Kelsey was recommended to me by a friend who had successfully gained admission to their dream program, and I couldn’t be more grateful for that recommendation. There is absolutely no chance I would have gotten into my M7 school without Kelsey’s help.

Before working with her, I had completely misunderstood what admissions committees were looking for in essays. Kelsey’s guidance was invaluable in helping me reshape my approach. She is incredibly responsive, so there’s no excuse to procrastinate—you’re always moving forward in the process. What I appreciated most was her honesty. If a draft was off base or missing the mark, she didn’t hesitate to tell me point blank, which saved me from wasting time heading in the wrong direction.

Kelsey is also great at asking probing questions that help you uncover the genuine story you want to tell. Without her assistance, I would never have developed the final version of my application, which truly reflected who I am and what I'm looking to get out of my MBA.

When it came time for my live interview round, Kelsey prepped me perfectly. She helped me refine my story, articulate my goals, and present myself in the best possible light—all while staying authentic to myself.

I plan to recommend her to my own brother when he begins his MBA journey in the next few years. If I trust her with my family, you can absolutely trust her with your MBA application process.

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If you are looking for a consultant, I think you can stop searching. I talked to other consultants and used the ApplicantLab, but right from the beginning I felt that Kelsey was invested in me and my story. She once told me that she is a magician, and I now believe it is true because I got into M7 with a $100k scholarship after 2 years of rejections. I didn’t even want to reapply after those rejections, but she convinced me that I had a chance, and was actually angry for me that I didn’t get in.

She says in the intro that her “superpower is helping applicants craft materials that sound and feel like them” and that she achieves “this by simplifying the application process, providing individualized and tailored advice, and spending time to deeply understand you”. I can attest that she means this 100%. She will provide tailored and very detailed advice on ways to improve every little part of your application (and I mean every little part). She will simplify it by stating targets and needed deadlines in each step. She will make your material sound like you, because she will bring the best out of you. Throughout this process, I realized that I actually was not that boring and had challenges that I thought were not that impactful, but actually are.

But she will also challenge you on your decisions and every sentence you write the same way adcoms will challenge you. That way your application and you as well are fully prepared for adcoms. I had to prove to her why I had to apply to M7 and not other schools, and it helped me to outline (first of all for myself) the whole path of my MBA and planned post-MBA journey, which gave me confidence that I am the right fit for these schools. This also laid down the foundation for the interview, because I knew what I wanted and needed from schools.

Kelsey prepared me for the interview as well. I am an introverted person and was a bit nervous about this part of the process. With her help it was like a walk in the park, I felt so confident and prepared. She knew exactly what questions will be, how to prepare and structure answers, and what to do in unexpected scenarios.

She is also invested in you and your application emotionally, so she will ride highs and lows with you and will be your friend throughout this process who will encourage and support you. Given how reasonable her pricing is, I think you receive much, much more than you pay.

The only thing I regret is that I hadn’t started working with her earlier.

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Strengths:

Kelsey is extremely responsive (most of the time you get an email reply within 10 minutes) - which is amazing when you have a thousand questions. She also puts an incredible amount of thought and effort into the feedback she gives (10 whole pages for me!). Lastly she is also very warm and kind, without sacrificing honesty, a balance that resonated with me for this service.

Would make the product better:

Honestly nothing - adore Kelsey!

I hired Kelsey to help me with Consortium Round 1 for CBS with the $1000 Pre-Submission Package.

Before going with Kelsey, I met with a few other admissions consultants through Leland. The Leland intro calls are only 15 minutes, which just isn't enough time to get to know someone. Kelsey offers a 1 hour long free consultation, and she really got to know me and my story organically, and in a very warm way, without sacrificing honesty. I highly recommend at least doing the initial consult, because she can answer a lot of questions for you in that hour together. She also never tried to upsell any of the other services, which I also appreciated.

After opting to go with Kelsey, I submitted a TON of materials to her, including my Consortium essays (a whole other set of essays) and two letters of rec my recommenders shared with me. She reviewed EVERYTHING in a little over a day, including very detailed reviews of transcript, resume, etc (which can get loss in the essay shuffle). She shared a doc of 10 pages of feedback, and then met with me for ~45 minutes on Zoom (vs. 30 minutes advertised). Essentially, she is very generous with her services, which was amazing! I think her thorough feedback was critical to me sharpening a lot of my admissions package - I reworked a lot of essays, meaningfully improved a second recommender's letter, and totally revised my resume using her guidance. I even took the GRE with her encouragement (after taking the GMAT FE). Throughout the process, she also answered many, many random questions I had, and just provided a lot of moral support in a very ambiguous and stressful process.

I ended up getting full-tuition scholarships at both CBS and Stern, so it was 100% worth that upfront investment.

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Strengths:

Navigating the application process
Brainstorming ideas
Helping edit essays

Would make the product better:

N/A

Unlike many other applicants, I decided rather late in the R1 process to apply to business school and had little idea where to start. Unlike an undergraduate college application, the process is largely unstructured and can come across as overwhelming and complex. I struggled to find a place to start.

Recommend by a friend, I began working with Kelsey. Her structured, results-oriented process was exactly what I needed. From helping to organize my school preferences to pushing me to lay out a story we felt confident applying with, Kelsey was there every step of the way. Her guidance helped me receive multiple offers, including an accepted offer from an M7.

Whether you don’t know where to start (me), are struggling with the application or essay creation, or are just looking to refine your story ahead of interviews, I couldn’t recommend working with Kelsey more.

