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Consultant Melissa Blakeslee
I was working on a tight deadline. With a month and a half for submission date for my application, I got cold feet about my essay. I was applying to a top 7 MBA college and needed help with my essays.
I was directed to Melissa by a college alum, and I am glad I trusted her. She was the only consultant I contacted and by the end of initial consultation I knew there was no one else I would have wanted to work with.
Melissa is super popular, and she books up really fast and my application timeline wasn’t working with her schedule and so I came here to look for another consultant based on the reviews here. I literally went through every single review tallying the number of positive reviews a consultant had and guess who won that tally. Melissa!!
She was super nice in accommodating me and loved the process she had established. Her feedback was direct and poignant. The best part about her was that she made you think for yourself, which made you feel you owned the final product. She encouraged to dig deep within myself and my past experiences to really understand myself in a deeper way.
Working with her is perfect for driven people as she sets high standards for herself and for you. I loved working with her and would go as far as to say that I wouldn’t have received an admit into my dream college without her guidance.
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Consultant Nisha Trivedi
I was so fortunate to work with Nisha Trivedi on my MBA application to Michigan Ross and MIT Sloan. As an international student looking to get into a top B-school, she helped bring out the best of me in the clearest and most concise manner. Her turnaround time was impressive - I could get all my reviews within 24 hours. She efficiently managed my time despite having only a month to work on both applications.
Fast forward, I got admitted to Michigan Ross with a full-tuition scholarship. I can not overemphasize how supportive and amazing Nisha was. I highly recommend her for anyone considering getting into Top MBA programs.
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Consultant Melissa Blakeslee
At first, I was hesitant about hiring an admissions consultant, given that I had already done quite a bit of brainstorming on my story and essay topics. For that reason, I opted for hourly services and had an absolutely wonderful experience with Melissa!
It was super helpful to talk through my thoughts with Melissa as an objective sounding board. I initially purchased the 5-hour package and ended up adding one additional hour for interview prep. We met once at the start to strategize major themes across both of my applications (I was applying to two M7s in R1). From there, Melissa provided timely feedback on my essay drafts and answered all of my questions in thorough detail via email so I could best position myself in my applications. In our final hour, Melissa helped me with a mock interview to prepare for my interview with Sloan - giving me feedback on each response and making me dig deeper into areas I could explore.
As an hourly client, I 10000% appreciated the time Melissa spent above and beyond what I had signed up for, to help me tie up the loose ends even after my time "ran out".
Ultimately, I was ELATED when I received my admission to Sloan, and CANNOT WAIT to attend next fall!!!
Melissa is an absolute JOY to work with - super responsive, transparent, friendly, warm, genuine, strategic, ALL the best qualities you'd want in a consultant! It is clear that she cares deeply about her clients - I can't recommend her enough!
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Consultant Gavriella Semaya
I started my MBA application journey quite lost as I had no idea about the strengths, weeknesses in my profile and how to go about the whole thing. And then Gavriella came into the picture and made me introspect, do some major soul searching and helped me identify points for my essays for different colleges I was going to apply to. She would try to dig deep into events in my life that I probably considered inconseuential. This was a massive job to begin with. Then came the job of actually going about each application, which Gavriella did in the most structured way. We would often have brainstorming sessions before putting things to paper. We used to exchange our ideas on what was good and what was going wrong and hence made the experience quite interactive.
The best thing I liked about Gavriella was that she was always very positive about my application and profile and the fact that I would get in somewhere really good, even though I was a little worried about the weeknesses in some aspects of my profile. She kept my moral up at times when I felt dejected during some of the initial rejections, which is very important for any MBA aspirant to not get bogged down in this marathon of a run.
All in all it was an exceptional experience working with Gavriella and she is a big reason behind my convert and that too with a scholarship.
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Consultant Jen Kedrowski
I worked with Jen on my application for LBS and could not recommend her more! She was key in my acceptance to LBS and was able to help me tailor my narrative perfectly. From the start, she was very responsive and took the time to understand my story. She was instrumental in my essay development and helped me successfully communicate my goals! After receiving an interview offer, she spent the time to review potential questions, and her mock exam and feedback from it definitely made my real interview a better experience. I would 100% recommend Jen to anyone looking to apply to a top MBA program! You won't another consultant like Jen!
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Consultant Rachel Beck
Working with Rachel Beck was an absolute pleasure, and I cannot recommend her enough. She got me into my dream school, and was encouraging, accessible, and devoted throughout the entire process. She started out by truly getting to know me, which allowed her to help me piece together a convincing narrative, strategically synthesizing my background and professional experience into a compelling application. She was by my side from my initial ideas, to outlines, to my final essays, to choosing my recommenders, updating my resume (about 100 times), to prepping me for my interviews and making a final decision.
She made a very stressful process extremely manageable with her organization skills, attention to detail, feedback, and advice. She was firm when necessary, while remaining kind and supportive. She calmed me down when there were bumps in the road and became as invested and passionate about my own process as I was. As hard as I was working to perfect my application, I felt her working just as hard, and I genuinely felt like I had a teammate every step of the way.
