What an easy recommendation, I had a great experience…Alex helped me get into both HBS and the GSB; working with him was a pleasure. In a market where most of his competitors are volume shops or bounce you between a team of junior consultants, Alex is high-touch and high EQ. I’ve personally recommended Alex to close to a dozen peers who, in turn, have each done the same. He really drove me to dig deep on my essays and properly represent my background and values. His insights really helped my passion transcend the written format and shine. Thanks Alex!

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I cannot recommend Alex highly enough. As a re applicant and part of an over-represented demographic, Alex was instrumental to my acceptance at Columbia Business School. I met with him for the first time 8 months before I submitted my applications, and instead of sitting on my candidacy until the spring, he began to work with me right away. He took the time to get to know me, my background, and most importantly spent weeks helping me nail down my story. By the time I actually started writing, I was incredibly confident and secure in my career narrative, which made the application process much easier than the previous year.

Alex provides a great service as well. Unlike some of the other consultants that I looked into, Alex is a one man show, ensuring that he spends quality time with each and every applicant. He is incredibly honest and isn't afraid to tell you when you are below the mark in essay drafts, mock interview answers, or career goals. However, he ensures his feedback is clear and prompt. Multiple times, Alex would call me directly to chat about my essays to ensure that I understood his feedback to make the process more efficient. I was very impressed on how his recommendations, even those that seemed seemingly minor, would substantially elevate my essays and resume. My experience with Alex was entirely positive and a big reason for my business school application success!

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Having worked with another admissions consultant in the previous year and interviewed several admissions consulting firms, Alex’s service immediately stood out to me. Whereas other consultants mainly communicated via email, Alex took the time to set up several Skype calls, including an initial video call where we just chatted about our personal lives. We got to understand each other at a much deeper level than otherwise possible through a written form or a voice call. This depth of understanding played a vital role when drafting early versions of my essays, where Alex would offer suggestions on which of my personal stories might fit best, rather than just telling me to rewrite a section.

Alex was also very accommodating to my last minute requests and unique situation. I had a recommender who was unresponsive and sent Alex a draft of his recommendation the night before the deadline. Alex stayed up late into the night to review it and called me after to calm my nerves. I can’t imagine working with anyone else.

Given that I am an Asian male (over-represented group), I purchased the 5-school package to put my best foot forward. With Alex’s help I was able to do just that and was invited to interview at Wharton, Booth, and MIT. After that, Alex’s interview prep ultimately helped me convert all three interviews into admittance offers! I was quite surprised how many of the questions Alex asked in his mocks were in the real interviews. Overall, working with Alex was a pleasure. It is a no-brainer when it comes to recommending Alex, and I have to a friend. Beyond his technical expertise, Alex is funny and personable, everything you would want from an advisor and more!

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As a reapplicant competing in an over-represented demographic pool, I realized I needed some professional help to improve my chance of getting into a top MBA program. I talked with a few consulting firms, and Alex stood out in that he quickly analyzed my profile and provided his honest opinion. He focused on getting to know about me instead of selling a service. I did a four-school package and eventually got into my favorite MBA program with a scholarship. Alex has always been very straightforward and honest with me during the process: he would point out the weaknesses of my essay and provide very helpful advice. I would recommend him to all the applicants who want to get into a top MBA program.

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At first I wasn’t sure about whether working with a consultant made sense for me, but Alex came highly recommended from a number of colleagues at my firm who had attended top business schools, so I set up a consultation and immediately recognized how valuable his input would be.

Before offering any advice, he made a concerted effort to understand my background, interests, and goals. As we moved into the more tactical parts of the process (brainstorming essay topics, thinking through potential recommenders, etc.), he would suggest incorporating parts of this context in a way that made my personal narrative more coherent and compelling.

Alex never farms work out to junior consultants. He committed his full focus to every session. And with Alex there is no sugarcoating – he offered honest and dispassionate opinions about how various aspects of my application would come across to AdCom members.

I was fortunate to get into my top two school choices, and Alex’s help was invaluable – he brought the best out of me at every stage of the process. I recommend him highly to anyone who is serious about applying to a top MBA program.

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As an older applicant with a diverse background, and someone who knew little about business school admissions, I felt I needed to get a serious and experienced consultant to ensure my application is competitive.

I called several consulting firms for initial consultations and Alex stood out– he listened carefully and gave me very personalized and encouraging feedback. I could tell that he genuinely interested in me as a person and that proved extremely valuable for my application. He was also quite clear in his assessment of my chances and told me his view on the different business schools I had considered applying to.

Prep MBA is Alex’s firm – and you get to work with him, he does not have an army of junior consultants. Alex is very experienced, thoughtful and humorous – all of the calls I had with him were truly enjoyable (even the mock interview!). At the same time, working with him was very productive. He responded to my questions timely, even in the days before submission. I did a 2 school package and I got admitted to both schools – I could not have asked for a better outcome.
Alex will encourage you to think through your career plans. Do not underestimate the time and effort needed for this – but it is worth it. Alex helped me to make connections in my vita that I had not seen earlier. His input enabled me to craft a passionate and compelling application. Alex has an exceptional skill: He is able to carve out your story and write it down in your own words. I highly recommend Alex!

