Going to b-school has been on my agenda for a few years, but I spent most of my preparation for my GMAT and, for lack of wisdom, did not really start looking at the application essays 1.5 months prior to the R2 deadline. I was more than overwhelmed. There is so much information online and from students/alumni that I connected with that exacerbates my situation and makes me even more nervous to start my essays. That’s when I know that I need a great consultant to guide me through the process.

My criteria for selecting a consultant is that the consultant needs to be 1/ super organized and structured. I have 8+ years of experience in various industries. I need someone who can help me shape my stories that best showcase the diversity of my work experience so that my longer YoE is not a weakness to my profile. Also with only 1 month left on the deadline, I need a project management guru on my side. 2/ able to best communicate their vast inside knowledge of the world of MBA application to me. I believe top consultants, as a baseline, have all the knowledge. But, I need someone who can synthesize and translate it well for my case. 3/ responsiveness. Again, my timeline is crunched, so responsiveness is a key.

I reached out to many consultants in the beginning, but Faisal stood out from the get-go. We got in touch through a call less than 2 days from my first query. In the 30 minutes, Faisal not only outperformed other consultants that I talked to on the 3 criteria above, he also started to share how he planned to shape my story AND structure the works to be done, broken down by days.

In the following month that we were working together, Faisal challenged me hard on each component of my story. He knew when I half-baked a story or when what I wrote was not impactful. He dug deep into what motivated me, what drove me, what I learned from each experience. That approach radically changed the initial draft of my application. Each part of the application truly represented different facets of my story in an elegant way – thanks to Faisal.
I am very happy with the application that I submitted – and even happier when Columbia Business School wanted me to matriculate this Fall 2023.

Read More

I highly recommend Faisal for his exceptional guidance and support throughout my MBA application process. His expertise, dedication, and personalized approach were instrumental in helping me secure admission to my top school choices. I believe he would be a valuable asset to any MBA candidate, especially those who, like me, may feel overwhelmed by the extensive research and preparation required.

From the beginning, Faisal immediately put me at ease with his comprehensive knowledge of the admissions landscape and his unwavering commitment to my success. Despite starting from scratch, he provided invaluable guidance to navigate the complex application process, offering specific solutions and troubleshooting challenges along the way.

One notable aspect of Faisal's support was his ability to work effectively within time constraints: during my application process, I faced a very time-consuming personal circumstance as well as a hectic work schedule that coincided with application deadlines. However, Faisal consistently worked around these time constraints, ensuring that I made progress without compromising the quality of my application. I vividly recall feeling rushed as I approached one of the final deadlines, and I was losing steam after a strenuous application process targeting multiple schools. In that critical moment, Faisal encouraged me to push through and further refine my essay, guiding me to truly showcase my full potential. And I am so glad he did as I was admitted at that school!

Beyond his technical expertise, Faisal proved to be an incredible motivator. He recognized my capabilities and consistently encouraged me to improve my application, challenging me to refine my essays, enhance my interview skills, and present myself with confidence. His constructive criticism and unwavering support pushed me to achieve a level of excellence that I had not thought possible.

Read More

When starting my MBA journey to apply to schools, I needed someone to help guide me through the MBA admission process. I wanted to be with someone that had experience and knew inside and out about the admissions committee and how the process worked. My friend encouraged me to seek out a great consultant because even though he had a 730 GMAT score, he was admitted to a less than ideal business school for his score and GPA.

Before starting the process, I reached out to two consultants. With my consultation meeting Faisal, I felt very much at ease with him. I wanted to work with him during this process! I knew I had some marks against me, such as being over the median age of the average student profile, I am 34, and failing a class in my undergraduate school.

