I spoke to four other admissions consulting firms before finally meeting with Alex after he came highly recommended from an alum from my firm. From that initial consultation, I could tell Alex offered a uniquely tailored approach. Alex put time into getting to know me personally, which allowed us to construct a compelling AND authentic MBA application together. I especially appreciate that Prep MBA is HIS full-time business – this is not a part-time gig for Alex, and it shows.

I applied to five M7 schools, three of which I worked on with Alex. Through direct help from Alex and applying what I learned from Alex to the schools I was applying to “on my own,” I received acceptances at Columbia and Kellogg. Alex’s help didn’t stop when I got in. Not only did Alex advise me on waitlist management, but he also acted as a soundboard to help me decide which program to attend. Ultimately, we agreed that Columbia is the best fit for me, and I couldn’t be more excited!

I’ve already recommended Alex to friends/colleagues who are looking for a trustworthy, effective admissions consultant, and I will continue to do so.

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I had been thinking about applying to business school for a number of months before deciding that I would seek the help of an admissions consultant. I came across an article on Poets and Quants about the best admissions consultants of 2020: https://poetsandquants.com/2020/08/26/best-mba-admission-consultants-of-2020/. What stood out to me in that article was that only four consultants made the Poets and Quants list every year since the site started this list, and, out of those four, only Alex was the sole proprietor of his consultancy. I read the reviews about Alex and his services and saw that Alex seemed to have a reputation for personal service and candor. As such, Alex fit the profile of the qualities that I was looking for in an admissions consultant – consistently ranked highly, personal service, and someone who would give it to me straight.

When I first spoke to Alex, I could immediately see why he was consistently ranked highly among admissions consultants. He began with asking me questions about me, my background, and my goals. It felt like he was taking the time to get to know me as a person first, which I greatly appreciated. Alex then very thoroughly explained the process of working with him and while doing that demonstrated a deep understanding of the various facets of business school admissions. Alex does not mince words. He made clear to me that the application process requires significant investment of time and energy and that we would have to put in extra effort to overcome the challenge of my non-traditional background and weak GPA. I signed up for a package for a mix of MBA programs, some traditional and some not.

Alex spent significant time downloading information about my personal and professional background. I saw why later when we were working on my resume and essays as he was able to recall and connect information with such ease and precision that it made the process of actually putting content down extremely efficient. He made me think about essay prompts in unique ways while still ensuring that the responses were still genuinely me. His ability to understand the purpose of each part of the application process and how they all tie together in combination with his skills of teasing out information and helping to succinctly communicate ideas helped immensely in putting together impactful content.

Alex brought his vast knowledge and coaching abilities to bear in interview prep as it helped me to understand the various types of questions that may be asked in MBA admissions interviews and how I could respond genuinely and concisely. Alex really helped me to calm my nerves and to watch out for my nervous ticks.

Overall, I would not hesitate in recommending Alex’s services to anyone. He gets to know you well and the time and effort he takes in the process as well as his vast knowledge about MBA admissions and his candor really help put together your strongest application package. Alex helped me to get into my top choice program!

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I spoke with several highly rated admissions consultants before connecting with Alex Leventhal and my patience certainly paid off. Most of the large admissions firms match applicants with top consultants only to then outsource the day-to-day work to other associates in a template-based process. Conversely, Alex is the only person I worked with throughout my application process—he owns PrepMBA and applies a truly personalized approach.

In the beginning stages and throughout, Alex invested considerable time in getting to know my background, interests, motivations, strengths, weaknesses, etc. This strong connection and fundamental understanding of who I am proved to be an invaluable foundation for my essay and career goals. I come from an over-represented background and was really struggling to tell my story in a unique and powerful way. After our first call on the essay, Alex offered up incredible 3rd party insight on my life path that helped me breakthrough key roadblocks. He always served as a helpful guide, providing me the space to craft the stories in my own way.

I went through many drafts of essays for each school, but Alex consistently provided thoughtful feedback on each iteration in a timely manner—always within 1-2 days even as we approached the application deadlines. His honest and personable approach made it easy for me to open up and translated to a synergistic partnership. At the end, I achieved my lifelong goal of being admitted to HBS! I’m excited to recommend Alex to my friends and family in the future.

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As with most applicants, I spent a good amount of time looking for a consultant who would be able to help me navigate the daunting application process. Although my partner had chosen Alex as his MBA consultant and spoke highly of his services, I wanted to consider all my options before deciding on the best consultant for me. To be quite honest, I could have saved myself a lot of time if I had just taken his suggestion. Alex was the only individual to review my qualifications and provide an honest assessment of whether the schools I was applying to would not only be within reach, but also be a good cultural fit for me (which was something that was a major consideration for me when I was deciding where to apply).

