I worked with Caryn through SBC’s “all-in” program, and I can’t recommend her and the team highly enough! Coming from a traditional “finance” background, I worked with Caryn to craft and refine my unique voice and story throughout my applications. Thanks to her guidance, I was fortunate to be admitted to both HBS and Wharton (w/ $).

SBC’s approach is highly organized and personalized from the outset. After being paired with Caryn through their “matchmaking” process, we engaged in several exercises designed to help me organize my experiences, articulate my “why,” and craft a compelling narrative. From the start, I knew Caryn and I would be a great fit. She’s a master of organization – something I needed as I tend to be a bit scatter-brained. With her structure and guidance, I never felt overwhelmed by the complex timelines and tasks involved in the application process. In addition, Caryn’s deep experience – both in admissions and as an SBC consultant – proved invaluable as a brainstorming partner as I developed my story and essays. Her candid, direct feedback pushed me to do my best, keeping me honest and ensuring my application was as strong as possible.

In addition to working with Caryn, I took advantage of SBC’s mid-summer flight test (a third-party review of my application) and received tailored interview prep for Wharton (with Anthony) and HBS (with Ashley). These sessions gave me helpful insights into the nuances of each interview, preparing me with a clear framework to attack interview prep and boosting my confidence. I felt fully supported by SBC’s team throughout the entire process, and I truly appreciated how invested the team was in helping me achieve the best outcome possible.

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Strengths:

- Round-the-clock support
- Interview simulation with Interviewing.com
- AdCom simulation with Flight Test
- Application insights from previous participants
- Insider perspectives from previous AdCom

Would make the product better:

N/A

The SBC platform and all-in package truly cover all your bases. Between threading employment history to framing goals, it's a complex process that requires thoughtful guidance. My application was unique with both a business reorganization and contract work, but Amy and the Stacy Blackman Consulting (SBC) team handled it beautifully. Amy acted as both guide and therapist by asking the right questions and presenting my journey as an asset rather than a liability.

When assessing admissions consultants, I considered other, large elite firms like mbaMission and Fortuna Admissions. I ultimately selected SBC because I had a narrow window to apply and needed holistic support for optimal results. With other firms, I doubted whether their services were additive to what I could accomplish on my own. SBC proved genuinely valuable, especially in unique situations that aren't solvable through forums.

Thanks again Amy Hazen (Consultant), Esther Magna (Matchmaker), and Megan Stiphany (Flight Tester). This was one of my best investments.

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Strengths:

- Wonderful consultants who are either alumni or former admission officers at top schools
- Extensive array of resources, including interview prep, past essays, and resume templates

Would make the product better:

N/A

Working with SBC helped me get 2 offers (HBS MS/MBA, Kellogg MMM) and 1 waitlist (Sloan).

The SBC process was incredibly smooth from start to finish. As I was considering various firms (Fortuna Admissions and mbaMission), I had a call with Sarah Tsai to inquire about SBC's process. She was very transparent, could answer all my questions in great detail, and her insights were super helpful.

When it was time for me to be matched to a consultant, there were plenty of amazing options as the SBC team includes lots of former admissions officers, many of whom were affiliated with the top schools on my list. Yvette stood out because, in addition to her being an HBS alum, we share an engineering background, and she blazed her own path towards PM and entrepreneurship, which I also hope to do. A huge plus was her great familiarity with joint degrees like the MS/MBA and MMM, which were at the top of my list. As we worked on 3 schools together for R1, Yvette helped me tell my story better than I ever could have on my own, and truly boosted my confidence despite concerns I had over my GPA and GRE.

I also really appreciated having access to the broader SBC network, particularly through my flight test with Kim (former adcom) who provided amazing feedback on my essays and resume, helping me to refine my story and tie it all together. I also used many other resources offered by SBC including its extensive Vault database with past essay examples, interview questions, etc. and prepped for my interviews with Yvette in such a way that I could easily come up with answers specific to both the MBA and the MS portions of my application.

Overall, I really recommend working with SBC to anyone looking to tell their story, no matter how complex, in a way that will impress the adcom.

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My experience with SBC was ideal, helping me get into my dream schools! Beth Tidmarsh, my consultant, was so supportive and easy to work with—no question was ever too small. Her reviews were extremely detail-oriented and her experience as a former Admissions Director really shined through. The whole SBC team was great too -- I appreciated being matched directly with a consultant who fit my needs, instead of searching for someone myself. The all-in package was no-hassle. It included everything from interview prep to a Flight Test (mine was from Caryn) without any add-on fees or confusion. I couldn’t have completed the process without the whole team.