It would be an uphill battle attempting to get into certain top 25 MBA programs I was aiming for. In the beginning, Faisal worked with me to create a DNA sheet of who I was. This information really helped with the different essays the different programs asked. Faisal worked with me holistically on how to best craft the essays during the application process. For me, I have a music background which we integrated into the essays and the interviews. He helped me think about my leadership times and my end goals. He was very kind when working with me when I was formulating ideas. My overall timeframe was short; I had less than six weeks from start to submission of the essays at the different universities for round 2 deadlines. Faisal setup dates the deliverables were due. If one sticks to the plan, it was possible to apply to the universities by the round 2 deadlines. This really helped me to have many short-term due dates to be able to submit by the application deadline! I applied to five programs, and I had three interviews. Faisal and his team really helped prepare me for the interview process. When hearing back from the universities, I was accepted to a top 25 MBA program! I am so excited! I know that without Faisal and his team, none of this would be possible. If you are looking for guidance and someone that has years of experience, I would look no more! Faisal works very hard for his clients, and I couldn't be happier.

Read More

A friend recommended MBAPrepSchool to me for the business school application process. I started my MBA journey a little late, but Faisal was able to tailor this process to my needs and timeline so I was still able to apply round 1. I started working with Faisal officially around mid-June of 2022, which was the best decision I’ve made for my application process. I came in without even knowing what programs I wanted to apply to. Faisal really took the time to explain all aspects of the application process and outline key strategies based on my situation. Rather than just look at me as a statistic, Faisal took the effort to know me as a person and kept me in check during the whole process to ensure we are able to meet my application deadlines.

Faisal was very forthright about the whole process and my prospects. I was an Asian male applying to primarily very Asian-heavy programs with mid-600s GMAT score. Especially with the timeline of the applications and my progress at the time, I was not expecting great results. Despite these short-comings, Faisal never shot me down or made me feel like I shouldn’t apply to any of the top programs. In fact, he supported every decision I made but clearly outlined my strengths and weaknesses from an objective perspective. He devised a clear strategic plan and flowchart for me to put my best foot forward. On top of that, Faisal’s personality makes it really easy to open up to him, and therefore working with him during the application process felt like working with a friend. What really impressed me was how he was able to help me clarify my own personal and professional goals through our conversations. During this process, I was able to really figure out why I wanted to get an MBA and what I wanted to get out of it. For me, I think this is the most valuable takeaway.

As of the time of this writing, I have been accepted to both programs I applied for Round 1. One of which is one of my top choices. I even received a sizable scholarship. I can’t thank Faisal enough for his support and guidance during this process. I highly recommend Faisal to anyone who is looking for a knowledgeable, supportive, and personable MBA consultant.

Read More

I worked with Faisal for my applications to b-schools last year after I was referred to him by a friend of mine. I was in the process of finalizing a consultant and was meeting with admissions consulting firms left, right, and center.

The first thing that worked with Faisal was his brutal honesty about my chances. I was a male IT engineer from a non-IIT background applying with a GRE score of 325 (To most, these parameters are as close to a death knell as they can get) and Faisal was extremely candid about the fact. What I absolutely loved about him was that he did not shoot me down exclusively based on my score (like a majority of consultants did) or painted a very rosy picture of my applications (like a lot of others did). Faisal devised a plan for us to develop the application and focus on retaking the GRE in parallel.

Faisal works in an extremely comprehensive manner to craft the applications. Before getting started we worked on an extensive document to flush out all of my important life stories. The questions in the document brought out stories that I almost forgot existed. We then honed in on developing a compelling narrative across applications and together we drafted compelling essays (essays that I’m proud of).

I ended up with a T20 admit with a ~$45k scholarship. I can’t recommend Faisal enough. Post admit, Faisal has continued to mentor me and advise me on a host of things. I barely noticed when he stopped being the consultant and become a treasured mentor who had my best interests in mind.

Read More

I worked with Faisal as a reapplicant during the 2021 application cycle, and it was the best decision I made in the entire pre-MBA process. In brief, Faisal is a true professional who delivered on what he promised and exceeded my expectations at every step.