He was the one who suggested that I apply to UCLA Anderson during the initial consultation as he felt that the school would align with what I was looking for. Going forward with his recommendation, I reached out to students and alumni and spent a great deal of time researching the school. As I collected more information, I could see why he suggested UCLA and began drafting my application. With his support, I was able to clearly define my post-MBA goals, understand how I wanted to contribute to the school community, and fine-tune the various components of the application. It was because of him that I was able to ensure that the admissions committee understood who I was and what I hoped to become after completing the program.

Without a doubt, I would recommend Alex to anyone who is looking for an MBA consultant who is honest, fair, and to the point. He knows how to emphasize your strengths and will work with you to address your weaknesses to ensure that they don’t detract from your application.

Ultimately, for anyone starting their MBA process, the applications can seem like an impossible task. However, with a consultant like Alex, they can be surmountable.

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In the midst of a mad rush to both up my GMAT score and begin crafting my application, I reached out to a number of consultants in late October targeting a Round 2 application. After having 3-4 calls, I was able to get in touch with Alex and schedule an introductory call. Instead of spending 20 minutes pitching me on his many success stories (and there are numerous), Alex took ~45 minutes to hear about my background, interests, and thoughts on what might be viable options for my path. What stuck out even more-so than the personalized approach Alex took from the initial call was his willingness and ability to address my candidacy holistically, quickly identifying key areas to focus on both highlighting or strengthening. Alex’s no-nonsense approach made him standout from other more sale-like consultation calls.
After getting started, it was clear that Alex was going to stay whole fully engaged throughout the application process. He spent countless hours over the next 2 months with me identifying aspects of my background that would make strong cornerstones for my essays, helping select strong people to write my recommendations, working through draft after draft fine-tuning my essays and other application mediums, and conducting mock interviews helping prepare me to respond strongly to frequently asked topics. When I thought to add another competitive program to my application group, I knew I wanted Alex’s assistance and updated my package from 3 schools to 4 schools.
With Alex’s guidance, I have been able to score acceptances to 2 of my top schools, and I am sure I could not have done it without him. By taking the time to get to know me, my background, my interests, and my overall candidacy, Alex was able to help me put my best foot forward. I would recommend Alex to anyone who is looking to make the most of what they have to offer and want to present themselves to their dream schools with those positive attributes! I truly believe he is the best person for the job.

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I belong to an over represented demographic (Indian male). I also did not have any work experience with a strong brand name company. During my free consultation with Alex, I could see how engaged he would be. Given the fact that I’ve worked primarily for my family’s businesses, getting references is challenging and I loved how Alex was already brainstorming some great ideas in that regard during the free session.

I am a re-applicant. My previous consultant would nod to everything I’d say and never challenge my views, however bad they might’ve been. Alex, however, would not hesitate to challenge my ideas or hold his ground. Also, with Alex, you get to work with him – no juniors or English-trained associates. With my previous consultant, different people reviewed my resume, references, essays and conducted mock interviews. This approach doesn’t work – your consultant needs to know how your entire application is shaping up. Needless to say, this was a major reason I got nowhere in the previous cycle. With Alex, you get a highly trained pair of eyes to bring things together well.

Alex is very smart and connects the dots really well. At the very beginning, he made me fill out a questionnaire that focused on various aspects of my life and then spent 2-3 hours on call learning more about me. He really got to know me well (personal aspects and professional ones) and, all through the application process, I was always amazed at how he would pull out small snippets of my life that I myself had not thought of to answer application essays. He helped bring out my best side.

Alex is a Harvard MBA, sure, but he’s also witty, friendly and constantly devoted to your quest. He was extremely encouraging, helped choose schools wisely, and when I did not get anywhere except 2 waitlists in round 1, kept encouraging me for round 2. I’d never considered Darden before. It was Alex who convinced me about how good Darden was and suggested applying there – I’m so glad he doesn’t give up and does his best to advice you on what’s good for you. So far, it’s the only school I’ve gotten into across 2 years of applying and he is the singular reason I have an admission offer.

I recommend strongly Alex. He is special and a great guide. You will be doing yourself a great favor by engaging him and giving your applications their biggest boost.

