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Consultant Melissa Blakeslee
Melissa is a ROCK STAR admissions consultant – she was absolutely fantastic, from start to finish. She walked me through the application process step-by-step, offering crystal clear guidance on our timeline and working relationship. Through the brainstorm exercise, she provided a comprehensive assessment of my profile and helped me craft a cohesive narrative around my candidacy – it was a crucial step that put me in a rock-solid position to succeed going forward. Once we winnowed down my target list of schools, Melissa helped me thoroughly understand what each school looked for in prospective students. With that in mind, we were able to further tailor my candidacy – she later provided strategic and tactical advice on my essays, helping me hone my structure, theme, and tone. The final product was airtight – clear, concise, and compelling. Melissa also helped polish me for interviews as well, providing detailed insights into who might interview me, what questions I should expect, and how I should answer them. It’s that laser-focused attention to detail that helped me prepare for softballs and curveballs in the interview process. And after I secured my acceptances, she helped me weigh my decision and tackle post-acceptance logistics (e.g. deposits, scholarships). Throughout the cycle, she was remarkably responsive, specific, and compassionate – her work ethic and interpersonal skills made the process painless. Overall, I cannot overstate Melissa’s tremendous value – she is a phenomenal resource and I’m so lucky to have been paired with her. She’s worth every penny!!
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Consultant Harshad Mali
It is my great pleasure that I enthusiastically recommend Harshad Mali to the highest degree as a MBA consultant.
There are three aspects to know about Harshad:
1. Harshad knows the MBA process on an intimate level. Regardless of what question I had about the GMAT, business schools, application process, essays, etc, Harshad always had the right answer for me. He has true expertise and a deep knowledge pool that he wants to share with his clients.
2. Harshad will bring out the best in you. Like all great coaches, Harshad does not try to change who you are. Rather, he brings out your best traits and works with you to highlight them in your MBA application and put you in the best position to be accepted to the school of your dreams. He knows how to "check all the boxes" that business schools look for, while making sure you stand out from your competition.
3. Harshad is a person of the highest character. His communication is direct and honest, always pushing you to be the best version of yourself. Most importantly, he cares to a profound degree. Your success is his success and it is tangible in his interactions.
If you view an MBA as an investment and want to ensure you give yourself the highest chance of admittance, I highly recommend you stop what you are doing and reach out to Harshad. Harshad is exceptional!
Product mbaMission Mock Interview Sessions
Consultant Katharine Lewis
I worked with Katy to prepare for my R1 HBS interview and I can't say enough about the experience. She's extremely knowledgeable about the application/interview/admissions process and knew exactly where to push me in my prep. We did two mock interviews where she drilled me on my professional experience, extracurricular activities and post-MBA goals. The mock interviews closely resembled what my actual HBS interview experience was like, with several questions / themes resurfacing during the real thing. She gave detailed advise as to how I should position myself given my background and professional experience (white male, private equity, etc.). I especially appreciated the fact that I never felt like I was "on the clock" with her - she genuinely wanted me to succeed and was willing to do whatever it took to help me prepare. Overall, Katy was extremely helpful in my MBA application process and I would highly recommend working with her.
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Consultant Helen Summers
Working with Helen was awesome! I had had experience with an independent consultant the year prior, and I can’t believe the difference. Working with a below 700 GMAT, I knew I had to tell my story very strategically in order to reach my T10 goal, and Helen helped me do exactly that.
Helen was incredibly friendly, yet honest and direct when my work or approach was less than she expected of me. She also made me dig deep to find my story and even helped me have a clear sense of where I wanted to go in the future. Turnaround time was outstanding, in that I NEVER had to wait for the turnaround policy specified on the welcome package because Helen was so responsive. She was also very patient with me considering that I often made last minute changes or came up with new ideas for essays that had already been revised.
Helen was not only outstanding professionally, but she also made me feel like I had a new friend—she got as excited as I did whenever I received good news! But let the results speak for themselves. The year before, I had applied to one M7 and didn’t even get an interview. With Helen, I applied to three other M7s and a top 10 (U.S. News) business school, and not only did I get into my top choice, but I also got in everywhere else I applied to except one M7 school, and got scholarship money everywhere I was admitted to, which I never even dreamed of! Thank you Helen, you were an essential part of my MBA application journey!
Product mbaMission Hourly Services
Consultant Helen Summers
Working with Helen was an absolute pleasure and one of the best decisions I've ever made. She came highly recommended to me by a close friend and I quickly saw why. I primarily utilized the hourly package offering to help me with some of the items on the application that I heard often get overlooked by candidates. This included the resume, short answer questions, extracurricular activities, and job descriptions. I was amazed at how thorough she could be with her recommenders. In a firm but polite manner, she let me know where she thought I could make a section, sentence, or even a phrase more impactful. She asked me guiding questions that helped me remember better examples that I could use to show the impact that I've had in the past.
Another incredibly useful service Helen provided me was with my word count. I often had sections that I struggled to bring under the tight word or character limit. She was an expert at helping me make my story more concise without diluting the message (usually even making it stronger than it was when I started).
I have gone on to recommend her to my closest friends that are applying too. Like a good trainer at the gym, Helen will push you to heights you didn't know you could reach!
