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Product Vantage Point Comprehensive School Package
Consultant Katie McQuarrie
Initially skeptical about using an admissions consultant, I knew I made the right decision shortly after beginning to work with Katie. VantagePoint's approach really helps you think about, craft, and articulate your story in a unique way.
I think a huge part of this was that Katie took the time up front to get to know me personally, which informed her advice throughout the process - from school selection to essays, letters of recommendation, interviews, etc.
Another huge plus for me was her responsiveness. As a consultant traveling every week, my schedule is often unpredictable and Katie was both incredibly responsive (always getting back within 1-2 days max, and often the same day) and flexible, willing to make something work if I felt like we needed to discuss something.
I highly recommend Katie and VantagePoint for anyone that is concerned about working with a larger firm and not getting enough time and individual feedback from their consultant.
Product Vantage Point Comprehensive School Package
Consultant Molly Schnettler
I had a great experience working with Molly. This was my second time applying, and I wanted to make sure I had a strong application. Molly helped me take all the swirling ideas and plans I had in my head and tell a crisp, cohesive, and most importantly, authentic story. I am coming from the non-profit industry and want to stay in social justice long term. I spoke with a few other consultants who wanted me to downplay that passion and drive in favor of a more tradition post-MBA path, but Molly encouraged me to lean into what made me unique and be bold in my aspirations. She gave clear constructive feedback, pushed my thinking when I needed it, and gave me pep talks when I was stuck.
I ended up doing a one school package with her and adding about 4 hours of additional work to help with the essays for my other schools. I am very happy with the results. I applied to 5 top 15 programs and got into my top 3 choices, with full or almost full scholarships to 2 of them. I definitely do not think I would have had the same results without her support. I definitely recommend working with Molly!
Jane
Product Vantage Point Hourly Services
Consultant Melody Jones
Melody was a fantastic resource and cannot recommend her enough! I worked with her on an hourly basis since I decided to use a consultant relatively late in the process (I had already written first drafts of all of the essays). Melody was tremendously helpful in helping me refine my story and ensuring that every word of each essay and my resume supported that story. Her feedback was always constructive and relevant and reflected a high level of detail despite me being an hourly client. Furthermore, Melody is extremely professional: she initiated an introductory phone call to discuss my goals, accommodated my timelines, clearly communicated how much time each request would take, and never tried to upsell me. She also following up with me throughout the interview process and offered support and tips. Thanks to Melody I got into 3 of the 4 Top 10 schools I applied to (including my dream school) and was awarded one full merit-based scholarship!
Product Vantage Point Comprehensive School Package
Consultant Meredith (Vantage Point)
I worked with Meredith and Vantage Point on round 1 applications, and I am not exaggerating that she is the best MBA consultant out there. Meredith and the Vantage Point team provide a holistic, personal and strategic approach to the MBA application process that helps you submit your best possible application.
Meredith’s approach is holistic because she brings to bear the diverse ‘vantage points’ of her entire team. When you finally hit submit, you are confident because your application has already been well-received by her team of former adcoms and battle-tested consultants. Her eagerness to leverage the perspectives of her team mirrors the collaborative spirit of the top MBA programs.
Meredith’s approach is personal because she takes the time upfront to really understand every aspect of your applicant profile, and then helps you to articulate your goals (dream big!), play to your strengths and mitigate your weaknesses. Because she understands her clients so well, she is extremely effective at helping you to tease our your very best leadership examples for essays and interviews.
Meredith’s approach is strategic and efficient. When it came time to write essays, Meredith suggested I first tackle the prompts that required the deepest reflection (and the most drafts). This helped me accumulate a database of compelling anecdotes that I was able to leverage on the balance of my applications and interviews.
Most importantly, as an advisor she is spectacular. Meredith is professional, responsive, honest, supportive, approachable and positive. For nearly 12 months, I always felt like I was her only client. I am really grateful for Meredith’s support and guidance, which helped me gain admission to my dream schools - Stanford GSB and Northwestern Kellogg. Thank you, Meredith and the Vantage Point team!!!
