When I began my coaching with Helen, I had some idea of the schools I was looking to apply to but not much insight into what details of my life my application would cover. Helen was patient, kind, and discerning. She first helped me think critically about how my own qualifications lined up with the MBA programs I was interested in. With an incredibly deep knowledge of what each program is looking for, Helen then helped me to expertly tailor my applications. She was particularly supportive in helping me write about difficult life experiences. Helen's interview prep was realistic and helpful, she does not hold back in asking the tough questions and I felt very prepared for the real things. She also was very critical in resume review and made my resume top tier. She takes her job seriously and is many times over worth the money!

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I connected with an admissions consultant, Susan Kaplan, when I was preparing to apply to part-time MBA programs. I started the application process late, having only 1.5 to 2.5 months to apply to my top 5 programs. I worked with Susan to build my application for 3 schools and took the lessons learned to apply to the other two on my own. The process was stressful, intense, and sometimes frustrating, but well worth it! I was accepted into all programs and received scholarships from two of them. I'm sure I would not have had the same result applying on my own.

The process involved so much more than just filling out an application. Susan pushed me to figure out what I want to say about myself, how I want to say it, and to focus my goals. After working with her, I had a much stronger resume and stronger ability to convey how my personal story relates to my goals, in addition to strong essays for schools. I have worked with resume writers in the past, and I felt my work with Susan led to better results, even though that was not the focus of our work.

If you are serious about applying to MBA programs and feel strongly that betting into the best schools is important, then I would highly suggest working with mbaMission - they offer a wide variety of very helpful resources and are easy to work with. I would also highly recommend choosing Susan Kaplan as your consultant because she knows how to help candidates reach their goals. She will push you to work harder and do better from start to end. And your application will be better than you ever expected as a result.

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I have tremendously valued Jessica's support over this past admissions cycle.

In my original consultation long before I even signed on for her services, Jessica provided concrete, actionable advice and steps I could take to improve my business school candidacy. After I signed up for a multi-school package, Jessica was extremely helpful in designing compelling narratives for my applications, building a superb overall story, and assisting with every little imaginable detail over the whole process. I think Jessica's greatest strength is her capacity to make a candidate's profile come off as truly special given the candidate's existing accomplishments. In this regard, her storytelling ability is remarkable.

I am thrilled to report that I will be attending one of my primary target schools. If you are looking to inject a genuine, affecting character element within your application, I highly recommend Jessica's services. It is an excellent investment in your own future.

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I initially contacted Katharine upon a strong recommendation from a friend. I thought it would be useful to have a quick consultation with Katharine to understand the process further.
After 30 minutes, I definitely knew that I wanted Katharine to assist me with my applications!

Not only did she convince me to apply to much stronger schools than I had initially planned for, during the brainstorming process, we discussed my personal and professional stories which she brought out in the best possible light!

Her organization and timing were impeccable, always returning document reviews on time. She was always happy to schedule regular calls to discuss at length. She always made me feel that I was a priority and was able to discuss at a moment’s notice.

Most importantly, her experience in Stanford GSB admissions really showed in all our discussions, and that was truly the most valuable aspect. As a Middle Eastern male in financial services, I wanted to highlight myself in a unique manner. Her experience on the other side provided me with the A-Z details of what admissions are really looking for (both within the essay reviews as well as the interview preparations) and assisted me to present my story in the best approach.

In the end, I was accepted into Chicago Booth, a dream school for me, and one that I didn’t think possible when initially applying for my MBA.

I really can’t recommend Katharine enough; it was sincerely a pleasure working with her and I can’t thank her enough for all of her valuable assistance!

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I worked with Susan on the start-to-finish package for 4 schools, was admitted to 3 of them, and used the all of the self reflection and tools that Susan provided me with to apply to and get accepted at 3 additional schools.

I didn't have many friends who had applied to business school, nor did I have a great understanding of the application process, and Susan was a true partner and guide throughout the whole process. I tend to be quite verbose as a writer and sometimes I struggle to concisely make a clear point. While I knew why I wanted an MBA and what in my past experience made me qualified, I was having trouble articulating it clearly in my essays. Susan was a tough critic, and pushed me to write at a much higher level than I would have on my own. I appreciated that she didn't just say good job when my applications were "good enough", she pushed me to the next level, and I don't think I would have as many acceptances and scholarships to top programs without her!