What impressed me right from the start is how quickly Faisal peeled back the onion layers to really understand me - my motivations, my experiences and ambitions. After our second conversation and a thoughtful questionnaire, I felt that Faisal already knew me, at least in certain respects, on a deep level that's typically reserved for close friends and family. We literally covered some topics that I had never spoken about before, let alone thought would be relevant to an MBA application. And that is the secret sauce. A week into working with Faisal, we had already established the core material that I would use to write a deeply personal application and stand out in a sea of other traditional applicants.

Because I was reapplying, we also spent time at the outset determining what areas I would need to strengthen and how I would strategically show growth and reflection in the short turnaround time from my application the year prior. This was extremely valuable, and Faisal quickly homed in on a number of areas for improvement. He pushed me to add credibility to my career switching ambitions, ensuring I had a cohesive through line from my early experiences to my post-MBA plans while demonstrating that Booth was the perfect school to help me reach my goals. Through the many rounds of essay drafting and editing, Faisal was truly masterful at pushing me to sharpen my responses and draw from the well of core material that we established early on. Faisal helped me turn a good application (waitlisted the prior year) into an undeniable application, accepted round one.

Before I started working with Faisal, he made it clear what I could expect from him. He said that I would need to commit to the process of introspection, be open to feedback and invest the time needed to craft impactful essays. In return he promised that when I hit the submit button on my application, I would be turning in a product that was the absolute best representation of myself. This is exactly what I experienced, and it's the reason that I would strongly recommend Faisal to a friend or anyone else who would benefit from working with a consultant.

Read More

Coming into the 2021 application cycle, I realized my profile, while having some solid attributes, also had a couple of “weaker” points. Therefore, I wanted to work with a consultant who would help me tell the best story in my applications. Faisal was recommended to me by a friend of mine who had been successful previously in his b-school applications. I talked to him along with four other consultants/agencies and felt more at peace with Faisal. While others focused on raw stats, Faisal was more interested in my story.
After narrowing down the list of schools, he pushed me to reflect and come up with my “brand” narrative. His input on which points were more impactful than others was incredibly helpful. I am not a strong writer and knew that I needed the most help with the essays. Faisal really delivered the bang for the buck here with his impressive storytelling technique while keeping “my voice”. He was always super responsive and got back to me within 2-3 days. It always felt like he was your application “partner” and he was as excited about the application as you were. I also did a couple of mock interviews with him and received some actionable feedback. I was really excited to have received admits from LBS, Fuqua, and McCombs – all thanks to Faisal’s incredible storytelling inputs, mentorship, and guidance, and a little bit of luck!

Read More

As an international applicant from an overrepresented country/background & an average GPA I knew that getting accepted to a top B-school would not be an easy task. I started my search for a consultant about 3 months before the application deadlines.
Right from my first conversation with Faisal, I was convinced that he was the right choice. He took a genuine interest in my goals and helped me build my application from the ground up. His extensive experience was very valuable in everything from school selection to filling out the application form.
Faisal helped me see the experiences and life-stories that make me unique and helped me articulate a strong & convincing story. At no point did he sway my narrative, instead, he acted like a coach and a mentor - guiding me and asking me introspective questions that made me understand myself better. At the end of the application process and through Faisal’s guidance, I can say with certainty that I am a far better writer than I was one year ago, and I have developed a clear understanding for my future career goals.
Despite the competition being cut-throat this year (2020 - record high number of applicants), I was accepted to one of the top schools in my list. I highly recommend Faisal to anyone looking for a strong MBA coach.

Read More

I recently heard back from my dream school (a top 7 US News program): an admit to their Full-Time MBA Class of 2023 with a sizeable scholarship!!! To put this result and Faisal’s contribution to it into perspective: I succeeded as a reapplicant, at one of the most selective business schools globally, in an unprecedentedly competitive admissions year and reduced number of seats due to deferrals (thanks to COVID19). It was only due to Faisal that I was able to overcome these impossible odds.

