If you look in the dictionary for the definition of PHENOMENAL, you will see a photo of Debbie Choy. All thanks to Debbie, I am headed to a top 10 program this fall and I could not be more thrilled!!! Debbie went above and beyond in every single way for me. Debbie’s talent as a coach and a partner, her ability to highlight the most compelling parts of your story, her constant cheerleading and her honest but casual style are just 4 of many things that make her an all-star MBA consultant. If you want to work with the best, work with Debbie. No contest. When I got into my dream school, she said “OMG, I HAVE LITERAL TEARS OF JOY” – that’s how close we got and how dedicated she is to your success.

I worked with Debbie on a 6 school package. I have a very non-traditional background: many years working in high technology, Humanities double major from a top public university and definitely more of a “poet” than a “quant”. I also had a well below average GMAT score. I opted to go with Debbie because 1) I didn’t want to go through the process blind, 2) I wanted to get the application process right the first time (versus re-applying) and 3) Debbie went to a school I have the utmost respect for. I also work for a startup and my schedule is crazy – I needed someone to be the “hammer” and make sure I got things done on time. I wanted to present myself in the best possible light and given how unique my background was, I didn’t really know how to shape my narrative. Enter Debbie!

My results blew me away: 2 straight admits w/ 1 scholarship, 4 waitlists (Dartmouth Tuck, UVA Darden, NYU Stern and CMU Tepper). I expected to get into 1 school max – not to have multiple options. And I cleared the waitlist at my dream school and am headed there!

I’ll never forget our kickoff call when I told her how many schools I was applying to (hint: 10+). Debbie just smiled and said “Ok, it’s all about execution then!” She was constantly positive, always up-lifting. From taking the GMAT multiple times to then taking the GRE to dealing with one of my recommenders bailing last minute, Debbie was consistently calm, cool and collected (even when I certainly was not). She always helped me find creative solutions, pushed me to produce the highest quality drafts I could and really helped me present myself in the strongest possible way. If an essay was headed in the wrong direction, she wasn’t afraid to tell me and have us start over – which was very confidence-inspiring. She remembered key aspects of my story and found new ways to tell the same story in a way that would appeal to each school. I was so impressed with the depth of Debbie’s knowledge; for instance, the way we prepped for my Darden interview was completely different than how we prepped for Tuck. In applying to so many schools, I even accidentally sent her a document for one of the schools I was not working with her on – and she reviewed it! When I offered to retroactively pay her, she declined and just said she “hoped it was helpful”. She is one of the most kind-hearted, dedicated and altruistic people I’ve worked with through my career. When I was in “waitlist purgatory” for what felt like forever, Debbie helped me figure out creative ways to update AdComs and keep the ball rolling. And, most significantly, she demonstrated boundless empathy and support for me during a year where I lost a family member midway through the application season, completely unexpectedly. I could not have asked for more from an admissions consultant - who has since become a friend.

Despite how much self-doubt I had through the process, Debbie consistently built me up and never acted like my many silly questions about short answers on the applications were silly. The application process is stressful: you feel the highest of highs and the lowest of lows and the waiting in between can drive you crazy. Debbie was there through it all – reviewing essays I had grown tired of reviewing, pushing me to produce the best possible drafts and even making herself available to one of my recommenders if he had questions. She really gets on the same side of the river as you and is side-by-side with you as you navigate this stressful and intense process. You have to work with Debbie. I would do it all again if I could – and I’m already jealous of the lucky folks who get to work with her this application season.

Knowing I want to go into tech entrepreneurship, Debbie told me: “If you ever start a company, I want to be one of your investors”. :) Well, what you invest in the process with Debbie you will get back tenfold.

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It has been a long, stressful road to get to this point, but with Debbie’s help, I got into one of my top choices – Wharton. I started the application process for round 1 with only a month until the deadlines for some of my top schools. Super overwhelmed and only having just retaken the GMAT a second time I was scrambling to get started and decided to take the leap with Debbie. Right at the get-go, we kicked it into gear- she got to know my story and helped me formulate a strategy on what schools I should apply to and when. What I like about Debbie is that she will be honest with you. A consultant can only do so much for your application, but she has a lot of good insight into what schools are looking for and what would be a good fit for you from her perspective. She might even convince you to look at a school you have not considered before. I ended up splitting applications between round 1 and 2 to prioritize my top choices. Debbie seriously knows some of the most intimate details of my life. She helped me pick and choose what stuck out to her and what sounded interesting – those things that truly represented who I am and could help tell my story. But it was always a two-way street – if I felt uncomfortable about making something the highlight of an essay or felt my evidence was not substantial, she would help me choose a different topic or spin it a different way and make it flow so much better. I trusted her. I highly recommend working with Debbie if you are considering a consultant. Even when I was waitlisted at another top school she helped me navigate that process as well. She was always encouraging me even if I heard bad news so I felt motivated to continue. Additionally, she answered ALL my questions even if they were simply logistics related. No question was unimportant. At the end of the day, with the MBA admissions process you just don’t know what is going to happen, but having Debbie there to help me along the way and have my back really helped keep me sane and focused. I also ended up using outlines/ideas we used for many other applications outside of the package I had with Debbie which saved a lot of time later on in Round 2.