Product Vantage Point Comprehensive School Package
Consultant Molly Schnettler
I started my application journey in 2017. I have to admit that I am not one of those guys who can come up with cohesive stories. Hell, my essays used to lack continuity every time. Therefore I did not get into the school I applied despite having a competitive profile and putting hours into my application. My efforts and my money paid.
Then I took the help of another consulting company wherein I think I was able to put better applications. I applied to 5 schools with them and couldn't get into any. I could only manage 2 interview invites and one waitlist. I was disappointed. Being ambitious, I had only applied to US top 15 schools.
I decided to change my approach in 2018. I went through reviews and locked in Molly. To my surprise, she was fast. With herself having Booth MBA, she knows the insights. She gives great advice and pushes to think deeper. She helped me develop my profile and constantly followed up with me to see my progress. Her turnaround time is just few hours. She was always easily approachable. I am a confused guy and would come up with new ideas every time but Molly was patient. She helped me in every stage of the application. After having had 10 plus revisions of just one application, I had almost given up but Molly didn't. After the ad-com review, I was able to put a much better application with Molly's help. I applied to three schools with her, secured an interview invite to each school and finally got one admit from US top 10 and one waitlist. When I reflect back, I hope I had met Molly before which would have saved me time and money. I would advise anyone to go with Molly blindly.
Product Vantage Point Comprehensive School Package
Consultant Melody Jones
Melody Jones at Vantage Point MBA is a wonderful consultant and I am very fortunate to have worked with her.
Firstly, if you are on the fence about hiring a consultant in general, I was in the same boat last year and I highly recommend pulling the trigger and going for it. When I first decided to apply to business school, I had never even heard of an admission consultant. The concept was foreign to me and as such I was reluctant to pay up for one. However, once I started my essays, I realized that they were nowhere near the standard required for the schools I was targeting. I was really struggling to express my "story" in a cohesive and compelling manner. Given that the MBA is such a large investment overall, I wanted to make sure that I wouldn't be leaving anything on the table, and I ultimately decided to bring in a professional.
I researched most of the firms and interviewed consultants from each of them, but I was immediately drawn to Vantage Point due to its smaller size, which I felt would be most conducive to a genuine, personalized experience. When I spoke with Melody on the phone, I just knew that she was the one. Not only is Melody brilliant, but she is friendly and down-to-earth. I felt like she really understood where I was coming from and where I wanted to go. Having Melody in my corner curbed my anxiety tremendously and increased my confidence - that alone was worth every penny.
I had a 700 GMAT and not-so-great GPA and I was applying to some of the very best schools. On our kick-off call, Melody kept it real with me and was upfront about where my weaknesses were (later, she helped me develop a game-plan to directly address each of these challenges), but she NEVER attempted to discourage me from applying to the programs I'd set my sights on. I believe that it is crucial to work with a balanced consultant like Melody, who makes a point to manage your expectations but then puts in an insane amount of effort to elevate your application to the highest possible level as if your weaknesses didn't exist.
Melody is an MBA expert and if I hadn't worked with her, I'm certain my application strategy would have been all wrong. Admissions folks only spend ~15 minutes reviewing your entire application and I was surprised to learn that most of them do not have business backgrounds. Therefore, you must present yourself and your materials in a way that is drastically different from a job interview, for example. MBA essay-writing requires a significant amount of introspection and Melody possesses the rare skill of helping you spin life experiences (that to you may seem mundane) into captivating stories. Melody worked tirelessly to help me put together seriously killer essays (I'm talking 10+ drafts each). She will not do any of the work for you, but she asks very pointed questions that force you to dig deeper and she will not let you off the hook until every single sentence is perfect. There were many occasions when, after 5-8 drafts, I thought my essay had finally reached perfection and I had mentally checked out of it, only to receive yet another completely red version from Melody. I cannot stress this enough -- if you work with Melody, she will not simply check the box by providing a few iterations of useful feedback. Rather, she will be totally personally invested in you and your success. On that front, this review would not be complete without a shout out to Katherine Canning, who graduated from Wharton and works in my industry. She took time out of her vacation (!!) to do a final, last-minute review of my Wharton essays before submission. The consultants at Vantage Point are passionate about what they do and are seriously dedicated to you.
