To understand how good Donna Bauman is, I will first need to tell you a little bit about myself. I am from, perhaps, the most over-represented candidate pool (Indian male), and to complicate matters, I applied with a low GMAT, low GPA, middling extra-curricular activities, and (in my opinion) decent work experience in finance. With Donna’s help, I will now be attending one of H/S/W in the fall! Unequivocally, this would not have been possible without her.

I interviewed a lot of admission consultants, but what set Donna apart was her commitment, candor, and experience. Let me elaborate. Donna has a ton of experience working as an admissions committee member, and this gives her a unique sense of how best to position your story. Having been on the other side, she will be able to give you insights into how your application would likely be perceived by the admissions committee. International candidates, this is especially important for you. Donna has seen thousands of applications from international candidates. As an Indian male, I came from an incredibly competitive pool, but Donna’s insights helped me differentiate my application, and play up my strengths to help compensate for the low GPA and GMAT.

But there are other ex-adcoms in the admissions consulting biz, so what sets Donna apart? Her candor and commitment. From my first consultation call, she was honest with me. She straight up told me that H/S/W would be a very uphill climb, but that she would do everything in her power to help me achieve that goal. I respected her honesty, and continued to see it throughout the application process. In addition to her honesty, Donna was extremely supportive and provided me with a very personalized experience. Right from the beginning, she challenged me to introspect deeper. She took the effort to really get to know me – where I come from, where I want to go, what my beliefs and motivations were, in order to better help me tell my story.

Donna reviewed innumerable edits (on outlines, essays, resumes, emails) right until the very end, and went above and beyond what I expected– offering so much time to my story building, essays, navigating recommenders, and interview practice (even to schools I didn’t apply to with her). She was very patient with my million questions and edits. She would reply very promptly (same day), devoted an incredible amount of time to my application, and came up with insightful suggestions, edits and reviews to help me tell my story better and to tailor it effectively to each school.

I would be remiss to not mention my senior strategist, Harold, as well. Harold’s experience with finance candidates is invaluable. But more than his experience with finance candidates, he has an acute understanding of what each school wants to hear, and was so incredibly encouraging – especially at critical moments when I needed it. I very much appreciated his help in building my story, and his insightful comments on my essay outlines and the essays themselves, and would not have been able to turn out the applications I did without his help. Harold needs to be your senior strategist.

To summarize: Go with Donna! I am so grateful for everything she did for me. Yes, using an admissions consultant is pricey, but it is well worth getting into your dream school. I am confident that Donna will help you tell your best possible story. Not only is she an amazing admissions consultant, she is also such a great person, and I wholeheartedly recommend her to you.

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Melisa was wonderful to work with! She provided great feedback on resume and essays, was always willing to help, and go above and beyond. She was always prompt at responding, and would check-in anytime I fell off the wagon due to work deadlines. I worked with her mostly over email, except for the first skype call. The communication was great (even when I was traveling with a 10+hr time difference) and timely. She really helped me stay on track and submit a stellar application. I got into the school of my choice (Berkeley Haas) and Melisa's help played a huge role.

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I had a rudimentary idea of what I wanted to write about, but working with my Stratus Prep Counselor elevated my essays to a higher level and helped me craft a unique story that wove together my passions, experiences and goals. Beyond the technical aspects, my Counselor helped me maintain sanity through the stressful MBA admissions process and gave me invaluable advice and inspiration when I needed it most. Ultimately, I was invited to interview at 7 of 8 schools and was accepted into my preferred program. I firmly believe that Stratus Prep strengthened my candidacy tremendously. I highly recommend that others consider their services!

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Stratus Admissions was exactly what I was looking for in a MBA admissions consultant. I originally signed up for the two school package with Donna Bauman and could not have been happier with my selection.

Overall, everyone from the senior strategists to the sales team makes you feel as if you are their only client. My admissions consultant, Donna, was wonderful throughout the R1 and R2 admissions process. She really pushed me to dig deep and encouraged me to slow down, reflect, and put my best application forward. During the application process, Donna was there for my every question and always available to bounce ideas off of, even on the weekends! The thoughtfulness of Donna's feedback and advice throughout my business school application process really made me feel as if I were her only client.

