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Jessica Shklar Reviews

Company: mbaMission

After graduating from Harvard College with a degree in anthropology, Jessica Shklar worked in nonprofit education, first doing curriculum development for an adult education center and then in the admissions office of a small university in Los Angeles, where she advised applicants to both the undergraduate college and several graduate programs, including business school. While there, she developed and delivered workshops around the country on Selecting the Right College and How to Write an Effective Application Essay. Having been accepted to every business school to which she applied, including Stanford, Kellogg and Yale, Jessica ultimately chose to attend HBS, where she completed her MBA with distinction (graduating in the top 10%). After starting work, she volunteered in the New York City public school system, helping high school seniors with their college applications. She has worked at several Fortune 100 companies, including American Express and JPMorgan Chase, where she was the quality leader and a senior vice president for Chase Home Finance. Jessica is also a Six Sigma Master Black Belt, with specific expertise in Six Sigma deployment and initialization.

Source: http://www.mbamission.com/about/?display=team&name=jessica-shklar

5.0 /5 Average Rating
Based on 200 reviews
April 04, 2019
ap539

Joined: Dec 06, 2015

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

I had a great experience working with jessica!

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Jessica was the only consultant I felt truly understood me through the innumerable free consultations I did, and she was the one I decided to go for when the time came to apply. She proved to be quite a good resource through my application process. My biggest concern was my essays, and she gave frank feedback, and really pushed me to dig deeper and introspect when necessary. She always met her deadlines and through her diligence, I developed a really good schedule for myself as well. She is a really good consultant for mbamission and I recommend her to anyone looking to get help through the application process.

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March 03, 2019
Mike2620

Joined: Mar 03, 2019

Posts: 0

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Jessica Shklar FTW!

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From the first time I spoke with Jessica, I could tell that she genuinely cared about not only helping me get into a great business school but also letting my true character and personality come through in my applications. I realized immediately that I was working with a professional and I found it particularly reassuring to be receiving guidance from someone who really understands the admissions process and the expectations of the schools' admissions teams. I knew generally what I was going to write about in my applications but the advice Jessica offered on how to structure my ideas and concisely articulate my story was extremely valuable. I also have a pretty unconventional professional background and Jessica helped me to navigate this in my applications and highlight my unique work experience and qualities. By the end of this long and crazy process I was admitted to one of my top choice schools, thanks in large part to Jessica's help!

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February 27, 2019
j9y6l

Joined: Feb 27, 2019

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Verified GMAT Classic score:
640 Q39 V38

Still Valuable Despite All My Research

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I attended a mbaMission webinar about Harvard Business School's 2+2 program. It was a fairly small group (less than 10 people) and it was at 9PM but Jessica Shklar was able to keep the presentation engaging and relevant. She provided specific examples to show the differences between a strong and weak essay. She was extremely attentive to the specific group's needs by answering all of our questions.

I felt like she was able to provide immense help to my application despite the fact that I had done an extreme amount of research on the MBA admissions process at Harvard Business School, especially the 2+2 program. I decided to follow up with a 30-minute consultation with Jessica to discuss my profile. Within that half hour, she was able to help me craft a narrative for my holistic application and even provided me with structural tips on my essay - without even reading my essay. She wasn't afraid to point out the weakness of my application, which I'm glad she did because I have heard of some admissions consultants who do their best to only make their clients happy. I wanted someone who was honest and catered to my profile, which she was able to do!

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February 27, 2019
ShaMelul

Joined: Sep 26, 2018

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Rockstar Advisor!

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The 30 minutes spent with Jessica Shklar were, by far, the best 30 minutes spent in my whole MBA application process. I was astonished by how prepared Jessica came to the consulting session. She not only read thoroughly my resume and application details, but also prepared recommendations based on what I requested advice on prior to our meeting. The meeting was highly effective, touching on every single concern I had. I obviously wanted more after that meeting, and joined her 2+2 HBS presentation webinar. What can I say, she gave all the information I’ve been struggling to put together over the past 5 months in one hour. The presentation was both informative and practical, as every other interaction I’ve had with her. I’m very glad I found Jessica, and would highly recommend her to anyone.