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As an older, non-traditional applicant and someone who knew very little about MBA program admissions process, I wanted to get help to ensure I put together the best application. I have done several free consultations and Alex stood out – he listened, didn't rush the call, and gave me more personalized feedback than other consultants. Alex recognized an opportunity to take seemingly random facts in my background and create a passionate and compelling application. I believe this is truly Alex's gift – helping bring out your story and express it in the best possible way.

Alex is definitely a strategist and will help identify and recommend how to best position your strengths and address your weaknesses. He will help clarify your career goals and express it in inspiring yet realistic way. With that said, you have to be ready for a lot of self-reflection and a lot of thought into who you are. Alex will not be a substitute for detail-oriented and tactical tasks and you will own your application, but you will get answers every step of the way. Alex is responsive to emails and has also provided plenty of phone call time.

I would recommend Alex to anyone, and especially to prospective students who may not have a traditional pre-MBA background. Alex offered his help to me when numerous other consultants did not want to put the extra effort in seeing beyond cookie-cutter check boxes. Many of those consultants advised me to target schools in the top 10-15 range.

Not only did I end up getting admitted to a few M7 programs, I received fellowships and significant tuition assistance. I could have not done this without Alex's guidance, help, and simply encouragement to push harder.

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Knowing that I had limited network resources to tap on regarding the MBA application process, it was essential that I selected the best admissions consultant who could personally guide me through the journey. I spent a considerable amount of time speaking to numerous consulting firms, and Alex stood out as he was specific in outlining his approach to my profile. I also wanted to work with a “single consultant” firm and amongst all, Alex brought in the most experience, which became clear during my application process.

Alex communicated openly and candidly as he brought me through a structured approach that he had developed for each of my applications. I appreciated how he challenged me to dig deep to craft my personal narrative and objectives, rather than providing ready-made answers that did not reflect my individuality. I am certain that it was through this process of rigorous discussion and feedback that many of his clients, including myself, were able to produce uniquely compelling and successful applications.

It is also worth mentioning that Alex made great effort to accommodate scheduling challenges, to the point of his own inconvenience. He was also an expert in pacing my rate of work while making sure that timelines were comfortably met. I worked with Alex on 4 schools in total, which was sufficient as I got into my furthest reach school: Stanford GSB.

I unreservedly and wholeheartedly recommend Alex as the top choice for anyone looking for an admissions consultant, and serious about giving themselves the best chance of getting accepted at their schools of choice.

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When I first spoke with Alex in what feels like eons ago, my first impression was that he was a thoughtful and incredibly sharp guy. He gave me great feedback and made astute observations of my candidacy right from the very beginning. Most importantly, he was honest – and I was looking for someone who wasn’t afraid to give me some “tough love” but also willing to commend me in the areas where I did good.

This was mentioned in other posts but bears repeating: Alex is the one that you will work with. This is invaluable, especially in an already opaque industry where some admissions consultants build up their workforce in the pursuit of scale and not quality. Alex approaches the MBA application process with the same rigor I would expect the schools to use in their classes. He put a lot of time into getting to know me personally and through our conversations, I was better able to understand myself. Alex’s pre-application process was extremely useful when I started writing my essays and preparing for my interviews as we had a framework to use for each and every part of the application.

For me, Alex’s greatest contribution as my consultant was his ability to help me drill down on my career purpose. I had some issues in the beginning articulating exactly what I wanted to do but my conversations with Alex and the feedback I got helped crystallize my story. He was able to take seemingly disparate parts of my work experience and extracurriculars and tailor them to each MBA program, using examples from past applications and his knowledge of the school. He meticulously went through my essays with a fine-tooth comb; we must have gone through multiple revisions and drafts for each essay. The turnaround for the edits and feedback was always within 24-48 hours. The mock interview was also a great help to me – I am not a great interviewee and Alex helped put my unease to rest by giving me useful tips and walking me through each one of my responses to provide advice on how best to approach the question. I think he is the reason I felt so confident coming out of my interviews with some of the m7 schools. Thanks to his help across all areas of my application, I will now be attending one of the top MBA programs in the country.

Lastly, Alex is fantastic to work with. He has a good heart and obviously wants his clients to succeed. He is generous with his time (he offered to help me do a mock interview for a school that wasn’t part of my package) and he genuinely wants to get to know you. Part of the value of a consultant is to have someone who can truly understand your underlying motivations almost as well (if not better) as you do. That can only happen with a large investment in the person and Alex is willing to make that sacrifice for you.

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As a young applicant coming directly out of undergraduate studies at UVA, I knew how difficult it would be to achieve my goal of securing admission into a top MBA program. Working with Alex proved to be an invaluable experience. He took the time to understand my full history – academically, athletically, and personally – and was able to help me find new ways to approach my application and tell my story in the most compelling way possible. What truly set him apart was his ability to help me tailor my resume and essays to the cultures of the programs I applied for. Alex truly makes a personal investment in each of his clients, which made working with him all the more productive and enjoyable. Thanks to Alex’s help, I’m proud to be a part of UVA Darden’s Future Year Scholars Program and will begin business school in 2020.

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