Additionally, what I really found unique and beneficial about Stratus was the team-based approach whereby a senior strategist and school-specific reviewer were available to share their expertise, rather than just be isolated to a single consultant.

This fall, I was fortunate enough to be accepted into a M7 MBA program. I highly recommend Stratus Admissions if you are considering applying to a MBA program. Although costly, the benefits gained from having someone to continually motivate and push you to put your best work product forward throughout the grueling admissions process are priceless.

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Traci Thibodeaux and the Stratus team are amazing, it was one of the best decisions I have ever made and it is well worth it. They are well engaged and strive to help you succeed, at many times more engaged than you are yourself, they are seasoned professionals who have gone through the process. I learnt so much about myself and although it may sound cliche, self-reflection is truly needed during the application process. The coaching is so valuable that it reassured me and gave me the confidence I needed in proceeding further. Choosing to apply to bschool is a huge decision and a big investment and I would take countless hours consuming all the free webinars available (which was still great help) but it did not get me to where I needed and I am glad I took the dive and worked with Stratus. I'm writing this review because I feel so blessed to be accepted that this is the only way I know how to say thank you and pass on the greatness I experienced.

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In short, Stratus has helped to me to get into my dream school, a top top MBA program.

My primary counselor is Donna, and my senior strategist is Susan. I initially signed up for the four school package. Then I added three more schools in R2.

Reasons why I really enjoyed working with Donna

1)She was extremely responsible and fully committed to my success. Her average turnover time was about 24 hours. She was incredibly responsive even throughout the holiday seasons.

2)She took the time to get to know me as a person. I felt that I was being treated as a friend or a family member. One example to demonstrate that, she actually suggested that I should not waste my money to apply to the seventh school on my list (which was another safe school) when I was accepted by my dream school, even though she would make less money as a result. I also met her in person when I was visiting UNC. She showed me around town and bought me lunch before my interview.

3)She is remarkably knowledgeable about UNC and Kellogg. If you are specifically interested in these two great schools, she is the person to go to. She had worked on the admissions team at UNC for many years. Nobody knows UNC better than she does. As a Kellogg alum who had interviewed applicants in the past, she knows how to prepare you for anything.

Reasons why I am glad I chose Stratus

1)Their 4+ school guarantee made me feel secure about spending this amount of money, even though I was lucky not to end up using it.

2)The secondary viewer was particularly helpful at helping me identify possible weaknesses that I had missed.

3)My senior strategist Susan knew about every school inside and out. Even though I did not work with her directly, she helped me to build the framework in my every essay.

4)When I was accepted into a school, I was personally congratulated by everyone on the team


I also want to let you guys know that I had contacted five admissions consulting companies in total. Here are my experience at the other four companies:

Company A: Very fast response and I was able to schedule 30 minutes Skype call with a consultant for free evaluation. The consultant whom I spoke to was professional and knowledgeable. The only concern I had was that he did not have any experience working on the admissions team.

Company V: The person I spoke to said that I could not talk with one of their consultants because they have to “protect” them. I was offended by this statement. I am here to give you a chance to convince me to give you my money, why would you need protection?? You need to be protected from what?! What was also really annoying about this company was that they called my cell number and Skyped me at least seven times after I clearly said that I would contact them if I decided to use their services.

Company P: They replied to my request for profile evaluation two weeks later. At that time, I had already signed up with Stratus.

Company S: The lady I spoke to was typing the whole time during our 10 minutes conversation. She also said something about “you better sign up now because we are almost full.” I just did not like the way I was treated.

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I was first introduced to Stratus Prep through the MBA Tour in 2012. It wasn't until nearly three years later that I decided I wanted to apply to business school. Although I was applying in Fall 2016, I began working with Stratus Prep in early 2015 which I highly recommend. As a female living in NYC with 4+ years of work experience and a decent GRE score (I did not use GMAT scores) I felt as though I was a good business school applicant but definitely wanted help in shaping my story and putting together the best possible application - this is where Stratus Prep came in!
From the very beginning, even before I came up with a list of schools or even looked at the application, I was given work to help me fully understand why I wanted to go to business school and what my goals were. At Stratus Prep you work most closely with one advisor but every piece of work you put together - introspection, outlines, application - goes through multiple views and proofreads. From a comprehensive timeline of when each piece was due to my advisor to interview prep and every little question in between, having a team there to answer my questions and give me peace of mind was invaluable.
Although I do not yet know where exactly I will be attending school next fall, I have already been accepted to a top ranked program and I know I could not have done it without the entire Stratus Prep team, particularly my advisor Susan Cera.
The business school application process is draining and a lot of work but working with Susan and all of Stratus prep made the experience much more enjoyable and ultimately successful!

