Inspired by the movie “The Pursuit of Happyness”, I have divided my review of Admissionado into the four different stages of my application journey.
The first stage is called “All in”. Six months back, in November 2018, I appeared for GMAT. After reviewing GMAT Club forums and a few amazing applicant profiles, I was 99% sure I was not going to get into any dream MBA school. It felt like I had everything going against me: I was an older Indian applicant 32+ with around nine years of work experience, a pretty regular finance and strategy resume with no out of the world achievements, and no globe-trotting work experience. Moreover, last year I had applied to a few b-schools only to be dinged by all without any interview. By God’s grace, I came across this very page of Admissionado reviews. Reviewing their website, including the candidate reviews from India and China, impressed me.
The free consultation was a bonus as I wanted someone to assure me that I wanted someone to assure me I had zero chance of getting into a top b-school. To be frank, even the short questionnaire for the free consultation was a bit depressing as, to me, all the questions seemed to emphasize why I shouldn’t apply for MBA. I ended up having a one-hour complimentary call with Claudia. Unexpectedly, she gave me hope by saying that I did have a chance of getting into a top b-school, in spite of the weaknesses in my profile. The fees she quoted represented a steep six months of savings. I had couple of days to accept Claudia’s offer as the R2 deadlines were near. Encouraged by her confidence in me, I decided to take a leap of faith and went “all in” with application.
The second stage of my journey is called “Knowing thyself”. I was introduced to my consultant, Mark Lellouch, who has impressive credentials; for the first time in my life, I was interacting with a Stanford GSB graduate. Admissionado has an exhaustive induction process and I had to fill out a detailed questionnaire. This helps the consultant to learn more about you as a person, your aspirations in life, unique strengths, and unusual talents. I was honest in my responses and, before my first call with Mark, I was afraid that my profile would be chided away by the demi-god from Stanford. To my surprise, Mark was warm and humble and thorough with my profile, and he uncovered strengths that I ought to capitalize on in my application.
Being a finance professional, I was thinking of applying to good b-schools in the U.S., but Mark recommended I apply to London Business School because of my age and years of work experience. Though LBS was not on my radar, I liked their curriculum and institutional thought process. I followed Mark’s advice and started LBS application.
Admissionado gives you structure and ample material to write good essays, but the best part is they don’t spoon feed you, they mentor you through this Journey whereby you discover yourself and your stories, sharing the best of these in your essays. Mark responded promptly to all my queries and reviewed all my essays 5-6 times before the deadline. Even though Admissionado charges extra for 24-hour returns, Mark reviewed my entire application one last time before the deadline on emergency basis without levying any charges. Submitting an MBA application definitely made me wiser about myself and gave me clarity on my strengths and how an MBA from LBS would advance my career and allow me to fulfill my professional aspirations.
The third stage of the journey is called “Rehearsing”. I was elated to be selected for an interview. The stakes increased dramatically as I was just one step away from my dream school, without any guarantee of getting in. Mark made the interview process simple – detailed notes on how to ace the interview round along with likely questions, plus two one-hour sessions for prep and a mock interview. Half of the work was actually done while preparing the application, now it is more about delivery and personality. The detailed interview questionnaire allowed me to assimilate the best stories from my life and work experience. I prepared and rehearsed all the questions and I believe that, without such a questionnaire, the interview prep would have become generic. The mock interview I did with Mark helped raise my confidence and identify areas for improvement. I went into the interview having rehearsed extensively and executed according to plan.
The last part of the application process is called “Happiness and gratitude”. I woke up early on 29th March knowing that the LBS results would be in my inbox. I clicked open the email and forwarded it to Mark and Claudia, still trembling. I couldn’t believe it. Thanks to them, I had gotten an admit, something I never thought possible. I am still short of words to express my gratitude.


Kindly note – the views and opinions expressed above are my own, written out of a feeling of gratitude. I have not received any monetary benefits for writing the same.

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I worked with Stefanie and I can’t thank her enough. She’s brilliant at what she does. I think Stefanie is a very pragmatic professional who tells you directly what’s working and what’s not, and that’s very important, otherwise, you’ll end up wasting your precious time.

Before I started working with Stefanie and Admissionado, I contacted several prominent MBA admissions consulting firms, and I’m telling you it is a fun but daunting process – they will all seem solid, knowledgeable, experienced, they all have excellent reviews, etc., so it comes down to the quality of customer service. I loved my experience with Admissionado, and their Director of Client Relations Claudia, who always tried to understand my position and offered the best support and help possible.

I was paired up with Stefanie for my free 30-min call, which lasted for almost an hour. We had a productive chat, I could talk about all my concerns, I was struggling with preparation for the GMAT, I didn’t have any score, and then it seemed to me that I lacked community service experience/extracurriculars and leadership experience (cause I’m an international applicant). Stefanie assured me that we’d find a way and that she’d help me to bring all of that out of me. I signed up with Admissionado, and Claudia helped me with the package and pricing that suited my situation and made sure everything went smoothly.

