Kathryn and Square One Prep, through the full service package and my advisor Joan, were instrumental in my acceptance into top notch business schools with scholarship money! From my first time on the phone with Kathryn, during our free consultation, to the end of the process, it was clear that she not only cared, but had the skills and work-ethic to help me reach my goals. I used the full service package, which helped me shape my story - so that business school adcoms would relate and warm to my interests, passions, hopes, and dreams -, fine tune the actions and results I needed to display in my resume, and brainstorm/work on essays, which my consultant and I must have gone back and forth on over 20 times. Kathryn and I also went through a mock interview where she pointed out my strengths and my opportunities for improvement, helping me feel comfortable with the process. Finally, Kathryn and I spoke at length about which school was best for me, helping to give me clarity once I heard back from schools. Really though, what separated Square One Prep for me all the way through the process was Kathryn's passion and interest in my success!"

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Square one has my unqualified endorsement. While it is impossible to know what would have been without their help, it's hard to imagine that I would have gone 5/6 for interview invitations and ultimately been accepted to 3 including STANFORD without it. Kathryn and John pushed me to dig deeper and develop my narrative to help me stand out from the crowd.

I can also say that they without a doubt made the process far less painful and stressful than it would have been on my own. I interviewed a number of companies and Kathryn seemed more supportive and honest from the beginning. I have already recommended them to friends.

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I worked with Kathryn Lucas and Melissa Chan for my 2017 R1 bschool applications. I would recommend them to anyone hoping to succeed with the demanding application process.

INITIAL CALL - Unlike some other admission consultants who basically snoozed through the 30-minute initial assessment call, Kathryn dedicated over an hour listening to my “story” and providing feedback. A few weeks later, when I abruptly lost my job and was unsure if applying to bschool 2017 R1 cycle was even possible, Kathryn spent the next few months answering several emails and fielding calls from me as I tried to figure my life out. She was there for me every step of the way as I recruited for jobs and helped me assess if the job was a right fit for me and my post-MBA goals. She also did all this free of charge.

RESUME – Melissa and Kathryn helped me restructure my resume so that it was layman friendly and captured a bigger story about myself. Bschool resumes aren’t job-hunting resumes, and so they needed to be written to highlight certain things that a regular resume wouldn’t highlight. This fact gets easily missed, and SOP was very helpful in educating me about this and guiding me through recrafting my resume.

LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION – Letters of recommendation are a tricky thing to handle due to sheer amount of work you’re asking other people to do for you. A lot of applicants struggle with streamlining this process. SOP’s LOR framework is AMAZING. There are a lot of tricks and nuances to the LOR process that would be lost on the usual applicant; working with SOP definitely opened my eyes to all those nuances.

ESSAYS – This area is where Melissa was most invaluable. I’m not an inexperienced writer, and I have friends who are good writers. One would think that by leveraging the skills and network I already had, I could churn out decent essays. Wrong. Bschool essays are a special beast. Not only do you need to get the mechanics correct, but what kind of story you tell and the way you tell it is very hard to nail down correctly. Melissa asked thought-provoking questions that helped me draw out interesting and personal aspects of my story, while pushing me to be disciplined about editing out extraneous information that didn’t add to my application. I went through over a dozen drafts of each essay, and when I was flailing about navel-gazing, Melissa helped me forcibly steer the essay back on track. A lot of Melissa’s critical feedback was on-point. Melissa was also good about letting my essays reflect my voice. I have a particular writing style and voice, which Melissa recognized, and she didn’t try to force me into writing in a way that wasn’t me.

INTERVIEW – Doing a comprehensive run through with Melissa was helpful because it illuminated areas I needed to practice. For interviews, I would also recommend applicants to reach out to people at the schools they’re interviewing at to practice school-specific questions.

END RESULTS – I applied to 4 schools, admitted to 1, and waitlisted at 1. I’ll be working with SOP through the waitlist process and figuring out next steps. I am relieved and excited because I really questioned my chances when I embarked on this process.

SUMMARY (the tldr version) – I think almost every bschool applicant could benefit from engaging with a good admissions consultant. I have friends at all the top bschools, who went through the application process, and their feedback/advice was nowhere as comprehensive and nuanced as what I received from working with Melissa/Kathryn. Just on the essay part alone, the revisions I received from friends were completely lightweight relative to the revisions I received from Melissa. Also, no friend is going to work with you through a dozen drafts of essays, resumes, etc. (or maybe I need better friends). That being said, Square One Prep goes beyond merely good to superb. They’ll help you towards success, and through the process, you’ll learn a lot about yourself, personally and professionally.