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I applied for my MBA after only 2 years of work experience so I knew I would need help developing my story. I did initial consultations with a lot of programs but Stratus was one of the few who believed I could do my MBA despite having only a few years of work experience and a biology background.

Donna and the Stratus team helped me overcome my low work experience to not only get admitted to 3 of the 4 schools I applied to but also receive scholarships to all of them.

Donna was easily accessible via email or phone and responded to my inquiries within a few hours. With her help, I was less stressed and was able to finish applications well before the deadline. Donna went above and beyond to help me not only with applications and school choices but also with interviews. She even took the time to meet me in person before an on-campus interview and coached me in person.

I had a fantastic experience with Donna and the rest of the Stratus team. They pushed me to dig deeper and present a story I was proud of. Donna was really invested in my applications and I am so grateful for her help. Overall, Stratus Prep exceeded my expectations and I would definitely recommend them, especially Donna to anyone who is applying for business school. I’m not sure I would have gotten in without her help.

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I had an amazing experience with Stratus Prep. Although I experienced serious sticker shock at how much admissions consultants cost, I ended up with a full ride to my perfect school so that investment paid off 20 fold!

I worked with Susan Cera who I cannot say enough good things about. I was initially matched with her because she understood my athletic background and I was considering programs like Fuqua (where she went and worked as an AdCom). She responded to emails almost always within 24 hours, even when I gave her a ton of items to review. I got emails back on nights and weekends very regularly and she worked with my schedule as needed.

I knew vaguely what I wanted to do with my career but was so lost about how to craft my story. We jumped through dozen of possible career paths and she helped me not only write my story, but also discover what I am really passionate about and how I can apply that to my career. By walking through it SO MANY times with Susan, I had my elevator speech down to a science when asked why am MBA and why now!

The introspective period is very intense and at times I ended up writing some stories for Susan to review that I thought were dumb but she ended up showing me how we could show my personality traits with little tidbits from my past woven through my essays and application. Probably the most value came from various Stratus coaches telling me when my essays were off the mark, rambling, or just nonsensical. I wrote several essays that I thought were good but Stratus pushed me to go deeper. I can say without a doubt that I would not have turned in essays that were anywhere close to as good without Stratus.

Overall, I had an amazing experience and would hire them again in a heartbeat. You only get one chance to go to business school, give yourself all the tools to go to the absolutely best program for you.

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I had a fantastic experience working with Temitope Abereoje and John Buckingham (both HBS alumni), and was accepted at HBS, Wharton and Booth. Temi was my day to day contact, working closely with me on drafting my story, translating that into essays, and going over resume and interview preparation. John was the senior adviser and provided feedback on final versions of my essays as well as interview prep.

Highlights from my experience:
- Greatly appreciated Temi’s turnaround time and detailed feedback on my essay drafts, and any questions I had. Due to work demands I often didn’t have as long a lead time as suggested, but she still managed to review my work under tight timelines and provided clear suggestions that I really think notably improved my story / overall application
- One time I had an urgent question late at night and she made herself available immediately at 10pm to speak on the phone with me – that’s how helpful she was
- Most memorable part was how kind, thoughtful and funny she was – it felt like I was talking with a friend, she’d been through the process herself. E.g., when it came to interview prep, she helped identify subtle gesture and wording changes I should work on to strike the right impression
- John was also invaluable in providing honest, school-specific advice and improving the direction of my essays and confidence entering the interviews

Consultants may not be for everyone – I do have friends successful in their admissions process who only asked for advice and essay reviews from family, friends and bosses, but for me, it was definitely worth it to have professionals as a sounding board as it removed a significant amount of stress and uncertainty from the process. I would highly recommend Temi and John.

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