In 2013 I worked with Jessica Shklar from MBA Mission on four Round 1 Business School applications to ultra-competitive programs. Although I initially hoped to complete at most two apps prior to R1 deadlines, I found that working with Jessica helped me stay consistently organized, focused and productive throughout this extremely challenging period, allowing me produce significantly higher quality and volumes of content.

Going into the applications, I felt that I had a solid background (top undergraduate, good-name finance, entrepreneurship, international experience, etc.), but my profile also contained several weak points that I knew very well could derail my applications if they were not addressed thoroughly, thoughtfully and concisely. I was an on-the-fence candidate for top programs. Overall, having the opportunity to work with Jessica was one of the best investments I’ve ever made in my future and this Fall I will join my dream school, Columbia, as a Full-Time MBA student.

To anyone who’s considering working with a Consultant focused on MBA applications/admissions, I sincerely recommend Jessica Shklar. Jessica was initially recommended to me by a good friend who worked with her, had a great experience, and was ultimately accepted into Harvard Business School (along with every other school to which he applied). Below are a few of my main takeaways from having worked with Jessica on the application process.

Knowledge of Historical Trends relating to Programs & Applicant Profiles: Aside from having worked in MBA Admissions personally, Jessica went to Harvard undergrad and Harvard Business School. She has successfully navigated challenging admissions processes in her own, has firsthand exposure to the process from an AdCom standpoint, and has also held multiple managerial roles within Fortune 500 Companies. On top of this, as an MBA consultant with many years of experience and a large, diverse client-base, she possesses a (mental) archive of applicant experiences and historical trends from basically all of the top international business schools. Being able her to ask questions about curriculums, application trends, previous applicant successes/shortfalls/mistakes/etc., financial aid options, etc. all comes in very handy. Jessica can very quickly analyze your profile and is totally honest and upfront about what she thinks you may or may not be able to accomplish in this process. It’s not always what you want to hear, but it allows you to begin self-evaluating. All this being said, the MBA application process is highly unpredictable and if one doesn’t possess a strong resume, no consultant can help them overcome this.

Time Management: Jessica helped me maintain a high level of productivity, sent me reminders if I got behind, and forced me to ask questions of myself in the early stages of my essays, and to build out specific personal detail right off the bat. Without structure, one can easily find themselves spending a great deal of time spinning wheels and focusing on the wrong aspects of the application, simply because it’s less mentally grueling to do so. Jessica pushed me to continuously think deeper about the details of my essays. This can mentally draining - but it’s invaluable - AdComs need to know who you are, and what makes you unique. Jessica helped me reflect upon my life and career much more effectively than I could have on my own, while helping me keep on schedule on all of my applications from beginning to end.

Human Factor: Jessica works well with people and gets to know her applicants in a way that makes her a great sounding board for a how to approach different topics, how to phrase things. It was like having a really smart friend with super relevant personal experiences being there who was willing to take the time to hear my thoughts and give me reasons why I was or was not on the right track. She’s genuinely interested in her applicants from a personal standpoint, not solely as an applicant, and I hope to stay in touch with her going forward (just like my friend who initially referred me to me Jessica has done).

Bringing more out of you: Jessica helped me set the highest possible standards for my own quality of work. She knows how to ask the questions that will force you to recall the specific nuances of past events and will call you out if you’re taking the shortcuts and not elaborating enough – this is how you to convey the most intricate picture of who you are, and help you stand out. Having someone there prodding and not letting you off the hook with a half-baked description can mean the difference between a compelling or fluff-filled essay.

Responsiveness: No matter how busy Jessica was (she has a lot of clients), she always gave quick and thoughtful responses.

Other: Everyone has a different profile, with different concerns and questions about how their experiences might be interpreted, and Jessica has seen it all. For example, at one point I had a very specific question that I assumed was a shot in the dark and could not be answered, but Jessica replied to my email almost immediately saying she had, by chance, heard some information relating to this question through an MBA Mission colleague who had a client that attended an MBA meeting in NYC a day or two earlier and had asked several representatives from top programs the very same question. I couldn’t have attended this event since I was overseas at the time. She’s extremely plugged in, passionate about what she does, and her cumulative experiences allow her to provide guidance and perspectives in ways that I couldn't have predicted.

As a final side-note, since working with Jessica, my ability to communicate through writing has significantly improved. Even if I were to remove the goal of pursuing an MBA from my time working with her, I’d still say that my communication skills have been significantly improved - and I considered myself to be a very good writer and speaker to begin with.

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I’ve worked with Jessica Shklar on applying to five top business schools this year and I’m extremely happy with results of our work. I got interview invites from every school and got admitted to MIT Sloan (my top choice). I honestly don't think I could have achieved this on my own - Jessica went beyond the terms of her contract in every possible way.