Stefanie focused not on telling me exactly what to do and how to do, what schools to choose and what to include in my essays but on guiding me so that I could reach all the decisions by myself and be comfortable and happy about them. I’m sure Stefanie would’ve made an excellent detective had she chosen to be one. She has this ability to spot critical facts and bring the most out of them so that you could tell a whole inspirational story out of thin air. I remember how I felt during the first iterations of essays when I would have to remember teeny-tiny details of my experiences when I was amazed how significant have some of the experiences been to who I have become today and how they have shaped my character along the way. That’s how Stefanie will push you.

Another thing I feel obliged to mention is that Stefanie has this amazing vision or wisdom, or call it whatever you think. I applied to three schools with Stefanie and one with the experience I got with her. Two schools had very low acceptance rates and both were my top choice, the next two were in Top10 but had almost twice higher acceptance rates. I used to call the latter two as more practical schools because I believe they focus on preparing you for a real post-MBA job (like consulting, banking, general management, operations, etc.), not for crazy, unrealistic start-up jobs/goals. When I was applying I had a “practical” or “safe-goal” strategy for those two schools, like going into consulting first, getting some experience and then moving to my long-term crazy dream goal. Stefanie suggested being straight honest with every school, telling them clearly what I am and what I want and why I want it, so that the adcoms/schools decide if I fit them, if they fit me, my goals, if they can give me what I want, etc. And I am so grateful for that advice. I eventually got interview invites from three schools and ended up getting admission (the only one) to my top choice school, which had the lowest acceptance rate, and I think the reason for that is “fit”, bilateral fit, which I think the most important factor when considering schools. That school believed in me, my experience, character, principles, goals, and vision, and was confident that it can get me to where I dream to be. And if Stefanie had not given that advice, I would have not been going to the school I wholeheartedly believe in (and always dreamed of).

With Stefanie and Admissionado’s essay editors team you will be telling your best and beautiful stories. And Claudia will help you with the rest so that you could focus on more important aspects of this daunting and tiresome but supremely exciting MBA application journey. I can go forever telling about the interview prep, resume editing, strategy building and other stuff that Stefanie helped me with but this review is already too long. The package also includes a final review of the whole application by the second consultant but I couldn’t take advantage of that service due to time constraints. And oh, I panicked about the deadlines (it was already one month to Round 2 deadlines) and having no GMAT score, so I took the test and scored slightly below 700. But even with that score, we, together with Stefanie and Admissionado team, managed to secure an offer to one of the most selective MBA programs in the US/world. I wouldn't have achieved that alone, not even interview invite, I can tell that for sure.

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I worked with Melody Lin and Claudia on three schools. I prefer to work with a Chinese speaking consultant, so there aren't many options to begin with. The other thing I was looking for was great essay editing. Admissionado's website and intro materials came across as witty and funny so I gave it a shot.

Claudia is amazing in her response speed solving all the admin questions. Melody is also good at providing general strategy to MBA application. What makes admissionado shine is its ability to edit essays, they don't just edit it but encourage you to really dig deep and write something that will shine through your application. I got into one of the three schools that I applied to, even though I only had 2 years of work experience. Thanks Admissionado!

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The business school application process was highly stressful for me, as I still had several aspects of my long- & short-term goals that needed to be fleshed out. Moreover, I needed to identify features of my accomplishments that could really help me stand out from the crowd, given the insanely competitive demographic I hailed from.

Regina's initial strategy session was incredibly helpful- she was insightful in catching onto facets of my personality & working style, and was unafraid to deviate from the tried & tested "formula" in terms of identifying which types of achievements to highlight. Subsequently, her comments on each iteration of my essays were spot-on, always shared promptly & designed to make the edits as impactful as possible. I would also like to mention the constant encouragement provided by Regina & team, whether through the B-school selection process, or through the essay edits, or interviews etc.- it goes a long way knowing your consultant has your back!

Overall, if you're looking for a team to help you stand out of the crowd, this is it! Regina & team truly go above & beyond, even helping push you to meet your own timelines (without ever infringing on your work requirements). I would highly recommend their services to anyone looking to apply to business schools.

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I contacted Admissionado during my senior year at the University of Southern California and was advised to call John, who was best qualified to help me with European grad schools.

With a 3.1 GPA, a couple of summer internships and no experience with the GRE nor the GMAT, I no idea of where to start. But John helped me identify my strengths and guided me during each step of the application, from my resume to the GRE.

John is smart, honest and makes himself available for his clients. He will follow your intuition, but you can safely trust his. Overall, John is a tremendous consultant who gave each element of my application a well-needed polish to stand out from the crowd. And it sure worked.

I applied to six schools and got into every single one of them (HEC, IE Madrid, Hult, Bocconi, ESCP and ESSEC). I am now heading to HEC Paris (one of the best schools in the world) for my masters and John as well as the rest of Admissionado helped make it possible.

Don't think about it twice!

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This is the first consultant experience I had that I enjoyed, which resulted in my first successful application since many years of trying. I saw Admissionado had good reviews on GMATClub so I set up a free profile eval on the website. Claudia got back to me almost instantly (she really responds very quickly) and started the process of connecting me to a consultant.

