Forum Home > GMAT > Quantitative > Problem Solving (PS)
All Reviews > mbaMission Reviews |
Product mbaMission Hourly Services
Consultant Heidi Granner
After struggling with my essays for a whole month, I decided to get a consultant to help me improve them. Choosing Heidi was one of the best decisions that I'd made in my application process.
She first helped me realign my career goal with what I've accomplished and what might be more possible. Then, we started working on my essays and resumes. She was very insightful, always asking the right questions to keep pushing me to reflect on myself, to dig deeper into my stories, and to realize what I want to highlight and what is unnecessary. In addition, she knew very well how to motivate others, and turned the painful writing/revising into a smooth process.
With her help, my essays became a lot more compact and compelling. I got multiple M7 offers, including my dream school Wharton. This won't happen without her help and support! I highly recommend Heidi to anyone who is considering an application consultant.
Product mbaMission Hourly Services
Consultant Harold Simansky
I highly recommend Harold Simansky for his hourly services. Through Harold's resume and essay reviews, I was accepted with scholarship to Booth, Kellogg, Tuck, and Columbia.
Harold was extremely timely and communicative. His reviews - even when it was busy season for round 2 - were extremely efficient. When I had an urgent request due to a upcoming deadline, Harold was understanding and was quick to prioritized my work.
In terms of the feedback, it was clear that Harold had extensive experience in reviewing essays and tailoring them to each school. The essay feedback was very helpful and prescriptive, allowing me to quickly edit and turnaround versions. Harold even shared my essays and resume with other reviewers at mbaMission for no charge. I really felt that I received more value than what I was paying for!
Product mbaMission School Package
Consultant Gavriella Semaya
I’ve applied for a few T20 business schools’ MBA program in Round 2 for 2023 admission, and I have been admitted to my top choice school with scholarship offer that is way more than I could ever dream of.
My experience of working with Gavriella has been amazing beginning to end. As an older applicant (mid 30’s) with none-traditional background, I had a lot of doubt about myself when I started the MBA journey. Gavriella did a great job to be there for me and to build my confidence. She was very caring and passionate -- a very good listener and a genuine friend who made me feel comfortable to share my stories and put trust in her. I felt so lucky to have her during the whole process.
The best part of my experience with Gavriella is that, instead of trying to fit in any typical category or image, she worked with me to create a unique strategy to present my true self. She guided me to look back into my life/work experience, to reflect and to find connection between my past and future goals.
She was always approachable, answered my inquires right away and more than often gave back more than I could’ve asked. Whether it was with essay drafting, recommendations, school networking, interview prep or actions after submission, she always thought ahead and offered me insight to guide me through the key turning points in the application timeline.
My result is beyond what I have expected, and I am extremely grateful for Gavriella’s generous assistance.
Also a shoutout to resources mbaMission provided to me, including brainstorm framework, recommendation and interviews tips, etc. Big help, not only saved me time but helped me to best prepare myself!!
Product mbaMission School Package
Consultant Krista Nannery
I have been thinking about getting an MBA for a while because as a project manager, I thought my projects would be more successful if my company had strong organizational support, but I do not know how to build a strong and effective organization. After talking with an alumnus from my Master’s program, he strongly recommended Krista to help me with my applications.
Krista helped me position myself and picked the best school combination for me. Before talking with her, MIT was the only school on my list. After reviewing my profile (international female with 10 years of experience in manufacturing and an engineering background), Krista suggested adding Fuqua and Tepper. Because of my undergraduate GPA (3.0), Krista suggested I take a class, Math for Management through UC Berkley online, to strength my profile. I got an A, a great improvement for my understanding of math and also good for my applications.
Krista helped me improve my resume tremendously. The final version is the 7th revision. After sending Krista my brainstorming document, we started the back-and-forth exercise to keep modifying and improving my resume. Her smart questions made me dig deeper. For example, for my project manager role, I only mentioned “led project team”, but Krista asked me things like “How many people did you manage and what did they do?”, “Do you know the male/female ratio in the company? How many project managers are there? “, “How many people did you manage?”, and “What about international work?” Because I am working in a male-dominated industry, I am the only female project manager in the company. But before Krista asked me these questions, I did not notice how unique I was and how impressive my job was!