Immediately after I sent my initial brainstorming document, I noticed how thorough she was in learning my story and personality. With every email and phone conversation, Jessica was capturing more and more about my background up to the point that she knew me better than even my closest friends. By knowing my story, Jessica was able to suggest how to approach every essay. She not only analyzed what the schools wanted me to write for a given essay (something that you can find on every major admission consulting company website anyway), but also recalled specific stories from my background to create a strong and well-balanced application. Describing my whole life in 500 words was not an easy task, but after our brainstorming sessions I was never stuck in front of an essay prompt trying to write the first sentence. After every round of editing I was seeing how clear, concise and strong my essays were becoming, motivating and pushing me to keep improving even further.

Jessica was extremely helpful even with things that were out of my direct control. While working with my recommenders, Jessica was very professional and polite, but at the same time ensured that the recommendations were on topic and on time.

Most importantly Jessica made me feel that I was never alone and helped me to get through this stressful and anxious process. With Jessica on my side, I always felt certain that my application would make me a strong candidate and that I would finish everything on time. She gave me confidence that I had a shot at the top schools and this motivated me to apply harder work and produce the strongest application I could.

Besides being extremely grateful for Jessica being a true supporter in this process, I'm really impressed with her talent, vision, industry knowledge, and work ethic. Jessica never tried to alter my story or make me look like someone who I’m not. Instead, almost immediately after we started our work together, she provided me with suggestions on how to structure and present my own story in a way that even impressed me. Later, during my interview at MIT, I was pleasantly surprised how well Jessica was able to predict the aspects of my story that would be appealing to the admission committee.

Just a year ago, as I was reading all of these great reviews for Jessica, still wondered if hiring a consultant was the right thing to do. “Were these success stories coming from applicants that had a sure shot of getting in anyway?” I thought. “Given my background, do I even fit the profile of a strong candidate and thus, is hiring a consultant a right decision for me?”
After working with Jessica closely on applying to my top five schools, getting positive results and being admitted to my number-one choice program at MIT Sloan, I can clearly say that working with Jessica was not only the right decision, it was absolutely the best decision during my application process.

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When I started my application process, I was uncomfortable with my lack of experience and my “unconventional” application. I was in the process of vetting several consultants when I spoke to Jessica for a free consultation. I was instantly sold. She offered me more insight into the application process during that thirty-minute phone call than the rest of the consultants that I had been vetting combined.

From the very beginning, Jessica was invested in me, my story, and perhaps most importantly, how to help me present the very best version of myself/story. I can honestly say that during EVERY step of the process, Jessica went above and beyond what was required of her. Her knowledge base, attention to detail, and just overall brilliance, helped me to create what I viewed to be a perfect admissions package. She was so personally invested in my story that as far as I was concerned, I was her only client. She immediately responded to my emails and was always available.

What makes Jessica so special is her palpable excitement and energy throughout the process—and her unbelievable concern for and investment in my success. If you are at all concerned about the potential costs, Jessica’s insider knowledge and familiarity with the process, to me, in many ways, was priceless.

Overall, though, the most important thing about Jessica is how remarkably clear it is that she is always giving you her very best in every aspect of her work. I can honestly say, that if you decide to hire Jessica, I am absolutely convinced that you will be hiring the best. I am happy to say that because of Jessica’s help I will be attending Harvard’s Kennedy School in the fall, and Stanford’s Graduate School of Business the following year.

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Without a doubt, Jessica Shklar & MBA mission are the reasons why I’m headed to b-school this fall. Jessica came highly recommended from several friends who had previously used her services, and she exceeded even their glowing recommendations.

Coming from a non-traditional background (military), I was clueless about how to navigate the b-school application process. Herself a graduate of HBS, Jessica knows first hand what it takes to get into a top b-school and how to best present oneself to the admissions committee. From the beginning, Jessica helped me clearly and tangibly articulate why I wanted to get a MBA in a way that was both logical and compelling to the admissions committees. To that end, she helped me develop a rock-star resume, helped me flesh out my most compelling stories (both personal and professional), and when the time came, helped prepare me to knock out my admissions interviews.

Throughout the application process, Jessica continually pushed me to provide hard, quantifiable data to back up my accomplishments and swiftly eliminated any “fluff” that snuck its way into my essays. As a result, each word in my essays packed a serious bunch…crucial when you consider that several of my essays had limits of only 200 words. Jessica also helped me organize my experiences into over-arching themes. This was critical as it allowed me to quickly answer the common behavioral questions that were asked during my admissions interviews, and it was much more effective than trying to memorize answers to questions that may/may not be asked. Jessica always responded swiftly to my questions and often turned around products sooner than the 2-business day maximum, ensuring I had the maximum amount of time to work on essay & resume revisions.