Mark Lellouch reviewed my responses and scheduled an introductory call with me where he shared his thoughts on my profile and my application strategy. I liked what I heard and how it seemed customized and realistic for my situation, so I went ahead with the Deluxe package. Immediately I filled out a very detailed questionnaire so that Mark could come up with a succinct summary of my strengths, weaknesses, and plan for my target school. Having an assessment like that on the front end really helped me clarify how I wanted to present myself across the entire application - resume, essays, forms and all.

After getting the front end down, we then started working on the application components - resume, essays, etc. Throughout this, Mark never wrote for me, but rather challenged my drafts as a cold eye and gave me clear prompts on how to modify my material to best present myself to the school. This is Mark's best attribute by far - he is able to give you the right instruction and advice for you to articulate the best image of yourself clearly. I was stunned at how good my materials looked after reviews with him compared to my initial drafts...especially my resume.

I was invited to interview and Mark supported me through that as well with the same excellence as in the writing phase - by telling me HOW to think when responding rather than WHAT to say when responding. It is this crucial difference that has helped me grow as a person, not to mention getting a successful admission to my dream school - one that I've tried multiple times for many years to get in with different consultants who were not as effective. Claudia was also very supportive throughout the entire process, and as mentioned above, responded very quickly.

I would definitely recommend Admissionado and Mark. They were very helpful and exceeded my expectations of what a consultant can really do for you. Mark's greatest skill is being able to guide you to articulate the best version of yourself.

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To say the least, I am really impressed with Julie's work on my business school application. I normally don't write these types of reviews, but I think this case merits one. I come from a non traditional background and didn't really know how to apply for business school. After a pretty in-depth initial discussion with Claudia, I was paired with Julie, one of the more seasoned professionals at Admissionado. All in all, I am satisfied with my decision.

Basically, how it works - we had a thorough first talk where I discussed my past experiences, short and long term goals, and how business school fits in the picture, and then I began writing. I would write a draft and a few days later receive her copy, not really with edits, but more with comments (like 2 times the size of the actual essay) on how I should organize, what areas I should leave out, and what areas I should expand upon. After about 4 or so exchanges, I could really see how my essays evolved, becoming coherently organized and laser focused. And given that I was still in control throughout the entire process, I became more confident and motivated with what I was writing.

In conclusion, people will go either way about hiring or not an admissions consultant and the decision really depends on your current situation and where you are coming from. I come from a non-trad background and was looking for an extra set of experienced eyes throughout the process. Admissionado, one of the oldest and most reputable admissions consultancies out there, provided just that. If you are hesitating, I would just plan a free consultation to learn more.

As for me, I took the leap and don't regret it. I applied in late October and received the admissions call before winter break from Columbia - couldn't be more happy!

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Julie and the team at Admissionado were incredible in helping me package up my life's experience in a really compelling way. They took the time to understand my work, personal and extracurricular background before diving into providing suggestions for how I package everything together. The team had a knack for identifying 'winning' ideas, while gently dismissing those that weren't right.

Whether on Skype or over email, their light-hearted attitude helped keep the mood positive, even during the more stressful parts of the application process. Julie in particular was an absolute joy to work with and I would highly recommend working with her.

Stoked to have been admitted to my three dream schools.

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As a re-applicant after using a competitor admissions consultant firm last year, I can speak to a few of the ways that sets Admissionado apart in my eyes:

1. Personality. They were much better at giving my applications strong personality than I had the previous year, which I think can be very underrated and extremely helpful for someone who isn't naturally extroverted.

2. Promptness. Turnaround of materials was always better than the 72 hours they promised. I assumed that "within 72 hours" meant "72 hours", but this wasn't the case.

3. Reliability. I got into a bit of a pinch during deadline crunch time, and I was blown away by how responsive and helpful Uyen was in the final stretch. She really stepped up when I needed her most, and I am forever grateful given my outcome! I'd be amazed if I could have gotten the same level of service through another firm.

I owe so much of my success to Uyen and the team at Admissionado, they have been amazing and really helped me to put my best self forward in my applications. Especially with the half-ride scholarship on top of an already sweet offer to Kellogg, I couldn't be happier with the value I got out of working with them. My life just got way better thanks to this team!

I couldn't recommend Admissionado highly enough!

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I am a Chinese applicant who needed to stand out from a fiercely competitive pool. My consultant, Connie Chen, guided me through the whole application process and helped me receive admission to my top choice of school. During our collaboration, I found that she was very accessible, conscientious and an expert. Whenever I raised a question to her, she would respond to me with thoughtful advice in a timely manner.

She provided me strategic guidance on how to put my personal stories and essay questions together. More importantly, she knew how to motivate me to discover personal highlights, as well as my uniqueness. Although some of these are normally overlooked by ourselves, it turns out they did help me stand out among those applicants with similar applicants. Connie is awesome!

Additionally, she is really good at motivating me to go through everything to find what I truly want to do. This enlightenment closely connected the dots of my personal files together, resulting in a well-prepared application. Moreover, she held a mock interview with me and provided detailed insight. I can confidently say that without her help, I may not have gotten into my top choice of school.

Overall, Connie is not only an excellent person, but also a professional consultant. Our collaboration went well and smoothly. Thus, I highly recommend Connie to other applicants!

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