Harshad Mali is incredible. With so many moving parts, I started my MBA journey scattered minded and overwhelmed. Honestly, I did not know where to start so I decided to get a consultant. After checking out the tops 3 firms, I settled on mbaMission because they showed a genuine interest even though I had a low GMAT score, which I significantly increased before applying to any school. During the consultation call Harshad and I hit it off and started immediately.

Within one call we had a clear path to my goals. Harshad’s work on my essays, resume, and all the typical material needed to complete an application was top notch, as expected, but what really stands out is the support Harshad provides that one can’t merely read about; building my confidence, being available 24/7 during crunch time, digging deep into my stories, and outstanding insight into each program. In fact, that insight played a huge role when I decided on which program to attend. Those are only a few of the many examples, but I think you get the gist.

Financially, at this point in my MBA journey, my decision to work with Harshad has been the most critical, however, it has already paid itself back in exceptional dividends. I received scholarship for a few reasons I’m sure, but the offer letter stated one being leadership abilities. In my opinion, I would not have been able to display this ability without Harshad’s dedication to showing my intrinsic strengths via essays.

Strengths:
Punctual, brilliant message conveyor, organized, high level of empathic intelligence, transparent, honest, easy going, hardworking, has a holistic application approach, and is an all-around nice guy.
Just an overall astute consultant.

I highly recommend any driven applicant, who wants to win, to schedule a consultation with Harshad.

Post script: I can’t help to think while writing this post that Harshad is going to read it and think to himself “Man, I could have said the same thing in half the words.”

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I never planned to pay for an admissions consultant - I just wanted to use the free calls to perfect my resume.

But after many calls Harshad stood out to me. He didn't hit me with a sales pitch, he quickly responded to an email with follow-up questions, and most importantly he demonstrated an interest in and understanding of my profile that the other consultants didn't.

A couple weeks before the R1 deadline I realized I needed help telling my story. I reached out to Harshad and, despite being fully booked, he agreed to take me on as a client. Working with him was as advertised: his emails were always on time (usually early) and the one time we ran into technical difficulties he responded to a 10 PM text message.

The two most valuable things he did for me were 1) teach me how to tell a story and 2) give me directional edits. I kept an open mind and found his feedback to be invaluable. By working hard and doing the leg work I felt that we were able to maximize the time I paid for.

With his help, I submitted all my applications in time for R1. Although my H/S lottery ticket wasn't drawn, I was admitted to Wharton and 100% of the M7 and T15 schools I applied to, including some significant scholarships! He even helped me draft a professional scholarship negotiation letter.

I do recommend Harshad if you're willing to put in the leg work. My advice is to be very clear on what you want from him.

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Working with Harshad was very beneficial for me. He challenged me to get introspective on my own experiences to craft a great story for my applications. Like anything else in life- to do great work is going to be hard work. Despite having average scores at best, we worked extremely hard and I was able to accomplish my goal of getting into a top MBA program. As a reapplicant, I wanted to do everything I can to put out the best product and I am lucky to have Harshad guide me. He was a sounding board when I had any thoughts or questions from school selection on through the interview process. He was always available for quick calls and random questions that come up. I highly recommend Harshad to any MBA applicant

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I first learned of mbaMission from a close friend, who referred me to Krista Nannery. Since she was unable to take on Hourly candidates, she referred me to Harshad for a 30 minute chat. During that 30 minute consultation itself, he immediately made a positive impact on me and introduced new snippets of information even a well-informed candidate would not have access to.

I worked with Harshad mostly on essays for about 10 hours on an Hourly basis. I did not need in-depth help on other parts of the application such as interviewing, school selection or application strategy. Harshad is very honest with applicants, and I needed a lot of assistance both on content and style. I can't imagine going through this process without his constant feedback and candor. People often shy away from giving intellectually honest feedback to people asking for it, but he was always constructive and fair. Harshad deserves extra points for getting back to me in a timely fashion even when I would often send him materials minutes before the deadline.

I have secured interviews to the two M7 schools I applied to and gained admission to one. I am in perhaps the most competitive profile by any metric (nonminority, engineering, finance, male), and this speaks to his ability to help me differentiate myself with my essays.

I wish Harshad every success, and recommend him without reservation to any applicant seeking admission to a top program.

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Harshad was wonderful to work with. He was prompt, direct and helpful. While I only purchased a few hours of his time, he spent time getting to know me and my strengths. I had a terrible first draft of one essay. Harshad was direct with his feedback and have extremely useful comments about how to improve and where I should focus my efforts. We had 4 rounds of comments, and each time, I feel that my essay significantly improved. He really encouraged me to dig deep into why I was applying to school, and polity told me which paragraphs were not value adds and recommended their removal.