My hobbies? First time, I simply put running. Then Krista replied ‘I think you probably have more hobbies than what you listed! Think about this and add more! Ok, I sat back and told myself, “Yes, I like watercolor painting, practicing piano, doing home crafts.”
There were times I hoped Krista would take a nap and not reply to my email so quickly, so I can get a little bit of time to relax. She was the one on top of everything and I knew as long as I followed her pace and suggestions, she would guide me to my dream school.
Krista also helped me pick the best people to write recommendations for me. At the beginning, I planned to get recommendation letters from my previous boss and a staff member from my Master’s program as I was hoping to keep my application quiet, so my job will not be jeopardized. After talking with Krista, she pointed me to the right direction: I should pick up someone from my current employer because I am applying for an MBA – Admissions is looking for candidates with strong business skills and potential, not volunteer experience. I took Krista’s suggestion and had a very candid conversation with one of my employer’s vice presidents. Surprisingly, he did not hesitate to support me and was excited to write me the recommendation letter. The resulting letter was really strong. Krista mentioned she loved the letter as the VP provided detailed information about his working experience with me and the strength of my candidacy.
Krista also stuck with me through all the ups and downs. It has been a long time since Krista and I we worked together, from September 2020 until May 2021. For sure, Krista went far beyond her responsibility. Krista was always at my side. When I got the MIT interview invitation, I shared the great news with her immediately. When I got the offer from Duke, Krista was the first one I messaged as I knew she would be as happy I as was. At a few points during my application process, I worried I could not get enrolled this year, Krista showed her empathy to me and at the same time, pushed me to improve my candidacy, take another Executive Assessment test and look for more leadership roles.
Krista set a great example to me to never give up. When I took my 2nd EA exam, I only improved 3 points and was disappointed, Krista told me every point counts and business schools like to see people keep trying. Krista is right. When the Fuqua admissions office called me, the woman told me that I did exactly what they expect a candidate to do - keep trying.
Krista and I we had a lot of fun work together and she helped me to know myself much better. One of Fuqua’s essays is ‘25 random things about yourself”. I scratched my head and was not sure where to start. Krista told me she wanted to see at least 35 random things! That is so demanding! But that was the right thing to do, because we can have a bigger pool to pick the best 25 things. Krista suggested that I search for suggestions and feedback from my friends and coworkers. It was a fun and surprising experience; I got so much feedback from the people around me. their points of views really surprised me. After the 1st draft, Krista and I started to go through each single item on my list and picked and chose the best ones to show the unique side of me.
By looking back the whole application process, the word I heard from Krista the most is “impressive”. Krista made me realize the accomplishments and feel more confident in myself. I highly recommend her as your consultant!
Joined: Jun 04, 2020
Posts: 2
Kudos: 0
Verified GMAT Classic score:
670 Q40 V41 (Online)
REVIEWER IDENTITY VERIFIED by score report [?]
Product mbaMission Hourly Services
Consultant Gavriella Semaya
I will open this by saying beyond being a great consultant for your application, Gavriella is a wonderful person. I came to meet Gavriella through a free consultation (as I am sure many others do), and I have done this with other consultants, so I had experience in this. What I found was not a pushy salesperson, instead, someone who asked the 'right' questions. She asked me why I wanted to go to the programs I specifically brought up, she asked me what my biggest concerns were and what I thought my unique attributes were (because on paper I was at best an average candidate, if not below average) and at the end of our brief interaction, she candidly told me what she thought of my application and profile, what schools were the best fit, and what I could do if money were no object. I am also a relatively simple person, who loves analogies, and her analogies and explanations were so clear and relatable - my experience with her was one of the best interactions I have had with someone providing a service.
I believe that if you are like me and want this experience to be as enjoyable as it can be - I know it is a nervous time, but at this point you have done all the heavy lifting, now its about articulating it well - then I would recommend Gavriella. Her ability to be candid and honest, while also being a pleasure to work with is unparalleled by anyone I have met in any other sector. Moreover, her generosity, be it in time or reviewing materials, extends far beyond expectations.
I know I did not hit on things you probably were expecting to read in this review, but I feel if you're going to trust a person to help you make this life changing decision, you need to understand their character, and I can tell you Gavriella's character, effort, and devotion to her clients is unmatched.
If I could share my name and information I would, because I believe that strongly in her ability to support you.