Despite her pinpointed and sometimes tough feedback, Susan was a warm and caring coach who truly cared about my journey and who was rooting for me throughout the process. She made me feel proud of my accomplishments and was such a great cheerleader. With her help, I was admitted to Kellogg, Tuck, Columbia, Darden and Yale SOM all with scholarships and to Wharton as well! I can't recommend Susan enough!

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I had a fantastic experience with mbaMission and Debbie Choy! I made the decision to apply in Round 2 in early November and was able to go from not knowing which schools to apply to or even what "story" I wanted to go in with, to submitting 3 high-quality applications before Christmas. I couldn't have made it into an "M7" school without Debbie's help!

Beyond just the general quality of her feedback and mastery of the entire application process, there were a few specific things I really appreciated:

--Ability to prioritize: Debbie was great at focusing in on the areas that really mattered, and deprioritizing things that weren't value-add. This drove a high level of efficiency in my process without sacrificing quality / thoroughness at all.

--Highly structured & great communication: throughout the entire process, Debbie provided a plethora of resources and guidance. From school selection scorecards to brainstorming resources to interview prep to waitlist navigation, I never felt like I had a lack of information or tools, which gave me a high level of comfort and took a lot of the "guess-work" out of the application process.

--Fantastic at helping craft my story: One of the big unknowns for me going in was precisely what I wanted to do post-MBA and how to tie that to my "story" that weaved together my past experiences into a comprehensive narrative. Debbie was truly amazing at diving deep into everything from my upbringing to my hobbies and my work experience and crafting a clear and logical message.

--Great attitude: Debbie was always really positive, which is very helpful as you are stressed out throughout the application process. I also frequently tended to have a lot of small, random questions; while I'm sure this was annoying, Debbie answered everything thoroughly, efficiently, and never once with a hint of annoyance or animosity. Also, whenever she pushed back on an idea I had, it was always done in a positive, constructive manner which was super helpful.

Overall, I would highly recommend mbaMission and Debbie Choy specifically -- Debbie exceeded expectations and drove excellent results for me in my application process.

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The full school package was extremely helpful at mbaMission. I was able to receive edit help with essays, interview prep for several schools, and resume review. There were a few brainstorming calls that were helpful for me to figure out my point of view for my essays. We also went through the different characteristics that each school was looking for in the essays. Julie-Anne was the highlight of working with mbaMission as she was particularly helpful editing the essays. I currently work in private equity and do not have the strongest writing skills and Julie-Anne was able to give me specific comments to pull out the necessary details needed in my essays. She also works extremely fast under tight deadlines even when she is busy juggling multiple students. Additionally, in our mock interviews, she knew exactly what my weaknesses were and gave me tips to bring the best version of myself to the interview process. I would highly recommend her to any student applying for business school.

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I worked with Debbie on a two school package during the most recent extended rounds. After an initial call I saw immediately how friendly and supportive she was compared to initial meetings I had with other competitors.

Debbie worked diligently with me to focus my application and build a targeted story - something I wholeheartedly believe I would not have been able to do on my own in four weeks.

The biggest value Debbie provided was on my essays, where she went above and beyond to read multiple drafts at a time. She helped clean up my story telling and provided critical structural feedback to make me stand out. She's also there for you - I remember after getting in we went back and forth over email at 10:30 pm at night. You can tell she really cares about her clients.

The advice she provided was invaluable in shaping my applications and I wound up getting interviews at 8/9 schools I applied to and received acceptance to multiple M7, top 10, and top 15 programs.

Granted the full package is quite expensive so I'm not sure it is fully necessary, but mbaMission is comparable in pricing to many other services available. If you do decide to go with a consultancy I'd recommend Debbie.

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Coming from a technical background in the oil industry, far removed from the business realm, I knew that an outsider’s perspective, especially one grounded in the MBA process would be beneficial to help my stories come across. (This meant ensuring that my technical resume and stories about technical projects were approached in a way that could be understood by a variety of audiences.)

Initially, upon speaking with friends who navigated the MBA process, I reached out to a competitor consulting firm and after an initial conversation with a consultant, she provided lofty claims that they felt that I would absolutely get into the top 7 schools and that given my lack of a job title change that was what needed to be focused on. The more I dug into the competitor company, I felt that it was too formulaic and I was just another applicant in their system. I wasn’t given options of who I’d work with (it felt like a very “behind closed doors” situation) or any more personal interaction aside from this short intro call, but instead was pushed a plethora of emails about their packages and links of their former success stories. While I recognize that certain MBA programs look for specific things, I wanted to ensure that my story was heard and my consultant cared about my success.