If you’re applying to bschool, call Square One Prep. Your first call with Kathryn will be illuminating and will tell you that you’re in capable hands.

[4/25/17 UPDATE] - I got off the waitlist at my waitlisted school the same day that R2 decisions were released. Melissa/Kathryn were instrumental in helping me craft the letter that ultimately moved the needle on the waitlist decision. They shared with me a portfolio of previous successful waitlist letters, which pointed me in the right direction of how to approach letter-writing. Most importantly, after I submitted my first letter draft, Melissa/Kathryn gave me a very blunt assessment that the draft was not up to par and would not suffice. I had to go back to the drawing board and rework my entire letter. When I was spinning circles (again), Melissa really pushed me to dig in deep about why and how I (emphasis on I) could contribute to and benefit from the school. This ultimately helped me come up with a letter that did the job. I'm very thankful for Melissa/Kathryn being frank with me, and not letting me slide. If they had not, I would probably still be languishing on the waitlist right now.

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I strongly recommend Square One Prep for anyone going through the MBA application process. From my very first call with Kathryn, I could tell Square One was not like other MBA consulting companies. I come from a non-traditional background and was unsure of the strength of my application. Instead of focusing on a specific score or one part of my application, Kathryn took a holistic approach during my initial consultation. She was the first consultant I talked to who didn't crush my dreams of a top-MBA program because of my lack of a high GMAT score. From that moment forward, Square One was instrumental to my success. I was paired with Crystal as my one-on-one Advisor. Crystal was very knowledgable about the entire process and was great at helping me frame my overall story and craft impactful and powerful essays. She was willing to work on as many drafts as necessary to make each essay perfect and her honest feedback and suggestions were critical in pushing me to put together the best application possible. In addition to essays, Crystal helped me narrow down my list of schools, gather my recommendations, questions for school visits, and interview prep. Crystal's commitment to my success was evident in everything she did. I ended the process with clarity about my future and acceptance into a top MBA program.

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I worked with Melissa from the Square One Prep team for 4-5 b school applications across Round 1 & 2. I was working under a strict deadline for my Round 1 applications and thanks to Melissa, we could turn around quality essays and applications in time. She was strict and constantly kept pushing me to improve my essay writing and to deliver on timelines. I was especially happy about the fact that she didn’t just give me the “ideal” answers/essays that I should write in my application. She actually pushed me to think what I really wanted to do and come up with my own story that actually helped me relate better to what I wrote and made it easy to justify during my interviews. Further, the material we worked on in the first few applications, I could re-use later for my other applications as well. I am finally heading to NYU Stern and really excited about it. I would surely recommend them.

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I had a very postitive experience working with Square One. Joey was supportive about my decision to apply to the two schools we discussed and I felt that he kept me on a good schedule for completing the necessary work.

Kathryn and Joey's insights into how my essays might be interpreted were also very helpful. They were a good team in advising on how to craft the most logical and compelling story for my background. We spent a lot of time bouncing ideas off of each other regarding anecdotes to include in my essays which I found useful. Additionally the intro call where we talked through the entire process and I told joey my story was crucial in helping me get a sense of the story direction I wanted to take.

I also appreciated how accessible and easy to reach they both were. I would recommend working with them both.

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Square One Prep and especially Kathryn were instrumental in my success to get a top MBA (Harvard).
Before discussing with Kathryn, I did not really believe that I could stand a chance to get into a top MBA. By discussing several times with her even before we formally started working together, I started believing in myself and I got the confidence that I could aim for the top with Kathryn's support and guidance.
Kathryn was a great support throughout the application process, from the initial draft of the timeline all the way to the coaching for interviews.
She was fully dedicated to her mission and she made herself available whenever I needed her, even on a very short notice. Kathryn acted as a passionate coach and ensured that I met all the interim deadlines she set for me. Moreover she really helped me translate my experience to the best application possible and I do think that this was key in my success.
I deeply appreciated Kathryn’s honesty in her approach. She made sure that I understood that success would come from my hard work and that I was fully committed to get the best outcome.
Finally Kathryn is a nice and charming person and I enjoyed discussing with her even beyond the framework of the MBA applications.
Keep up the good work Kathryn!
Thank you for everything!