Finally, pretty late in the process, I realized that one of my 4 target schools actually wasn't the best fit for me and I decided to switch it out for another top 10 school (which I will be attending in the fall!!) just a few weeks before the deadline. I NEVER would have had the courage to take such a big turn so close to the end without Melody's encouragement. When it came time for interviews, Melody held several mock interviews with me. I went from being terribly awkward during the first mock interview to absolutely rocking it at the real thing! Also worth mentioning that throughout the process, I experienced several SNAFUs (the kind you never expect to happen), and if I didn't have Melody to guide me and calm me down, I would have had a meltdown and handled the situation incorrectly.
TLDR: Do something special for yourself this year and hire Melody Jones from Vantage Point MBA!
Product Vantage Point Hourly Services
Consultant Meredith (Vantage Point)
Meredith came highly recommended from a friend of mine - and I am SO happy I found her! From our very first chat, Meredith was honest, warm and encouraging. She took the time to understand my desires for wanting to pursue an MBA, and challenged me to craft authentic and engaging essays. Coming from a somewhat non-traditional background, Meredith's help was also invaluable in helping me hone each bullet point on my resume to cut through on my experience and accomplishments.
I genuinely believe Meredith's guidance is what made the difference in helping me receive acceptances (and scholarships!!) from 4 of my top choice schools! Could not recommend her more highly - thank you Meredith!
Product Vantage Point Hourly Services
Consultant Molly Schnettler
To start, Molly was a critical component of my MBA application process. Without her help, I do not think I would have put forth nearly as strong of an application and ultimately would not have had the acceptances I received.
I came to Molly as a re-applicant. She first helped with a complete evaluation and worked with me to reposition my profile. Following this, I primarily worked with her on my essays and then on interview prep. Throughout the process, Molly was very forthcoming with constructive criticism and did not hold back any of her thoughts. This candid feedback was what really elevated my application and was critical to getting the best application to adcom. Molly was also very timely in her responses and throughout my time with her, I felt that she was 'invested' in my success.
At the end of the day, I was admitted to 4 schools (including my top choice) and waitlisted to a 5th. I also received scholarships from 2 of the schools. For reference, I only applied to top 15 programs.
Overall, I could not speak more highly of her and would recommend any applicant to work with her! Thank you Molly!
Product Vantage Point Comprehensive School Package
Consultant Molly Schnettler
I'd first admit that I am one of those who couldn't do this without a consultant. Trained as a scientist, I knew I needed someone from the business world to polish my application package and to take the anxiety out of the process through discussions.
I had another consultant before Molly. During that time, the vision for my application was less clear and I was falling behind the schedule. It got the point that I thought I was not going to make it and I hated the process. That's when I was introduced to Molly. Molly helped me make everything happen and she's even turned the application process into something almost enjoyable. She first streamlined my application plan while giving me the necessary confidence to finish all the work in time. She was very responsive and usually gets back to me in just a few hours. Above all, her insight helped me find and highlight the most relevant information in my application. By the time I submitted my applications, I knew I did my best and I have shown my best of readiness for business school.
Highly recommend!
Product Vantage Point Comprehensive School Package
Consultant Melody Jones
Choosing Vantage Point and Melody as my admissions consultant for my CBS application was the best decision I ever made. I originally entered the process feeling a bit uneasy with my average stats and my ability to stand out from a crowded pool of applicants possessing a similar background. Beginning immediately with our first phone call, Melody understood my goals and pinpointed the exact areas I had to improve on. We worked through numerous drafts of developing all aspects of my story, while also showcasing the unique qualities of my profile where her experience proved to be most impactful. She was always available through phone call/email despite being across the country. I highly recommend the Comprehensive Package because I was able to maximize my output while working a demanding job schedule and the interview prep gave me confidence heading into the real thing. I truly cannot express enough gratitude for the honest and thoughtful work Melody and her team dedicate themselves to.
Thanks so much for the kind words and enjoy Stanford!! You're a rockstar!!