Extremely high professionalism and quality is what you can expect from Jessica Shklar. I could easily write several more pages about the top-notch service and insight she provided, but the results speak for themselves. With Jessica I went “3 for 3” and was accepted into Ross, Haas, & Tuck, and found myself in the “difficult” position of having to choose amongst those three top tier programs. I owe all of that to Jessica, and if you’re serious about applying to a top flight business school, you owe it to yourself to go with MBA Mission and Jessica Shklar…you won’t regret it!!

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I got into my dream school with the help of Jessica Shklar (mbaMission) and I am more than happy with all her help during the entire process.

It took me a long time to decide which consultant I would work with. I spoke to several and did my research over what was posted over the internet. I had heard great things about Jessica online so I scheduled a free 30-minute consultation with her as I did with many consultants prior to that. She was busy and so my appointment was 15 days later than when I wanted it. I almost cancelled the appointment because it was so far out (in retrospect, best decision I made was not to cancel the call).

Over the course of the 30-minute call, it was clear that Jessica not only knew what she was talking about but that she actually took interest in what she did. She told me about specific things in my profile that I need to focus on and it all made sense to me when I read her post phone call analysis. I knew at that time that I have to work with Jessica to get the best out of my application.

Unfortunately, I didn't have much time before my application was due - only 25 days and there were many religious holidays in between. That's where Jessica made the difference. She worked tirelessly to make sure I got each document not only on time but well ahead of time. Once when I submitted the essay to her at midnight, she responded with edits to my essay at 10AM. If I was willing to write an essay at night to meet my deadline, she matched that by returning the essay to me the very next day. Her work ethic was great.

While working on my resume, Jessica went back and forth multiple times and made sure everything was absolutely perfect. She helped me change every single bullet point I had on my first draft. These were all meaningful changes and ones that made my resume very powerful. At the end, I got something very different than what I started with - it was a great resume that I'll be using for sometime to come. After I got done with the resume, I thought I had got most of my money's worth.

However, it was the essays where Jessica really helped me shine. There were stories from the past that I did not know how to weave into my essays. She helped me brainstorm over the phone and gave me an essay map of how I should structure my essay. Every single edit that she sent back made my essay much much better. Jessica was very thorough with her work and knew what an impressive essay entailed. When I was done with the essays, I looked at them and saw that I was more than just my stats on paper. If someone had the same stats as me, I felt really good about my chances with the essays that I had worked on.

Jessica is also very honest and upfront - she's all about straight talk and this really helped through the whole process. In the end, I highly recommend Jessica because she gets it. She knows the whole process inside out, is well prepared and works hard. My essays turned out phenomenal, I got into my dream school and I think her help was the difference that made the difference.

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I first called for a free half hour consultation two years ago and was immediately impressed with the amount of work that Jessica had already put into reviewing my candidacy. Twice after that, my job situation changed in a way that caused me to re-evaluate my business school timeline. Both times Jessica provided me with support as she identified factors that I had not yet considered, even offering career advice. This was truly service above and beyond as I had yet to sign up for any mbaMission package.

When the right timing came along for me to sign up for business school, I did not hesitate to contact Jessica and signed up for a three school package. I was thrilled to work with her and was impressed throughout the whole process of how well she seemed to know me. You can tell by the energy that she puts into her work that she is invested in the future of her clients beyond the application process.

While working with Jessica and mbaMission, I appreciated that I never felt that I was being packaged in a way that was not authentic to who I am. The final essays were still my stories, my experience, and my voice, but presented with a polish that would have required countless hours (that I did not have to spare!) for me to achieve on my own. Beyond that, the materials provided by MBAmission were invaluable during the process. They gave me an efficient framework in which to tackle the application process, which I desperately needed as I was applying during one of our company’s busiest times of year.

When choosing a MBA consultant, choose someone you feel comfortable with, as you will likely be discussing with them intimate details of your life. For me, Jessica gave me the support and confidence to bring out stories from my past that were difficult to tell but important in defining who I am. This type of reflection not only led to an admittance at my top choice of Stanford, but enabled me to learn a lot about myself during the process.

I would absolutely, without hesitation, recommend Jessica to anyone considering an MBA consultant.

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Jessica from mbaMission got me into my dream school.

When I started applying to B School I had the standard (aka boring) profile of so many adequately qualified individuals. Jessica wouldn't let that stand. Over several sessions she coaxed relevant and interesting stories out of me that transformed me into the type of exciting MBA candidate I hoped to be. She helped me show that I was more than just a consultant.... I was traveler, a dreamer, and a person who plans to make a difference in this world.

She helped me tell my story in a way I never could have done on my own. Thank you Jessica. I'm loving it at Haas.

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I can't tell my business school application story without talking about Jessica Shklar from mbaMission. By helping me find my voice, Jessica gave me the tools I needed to articulately convey my 3-dimensional self to the Stanford admissions committee and secure admission.

