I was first introduced to Karen by Jenifer Raver from the Fortuna Admissions team given my preferences of applying to LBS & IESE and in the first 5 minutes of the call, I knew I wanted to work with Karen. I could tell that she was genuinely interested in my story, my career ambitions, my long-term goals and believed in my potential to make it all come true. (I had spoken to multiple coaches before from other companies; hence I was sure). We kicked off the process and through every conversation involving self-reflection, CV preparation, essay drafts - Karen unlocked aspects of my personality I never knew existed. I declared on Day 1 that I work better with clear timelines and defined expectations, and she let me set my own deadlines (which had to be acceptable of course). Karen was always super prompt on reviewing any material I sent across, her feedback – very organized, relevant and thoughtful. She makes you want to ask yourself “Why is this relevant?” “How did you impact the lives of others with this action?” and so on….and that’s precisely what business schools want – to understand who you truly are!
Sadly, I didn’t get through the first time I applied in 2021, it was a very competitive cycle and I’m sure I probably didn’t make the cut by a very small margin. But I was set on going to LBS and I promised myself that I would reapply. Even though she was not contractually obligated to, Karen offered to help out with my reapplication strategy. She helped me reflect on what went wrong, introspect about what needs to change, structure how I could improve my profile over the next year and also review my submission material again the next year. I came back much stronger, clearer and way more confident than last time, and I got through!
Karen has never missed my calls (When I got the admit email, she was out on a run and she answered!). We cried together in the ding debrief last year. We laughed and celebrated together on the admit this time (and cried some more, happy tears this time). We connected emotionally – and that’s rare. All my friends and family know her by ‘Karen Didi’, because that’s what I refer to her as (Didi = moniker for ‘Big Sister’ in Hindi - someone you have profound respect for).
It was a long hard journey towards achieving my dream of going to LBS, but working with Karen has been such a pleasure. I was stupid to think I could reapply to LBS the very next year, but her confidence in my capabilities helped shape my resilience. Whatever miracle of a career I build from the LBS MBA, I owe it to her. Thank you very very much Karen!

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Working with Karen allowed me to produce the best version of myself and get accepted to two of Europe's best business schools!

With a GMAT score that was well below the average for my top target school, I was nervous that I had not done enough to get accepted to my dream school. Karen coached me in a way that ensured I was able to communicate my key strengths and value add throughout the application. Each part of the application became an opportunity to sell my story. This approach was refreshing and is what I believe ultimately got me accepted to my dream school.

Karen was always super responsive, regardless of the time of day. Karen was also extremely flexible which allowed me to fit my application work in around my demanding job and family life. This shouldn't be taken for granted as to produce the best possible application, you need to carve out time that you didn't realize existed before working on an MBA application!

From start to finish, the whole Journey with Karen was a pleasure. Karen genuinely cares for her clients and always gives you 110%. I could not ask for more from an admissions consultant.

For anyone looking to get accepted on to the world's best MBA programmes, look no further than Karen and the team at Fortuna.

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Consultant: Karen Ponte.

I was applying to EMBA to top two European Business schools. The competition is fierce there, so I wanted to have a consultant.

I was not sure what consultant to choose, so based on the feedback in the internet and from my friend I peaked several consultants for the first free consultations.

With Fortuna, Everything started from 40 mins free conversation with Matt. Matt had so much experience and info about schools. the conversation was absolutely incomparable with other consultants that I peaked.

So I decided to stick with Fortuna and took a full package for one particular school. Fortuna provided me a consultant that worked before in that school. That school was my main priory in the beginning between the two that I chose. However after events in those schools my main target has changed. Fortuna was really flexible and they kindly provided me another consultant instead- Karen Ponte.
Karen is just amazing, with no exaggeration! Karen used to work in that school, so she knew not just the process or what I need to show, she actually new people and so many small details about application process and essays.
I honestly believe that If I didn't have Karen, I would never be accepted to my Dream school. After first conversation I understood, that Karen is really experienced in that process. Karen was flexible and really quick with all the advises on the story and changes in my essays. Importantly, I had only around 3 weeks for the whole application process. so we started quickly from References, and Karen pointed exact sides of my profile (knowing it and discussing it with me) that should be highlighted by Referees. Karen has amazing drafting skills, and she really improved my essays.
When I got an appointment with Admission for the school, we went through everything. Karen helped me to build the right story in the presentation.
After I was admitted and got the offer, which I happily accepted, Karen helped me with Scholarship.
Karen had conversations with me almost daily, and responded always on the same day. It was so important for me, as I am full-time employee with sometimes demanding schedule.
I am really thankful to Karen and I highly recommend her.