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Strengths:

-1:1 Consultant Match
-Plethora of resources to help prepare you for the application and interviews
-Additional in-house services to help strengthen your application

SBC is an amazing MBA consulting organization that provides a multitude of services to help you reach your MBA goals. They have a holistic vetting process so that you are matched with your ideal consultant that really helps you stand out and highlight your strengths as an applicant. The organization takes a team-based approach with an initial match maker, an anonymous flight tester, that reviews your application and provides feedback, in addition to a ton of resources and data to help you through the process. I could not recommend them enough. They helped me gain admission to Darden and Ross (w/ scholarship) and I truly could not have done it without them.

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Strengths:

Accessibility, experts on programs, honest feedback, organization and timeline support, and a full team willing to support each client.

Would make the product better:

No feedback

Had a great experience working with SBC through the all-in package for 4 schools, resulting in 3 admissions and 1 waitlist. I worked with Sarah Tsai who matched me to Beth Tidmarsh. Beth was an incredible resource for me offering constructive and supportive feedback on resume building, preparing my recommenders, iterating on essay ideas and drafts, and offering guidance on just about every aspect of my application. She has a deep understanding of each program's culture and helped capture aspects of my experiences and personality that match what each school is looking for in a candidate. She was incredibly attentive to my requests and questions and always got back to me quickly with a thoughtful response. Most importantly, she helped keep me on track to application deadlines and space out the work over an extended period of time so I never felt too overwhelmed. Huge kudos to Beth and the entire SBC team who contributed to my success!

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I worked with Caryn on 3 schools for round 1, and was fortunate enough to gain admission to both HBS and Stanford GSB. Caryn was my accountability partner throughout my process – she kept me on track, focused on what mattered most, and helped me craft my past experiences into a compelling story. I had a bit of a varied background in terms of my career to-date, and Caryn helped me package my experiences in a great way to demonstrate what I cared about most. She also helped me deliver the most impactful stories and anecdotes to use for my essays, which I think made all the difference for me for HBS and GSB.

I was able to take what I learned from my work with Caryn and apply it to my other schools, and ended up with acceptances from Kellogg (with $), Columbia, Stern, and Sloan (with $). Without Caryn's guidance, I don't think I would have gotten these results.

I also leveraged SBC's HBS and Wharton interview prep, which I found to be super helpful. It was a big investment, but I treated it as an investment in myself: I wanted to put my best foot forward, and it definitely paid off.

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Only have really positive things to say about Caryn and the whole Stacy Blackman team. From the very beginning, things were organized and set up to help applicants truly understand what their b-school story was. I remember at first feeling very worried about the process as I was coming from a fairly traditional finance background with a below average gmat score for my target / dream schools. Caryn was extremely helpful in helping me figure out my "why" and I fully believe it was one of the largest contributors to my success throughout the process.

I think many people question whether the price tag for consultants is worth it and I can fully say that if business school is a goal of yours and you have specific dream schools in mind, Caryn or anyone from the Stacy Blackman team is worth it. They keep you motivated, organized, prepared and so much more. I ended up applying to only CBS and Wharton, both reaches with my profile, and got accepted to both.

Thanks again Caryn and whole SBC team!

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From start to finish, my experience working with Stacy Blackman and my consultant Beth was nothing short of fantastic. I embarked on this journey after speaking with eight different consultants from firms like mbaMission and Stratus, but SBC immediately stood out. From my introductory call with Bill to ultimately working closely with Beth for Round 1 admissions, I felt supported end-to-end.

Through my work with Beth, I was fortunate to be admitted to Kellogg, Tuck, Fuqua, and Darden, all with varying levels of scholarship, and I could not be more thrilled with my outcomes. I truly feel like Beth’s experience as a former Kellogg AdComm member was an incredible differentiator.

I knew going into my MBA admissions process, I wanted to work with someone who believed in me and my application. I instantly clicked with Beth’s warm demeanor, and I knew she would provide equal doses of encouragement and honesty at the right times. Through the highs and lows of the process, Beth was there every step of the way and was always able to be reached. I could not recommend working with her and the rest of the SBC team more for anyone going through MBA admissions!

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Lisa and the entire SB team helped demystify the MBA application journey. I had no idea what to expect and they helped level set and create a game plan for success. I had an initial conversation with Bill who then recommended Lisa as my primary consultant. Lisa helped me think about career goals, what aspects of a school I want, and break down the application process. We created a schedule so I would get my applications in on time and was always there to help answer questions I had.

After initial discussions with Lisa, I decided to apply to a broad range of schools and ended up getting admitted to CBS, UVA, UNC , UT McCombs, USC and UCLA. I even managed to walk away with a full ride and half ride to a few schools. I definitely could not have done this without Lisa and the entire SB teams' support.

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