Product mbaMission School Package
Consultant Helen Summers
Going into the application process I was on the fence on whether I wanted to use a consultant, but by recommendation of a friend who had a great experience with Helen I reached out to schedule an initial phone call. After our 30 minute conversation, the value add that Helen would provide in the process was abundantly clear to me. I ended up working with Helen on a few of the schools I applied to (hey, I at least wanted to do a few on my own!) and do not regret it at all. I only wish I had worked with her on all of them! Helen helped me tell a clear and cohesive story in my apps and provided great clarity and focus throughout the process. I would definitely recommend her to others.
Product mbaMission School Package
Consultant Susan Kaplan
I did the Start-to-Finish Package for two schools with Susan, Tuck and Yale. I also applied to HBS, Ross, and Foster on my own. Coming from a non-traditional background I was daunted by the MBA world and wanted to be sure I was able to tell my story authentically, but in a manner that would resonate with MBA admissions committees. Ultimately, I was admitted to Tuck and waitlisted at Yale. I also receive admission to Ross with a full-tuition scholarship and Foster with a moderate scholarship. While Susan and I only worked together on Tuck and Yale I know without a doubt that my other applications also benefited from our work together. I would 100% recommend working with Susan.
Susan is often characterized as “tough”. I don’t believe this to be a completely accurate characterization. Susan was relentless at making sure I put my best foot forward, while also being a deeply empathetic and supportive colleague. The MBA admissions process is tough and requires you put in the work, Susan makes sure you do it. She helps you to find your story and paint a clear picture of who you are and what you bring to the school. There were times when I got frustrated because I thought I was addressing a comment, but she would say I hadn’t gotten it yet. This can feel tough, but it was absolutely essential in pushing me to be as effective as possible in my essays. She knows what it takes to succeed and was invested in my success.
I deeply appreciated all the time Susan put into to get to know me during the brainstorming process and beyond. During the brainstorming Susan identified themes that I hadn’t thought of based on the information I sent her about my experiences. She was spot on and I was surprised how someone I barely knew could so quickly get at the heart of who I am. Additionally, after writing a few drafts of my first essay I didn’t feel fully comfortable with the direction. We spoke about it at length and finally it clicked for both of us what the thesis of the essay really should be. This extra time she spent to make sure I got my message just right was incredibly helpful and it was also the moment I knew Susan would keep working on a problem as long as it took to get it right.
My applications also required video components, which I was originally terrified of doing. Susan showed me how to master them with ease and after our practice sessions I felt completely calm and prepared.
Finally, Susan was always on time with her responses and provided thoughtful, detailed comments on my numerous draft essay and other materials draft.
I highly recommend Susan! It was so reassuring knowing she was on my team and I could go to her with any question at any time. I’m thrilled about schools I got into and couldn’t have done it without her!
Product mbaMission Hourly Services
Consultant Harshad Mali
To start off, Harshad was very patient and honest during his 30 min free consultation with me, which made me decide to work with him. And he is extremely responsive to all my questions during the process, and gave me lots of advice on my MBA application, especially on my resume and essay writings, and never wasted any time given that I purchased hourly services. I will not be able to get in the EMBA program of a top business school without his help. Therefore, I highly recommend Harshad to anyone who needs help to apply for an top school MBA/EMBA program.
Product mbaMission School Package
Consultant Melissa Blakeslee
From my initial consultation to preparing for interviews, Melissa was easy to work with, genuine, and always gave me the impression she really cared about my outcome.
As a foreigner entering the business school application process without any experience in the US college system, I found the whole thing intimidating to say the least – and the decision of which consultant to use even more stressful. After completing a free session with Melissa I was immediately confident in my choice; her extensive experience in the field, both in the university system itself as well as in a consulting capacity, was very evident. She was honest in pointing out the weaker aspects of my background, but also overwhelmingly positive about where we should focus to provide me the best chance.
Over time as we worked together, she was instrumental in helping me construct and communicate my narrative effectively. I found the brainstorming session particularly helpful for this. During the essay writing (hardest part for me), she provided quick, actionable feedback, which was always constructive and positive in nature, and made me feel like I was on the right path.
I was ultimately accepted into my first preference, a school I had initially thought was a big reach. I can confidently say this would not have been possible without Melissa’s amazing help, and so cannot recommend her enough to prospective business school applicants!
Product mbaMission School Package
Consultant Melissa Blakeslee
Melissa's guidance and support throughout the admissions process greatly surpassed my expectations! During our initial call, I could feel her genuine interest in my background and experiences, as if I were talking to a close friend. Ultimately, with Melissa’s high-level assistance, I gained acceptance to my top two programs.
Melissa was instrumental in helping me craft my story and insured that everything always aligned with “who I am” as a person. We were able to pinpoint the weaker qualities of my application and enhance the subtle strengths, of which I would have overlooked without Melissa’s help. I was able to truly use her as a sanity check throughout the entire process, no question too small or basic. From helping with career guidance to reviewing my 9th draft of an essay, she was always there to assist.
After receiving admit calls, Melissa was one of the first people I told because I truly felt like we were a team and I knew I could not have done it without her help. I highly recommend working with Melissa to anyone applying and looking for teammate throughout the entire application process.