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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As an individual from a science background hoping to transition into the business world, a top MBA seemed the clear choice. What was perhaps less apparent was the route to entry. Indeed with CV's, multiple essays, recommendations and detailed written applications the process was daunting to say the least. Square One Prep, and Kathryn more specifically were truly invaluable in guiding through this process and achieving success.

Kathryn provided a rigorous, systematic approach to tackle the application. She truly got to know me as an individual - beyond the numbers, and in the process enabled me to find and express my voice throughout each and every essay. Further unlike many admissions consultants Kathryn genuinely cares for her clients, and was available day and night for advice and support!

With her help I achieved admission to my top choice business school and could not be more grateful. If your contemplating the use of Square One Prep, pull the trigger and go for it - I guarantee you won't regret it!

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I am thankful to have worked with Kathryn and John because the MBA application process is an arduous process. The time and effort they took to help shape my story and career narrative speaks to how much they care about their clients.

My free consultation call with Kathryn, the founder, demonstrated how Square One Prep does not rush with potential clients but are committed to building a partnership. She even recommended the best pricing service for the schools I selected to save me money.

I am glad to have chose John as my advisor. John took the time to address my questions and concerns and made himself available to me - he did not hesitate to talk over the phone. I appreciated his creative writing background and even-keeled personality. Kathryn's extensive knowledge and strategic advice were invaluable to my narrative and school selection. Despite a gap in my resume, they helped me get into two great schools.

I would recommend starting the process as soon as possible. Think about your story - what's driving you to get a MBA and what career field you want to get into. Good luck to future applicants!

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I was initially hesitant to use an admissions consultant, but after speaking with Kathryn I knew it was the right move. Unlike other consultants who use free consultation calls as a means to sell their services, Kathryn used the intro call to get to know me and provide thought provoking insight into my candidacy. After speaking with with a couple of Square One Prep consultants, I decided to go with Joey Siesholtz. To be clear, Joey was my main point of contact at Square One while Kathryn provided a second set of eyes and comments on all of my essays.

The rationale for selecting Square One Prep is quite simple:

They make the process manageable: The personalized schedule Kathryn and Joey made for me was invaluable throughout the process. If you’re like me and are working full-time while applying to school, the personalized schedule is an extremely helpful tool that helps ensure you’re on track to meet application deadlines. The personalized schedule also breaks down each application into manageable workloads.

They push you to dig deep: If you’re coming from a traditional background like me (e.g., finance), it’s extremely important to highlight the qualities and experiences that set you apart from the rest of the herd. Both Joey's and Kathryn’s rare ability to ask the right questions will help you do just that. I came away from our 3+ hour assessment call with tons of ideas on how to differentiate myself from the rest of my finance peers.

They are experts: If you’re like me and struggle to truly understand what admissions committees are looking for in applications, you’ll benefit from having seasoned veterans in your corner. Both Kathryn and Joey are extremely knowledgeable about all that goes into applying to b-school.

They are always available: When they say they’re available 24/7, they mean it.

For all of the reasons mentioned above, I highly recommend Square One Prep to any applicant trying to get into a top school. I can say without hesitation, I wouldn’t have been admitted to a top MBA program if it weren’t for the help of Kathryn and Joey!

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I interviewed several admissions consultants and Kathryn immediately stood out for how much time she took to get to know me and the insightful questions she asked in our initial call. These questions (describe one of your happiest moments/describe one of your saddest moments) were key in setting the tone for the self-reflection that informed my business school application process. She also gave me the confidence to apply for my dream school, HBS, with her frank assessment.

I worked with Melissa on applications to Wharton and HBS. Melissa gave thoughtful feedback and kept me on track despite illness/crazy work. Melissa was instrumental in helping me clarify my story and reason for applying to business school through the MANY drafts we did of my Wharton essays. I am not an inexperienced writer, but her feedback and revisions made my essays truly shine and took them to the next level.

The thing that stood out to me most about Square One was their care. I decided not to apply to Lauder very late (mid-Dec - after finalizing my essays!), and both Kathryn and Melissa took time to understand my thought process and for me to feel 100% comfortable in my decision even though this meant completely revising my application for Wharton.

I'll be attending HBS in the Fall and am very grateful to Kathryn and Melissa for their help in getting me there.

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Square One Prep was very helpful and a great resource throughout the application process. I started working with them in November and they helped me get together 6 applications for round 2 deadlines; which I wasn’t even sure was possible. During my introductory call with Kathryn, she pointed out some holes in career story and how I might struggle with a 690 GMAT score. These were useful, necessary things for me to hear.

I worked with Anya throughout the process and she was great. We got along very well and she was on call for me 24/7 during those 2 months. She helped me craft great stories for my essays, radically improved my resume with a lot more detail and always provided useful comments. By the time interviews came around, I felt confident and very prepared.

I ended up getting into 2 of the 6 schools with substantial scholarships, and being waitlisted at 2 others. I was very happy with the result and am eager to start in August. I know that I could not have completed all of the applications with such diligence without Kathryn and Anya’s help.