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As an European, I had little experience on the “how tos” and the key success factors of applying to top US MBA programs. I was therefore eager to find an admission consultant who could support me in the process. One thing that was really important to me was that I could trust the respective consultant not only to have contextual expertise, but to be easy to build a personal relationship with. After all, you are sharing deeply personal stories with the respective person throughout the application process.
After my initial call with Alex, I knew he was the right one. You could immediately sense that he cared and was passionate to see you succeed. But he was also honest and straightforward about my expectations and where my profile was strong/not so strong – as an example, he openly addressed the potential fallbacks of my current GMAT score or the limited number of current extracurriculars (given it was early in the process, we could also take action on those). Alex was open about the fact that his offering was slightly more expensive and also that response times might be a little slower, given he does not have a team of junior consultants. But what you get in return is a deeply personalized service, Alex’s full set of experience, and a creative, funny, and honest partner throughout your application process.
Working with Alex proved to be amazing. I only applied to three schools – Harvard, Stanford, and Wharton – of which I interviewed with 2. In the end, I got into Wharton and was waitlisted at HBS. While Alex officially only supported on Harvard and Stanford, I could use many of the tools (such as career goals) and even essay preparations for my application at Wharton.
I would recommend Alex in a heartbeat, and I already have to my former college friends planning to pursue an MBA. Not only did he play a massive role in my success of getting a MBA spot in the US, the whole process with him was super cool and a great reflection of my career, personal goals and ambitions. I feel strongly that Alex is uncommon as an advisor. He is sincere, funny, and often made me feel like I was his most important client.

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Alex’s biggest value-add is his ability to draw out the uniqueness in each candidate. He starts the process by asking the candidate to fill out a detailed “Bio sheet”. Several times in the following months, while we worked on the applications, he would reference various details I had mentioned in the sheet - ones so small that even I had forgotten them! Alex spends a lot of time and energy preparing to work on the applications with the candidate, and throughout the process I felt assured that his advice/suggestions were personalized to showcase my strengths most effectively.

He also has incredible editing skills, and has a knack for trimming all the excess fat from written pieces without losing the essence. Through his interview prep sessions, he also coaches the candidate on how to be concise yet thorough and impactful, making the candidate very appealing to the AdCom.

Lastly, I immensely valued Alex’s work ethic throughout the process. He would tell me exactly when to expect a response and I always got a thoroughly reviewed piece back from him as planned!!

As someone who has not only helped candidates over multiple application cycles but has also been through the process himself, Alex realizes how stressful the process is. Beyond simply providing great advice on the application materials, Alex took the time to connect with me, helping me through stressful times. I am so glad that, after debating amongst multiple consultants, I chose to work with Alex - it would be difficult, if not impossible, to find a better guide and support through this life-changing process.

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I was initially interested in Alex Leventhal’s consulting firm, PrepMBA, because it appeared to be one of only several firms that prioritized crafting a personalized approach to business school applications. I also liked that Alex didn’t have a cabal of junior associates working with his clients; Alex directly worked with each one himself. It was clear that Alex was personally vested in each of his clients’ success.

When I started with Alex, I could tell that he was focused on getting to know my story from my early childhood to the present. Through his detailed biosheet questionnaire and other supporting materials, we both got organized on what my strengths and weaknesses were.

As we had more meetings and the conversation moved to my resume and future career goals, I appreciated Alex’s help in thinking critically about my past accomplishments and the messaging I wanted to convey on my applications. We ended up brainstorming and refining my thoughts for many weeks before I began to write my essays, which gave me confidence as I wrote my essays and completed respective applications. Alex’s same honest, thoughtful approach carried over into interview prep as well. Throughout it all, Alex was always there to provide a deep dive into a portion of my application that needed substantial attention or a quick answer to an ad-hoc question. This all culminated in my acceptance to NYU Stern.

I would highly recommend Alex and his services to any MBA applicant, and have already spoken highly of him to several of my friends who are considering applying in the near future. He is diligent, hard-working, very kind, and genuinely cares about helping his clients achieve their goals. I could not be happier that I worked with him.

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Alex’s services played a huge role in my acceptance to Booth! After checking out a number of consultants, I chose Alex because of his personalized approach and his honesty in assessing my odds at different programs, especially during this tougher COVID cycle. What truly differentiates Alex from other consultants is how comprehensive and rigorous his methods are. The breadth of support that Alex provided surprised me and alleviated a lot of stress. For example he spent significant time helping me tailor communications to recommenders and coaching me on body language and vocal tonality for my video essays and interviews.

One key area where Alex was able to provide invaluable guidance was in helping my differentiate myself as an Indian American applicant in consulting, a highly overrepresented pool. Alex starts his process by getting to know you as well as possible by having you fill out a bio sheet and interviewing you. Therefore, when I reached roadblocks later on, he knew my story and background well and was able to point out examples that portrayed me in a unique and positive light.

As a result of working with Alex, not only was I accepted to one of my top choices, I also received significant scholarship. I thought working with Alex was really enjoyable and helpful, and I would recommend him to anyone hoping to put their best foot forward in their MBA application journey!

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