Product mbaMission School Package
Consultant Nisha Trivedi
Using MBA mission, especially Nisha Trivedi, was the best decision I could have possibly made for MBA admissions. She knew exactly the steps needed and what to expect from the entire process. I do not think I could have gotten in without her help. From brainstorming to essay writing to the interview, she kept me informed every step of the way and ensured I was as prepared as possible. She was not only knowledgeable but showed a deep interest in my success. Because of MBA mission, I got into programs far beyond what I ever expected. I am very thankful.
Product mbaMission School Package
Consultant Krista Nannery
I had the opportunity to work with Krista after I got rejected for all my target schools using other consulting services. After I started working with her I immediately saw the difference and felt way more confident than a year before.
Krista focused on every detail of my application, even those that I had never considered important. She also kept me track of the timeline which sometimes flybys but more importantly she also gave me a lot of feedback that sometimes other consultants try to sugarcoat but as an applicant is important to be aware of, especially in my case since I come from a usually overrepresented pool (finance). She also made a lot of suggestions that I am sure played a pivotal role in my application.
Now I can happily say that I´ll be attending my dream school (Wharton) and received two other offers from great schools. But I am sure that I would not have done it without Krista´s help. She genuinely cared about my application process and all the high and lows that it represented. I am always going to be grateful to Krista for helping me achive one of my dreams.
Product mbaMission School Package
Consultant Jen Kedrowski
I hesitated using an admissions consultant at first, but I don't know why I did - Jen was a godsend and worth every penny. She supported me every step of the way, got to know me well beyond my resume, and helped me craft a compelling story that maximized every word of every essay and every line of my resume. Jen is helpful, motivating, an expert in all things admissions, and is happy to answer any question about any part of the process (no matter how minor) and review all the millions of iterations of essays with great attention to detail. I couldn't have achieved the results I did without Jen's help, and she got me there way faster and way more efficiently than I would have on my own.
Product mbaMission School Package
Consultant Jen Kedrowski
I started the MBA application process, hiring Jen as my admissions consultant almost exactly a year ago, having no idea what my final list of schools to apply to would be or where I would end up! After a year of self reflection, countless essay drafts, and tons of anxiety in the mean time, I am so happy to be attending one of my top schools (Kellogg) in the fall!
Jen took the time to understand who I am and what I want out of an MBA program and career and helped me learn these things about myself as well. She is great at pulling the most compelling aspects of a candidate out through discovery sessions and helping weave them throughout your application to make a cohesive and compelling story. She knows this industry up and down and is very familiar with how to present an applicant in the most compelling way for each individual school. Many other consultants are very knowledgeable as well; however, what made Jen stand out from all the rest was her supportive and understanding nature. I felt like we were in this together and my success was her success. We had many long conversations about what schools would be the best fit for me versus what schools I was best qualified for as a candidate. We talked about options to improve my application and what parts of myself were most important for me to showcase.
I worked with Jen on a 4 school package and ended up adding on a 5th school. Most of my schools were M7s and I got rejected from a few, with Jen there to support me; however, my Kellogg acceptance made this whole process worth it! In the days leading up to Kellogg releasing their decisions in December 2020, I kept re-reading my application and the Kellogg website and I realized that everything I showcased in my Kellogg application perfectly aligned with what the school was asking for in their essays and in their students values and attributes-- I have no doubt that Jen was instrumental in me crafting an application that reflected the core values of Kellogg and made me stand out as an applicant. Admissions consultants are a big investment, one that I was nervous about but looking back, I am confident that this investment was the key to my success!
Product mbaMission Hourly Services
Consultant Gavriella Semaya
As a somewhat unconventional applicant, I wasn't sure what to expect from an MBA consultant. Any trepidation I might have had vanished after my first call with Gavriella, however. It was clear from the first day that she would be an invaluable asset going forward.
She helped weave my disparate work experience into a compelling narrative, hone in on a more curated target list of schools, and provided excellent interview prep which left me in great shape for all of the interviews that subsequently arose.
Working with Gavriella went a long way in taking the stress out of the application/interview process, and it was clear to me early on that she was operating with my best interest in mind, not her own.
To anyone reading this who is in need of an Admission Consultant - go with Gavriella if she's available. You won't regret it!