Three days before I submitted a round 1 application, I had a crisis. My GMAT score, which I'd expected to be top notch fell below the Stanford average. I had to make a decision - apply round 1 or take it again and apply round 2. Deciding to give this my very best shot, I decided against submitting the round 1 application. My mentor suggested that in addition to working on retaking the GMAT, I reach out to Jessica to have her look at my essays. I am so glad that I did!

Jessica didn't 'spruce up' my essays for me. She compelled me to stop writing things I think the admissions team want to hear and instead focus on honestly telling my story in a colorful way that allowed a 360-degree view of my real self to shine through - embracing my personality, highlighting my core strengths, and being honest about my areas for development. Jessica is an enabler and a mentor. She provided me with tangible frameworks for honest self reflection and invaluable writing techniques to honestly tell my story. By focusing on harnessing my voice instead of superimposing that of another's, like most consultants do, Jessica guided me to produce the best application that I could. I was so impressed by how committed Jessica was - she always responded on time! Never a second late. In fact, her promptness, passion, and professionalism challenged me to give my application everything that I had. After I submitted my application, Jessica remained a refreshing source of counsel and support.

As soon as I got the interview notification, she was there for me providing me with concrete ways to structure my responses so that I don't just ramble or give in to nerves. This helped me feel confident during my interview - I could relax and be myself because I knew I was well prepared. Prospective students always ask me whether or not they should use a consultant. I always say the same thing - if Jessica can take you on board then YES YES YES!

Nothing compares to having a coach who will push you to be honest, focused, and articulate.

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Jessica Shklar and mbaMission was a tremendous help to me in getting into my top B-schools. I applied in the R3 to HBS last year and got dinged. I decided that I needed to "up my game" this time around if I was to be successful.

I did preliminary interviews with 3 different organizations before settling on Jessica and mbaMission. What made the different in selecting them was the personal outreach that the principle at the organization, Jeremy, made to me. I was very happy with my decision. Jessica has great insight into the admissions process, gets drafts back quickly, and has great suggestions on how to improve essays. When I had trouble getting beyond superficial material, she really helped me dig deeper to draw out the details of my stories. She has terrific insight into the interview process and is really able to help you prep for the different questions that schools ask. She also would keep on me when I wasn't getting drafts to her quickly enough.

In the end, I got into all of the schools I applied to – HBS, Wharton, Sloan, and Kellogg. I would highly recommend using Jessica to anyone considering a consultant.

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I used Jessica at MBA Mission.

My Story:

I applied R1 to one Top 5 school just to test the water and see where I was at. I did not get invited to interview but a good friend did. She advised me to use a consultant and gave Jessica an extremely
strong recommendation.

The main reason I was reluctant was the cost element. After my experience, I would equally pass on the recommendation to any potential candidates as I found Jessica's help tremendously beneficial.
Absolutely worth every penny.

I would recommend a consultant even more to those who, like myself, have less traditional
mba candidate background: European
male late 20s from legal background with some banking experience and a couple of post graduate degrees already.


So how did Jessica assist me:

First, after a thorough review of my story, she set realistic expectations from outset. i.e. it would be very difficult to get top 5 schools and maybe to look down the list.  This surprised me as even though I was a different I thought I had a great story so her
advice here made me understand the magnitude of the task and focused me even further.  I realized I would need to carefully select schools so after alot consideration, (I had already visited them before when i was on work trip to US and I also highly recommend this in order to get a feel of them), I focussed on two schools (both top 5) with strong finance faculties.

Then we did the brainstorming session which was extremely detailed and was the longest one our phone conversations. It's completely comprehensive and it is important that you prepare for it beforehand - you don't want to have to think about all the stories on the spot although Jessica will encourage and cajole ones out of you - some that i had even
forgot!  We picked the main questions I was going to answer and which stories would suit best. Then I started writing, and writing, and writing. I
can not emphasise enough how much time it takes.
While Jessica reviews and edits each version, it is up to you to do all the writing. I must say I thought maybe that it would be less work on my part - after all, i was paying for service - but service is not
an essay writing one. you have to do this yourself but Jessica's changes and suggestions to my essays were significant. She really assisted me in getting my story tight. Both applications were excellent although one suited my story a little better. I wasnt surprised then that this was the school which I got invited to
interview with. Again mba mission help you here and I felt I was fully prepared for this.  

My interview was quite tough but I got admitted to Top 5 school so am a very happy mba mission user.

Another area that I would like to highlight was the dramatic improvement in resume. While the content largely remains the same, the format is a dramatic improvement. It is incredible the improvement and
a number of people who have seen it have commented on it.

Finally, my last comment would be that if you are to use a consultant to start as early as possible. Jessica is extremely thorough and there will be so many drafts that it is much better to get it started early.
That is the only thing i would have done differently.

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