Columbia Business School Admit!

TL;DR: With a somewhat scattered career trajectory, I needed someone very skilled in helping me draw out compelling career and personal narratives (the essays), and present myself in a beautiful package (the whole application). John’s previous reviews share a theme of exceptional storytelling, and he did exactly that with me. It was nice to have John as a partner who cared about the results. I was admitted to Columbia Business School!

Researching Consultants: Quantitative measures aside, the key to a successful MBA application is undoubtedly compelling career and personal narratives, which are also by far the most challenging. As I read detailed reviews of consultants, their key strengths became apparent. John’s previous reviews share a consistent theme of him helping applicants put together compelling applications and stories (he does have a journalism background after all).

Working with John: I went with the hourly package. As I think back on the application process, there were several things John did that maximized the efficiency and results:

1. With hourly services, John is very efficient with time, but most importantly, the feedback that he sends back is direct and actionable. This allowed me to make drastic improvements to my essays between each iteration. The final product was an essay that read so smooth and conveyed so, so much in 500 words.
2. John clarified how I should tackle each essay, which was so helpful given the prompts are vague and cut out the many extra drafts I would have had to do.
3. I found it super helpful to have a call with John, especially when I hit writer’s block, to bounce ideas off of him. These sessions were extremely productive in moving things along rather than spending days stuck on something.
4. Lastly, I will say that the road of an MBA application is a lonely one. John was a partner who cared about the success of my application, and his professional and calm demeanor kept me going and focused.

Result: Acceptance to Columbia Business School!