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I started looking at MBA applications last year, after a few years of considering an MBA an decided to go with Fortuna for some assistance during the process. After filling out the strategy form, Karen and I worked on application essays extensively. Based on my prior experiences, I filled out the essays and Karen assisted me in refining these essays, with comments sent to me normally within a few hours. The whole application process is generally stressful anyways but Karen assisted me in focusing on important aspects of the application. Karen was extremely helpful during the interview process as well and the mock interviews helped in calming the nerves. I would definitely recommend Karen as she was immensely helpful during the whole process, especially at times when you get a mind blank or a mini writer's block. The final essays were then reviewed by Caroline Diarte, with important additional input on what should be highlighted. I enjoyed the whole process as there were important topics discussed, highlighted which I wouldn't have thought about to state in the essays.

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Summary:
I could not have been happier with the service I received at Fortuna, from my main coach, Karen Ponte and also from one of the partners, Emma Bond who provided input the final stages. I would 100% recommend them, especially Karen and Emma for LBS, though I have no doubt their other advisers and knowledge of other schools is as good.

About me:
- Non-traditional background
- Indian Male
- Post MBA aiming for consulting or healthcare industry
- 2.5 year work experience
- Top 20 UK university for undergraduate degree (First Class)
- GMAT 710

About my circumstances:
- I retook the GMAT a second time to improve my score to 710 from 690 in about July
- Started shortlisting schools around the same time and doing some research
- Reached out to Fortuna and other coaches towards the end of July, beginning of August.
- Matt Symonds responded and was the key differentiator compared to others, his quick understanding of my situation and helpful advice in targeting specific schools but also his realistic and open approach helped me decide on Fortuna.
- Engaged Fortuna for their CSP for London Business School (my top choice)

About my experience:
Writing applications is difficult and requires high levels of energy. I was not quite sure what to expect from the coach. But when I spoke to Karen for the first time on Skype, it was a very pleasant and informative conversation. We got set up using an excellent bit of project management software, which made the whole process a 100 times easier (than having to email things back and forth).

What I particularly liked was that neither Karen nor Emma were writing the essays or adding any content, but instead were drawing out the best (but true) version of myself to present to the admissions committee. They took time to understand my background (which was non-traditional) and we were able to turn this into a strength. Another area was bringing their own experiences in having read applications and knowing the right amount of information to include (for example I wasn't sure if I should talk about my family and that side of my life, or if I should keep it professional). They gave me the confidence in knowing that I was including the right information both my short answer questions and in the essays.

LBS threw in a surprise video interview this time around for the first time, but the coaches handled it very well and were able to provide some important feedback on how to handle this new assessment. The mock interviews with both Karen and Emma were also particularly useful in identifying commonly asked questions where my answers were not convincing or a little too generic.

Turnaround times were excellent with Karen more often than not replying within an hour of my posting a question etc. I was quite worried because I wasn't sure that one month would be enough (while working full time), but it worked out fine and I felt I had submitted the best application I could have.

I am thankful to them both, and would happily recommend their services to anyone, especially those that may have unusual backgrounds for MBAs.

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I started my free consultation with Matt, the founder of Fortuna. He is very knowledgeable about B-schools, and I think their edge is that all the consultants have working experience in top business schools. Then he recommended Karen to me, who are from the admission team of my dreaming school. First we worked out a very detailed and feasible plan for the applications. She is always prompt to reply my emails and very patient in giving advice to my essays, personal statement and video pitch. Karen also helped a lot in mock interviews, she managed to arrange two mock interviews and provided valuable feedback. I applied to two schools and got offer from one of them. With Karen's consultation, the whole process went much more smoothly.

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