to virtually any MBA program I want to and the time to finally see my family and friends again. I'm forever grateful - thanks Mike!

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Honestly, thank you Donna! I was admitted to 2 M7, and waitlisted at a T10 with Donna's guidance. I was rejected at 2 other M7s.

Here is the thing: I am an international student so I didn't have experience going through such a rigorous admissions process when I was in my undergrad. At the same time, I am also extremely Type A so I wanted someone who would answer the inanest questions. Donna and the Stratus team did exactly that. The package helped me reflect on my life goals, and how the MBA would contribute to that trajectory. I think this is the basis for good essays. Then, throughout the writing process, Donna offered me feedback (what kind of tone should I take for different schools, what type of essays have been successful in the past etc.), along with "school experts". Beyond the essays, we also worked on how to write an MBA resume, how to best direct my recommenders on LOR, how to cater my interviews for each school - basically, every step, I wasn't alone.

Now, let's talk about the emotional aspect of this process. I was up and down like crazy - one month, I got 2 interviews; the next, I got rejected by 2 schools. Donna was there to help with my self-doubt, and I think that was an important part of making it through this process in somewhat of a good mental mindset.

Finally, I spoke to multiple consultants when I first looked into admissions consultants. Many consultants were very hard focused on my stats (which are comparable given the schools but not anything spectacular). One consultant even told me I probably had a rough chance at the schools on my list. Other consultants were too busy and took on a lot more clients than they should. One of Donna's first questions for me was: "what is something you spend too much time on but have no regrets?". In reflection, I think it's because Donna cares to get to know her clients' stories, and ultimately, the stories are what will differentiate you from everyone else with a high GPA/ GMAT/ MBB etc.

Good luck!

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