Thanks Debbie!

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Debbie was extremely instrumental in my admission to NYU Stern, where I was originally wait-listed at. From the initial essay writing preparation stage to the interview practice session, Debbie was always extremely professional and goal-oriented in her approach to help me with my applications.

During the essay writing phase, I really liked how Debbie took a holistic approach to help me understand my strengths and weaknesses as an candidate, and helped me pick out the best life stories that would ultimately be the main focus of my essays. I couldn’t have asked for a better experience working with Debbie . I left our first brainstorming session with a clear story and direction for my essays,

During the interview stage, Debbie practiced with me thoroughly via Skype and helped me with many of the intangibles that are essential for a successful interview. "The delivery is often just as important if not more important than the content", as she would often remind me throughout these sessions, which was something I couldn't have agreed with more and really benefited from as an candidate.

Finally, while initially discouraged by the wait-list offer, I was even more impressed by Debbie's ability to keep me motivated and helped me strategize a plan that would ultimately gain me admission to the school. Throughout the application process, she not only delivered to me top notch professional services, but she actually made me feel that I had a cheerleader in the background that was helping me with every set back. I would wholeheartedly recommend her service to anyone seeking an incredible MBA consultant!

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Debbie is the go-to consultant if you someone to hand-hold you through the application process. She is brutally honest and gives great constructive feedback. Yes, all consultants are expensive, but since every applicant is using one, you will be at a disadvantage if you decide to embark on this journey alone. Despite not having the best work experience, I got accepted into an M7 school and even got an interview with HBS.

Debbie was great throughout the entire process and I never felt overwhelmed. In the beginning, she literally had me write my life story out and we had a great conversation about which stories/themes I should be highlighting in my essays. She was very collaborative during this discussion. At the same time, if you are going down the wrong rabbit hole, she will not hesitate to stop you and she saved me a lot of time in that regard. Once we figured out the target schools, Debbie created a timeline for me for each school so I knew how to pace myself.

In regards to the essays, Debbie had a call with me to give me some tips on how to tackle every essay question. Next, she requested that I provided her with an outline of my essay structure. After further comments, I finally got to the essay writing part. All this prep work up front really saved me time on writing the essay. There was some back and forth after the initial essay draft and Debbie always replied within two business days. She even reviewed the extra questions in the application package.

Once I got the good news on the interview invites, she will give you a sample of questions the school usually asks in preparation for the mock interview. You really need to be on top of your game on this one because it really felt like a real interview. After each question, Debbie will give live feedback and once again, she is not afraid to tell you if your answer was way off the mark. I appreciated the honesty as that helped me focus on the subset of questions I needed to hone in on.

To summarize, Debbie was a fantastic partner in this process and I couldn’t have done it without her.

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I was extremely busy at my work during the admission season, and knew very little about admission process when the application deadline was only around 3 months away. So I chose to get Debbie Choy's help. I summarized some most important insights from Debbie as below, which turned out to be very true and helped me to be very efficient during the process.
1. Recommendation of what schools or programs suit me best;
2. What the admission offices are looking for from applicants, and what makes the applicant different from others;
3. How to write essays that present yourself better;
4. Debbie controlled the application schedules very well. She always gave responses within the time as she promised, and would also check in me when I was a little behind on things that needed to be done;
5. Debbie also had a mock interview with me, which turned out to be very similar to what I experienced in real. It made me very prepared and confident during the interview.
Overall speaking, Debbie has a very clear, easy and sense-making process for you to follow in order to complete the admission process. I felt it was just a matter of time and process to get admitted by your dream school, as long as you follow her process. I strongly recommended you to use Debbie's help if you would like to maximize your acceptance possibility, and make your process as easy as possible.