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I used another well known consultant last year and the result was disastrous - all top schools rejected me. This year I worked with Kathryn and John and couldn't have made a better decision. I will be attending a top 5 school this fall! This is the best I could have hoped for coming from an over-represented background. From the first call with Kathryn, I knew she was different. The confidence she showed in me was unlike the consultants I spoke with.

I feel the most important part of the process is to determine your goals and why you need an MBA. Last year I did not spend enough time thinking about this and in fact the guidance I got from the consultant last year was the worst anyone could have given. The goals did not make sense at all and did not connect at all with my past. This year, we spent so much time thinking about my goals and connecting them with my past. My goals this year were ambitious and exciting at the same time and I think it made the difference.

Once my goals were set, we moved on to resume and essay writing. The resume I began with I thought was great but after working with Kathryn and John, the resume was totally transformed. I was focussing on stuff that did not matter to the adcoms. My consultant spent about 4 to 5 hours just talking to me about my background and the work I do. We then converted the content we had into bullet points and went through several iterations. The difference in the resume was day and night.

Many applicants including me think that the essays is a writing competition and so if you write great English you will get through. After working with Kathryn and John, I realized that the language isn't as important as it is made to be, the content is the meat of the essay. My essays this year were strong not just content-wise but language wise too and they still had my voice. We started by deciding the content of the essay and then mapped that to structure the essays. We then fleshed out the details and went through several iterations.

More importantly, Kathryn is really invested in your success. She really cares about you and will go the extra step to make you comfortable. As a re-applicant, it was hard for me to trust any advice initially given the bad experience last year. Kathryn got on the phone with me often in the initial stages and was patient throughout the process, something I really respect as I was not the easiest applicant to work with.

Overall, I ended up getting invitations to interview from 4 out of 5 top schools and got admitted to one of my dream schools. After last year's results, I thought I had no chance at these top schools, especially since I was coming from a over-represented background. But working with Square One Prep made all the difference. For anyone considering using Square One Prep, think about the investment as something that will increase your odds. If you are an Indian, the odds are against you and Square One Prep will give you the edge you need over others.

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When I started my B school Application I had only 4 weeks time before the dDeadlines.   And I thought it would be prudent to take help of an aAdmissions consultant.   I contacted all the top aAdmissions consultants and most of them took their own sweet time getting back to me and when we talked they said they had set streams of processes that took a certain amount of time, no and were taking their own sweet time.  I needed a consultant who is nimble fast and caters to the individual needs of the client rather than one type fits all. - Assembly line type of consultation Then I called Squareoneprep after seeing some amazing Reviews about Kathryn on Gmatclub.

Most of the Free consults lasted for 30 min and everyone agreed with my story and said you I have a great story and chances to make it into your my dream school.  I always felt something amiss when I heard that. They were all too fast with their assessment. WBut when I talked to Kathryn (the talk went on for more than 80 min) she was very outright and critical of my story.  She said your my story is the same run of the mill story told by every other Indian B school applicant and pushed me to tell her what I REALLY want to do. She sensed I was holding back. 
Then I stated the real intention of my planing to join B schoolwhat I sincerely want to do with my life which and she told was the one which will work really well for megot excited for me, immediately helping me think through why I need B school and why this is the much stronger narrative. She took in great details of the game changing projtect I had done in India with all the figures statistics and results ( I still feel even my B school real interviews didn't ask so many questions). She learned so much about me, and after doing so she  
Then she suggested that I need to look into Harvard Kennedy school also along with the B Schools I was looking at.  I never thought I couldan make it to Harvard but Kathryn's suggestion made me look into it and I took the Decision to apply for HKs along with other B schools 
to it, Then she suggested I take work with Julia Kurnik as consultant foron my applications as she was HKS and MIT and Wharton graduate.  
I was apprehensive about taking using the same consultant for all my 3 school applications.  
But Kathryn knew what she was doing.
and then I started working with Julia 
Julia is one of the most patient understanding and genuine persons whopeople I will have ever meet.   She has great CV which we can only dream off.   She is an entrepreneur and innovation prize winner in MIT.   But she is so humble. I cherished working with her. and it was such a pleasure working on my applications with her . I always used to go intoften felto self doubt but Julia always kept my spirits up by saying I have a great CV and story to tell. S 
But she never overpromised but always cautioned me to be prepared for any eventuality as I was applying for only the Top 3 B schools. S
She spent lot of time understanding my rResume, my work, and My extracurricular activities, my life and my story. We had very little time to prepare my applications. But she gave me a detailed timeline to show me how we would get everything done. Even when I had personal issues that got in the way,
We had very less time 
SOP gave me a timeline 
But I had some personal issues lot of travel in midst that short time 
But Julia always persisted in getting the work done on time with me. In fact we finished all the applications well before the deadline. My resume had to be mMade into many versions of one page two page three page for different schools.  She did it with aplomb.
And tThe highlight of our application was the way she turned helped me with my essays.  I can say Sshe metamorphosed them from a caterpillar into beautiful butterfly. That is the biggest strength of Julia. Kathryn's inputs for my essays was also very crucial. She has an eye of a a business school Adcom and looks at the essays very critically. Her inputs gave me incisive inputs to change my essays and make them very powerful and strong 
Letter of recommendations was another well guided process. Julia gave me all the questions of LOR of B schools categorized into subject wise. This made it very easy for my Recommenders to write the LORs. Or else gGetting some highly placed people with so little time to write LORs for 4 schools is not a easy task. My LORs also came out well due to this process. And then we submitted the applications. Till I got the results I was very apprehensive and Julia always soothed my nerves. saying you will make it  Then I got my first interview call. The mock interview and the inputs about interview wereas so good that I didn't have any issue in doing my actual interview well.  