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February 24, 2019
aagmat10

Joined: Jun 13, 2018

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Verified GMAT Classic score:
710 Q49 V39

Top notch consultant

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I'm one of those people who like to do a lot of research before committing to a company/service/etc. I spoke a quite a few consulting companies and I'm so glad I was able to find Jessica and MBA mission in the end. As an "older" applicant, the other companies that I spoke to seemed to be using this "fear based" model to sell their services - making me feel terrible about my odds and my candidacy at the top schools first, then offering their services to help me out. I didn't realize that's what they were doing until I had my first phone call with Jessica, who was so enthusiastic, encouraging, and genuine about her thoughts on my candidacy. I knew right away that I’d want to work with her. She didn’t have any spots available for R1 so I signed up to work with her on R2 on two of my dream schools, which was the best decision I made during this application process.

From day 1 of working together, I could just tell that Jessica is an absolute genius. For several months I had been trying to come up with a thread for my essay, but I just couldn’t figure out how to connect the dots and I felt lost. But Jessica was able to do that in ONE DAY - I sent in my brainstorming document and the very next day during our phone call she was able to come up with a genius thread that connects all the dots and showcases my strengths in a very compelling way. She goes so deep during the brainstorming part and asks the right questions to uncover all the aspects, then on the spot she could come up with a theme for the essay. I was blown away by how good she was. I remember getting off that phone call feeling super excited about writing the essay (which is very rare because I always hated writing) and I had to call my best friend to share how thrilled I was to have found Jessica and how great her ideas for my essay were.
I always thought I had to write 8-10 drafts of essays before I could get it to a “top school quality”, but I was wrong on that because Jessica is so good at helping me frame up the essay (paragraph by paragraph) that I got to a final version quality within only 3 drafts. She’s just that good!

Jessica is very professional and caring. She always turns around things and answers questions very quickly. When you are working with her, you can just feel that she’s not just another consultant for you, but she’s truly on this journey with you – she cheers you on during the tough and stressful times, goes above and beyond to make your application shine, she was like this awesome big sister that I never had and I’ve never even met her! Just a few days before the applications deadline, I had a family emergency, everything was like my worst nightmare. Jessica was an angel and helped me out so much during those days. Her comforting words really helped me grieve during the most stressful time. She turned around my items just a couple hours after I sent them to her to allow me to focus on my family and grieving. I was in such terrible shape and I honestly don’t think I would’ve gotten my applications through without her help.

Perhaps the best part of working with Jessica was that I have learned so much about myself throughout this process. She really helped me see myself from a new perspective and get more clarity on who I am and what I want to do with life and not just with an MBA. In the end, I realized crafting the essays, the stories, the post MBA goals wasn’t just about getting into the dream schools any more, it was more about asking the deep, tough questions to myself and figuring out who I truly want to be. And I’m forever grateful for Jessica for that. I got interview invite to my dream school and now working on the interview prep.

Jessica is all around top-notch. I still can’t believe how lucky I am to have worked with her.

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February 24, 2019
hescapini

Joined: Nov 20, 2016

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Jessica Shklar – Amazing at what she does!

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Words cannot express how amazing Jessica was during my business school process! I had applied the year earlier to schools and did not get into a program that I wanted to attend. Having worked with a consultant in the past I was extremely skeptical of what mbaMission could bring to the table. Jessica was introduced by a friend who was ecstatic about getting into Booth when he originally had been targeting schools in the 10-20 rankings.

The 30 minutes complimentary phone call was a game changer. Jessica was on point, had a clear strategy, and it was immediately apparent that this was going to be a different experience. I wish I had known her one year earlier. I quickly recognized that if I wanted to get into a business program it would only be with Jessica’s help. I had a very mediocre application. I had a solid 10 years of work experience but a low GPA and a low GMAT! Jessica was amazing during the brainstorming and essay writing sessions that identified a clear message and story we wanted to share. Jessica was extremely responsive, thoughtful, and supportive as we tracked multiple applications. She pushed me and held me accountable throughout the entire process.

In the end, it was Jessica's recommendation to add another program to the list that landed me at the Stanford GSB. I would not be at the GSB if it had not been for Jessica’s help and guidance, for which I am endlessly grateful.