Coming into my second application cycle, having had decent success the first time around (two T15 admits with partial scholarships), I was looking to work with a consultant who could help elevate my applications to the next level for a shot at M7/T10 schools. I spoke to several consultants, most of whom did not seem confident that I could get into an M7/T10 school with my profile. Some were even hesitant to work with me since I already had two admits with scholarships from the previous year, and they perhaps saw more downsides than upsides in this endeavor for them.

After speaking to Faisal for the first time, I immediately knew that I wanted to work with him. What impressed me about him was that he showed great empathy and understanding when listening to my background, experiences, and goals. On top of that, Faisal’s experience as an admissions team member at Booth reflected his knowledge of what it takes to get into an M7 program.

In terms of school selection, Faisal struck the delicate balance between helping set realistic expectations through his openness and, at the same time, ensuring that I was applying to the schools that I’d really want to attend. In contrast, most consultants will ‘nudge’ you to apply to schools where you have better chances of being admitted so they can keep their records intact. Faisal didn’t discourage me from applying even to Stanford and Wharton, which even I knew were ‘extreme reach’ schools for me. We also decided to apply to three other M7 programs where I was a reapplicant (most other consultants tried to sway me away from reapplying since it’s always a high-risk proposition).

I also liked that Faisal works with a much smaller number of people (usually 4-5), compared to some of the other full-time consultants who take on 12-15 applicants each round. I knew that this would guarantee that I was getting the personalized attention that I wanted for my applications.

Once we started working, I could see why Faisal has enjoyed such an impressive success as an admissions consultant. Instead of immediately plunging into essay writing and building application packages, Faisal guided me for the first few weeks to dig deeper and helped me articulate a personal brand story that was authentic, unique, and powerful. Once I started writing the essays, I’d always get feedback that led to significant improvements to my drafts without taking the authenticity or uniqueness away, a testament to Faisal’s exceptional story-telling skills. We went through at least three (and sometimes even up to five) drafts for each of the essays I wrote for the six schools, and I never even once felt that Faisal wasn’t 100% committed to improving my essays and resume. He even took the time to review my application forms to ensure that all parts of my app were up to the mark.

On top of that, Faisal’s project management skills are top-notch. He always responded within the 72-hour turnaround time (and sometimes even earlier) that he had committed when we started working. Thanks to all this, I was able to submit six competitive applications in Round 1, with an admit + scholarship at my dream school as the result.

Business school admissions can be incredibly challenging. You want to work with a thorough professional with ample experience and past success who is willing to personally commit to and invest in your success, just as a friend would. If you go with Faisal, you will get all this and more!

Read More

My experience working with Faisal was absolutely fantastic and I could not have asked for a more supportive, responsive, experienced and professional mentor. I currently work in private equity (previously worked in investment banking), with the objective of applying to several top US MBA programs (R1 and R2) for the Class of 2020. I had high aspirations but came from an overrepresented background. Additionally, I lacked direction as to my rationale to pursue an MBA (e.g. “why me? “why now?” “what will an MBA do for my career?”)

After working closely with Faisal for 9 months, I’m proud to say that I received admission to my first choice (top 5 US ranking) and second choice!

Faisal’s close mentorship and logical approach to drawing from all aspects of my life (professional and personal) to help form a clear and persuasive story was beyond anything I could have imagined. His focus on precision and tailoring my message to each school kept me focused and built my self-confidence every step of the way. Lastly, Faisal’s organization, responsiveness and commitment to school deadlines was exactly what I was looking for in a mentor and consultant.

This process was truly life changing not only from the perspective of receiving admission to a school that I could have only dreamed of, but helping me understand myself better and mapping a professional pathway that will allow me to achieve my short and long-term goals.

I can confidently recommend Faisal and wish future candidates the best of luck in their application endeavors.

Read More