He was very quick at replying to my emails.

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Harshad is your best bet to putting together the best application possible to get you into your most desired program. Here is why:

+ It was a success story for me. With his help, I got into Columbia Business School, my top choice of choice.
+ He gave realistic evaluation as to what your candidacy's strengths and weaknesses are so that you know exactly where you should spend effort on.
+ He is great at writing, and he will help you write great essays.
+ In every step of the way, Harshad was able to provide me helpful tips and insider insights. From "how should I approach my recommenders?" to "Should I wear a black suit?", Harshad was there for me.
+ He responded to my emails very promptly - well within MBAMission's guideline.

Perhaps most importantly, in order to help me build the most compelling case for admission, Harshad guided me in reflecting on my past life experience as well as exploring my motivation for my future goals. This process was crucial for my application, and Harshad dug deep into some of the most impactful and sensitive moments of my life, moments that I was afraid to revisit. Not only was my application more personal and powerful as a result, I came out of the process with a deeper understanding of myself and a stronger conviction to pursuing this career path. This was truly unexpected, and I only have Harshad to thank.

Harshad is your guy!!

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I worked with Harshad to apply for b-school in late 2016, and really appreciated all of his help and work! Due to taking the GMAT later than expected I had a short timeframe to get my applications done (about a month), and Harshad worked tirelessly in order to ensure that he provided advice quickly and efficiently.
After undergoing the initial brainstorming for my applications, Harshad was able to analyze and boil down my various experiences in order to suggest an essay path forward that properly highlighted my best qualities to admissions. Even during a short timeframe (and over the holidays) Harshad responded almost immediately to every request or e-mail I sent. He was always available for a call in order to go through potential ideas or changes, and he was available 7 days a week. His edits of my writing were a lifesaver and he really helped me focus my message in all of essays and applications. He was 100% committed to helping me achieve my goals, and I ended up gaining admission to the school that I applied to!
I would recommend Harshad to anyone who is applying to b-school. He was a great help, both in the admissions process and in providing great advice on all aspects of the b-school decision.

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I did a "fit call" with Harshad Mali- that call confirmed to me that Harshad was the exact right consultant for me. Some points from my own experience: 1) Harshad will push you until you have a cohesive product that is the best representation of you and your story. Just a week before the deadline, Harshad and I started my Emory essay over from scratch because my previous version was not developing strongly enough. This was the best possible thing he could have guided me to do, rather than moving forward with a weak concept; 2) Harshad always provided great feedback on my deliverable and questions within a day or two. Never late. He reminded me about the coming deadlines. He pushed me to complete essays few days before the deadline. He knew when we had to push to hit key productivity gateways; 3) Harshad was a true partner in the process. Throughout the essay-writing journey, he gave me his edits to ensure that my voice was not lost before further editing/trimming was done. Harshad was with me every step of the way.

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I was connected to Harshad by Angela Guido, another mbaMission consultant and generally amazing human being whom I'd met through the Forté Foundation MBALaunch program. I'd had my sights set on attending Chicago Booth from the time I opened my first Manhattan prep book, and I knew it would be a challenging process. I come from a social impact background, and I knew I could really only afford a couple of hours of admissions support. Although I was applying to a number of schools, I decided to devote my time with Harshad to structuring and editing my Booth essay. A Booth alum himself, Harshad was incredibly thoughtful and easy to talk to, and before I knew it I was sharing my life story with him. He helped me to choose an essay topic that felt authentic and meaningful. Notably, Harshad has a depth of expertise about the school and its philosophy, and he helped me to connect the dots between my own values and those of UofC's "Chicago Approach." Harshad is an expert storyteller and with his guidance I was able to shape my thoughts into a cohesive and compelling piece of writing. He is strategic and logical, and asks thought-provoking questions. Working with Harshad felt like participating in a writing workshop, and at the end of the process I was proud to submit my application.

After I was accepted to Booth in Round 2(!) with some scholarship funding, Harshad helped me to draft a respectful inquiry about possible additional funding, and the school was able to increase my scholarship package. This fall, I'll be attending Chicago Booth with a very generous scholarship award, and I owe a great debt of gratitude to Harshad for this outcome. I would absolutely recommend working with Harshad for your MBA admissions process.

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Harshad is a wonderful consultant for any kind of person. He is dedicated to drive out the greatest story from you and align your story with your strength in application. We talked for two hours during the kickoff session and framed up all essays, super efficiently. His excellent skills in essay editing will help you a lot in language especially if you are not a native speaker. He also helped me on my interview. He arranged a face to face mock interview since I am a local candidate. He pointed out my strength and weakness in the mock and it greatly mitigated my risk to screw up real interview. I would highly recommend Harshad to anyone who is interested in any MBA programs.

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