Mary Winograd Reviews

Square One Prep’s team of Kathryn, Mary, Christina, and Horatiu has been extremely helpful in my b-school application journey. I was a re-applicant, and my journey this year was very different from my last attempt. A stellar GMAT score and a strong profile aren't enough to get into a top business school. My first call with Kathryn was enough for me to stop my hunt for consultants, and I decided to work under her guidance.

With the help of Kathryn and Mary, I was able to fine-tune my work and gain admission with a whopping $80K scholarship to one of the top US schools. The team has made a lot of effort to get to know my story and profile. Putting heads together helped craft quality essays. Horatiu helped me structure the career narrative, which further assisted me in facing the interviews with more confidence.

The SOP team has done a fantastic job of streamlining the application and interview process, which makes it easier to stay focused. The whole process is designed to bring the best out of you and make you cognizant of your abilities and incompetence. Mary and Kathryn have played a very important role in keeping me focused, and yes, when necessary, I have received criticism. I am extremely thankful for the guidance I received.

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SOP have been an absolute pleasure to work with. The MBA application process can be quite daunting at first, particularly when it needs to be managed alongside a full time job, but through a combination of excellent resources (eg a week by week planner with milestones) and supportive (and also challenging) staff, the process felt like an absolute breeze. Along the way I was really challenged to self reflect and show vulnerability in my essays, which meant I was ultimately granted admission to my top choice of school! What I love most is that SOP are really selective about who they partner with, and you really get a bespoke and tailored experience.

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Having applied to graduate programs (non-business) in the past, I had no idea the added complexity of business school applications. From the start, Square One has made the process as straightforward, and painless, as possible. Starting with the free consultation, Kathryn set my expectations at a high-level and scheduled discussions between me and potential advisors. After several calls (each of which went well), I decided to move forward with Mary Winograd, who became a trusted source of information and encouragement when I hit roadblocks.

The work began with a seemingly, simple narrative exercise, which proved to be the basis for my whole application. After reflecting on my short- and long- term goals, I crafted a narrative with the help of Mary, Kathryn, and Wendy that encompassed not just my goals, but my background reasoning and pathways to achievement. As a prospective career-switcher, this included a lot of research and the SOP team provided a great springboard. Next up, the frameworks used to produce essays (while still maintaining a personal story and creativity), the resume, and LOR's proved perfect for creating impact with each word. At times, my essay drafts (that I believed made sense) were found to easily lose the purpose or reader. The feedback and guidance SOP provided was invaluable and Mary was a great partner as she helped me focus on the salient points of each essay while making the application as a whole tell a story.

After submission, which felt worthy of a celebration, Mary conducted mock interviews using common questions across all schools and specific questions used by the school with which I was interviewing. Believe it or not, in my first interview, 60+% of the questions had been covered in my mock-interview! This gave me a great deal of confidence that I was properly prepared and that the system SOP uses works!

I also can't say enough about the resources on the SOP portal, which include ideas for structuring essays, resumes, etc., as well as school information. Bailey was immensely helpful in digging up scholarship information and keeping track of where I stood with each school's application. The support and essay notes from Kathryn and Wendy, while at times challenging, meant four sets of eyes were critiquing each word... not something most (if any) other firms can offer! Lastly, I'd like to commend Mary for her patience, personalization and quick turnaround (never more than 12 hours), which ensured I got my message across and put my best foot forward.

In the end, I got a scholarship to one of my target schools, which I plan on accepting, and couldn't be happier with my decision to work with SOP! Thank you Katheryn, Wendy, and Bailey! And most of all, thank you Mary!!!

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I contacted 7 different consulting services. Having seen my girlfriend go through the process, I knew I had to steer away from some peculiar consulting characteristics:
1) Consultants who individually work with 10+ clients.
2) Consultants who suggest you apply to colleges below your ambition level (hoping that your ambition is an educated one)
3) Consultants who don't believe in your uniqueness.
There was only one firm which did not have the above: SOP!!
My first call with Kathyrn was almost 90 mins long where she answered all my questions and we went in depth about my life, ambitions and the SOP process. From thereon, till the time I decided on SOP, I contacted Kathryn 5 times on email and 3 times to chat with her about my concerns, my candidacy and the selection of an advisor. Not once did I ever feel hurried or pushed while talking to her. Kathryn's work ethic is like none other in the industry and she definitely leads the firm from the front. She was extremely candid throughout the entire process and her response time was always a few hrs!!

I worked with Mary Winograd as my lead advisor: Mary is very empathetic and will have your back till the very second you submit your application. Her response time was always within a day and her systematic thinking helped bring a well defined structure to my application. She pushed me at every step to make the application better. I worked with Mary for 2 M7 applications and received an offer from both.

Thanks to SOP, they were genuinely my partners in this process!

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In the current world where most of the interactions are via online platforms, I considered Mary’s past experience as reporter and TV show producer a tremendous asset! During our fit call, she made the difference by pointing out key techniques to behave in front of the camera, so I made the choice quickly.

Compared to other competitors’ consultants, Mary did not announce any quota for calls – usually consultants only use voice calls for the brainstorming call, and the rest of the communication is mainly based on emails. She was willing to jump on a call to further brainstorm or just when the situation was difficult to comprehend in written words. Because of her past working experience, I felt that every conversation mimicked the way interviewers would ask questions: she dug deeper on any occasion, asking the why behind each decision.