I’d read about mbaMission online, through P&Q, and it had been recommended to me by a family friend. When I reached out to have an initial conversation with the recommended consultant, she went above and beyond connecting me with 3-4 profiles of consultants who she thought I would best work with (as she was no longer working as a consultant for the time being). I ended up having another intro call with Julie-Anne ,who I felt matched my energy and was very open and honest that she aimed to highlight her clients stories in the best way possible—that the individual aspect was more important than explaining a lack of job position change. Her demeanor was very appealing as I could tell she was invested in her clients rather than just trying to snare new clients with claims of an M7 guarantee. (Note all of these conversations happened before I event sent mbaMission a single dime. I truly felt they were invested in the human side of things rather than just the commission. I think that is apparent on when you realize just how many free materials/guides that mbaMission offers, among many other aspects of their approach.)

While certain individuals reflect that they perhaps could have navigated the process without a consultant, by having family/ friends read their essays, I disagree. Julie-Anne knows how to navigate the process in a seamless manner and acts more than just an accountability coach, challenging you to make your essays better every single time. She also brings unbiased feedback to the table, unlike your family and friends. I think Julie-Anne Heafey was particularly helpful in helping me preserve my story while ensuring my tone was always upbeat and positive (which can be challenging during trying work stories). She also listened to my concerns that my essays weren’t coming across the way that I wanted to. She worked as tirelessly as I did to help fix that until the 11th hour—this was honestly due to my ability to preemptively work on apps due to an intensive work schedule. The difference was not only was it evident that she cared about me as an applicant, and abated my last minute concerns, she also gave honest feedback throughout the process. She was incredibly diligent and really helped me hone in not only on my stories and quantifying why specifically I wanted to go to a certain school/ dual program, but she did so in a manner that felt like I was her only client.

With Julie-Anne’s help, I ended up getting interviews at 5 of the M7 schools, including HBS. She’s an incredible asset to mbaMission and it would a mistake on anyone’s part to consider someone else or beyond those on the mbaMission team. I truly stand by this opinion and could not think of a better individual with whom I would trust my stories, concerns, and experience the MBA process with.

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Hiring Melissa was easily the best decision I made during my MBA admissions cycle. She has one of the best backgrounds one could want in an admissions consultant - prev adcom director, MBA from an M7 and real-world industry experience. Pair that background up with superb communication skills, being authentic and unapologetically honest in every interaction, genuine caring for clients’ success, less than 24 hrs returns on drafts, and just being a really nice person to work with overall - what more could you ask? This deadly combination of traits makes Melissa the absolute no-brainer MBA-consultant choice.

I was late in the process and reached out to mbaMission only after R1 deadlines. I’m from an over-represented background, with avg GMAT (for my pool) and less than avg work exp. But right from my first call, Melissa was extremely positive about my candidature. I kept doubting my GMAT score multiple times, but while Melissa did suggest some options, she instilled confidence in me that since my score was at or above the avg scores for my target schools, I should focus more on my essays and overall profile strength. I took her advice and did not get a single rejection from the 6 schools I applied to in R2. I also got into both the M7’s I applied to and am headed to one of them this fall.

The way Melissa edits essays is just amazing. She didn’t spoon-feed or drastically change the story-content from her side, but rather used the knowledge she had about me from my profile and our brainstorming call, and transformed the essays into a strength for my overall profile. On multiple occasions, she not only nudged me to think harder about choosing a story, but also pushed me to dig deeper into the EQ aspects that one would have not thought about. She even helped me frame my answers succinctly to application form questions and work experience descriptions. When I got interview invites/decisions from all 6 schools, I informed Melissa even before I informed my closest family and friends - that was the level of trust and confidence I had in her. Even though I had 6 interviews lined up, Melissa went through specifically tailored interview prep for each school the week before, explaining what questions to expect, how to position myself for a particular curveball question, and what kind of aspects each school was looking at. This was tremendously helpful. And not to forget, Melissa was extremely flexible with so many reschedule requests - once in the middle of our interview prep call, my boss called for an impromptu meeting and Melissa was really nice to offer to reschedule the prep that we’d already begun that day! She is totally committed to ensuring your success and I do not regret one bit my decision to work with Melissa.

Within a period of 4-5 months, she went from being a complete stranger to being a close friend and advisor to talk to. Getting into my top choice school is a dream come true and I couldn’t have done this without help and guidance from Melissa. I wholeheartedly recommend Melissa as your admissions consultant. Trust me, you’ll thank me later!

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