The MBA process is extremely stressful and time consuming, and there is no way I could have survived it without Susan. I had a lot of ideas and thoughts on how I should approach the essays, and she really helped me brainstorm what I want to portray for the AdComm. We prioritized my key attributes and how and where I should discuss each of them in my application process to make sure I told a thorough, interesting, and unique experience. Each and every line was questioned, pushing me to dig deep on who I am and exactly what I am trying to show the AdComm. I remember thinking, "I don't know anymore! AH!" but she kept me on track and made my application reach a level I never thought it could have. I know for a fact I wouldn't have succeeded in getting into my #1 choice without her help. Thank you!

Read More

My friends and family questioned my decision to hire a consultant given the ROI; however, I knew that I needed the guidance only a consultant could provide. After reading the reviews of various consulting firms via GMAT Club and other sites, I decided to use mbaMission. Prior to the formal start of my engagement, I was contacted by Jeremy, the owner (much to my surprise given the size of the firm!), and he assigned me to Susan Kaplan after determining what I was looking for in a consultant.

Susan was fantastic from the start! I value direct, honest feedback, and she began the engagement by explaining the process, along with my candidacy strengths and weaknesses. Once application season kicked into high gear, she was fabulous at maintaining a high level of communication, as well as providing words of encouragement (all of you know that this is a brutal process and can wear you down at times!). I was accepted into both of the programs to which I applied, including one that was considered more of a "reach" for me. My investment in mbaMission paid off 10x, and I would highly recommend anybody on the fence to go forward!!!

Read More

As a nontraditional candidate from a nonprofit background, I was initially worried about applying to business school. I feel privileged to have had the opportunity to work closely with Susan Kaplan throughout the process. Susan not only allayed my concerns, she worked with me to clarify my goals and present them in a clear and concise manner. Through the brainstorming and writing process, Susan helped me to present my experiences creatively and in a compelling way.

Susan was a thorough and meticulous reader of my work and by working with her, I was able to hone my writing abilities and develop a clearer sense of my career goals. Beyond that, she was encouraging and very attentive throughout the process, working quickly to give me feedback.

I truly cannot recommend her highly enough. With Susan's help I was able to get into my first choice program: Columbia.

Read More

I still go back to my 1st draft and compare with my 9th draft. It make me laugh and I thank Susan again and again for drastically making my stories come to life. 'Do you really need to put that point across?', 'Write one point and delve deeper into that'... many such words of wisdom echo in my ears still. Susan you are awesome! It was just not a process of application but self-reflection. I will carry the experience throughout my life. As an applicant I appreciate Susan's turnaround time. I was pretty late in the process but Susan paced me up and bought me back right in the game. She strived to get my essays before 2 business days. As an applicant I was okay with my essays sometimes but Susan was not. So you imagine the level of perfection she demands. Her comments really pushed me to think deep and enhance my style of writing. I learned to write EFFECTIVELY.
Susan is the best! You will never go wrong in your decision.

Read More

I had started preparing my applications for the top MBA programs and thought I was in pretty good shape, until I asked mbaMission's consultant Susan to have a look at my file. Boy, am I glad I did that! Thanks to Susan's impressive experience and credentials, I was truly able to raise my game to the next level. She was more than helpful, and struck a great balance in bringing new ideas vs working with my owns ideas. I'd say working with someone with good experience to help you build your case for top schools through a second perspective is a must, but Susan really surpassed any expectation I had for this. Her dedication and enthusiasm made me feel that I was really getting my bang for the buck. I would strongly recommend her to anyone thinking of applying to an MBA program.

Read More

I first came to mbaMission after applying to, and getting dinged from, 3 top 15 schools in 2011/2012. After surveying the damage and doing a lot of soul searching, I decided really late in 2012/2013 application season to give it another try and aim a little lower on schools, but to get some help this time.

I shopped around and spoke to a few consulting services and was impressed with the free consultation with Jeremy. He asked a lot of questions about my particular situation/story, and genuinely answered all of my questions. Most importantly, he didn't just speak about his experience applying to Harvard, or his time working as an adcom like a few other consultants I spoke with.

So I decided to test mbaMission using their ding review to see if I would like to use their services on full school packages. I was assigned to Susan Kaplan after speaking with Jeremy about what I wanted in a consultant (honest, constructive, but tough feedback on my story and chances of getting into different schools). Susan definitely ticked all of the boxes! After spending an hour or so on the phone with her going over my application to Ross, she picked apart most of my application (which is what I wanted) and got me thinking a lot more critically about how uniform my story sounded to the adcom.

So I decided to work with Susan on 2 new schools I had targeted. Long story short, the brainstorming process, outlining, drafting, and pulling together all of the other little things that make up an application, was a lot easier and less painful with Susan. I actually learned a great deal about myself and my goals by going through the process.

The most important thing I got out of the whole experience was understanding how my story sounded to an outsider who didn't know me at all - or in other words...an adcom. Working with Susan made me understand exactly where my weaknesses were and how to address them properly. It also helped me understand my strengths, how to talk about them through simple but effective stories, and how to demonstrate how my strengths added value to the particular school I was applying to.

I was very happy with the services mbaMission offered and I would recommend them to a friend or anyone who needs guidance navigating the very vague waters of MBA admissions.

Read More