The most important feedback I want to give is that SOP always responded in any time of the day or week. I always think Kathyrn virtually never sleeps. And Julia has gone out of her way to respond to me calls and queries even the ones which were outside the purview of our contract. It shows the genuinine concern they have for their clients. Once she had a car break down in middle of the highway but still she didnt miss our call. And this is inspite of the fact that we had 12 hours time difference

Today I got into my dream schools, HKS and Sloan, and SOP has played a great role in achieving my dream.  

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The short version: I got into NYU Stern and got a full scholarship – about $150,000. It just feels unreal: looking back, I'm so glad I decided to contact Kathryn and Square One Prep. I wouldn't have gotten in without their help (see below for more details).

The longer version: before getting in touch with Square One Prep, I had already tried doing a couple of applications on my own and gotten rejected. Over several months, I had put in dozens of hours into my applications, looked through different MBA-related message boards for tips, etc. It was rough when I got rejected from both schools, so I decided to get help.

I didn't get started with Square One Prep until the end of November—and I was aiming to submit my application by the start of January. Adding to these challenges: I was already busy with a full and part time job, and prepping to get married the following month. It was probably the most stressful time in my life, and I didn't know if I'd be able to finish my application materials in time.

But despite the crazy schedule, Kathryn and my advisor rose to the challenge: They helped me get everything done on time, but more importantly, while putting together an awesome application. (That said, I encourage anyone thinking about Square One to contact them earlier and just see what you think. If you're already deeper into the process like I was, it's not the end of the world—but I know for myself, having extra time would have let me put more time into the application and made the process a lot less stressful!).

Square One was great in helping plan out work (I'm pretty disorganized in general). But for me it was the resume and essays – the two parts of my previous applications where I thought I had done pretty well – that really drove home how much stronger my new application had become with their help. Job-wise, I felt like I didn't really have many "accomplishments" to speak of, but my advisor helped me draw out details and points I hadn't thought of and put them together in one comprehensive and coherent document.

I have a pretty odd employment background too (switched from academia to freelance to marketing), so figuring out how to weave that into a coherent narrative and hit on the right themes within my essays was invaluable. On a micro level in my essays, Square One's feedback – from the flow of ideas, to grammar, to cadence – was great too. Having worked as an editor, I've seen lots of good and bad writing over the years... but when it comes to improving your own work it really helps to get feedback from others who truly know their stuff.

Both Kathryn and my advisor were very generous with their time, and helped me clarify a lot of questions and fuzzy areas outside the application itself: looking at why/if NYU Stern program was the best fit for me, weighing alternate schools I hadn't considered, etc. They were great with answering my many miscellaneous questions too. Even though I had done a lot of research online over the previous year, there's just so much vague and contradictory advice out there about schools, GMAT prep, essays, and so on. (If you're doing that research now, I feel your pain). The peace of mind I got from being able to ask my advisor questions point blank and get clear, thoughtful answers was just invaluable.

If it's not clear by now, working with Square One was absolutely the right choice for me. I'm also glad I did the comprehensive services package. I'm not what the "average" applicant looks like, but I'm not rich... I have assume that for many other people too, it's not easy to come up with thousands of dollars for a service like this. But the level of support, guidance and expertise I got made it 100% worth it. Square One helped make my application so much stronger, and it made all the difference in the world.

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