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After working with Debbie on my applications, I was admitted to a top 10 MBA program! Debbie helped me with applying to 10 schools in only 1.5 months! I realized late in the game that I wanted to apply in Round 1, and I approached mbaMission to be paired with a consultant who could help me with my applications. I was very fortunate to have been paired with Debbie!

For my first school, I had already prepared drafts by myself. I gave these to Debbie for review and confidently told her that these drafts were “near final” and only needed a quick read before submission. To my surprise, Debbie told me that my drafts needed a complete rewrite. I was shocked but appreciated her candidness and honesty.

In the next week, I heavily relied on Debbie to provide feedback on my drafts. What I like about Debbie's style is that she didn’t sugarcoat anything, always pushed me to reflect deeper on my experiences, and provided good advice to help me be more succinct in my writing. In my essays, I sometimes found myself getting lost in the details that the writing lacked the "so what?" factor. Debbie would redirect my attention to focus on the big picture and tell me to cut content if necessary. Further, her flexibility and positive attitude helped calm me down in times of stress and focus on the execution of the applications.

After finishing my first application with Debbie, we had developed a great working relationship, and the rest of my 10 applications went rather smoothly. As a demanding client, I sent her at least 3 essays to review every day (Each school had 2-3 essays, so in total it was about 30 essays that I had sent her way). She always provided prompt, detailed and high-quality feedback. I even wondered how she was able to do all of this in so little time!

Debbie is great at all aspects of the application, from helping me brainstorm ideas to outlining the actual essay and providing feedback. She was available through phone, skype, and email. I even did a mock interview with her over Skype two days before my actual interview and it made a tremendous difference. Before the interview, I was stuttering on the basic questions such as "Walk me through your resume". But she gave me helpful feedback that allowed me to structure my answers and practice effectively, which made me feel confident going into my interview.

In conclusion, Debbie is a stellar, seasoned, and top-notch consultant. Completing applications for 10 schools in 1.5 months was a daunting task, but Debbie maximized the limited time we had to help me craft stellar essays. If you work with Debbie, she will make sure that you are always submitting your best work! There were times when I submitted drafts that were weak, and Debbie held me accountable by asking me to rewrite the entire essay or think of new experiences to write about. I greatly enjoyed working with Debbie and definitely recommend with flying colors!

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I hired mbaMission for a two school package, and Debbie is my consultant. I only applied to two schools and was admitted to my dream school. I wouldn’t be able to achieve that without Debbie’s guidance.

Why mbaMission?
After talking to all top MBA consultant firms I could find, I decided to go with mbaMission because mbaMission truly puts my interest first and cares for its consultants. This is the reason why the firm does not offer money-back guarantee, promise unprovable results, and offer discounts or sales. (Read: https://www.mbamission.com/about/?display=faq). I also like how I am paired with one consultant who will spend time to understand me, be my friend, and be with me throughout the whole process.

Why Debbie?
Besides all the great qualities that Debbie has a MBA consultant, I specifically asked Debbie to be my consultant because of the similarities in our backgrounds. I felt she could guide me to articulate my stories to the schools better, and it was the best decision I have ever made.

Here are a few reasons why I highly recommend Debbie:
1. During the brainstorming process: Debbie helped me prioritize my stories that would highlight my strengths and differentiate me from the rest of other applicants who are from the same industry. She also gave me advice on how I can arrange these stories so my essay will have a logical flow.
2. During the writing process: Debbie is very generous with feedbacks and willing to ask tough questions. These questions allowed me to think more strategically and improve my essays significantly. She continued to challenge me until we are both happy with the essays.
3. Throughout the process: Applying to top MBA programs is hard, and there were times I felt like giving up and thought I might not make it. Debbie never gave up on me. She was always there to support me and helped walk me through the process. This is why I really appreciate the one-on-one working relationship that mbaMission offers.

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I knew I wanted to work with an admissions consultant, so when I started the process, I took advantage of the 30 minute free consultation most consulting firms offered and "interviewed" several of them, including Stacy Blackman, Stratus Prep, Expartus, Veritas and mbaMission. I ended up choosing mbaMission based on fit.

My consultant was Debbie Choy. I worked with her on a 4 school package for round 2. I personally applied to 5 schools and also the Consortium (an application on its own) and was admitted into 4 schools (waitlisted at the 5th) as well as the Consortium.

Debbie was instrumental to my success. She worn several hats and served as my:

1) Project Manager - the business school application process was extremely overwhelming and had a lot of to do's. Debbie structured the process in a manageable way and was by my side through every step of the process.