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Kelsey is 1000% worth the investment! Before beginning the process of applying to business school, I had no idea where to start. I thought I didn't have a shot at my top schools with my slightly below average test scores and what felt like an unoriginal story. Kelsey came in with kindness, empathy, patience, and tough love when needed to help me reframe my entire perspective about my story and my accomplishments. She is also incredibly efficient, thorough, and extremely knowledgeable about the admissions process -- not to mention easily accessible when I bombarded her with questions and panicky messages.

I am lucky enough to say that I was accepted into every school that I applied to (some even with scholarship), and I don't think that would've happened if it weren't for Kelsey. She believed in me when I didn't believe in myself -- which is exactly what you need in an admissions consultant. I truly couldn't have gone through this process without her!

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I came across Embark MBA on a fishbowl post while searching for a coach to help me reapply to my dream schools after being waitlisted but not admitted to Stanford and Harvard. I had connected and briefly worked with several coaches before but didn't find them to be personally invested in my success and very transactional.

Kelsey stood out immediately. Despite being fully booked, she took me on because she genuinely wanted the best for me, unlike others who encouraged me to wait for the second round to fit their schedules. Kelsey was there every step of the way, offering honest, direct feedback. She’s a master at editing, distilling complex stories into concise, impactful narratives, and tailoring them to what admissions committees are looking for. She also helped me weave in my personality and values throughout my applications.I had connected and briefly worked with several coaches before.

Her deep knowledge of my targets schools (Harvard, Stanford, and Columbia) helped us craft a targeted strategy. She also identified my weak spot—interviews—and started coaching me early, building my confidence well before interview invites came out.

The results speak for themselves: I was admitted to all three schools I applied to: Stanford, Harvard, Columbia.

Kelsey is caring, honest, and incredibly fun to work with. I owe so much of my success to her guidance and expertise. If you’re considering working with her, don’t hesitate—she’s the best.

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Strengths:

Clear and concise prep

Would make the product better:

N/A

Working with Kelsey was a game-changer for my interview preparation. Her interview guide and our mock session gave me the confidence to tackle five interviews in a short time. Kelsey helped me refine my timing and tell my story clearly and concisely. She also provided valuable tactics for handling unexpected moments and suggested thoughtful questions to ask interviewers. Thanks to her support, I felt fully prepared and at ease during each interview. I highly recommend Kelsey to anyone looking to excel in the interview process and make a lasting impression. Her expertise truly makes a difference and I would not be in this position without her!

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Strengths:

Return on investment, storytelling, highlighting positives, addressing weak areas, stress management, authentic voice

Would make the product better:

Nothing, experience was extremely positive and I wouldn't wish anything more.

As an enlisted veteran with an unconventional undergrad experience, I knew I needed someone experienced in my corner to help me tell my story. Reading online about what others were paying for admissions consultants I was extremely sticker shocked. Not only was Kelsey the perfect fit for me but I found her prices extremely reasonable! She helped translate my accomplishments and experience in a way that ADCOM would receive positively. Her experience behind the curtain was matched by her ability to suck the stress out of the process. The confidence she exuded about my profile/ chances combined with her calm and upbeat demeanor allowed me to remain (relatively) calm about the process and shielded my wife from much of my anxiety! I never questioned Kelsey’s dedication to my application materials/ involvement. She intentionally does not take on more clients than she can handle, and it absolutely shows. She was always extremely responsive even to questions I am sure she’s heard 100 times.

I ended up with several acceptances including my “dream program,” Wharton! Without Kelsey’s good judgement, experience, and guidance there is no chance that I would have been able to put my very best foot forward. If you are on the fence about using an admissions consultant or worried about the ROI I can confidently say that you will not be disappointed!

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Reapplying is tough, but Kelsey gave me hope that this time could be different — and it was! After trying to navigate the process on my own with little success, she helped me bring out my unique story and showcase what makes me, me. She really took the time to understand my background and goals, which made all the difference in how my application came together.

Her process is structured and incredibly effective. It helped me get clarity on my goals and ensured I was ready for everything — even my interview. When I got the call over a month after submitting, I didn’t need to scramble because she’d already prepped me so well early on. It was such a relief not to start from scratch!

Kelsey also has so many school-specific insights and resources, which made every step more manageable. On top of that, when my circumstances changed during the process, she was flexible, guiding me through it all without missing a beat.

If you’re looking for someone who’ll bring out your best and keep you focused every step of the way, I can’t recommend Kelsey and Embark MBA enough!

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In life, there are moments where you make really important decisions because your instincts were telling you to do so and for me, that was working with Kelsey to get into my dream program.

Do you know what the difference between Kelsey's admission consulting services vs. other admission consulting services? transparency & she wants to ACTUALLY hear your story. To be honest, I had approximately 7-8 "intro" calls with other consulting services and Kelsey was truly different. She responded quickly, honestly, and even gave me a boost of confidence when I was being too hard on myself. Which was a truly refreshing experience.

Even though I always wanted to pursue my MBA, I had doubts about applying to my dream program as it was a very selective business school (T15) and convinced myself that I wasn't a strong enough candidate, having a low GPA & no-brand undergraduate program. When I connected with Kelsey, she provided new perspective and told me that I can be optimistic about my chances.

Since MBA essays can be a very unnatural way of writing about yourself, Kelsey really helped me craft a "unique" and "personal" story on my essays that I believe was key to my admission at my dream program. She was extremely quick on her responses and even if Kelsey's responses were quick, it helped me move from inch by inch to taking leaps in my essays.

Kelsey should be the golden standard of how an admission consultant should be and as a former skeptic of using admission consultants in the past, Kelsey really changed my perspective so if you're ever looking for a consulting service or MBA coach, Kelsey is your person and you will not regret it!

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