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Caryn (SBC) Reviews

Company: Stacy Blackman Consulting

Caryn worked as an Admissions Officer for Kellogg where she read and evaluated written applicant essays and recommended admission to Kellogg. She also conducted numerous applicant interviews assessing candidate fit and future potential at Kellogg and beyond. Caryn holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management.

Preceding her time at Kellogg, Caryn was a Senior Marketing Manager for Gatorade, leading Gatorade’s efforts to a variety of consumer targets. Concurrently, she co-led all of the Kellogg recruiting efforts for the PepsiCo Chicago office. Prior to receiving her MBA, Caryn worked in corporate finance and public accounting as well as obtained her CPA certification.

Outside of SBC, Caryn sits on the North Shore Medical Research Junior Board of Children’s Memorial Hospital and is active in volunteering in her children’s schools. An avid reader, Caryn also enjoys Pilates, yoga and playing tennis, as well as spending time with her two young children. Caryn has an exceptional success rate and is particularly good at helping clients define ambiguous career goals and develop a personal story.

And if Caryn looks a bit familiar, ask her what famous movie she (quickly) appeared in!

5.0 /5 Average Rating
Based on 74 reviews
February 25, 2013
Anonymous

Posts: 0

Kudos: 5

Caryn Altman came with the highest praise from a friend and I cannot echo that sentiment more. I was accepted to Booth and Kellogg and I couldn’t have done it without Caryn’s dedicated guidance and unwavering support.

She made every effort to get to know me as a person to put together a distinctive application. Caryn will be extremely honest with your candidacy strengths and weaknesses (which is exactly what you need), but more importantly, she commits to working with you to find solutions and positively frame your message. Her insights from AdCom’s perspective and willingness to reach out to the Stacy Blackman Consulting network for additional resources were the finishing polish that took my essays to a new level.

I can honestly say that no matter the outcome, I wouldn’t have had a single regret this application cycle because I know Caryn helped me put together the best application I know I’m capable of. A million thanks to Caryn and the Stacy Blackman Consulting team – I’m ecstatic to start at Booth in the fall!

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February 18, 2013
Anonymous

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

I didn't have a very high GMAT score and even though I had a strong resume I would have never been able to be admitted to 3 out of 3 top schools (2 with scholarship offers) without the outstanding guidance and help of Caryn Altman, consultant for Stacy Blackman Consulting.

Right from the first phone call, she made me comfortable with her always very positive attitude, which supported me all the way to my decision on which admission offer to accept. At the very beginning, she immediately understood my situation and identified the strengths that I needed to highlight in my application. Her insights and tips on the essays made my application strong and made it stand out in front of the schools' admission committees. Lastly, her tips during the mock interview were of unique value as I nailed all three interviews.

I strongly recommend SBC and in particular Caryn Altman, who I will never be able to thank enough for helping me through this decisive moment of my professional career.

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February 13, 2013
Anonymous

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

I'm not sure I would have had success with my business school applications had it not been for Caryn. She was an easy choice after a phone conversation- she gave me the immediate sense that she knew what she was talking about in all application aspects, unlike some other consultants from other firms I had spoken to. I didn't even know where to begin, and she was able to provide me with a reasonable schedule so that I could finish applications to 4 schools in about two months. I was plagued with the fear that I'd be a very generic consulting candidate, and she was hugely helpful in identifying the best essay topics that would showcase a variety of my unique experiences. Perhaps most importantly, our mock interviews together made me a million times more comfortable and confident when it came to the real thing!

It was such a relief working with someone whose opinion I knew I could trust throughout the process. I now have admissions offers to choose from as well as two scholarship opportunities!

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October 23, 2012
Anonymous

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

I worked with Caryn at SBC on an hourly basis. Caryn's familiarity with the application process for Kellogg is unmatched, and her guidance on recommendation letters, essays, and interview preparation is well worth the investment for any top-5 MBA program. The attention to one's personal situation and tailored advice provided is premium for any admissions consulting service. I interviewed 4 different services before selecting SBC and Caryn. Additionally, responsiveness during the entire course of your engagement with SBC is very fast. Overall I give SBC and Caryn both 5 stars. I highly recommend engaging SBC if you have clear goals and a strong background, but may be unfamiliar with the MBA application process or not sure how to best position yourself. The school by school insight offered is the true value for this consulting service - it gave me a huge leg up in effectively and honestly presenting myself to adcom.

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May 14, 2012
Anonymous

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Caryn Altman was my consultant at Stacy Blackman. She previously served on the admissions committee at Kellogg and I felt that she had many good insights from having worked on that side of things. I felt very comfortable with her from the first time we spoke which is why I selected her to be my SBC consultant in the first place. We spent a great deal of time on the phone at the very beginning, because I had a few "blemishes" that I needed to overcome. We came up with stories that felt great to me and we mapped out all of the essays in advance so that writing them became a lot easier. We went through many, many drafts of my essays. We had 14 drafts of my first set of essays, and I also used my client liaison to review a few of those essays. The next school was much easier. Caryn supported me all the way. I think by the time I got my acceptance letters I expected her to come to school with me - she was just completely part of the team. I also used the SBC essay guides and thought they were a great compliment to working with my consultant. Great tips that I could just turn to at any time when I needed inspiration. Caryn very conscientiously checked in with me all along the way when I procrastinated and went silent. She gave me pep talks and great information. I used no other resources and walked away with three admits. I am going to Columbia next year.

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April 12, 2016
arpithamouli

Hi ,

Let me know the way to contact you for my admission counseling.

Thanks,
Arpitha
arpithamouli@gmail.com

July 30, 2016
RohitPrakash88

Dear Team,

Request you to please drop me at rohit_prakash88@yahoo.in or share your details so that we can connect regarding the admission counseling for my profile.

regards
rohit

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