If you are looking for an MBA consultant and are willing to work hard and do whatever it takes to get into your top school, look no further. Rachel will push you to maximize you own potential, and you will enjoy getting to know her not only professionally, but also personally. I am so grateful for her and cannot imagine having gone through this process without her.
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Consultant Gavriella Semaya
Gavi and I had about three months to put together my applications and she was great to work with. From brainstorming ideas, editing essays, to conducting mock interviews, there is no way I could have made it through this application process without her. She is a wonderful writer and was really instrumental in helping me develop a cohesive and interesting "story" for myself. She is personable, thoughtful, and very responsive. Her feedback was honest and I could tell that she really wanted me to succeed - there were times where I thought the essays were fine but she still pushed me to refine them further. Thanks to her, I'll be enrolling at my dream school in the fall, HBS! I would definitely recommend Gavi's services to anyone navigating the MBA application process.
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Consultant Krista Nannery
I worked with Krista on an hourly basis throughout Round 1, and have only positive things to say about her and working with her. In particular, there were three facets of our relationship Krista provided that I found especially valuable.
(1) Structure. Because I worked with Krista on an hourly basis, I was pointed and specific about how I wanted to use my time. Krista understood this immediately, and worked on the parts of my application (e.g., my essays and resume) where I asked for help and didn’t waste time on other areas. For instance, I would send across agendas for our calls with times to spend on each topic, and she always willingly and happily stuck to my proposed agenda.
Furthermore, just because I was an hourly client did not mean I didn’t receive more holistic support. Krista shared many materials that helped put guardrails around the application process, as well as resources such as resume checklists, school interview guides, and FAQ lists that guided me over the past several months. Working with Krista proved to be a structured and planned out process which I greatly appreciated.
(2) Actionable feedback. Every piece of feedback Krista gave me was critical, direct, and actionable. Every critique was reasoned through and came with a suggested remedy. This feedback made my revisions straightforward and my applications much improved. It also minimized the number of rounds of revision necessary, which I appreciated as an hourly client. This is not to say Krista was harsh by any means; rather, she gave actionable feedback, which is what you really need as a client.
(3) General and emotional support. This last part is perhaps the most valuable part of working with an admissions consultant, and Krista provided it in spades. She expertly guided me, a first-time applicant, through this process she’s navigated many times before with many other clients. She also provided emotional and moral support throughout the process – after all, she knew my MBA hopes and dreams better than anyone else. Krista truly cared about me, my goals, and my feelings throughout, and when I got into my top choice school she was as elated as I was.
Overall, I greatly appreciated working with Krista throughout Round 1, and know my applications were better for it. If you’re looking for someone to partner with you throughout the application process, I unequivocally recommend Krista.
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Consultant Harold Simansky
If you are targeting a top ranked business school, I would highly recommend Harold Simansky, who himself is an MIT Sloan alumnus. He understands the selection process of B-schools really well. He keeps you focused and positive. He helps you discover the unique aspects of your personality and work experience, and helps you present the most impressive, yet authentic, version of yourself.
I hired Harold because I needed a miracle. I came from an over-represented segment in terms of geography (India) and industry (Finance). I had two breaks in my career and had changed job thrice. And I did not have an international work experience. I did not have any direct report to demonstrate my leadership. As a working professional with two kids and a full time job, I could dedicate only limited time to preparing my application. So when I audaciously decided to apply to MIT Sloan, a friend said - “You need a miracle. You need Harold.”
Harold spends a lot of time going through your detailed profile to first understand your background. He then breaks down the application essays into smaller sections. For each section, he gives a few questions. That takes away the pressure of directly writing essays. He then picks few interesting events/data and asks you to elaborate on those. This process continues until he gets all the material he needs. He then sews the pieces together and your essay/application is ready. Interestingly, my essay had many aspects that I wouldn’t have considered as important. But Harold has a knack to pull out the most unique examples that highlight your strengths. I did not have a direct report. But Harold helped me pull out examples from my life that showed initiative and leadership in a different way.
Resume is an important part of B-school applications. Harold metamorphosed my resume. Earlier it had description of projects, promotions and positions. Now it has more data, and examples to show impact of my work. Harold also helped me with the video statement and the interviews. I did mock interviews with him. His feedback on both was very specific.
He is open to suggestions. He patiently listens to your doubts/fears/anxieties and helps you remain focused. He replies to emails within a day and is always accessible on phone. (I submitted my application 3 days before the deadline). I could get through MIT Sloan only because of Harold. Going beyond applications, I have found a mentor who boosted my confidence.
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Consultant Krista Nannery
As an international student I was unfamiliar with the US MBA application process and Krista was my guiding light throughout. She provided invaluable guidance on which schools to target, thoughtful feedback on my application and amazing interview prep. She truly was an oracle and everything she said came true - she knows this process inside out and I really couldn't have done it without her! She is also a lovely person and provided encouragement and reassurance in moments when I really doubted myself and the process. If you are considering a consultant, I would 100% recommend it and know you won't ever regret working with Krista.