2) Supporter/Advocate - I didn't have much confidence going into the process. I didn't have a spectacular GMAT score or an impressive background. However, Debbie was able to help me tell my stories in a compelling way. I never felt uncomfortable around Debbie. Even when I felt like my essay was poorly written or my interview prep answers were not good enough, Debbie always cheered me on while providing constructive feedback and teaching me how to improve. Before I started the process, I was prepared for not getting into any schools, and I told myself that I would be happy getting into 1 out of the 5 schools I applied to. It was a true surprise when I found out that I was accepted into almost all the schools I applied to, some with scholarships.

Overall, I had a pleasant working relationship with Debbie. I would be happy to recommend her to anyone!

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I highly recommend working with Debbie Choy at mbaMission , because she is the reason I got accepted to my dream b-school.

Last year, I applied to five b-schools on my own and I got dinged from all of them even without any interview invitation. I have a successful professional resume in healthcare industry with low GMAT and I did not know how to tell my story for my application.

So this year, I decided to work with a consultant. And I found mbaMission and luckily I started to work with top-notch consultant, Debbie Choy. I applied to 6 b-schools in total and used a 2-school package.

Because of Debbie’s help, I came out of the application process feeling confident and armed with much clarity. Debbie really helped my story stand out.

Her turnaround for essay reviews was so fast, and she pointed out weaknesses that I could not have noticed before. Because I am an international applicant, it was hard for me to figure out what to say during my interviews. Mock-interviews I had with Debbie were hugely helpful for me, she addressed flaws and weaknesses that helped me polish my answers and determine which stories to emphasize. Her help and feedbacks for interviews will be helpful for my future job interviews, as well.

After all my applications were submitted, I got into 4 b-schools with scholarships. Most importantly, I received an interview to my top choice program and was admitted with a scholarship and an assistantship.

I am pretty sure that I would not have gotten into my program without Debbie’s help. I have been extremely pleased with mbaMission’s services. And I would HIGLY recommend–Debbie Choy- to anyone who wants to work with enthusiastic, creative and experienced consultant, and who makes the application process enjoyable.

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I purchased the Start to Finish package with Debbie Choy at mbaMission. Debbie was very helpful in providing insight to make me stand out among other candidates. She did an excellent job delivering an unbiased opinion on which of my experiences were impressive, unique, and most appropriate for my selected school’s essay questions. While I didn’t get admitted to the school of my choice, I did receive an interview at one of my top four choices (still awaiting a response) and I don’t think this would have been possible without Debbie’s help. I do wish that Debbie encouraged me to reach out to students, professors, and admissions members more to truly understand the campus. I didn’t do this as much in my first round applications as I did in my second round applications because I underestimated the importance of this step. Consequently, I felt a notable difference in how well I understood campus life—as evidenced by my second round invitation to interview. I would absolutely recommend Debbie to a close friend, but with the caveat that the friend is driven enough to introspectively reflect and identify their short and long term career goals and ambitious enough to reach out to those on campus to truly understand the atmosphere.

There are a lot of negative reviews out there about graduate school consultants. This is understandable given how subjective the admissions processes are at top B schools, yet this is no excuse to blame the consultant for not providing you with the skill set necessary for admission. Your application is your responsibility and your consultant is there to help you answer questions that develop along the way; peer deeper into your life to help you highlight your unique attributes; offer admissions tips you may not have thought of; and in my case, enforce deadlines. Your consultant is not there to miraculously increase your GMAT score, turn your past into an exaggerated list of accomplishments, or write your essays for you. You must be honest about your previous achievements and future goals. Unless you communicate this information clearly and comprehensively, they cannot help you sculpt your ideal application.

The required brainstorming document provided by mbaMission is critical because it helps you deeply reflect on who you are and what matters to you most. It’s true; you can purchase this document from mbaMission for less than the thousands you will spend on a consultant. Yet the unbiased advice and subject matter expertise a consultant provides in helping you determine your essay content and structure; revising your resume, proofing your recommendations, and identifying the weak points of your personal or professional experiences is invaluable when you think of the benefits a strong MBA program will offer you. Additionally, having the piece of mind to send an essay that you poured your blood, sweat, and tears over, to a trained writer for multiple rounds of edits makes you confident that you’re submitting your best essay possible. I recommend mbaMission as a great resource to complete your applications—and I highly recommend Debbie Choy if you choose to work with a consultant. Her opinions are honest and holistic—and she’s a great teammate!

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