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February 24, 2019
2ndhalf

Joined: Apr 04, 2018

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

You Need Admission Consulting Service Even You Are Senior Management

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My daughter recommended Jessica to me. At first I thought that I did not need consulting service because I had more than 20 years business leadership experience in top global IT companies in SAP, Oracle, Dell, Fujitsu, Compaq and DEC. After first 30 minutes call with her, Jessica changed my opinion completely. She reviewed my profile with very much deeper insights. She supported me to know more about who I am, what I want and how I should do for my goal. And she recommended several programs fitted to me shortly after our talk. I am very impressive in her rich experience and expertise in admission consulting and her quick and strategic thinking and professional consulting methodology. Then I purchased Jessica’s hourly services and experienced more about Jessica’s great value to my application and career development. I believe, I could not get offer from London Business School “Sloan Master in Leadership and Strategy” without Jessica’s strong and prompt supports. After I joint the Sloan program, I found that more that 60% of our classmates are master holder and there are several PhD holders. More of classmates have more than 20 years management experience. Jessica supported me to analysis my strength and weakness, how to present myself, how to write well essay in short time. My recommend to other EMBA, Sloan program and executive program applicants is that Jessica’s excellent consulting service is valuable to your time and money although you are senior and experienced in business management.

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February 23, 2019
Ricky8908

Joined: Mar 14, 2016

Posts: 6

Kudos: 0

Got into my dream school - never thought it was possible!

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I highly recommend working with Jessica if you're looking to apply to business school. She got me into my dream school, and I genuinely wouldn't have gotten in without her guidance. Here's how it played out:

I decided to apply to R2 on a whim, and reached out to Jessica for an initial consult. During our first call, Jessica sought to genuinely understand why I was applying to business school, and what factors differentiated me from the rest of the applicants.

Over the next few months, Jessica acted as a thought-partner in every step of the application process. She would help distill and curate my essays, refine my resume, and even helped me prep for interviews. I was constantly emailing Jessica with questions, and she was exceptionally responsive.

The result was me getting into my #1 school (which I wasn't even going to apply to as I didn't see myself as competitive)! There is no question that Jessica helped make my application much more compelling. If you're thinking about that dream school, go with Jessica.

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February 22, 2019
lilian0226

Joined: Feb 22, 2019

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Recommend Jessica

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I have worked with Jessica for more than a year for my MBA application and re-application. Compared to other consultants I worked with, she has been an outstanding admission consultant. She is very interested in learning about my stories, and provides valuable insights on how my stories can fit into essays. Also, with extensive experience in admission consulting, she shares specific knowledge about the business programs I'm interested in, and gives specific suggestions about the schools. I would not image how my application will look like without her assistance. Jessica's help is very much appreciated. I would recommend her without any hesitation!

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February 22, 2019
romnico1

Joined: Feb 22, 2019

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Verified GMAT Classic score:
680 Q49 V34

A Simple Choice: The Best !

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For my MBA Application process, I simply wanted the best. From the get-go when I had my first consultation with Jessica in 2017, I sensed a connection with the person which would become my mentor. At the time Jessica was already fully booked and so combined with her recommendations to improve on my test score as well as wanting to work with her I delayed my application to 2018.

Even before I started working with her she would keep communication with me to follow-up on our first conversation and on how have I had improved since. This behavior, combined with many other exceeded my expectations, I felt she truly cared and was committed to help me at building the best application I could ever present. And so, I took the Complete Start-to-Finish Package for three (TOP 10) MBA Schools.

I knew that my case was challenging as an international coming from an unusual background with a mix of professional experience, and in addition my GMAT score (just below 700) was not my stronger aspect. Nevertheless, I trusted Jessica, she knew exactly what to do and was with me throughout the whole process. Jessica‘s personality is straight to the point, there is no waste of time, and she will tell you when things are not right, she definitely puts the time (going over nine drafts for one of the essays), and is pretty much always available (I remember sending her a quick question e-mail at midnight and couple minutes later receiving an answer – WOW!). She is knowledgeable and knows how to help you build the best story of yourself.

I realize that having a consultant for MBA applications is expensive and so before making such commitment make sure that you do your research, for me it was simple, I wanted to be with the greatest, that is why I chose Jessica and the results speak for themselves! I have been accepted to my second and third choice (both Top 10) with a +50% scholarship at both, and I am interviewed at my number 1 choice (which was a huge reach considering my scores).

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