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I recently found out that I was admitted to my dream school, NYU, and I couldn’t have done it without the help of Square one Prep starting with the founder, Kathryn Lucas. Since the day that I inquired about the services that Square One provided and even though I didn’t end up using her services at the time, she stayed in touch with me and was a soundboard to me for the next four years - all for free.

When I decided to start the grad school application process, the first person I thought of was her, and although I didn’t immediately contact her she followed up with me, and her timing of reaching out to me to see how I am couldn’t have been more perfect.

I knew that I was in good hands from the beginning of the application process till the end making an overwhelming process easy to navigate. I was matched with an excellent consultant, Kunal, and he was nothing but encouraging and excited to work on my application. He took his time to understand my background in order to help me create the right tone for my Statement of Purpose. I could not be more thankful to him for keeping me focused and for providing invaluable advice and feedback as I crafted my essay and resume. He was also indispensable in guiding me and my recommenders through the LOR portion of the application, which was much trickier than I thought it would be.

I’m so happy and beyond thankful that I never lost contact with Kathryn and that she never lost interest in following up with me, a true display of rapport that speaks volumes of her and Square One Prep. Thank you Kathryn and Kunal for helping me reach my long term goal at my dream school!

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When I first began my search for a consultant, I interviewed several companies including Square One Prep. While most consultants I spoke with kept our conversations brief and mainly told me to improve my GMAT/GRE scores, Kathryn spent nearly 45 minutes on our introductory call to provide an in-depth analysis on my candidacy and strongly encouraged me to apply to schools that were ambitious yet achievable. After our conversation, I felt that Square One genuinely cared about my success and saw much more than just a test score in my application. Despite my budget constraints, Kathryn worked with me to find a flexible option that best fit my needs and worked for me financially. She also provided a number of additional helpful resources to ensure I was set up for success.

I moved forward with the hourly option to focus on essay reviews and was paired with my consultant, John. While I had a general idea of how I wanted to share my story, John was able to help me narrow down the main points and tell it in a succinct and compelling way. He was efficient with our time and I was happy with his quick feedback and response. Thanks to John's numerous edits and reviews, I felt confident submitting my application.

I was accepted at USC (w/ scholarship), Emory (w/ scholarship), UT Austin, Foster, and waitlisted at Duke. I am thrilled to share I will be attending USC's Marshall School of Business this fall as a Consortium Fellow and with a full scholarship!

I am so grateful for Square One Prep's support throughout the application process and would recommend it to anyone looking for an admissions consultant. It was absolutely worth the investment!

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I first contacted Square One Prep, and specifically its owner, Kathryn, on the recommendation of a friend. I was initially skeptical as the fees seemed high especially considering that I am an Indian applicant. But after my first discussion with her, I knew, if I had to hire an admission consultant, it would have to be her. There were consultants who tell you what to write in your applications based on what you think the Adcom wants to hear (the polar opposite of what Kathryn told me to do)! Kathryn asked me to dive deep and think about why I really want to do a MBA and tell my story based on being authentic, real. She carefully listened and analyzed my profile to provide me a path ahead for my apps that actually aligned with my passions for what is happening with the automation revolution in manufacturing. Before I talked with Kathryn I was going with the "strategy consulting" angle that other consultants had told to go with even though I couldn't really create ties to my background or excitement about the direction.

Kathryn was encouraging and positive throughout my application process. The process is stressful enough and there were times I was apprehensive about proceeding ahead. But she was always just a call or mail away to support me when required.

But even after all this, I wasn't actually successful in my first attempt in R1. But she kept my hopes up even after that. She kept guiding me on my apps for R2 and constantly checking up on me. She even offered to look at several schools essays for free because she knew I couldn't afford her, but wanted me to have the best shot. She spent hours on my work - for free. My efforts and her dedication to my efforts and me finally paid off and I got into one of my target schools!

Her moral encouragement during my initial failed attempts kept my spirits up and helped me focus in R2. She went above her role as a consultant and rather acted as a guide. She made this incredibly exhausting process worth it. had she not helped me, I would not be heading to McDonough in the fall.

I suggest anyone thinking of hiring a consultant to just set-up an initial call with Kathryn and then...I trust that will be enough for you to know that Square One is not like other companies. You will find making your decision to work with them easy.

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Square One Prep was instrumental throughout my application process! I started the applications under an extremely tight timeline and extra pressure from transitioning into a new job. I knew I wanted to apply for b-schools during round 1, but was very lost and had no idea how to achieve my goal. Kathryn convinced me that submitting my applications during round 1 was possible, crafted a detailed game plan and gave me a lot of confidence about myself. Not only is she amazingly knowledgeable about every step of the application process, she is also passionate about admissions consulting and stepped out of her way to support me throughout the process (including the pep talks that I'm so grateful for!).

John was my advisor and was also fantastic to work with, as he is a talented story-teller and really helped me to reflect and present my own story to the adcom. He was also amazingly calm, patient and approachable throughout the stressful application process. I couldn't imagine applying without SquareOne's support. Thanks to their partnership, I am now happily looking forward to attending a top b-school - with a partial scholarship! I'm forever grateful.

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