Moreover, Mary was always supportive and very efficient. It was incredible! Some documents were sent back to me within hours, allowing me to alter very quickly while having all the details in mind.

Finally, the interview prep was also terrific! In addition to the behavioral tips, she did a thorough review of my material and tailored more than 40 questions for me. Mary was there providing me advice and always willing to do additional mocks until I feel ready!

Big thank you from the bottom of my heart Mary, and I hope that our paths cross in the future!

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With Kathryn and Mary’s help, I received offers from 2 schools (one with a 30% scholarship). I would absolutely recommend them anyone going through the process.
Of all the consultants I spoke to, Kathryn was the only one who actually heard my views and very bluntly pointed out the weaknesses in my profile. While the call was scheduled for 30 mins, we ended up talking for more than 90 mins. We ended up scheduling another free consultation which lasted another good 60 mins. She cares about you (sometimes a bit too much :D)
Initially I had a fear that consultants would persuade you to target safer schools so that their record stays intact. However, Kathryn/Mary always encouraged me to aim higher (even when I was not confident I could get in).
Mary and Kathryn were both very experienced in framing cohesive stories out of seemingly unrelated incidents in your life. Sometimes, I felt they understood my life more than I did. Mary never backed down from spending more time when required. For instance, while she was supposed to spend ~9-15 hrs on my booth application, she ended up spending more than 20 hours.
One thing I absolutely loved: They focused a lot more on who I am as a person (my hobbies, my interests) and tried to highlight that in my essays which helped me add a personal/funny flavor to my essays.

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I was in the last round for MBA application, I needed to find a consultant who can help me to succeed within limited time. Then I talked to Kathryn, at the first free consultation, her passion and knowledge of the MBA world, the long time you spent for me, and professionalism made me choose Square one. Now I got admitted to both schools I applied(2/2 applications).

The first day I worked with Square One team, I was being pointed in a clear direction, which saved me a lot of time and energy, especially in a rush timeline. The team was efficient and responsible, they set and followed up every step and task for me.

Mary was my consultant, she directed me with the whole application, analyzed and advised me with a better perspective , sent me relevant materials. She always responded to me, even on weekends and holidays.
Wendy has been advised on me for career vision. It turned out to be super helpful for my interview. Bailey was also very nice and friendly.

I felt wholeheartedly that Square One has the best team.

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My experience with Square One Prep was truly exceptional. Throughout a very stressful application process, I received constant support from a team of caring, experienced, and dedicated professionals. Every stage of the process was helpful: from the assessment of my strengths and weaknesses as an applicant, to the eye-opening perspectives on my career narrative, to the honest feedback on my essays, and finally to getting me across the finish line with interview preparation.

I’m immensely grateful to the entire team for their support and to Mary Winograd especially for her authenticity and commitment. After months of hard work, I’m proud to be enrolling at my dream business school this Fall.

Thank you to Square One Prep for helping me achieve my goals!

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I cannot thank them enough for everything they have done for me. One of my colleagues referred me to SOP and I reach out at 11pm for a free consult. I heard back from Kathryn almost immediately (hers and the rest of the team's responsiveness stayed at this level throughout the entire process) and we did a 1 hour consult a couple of days later.

This is not an easy process, however my team made it incredibly smooth. Their level of experience, responsiveness and dedication to my goals made them amazing partners.

Kathryn stayed engaged the whole time. She had the brilliant idea of making me switch to GRE after my failed attempts at GMAT in August (my GMAT tutor said it would be a mistake). I took the GRE in a week and crushed it. Mary spent so much time with me that she almost knew me better than I knew myself. She never accepted anything less than flawless, pushed me way out of my comfort zone, forced me to think harder, dig deeper and put in nothing less than my absolute best. She thoughtfully reviewed all my work and gave me insightful comments, I sometimes thought she spent more time reviewing my essays than I did editing them (we even started some essays from scratch). She went above and beyond to the level of texting me 10 mins before my interview to see if I wanted to run my pitch with her for the 5th time. She is the absolute best! Bailey kept us in check on a daily basis and made sure we are on track. Wendy forced me to think in a way I never thought about my future and gave me a new career vision.

This team will support you the entire time but they will expect you to do the work in return. They supported me 100%, close to 24/7. They also kept it very realistic. They never painted a rosy picture and told me frankly when things are not possible.

Having the dream team of Kathryn, Mary, Wendy and Bailey made all the difference. I applied to 5 schools (all in top 10) in R1, got interview invites from 2 and got accepted to both. They even helped me choose between the two schools (I ultimately picked Wharton). I highly recommend them to everyone.

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I highly recommend Square-One Prep to aspiring MBA applicants. Their structured approach to the application process made it simpler and much less stressful. Their team played a vital role throughout the entire process from working on my resume to helping me with interview preparation. Wendy (square one’s career narrative expert) and Kathryn spent time helping me form my career narrative, which was crucial to the entire process. I felt that Kathryn and Mary were truly cared about me and were invested in my success.

Mary was amazing to work with. She pushed me to work harder and go the extra mile. She was always available and was incredibly quick with her replies. After countless discussions, I feel she got to understand me and my story very well, and her input was invaluable to my essays. Her ability to make me dig deeper went a long way in helping me articulate the best version of my story. Furthermore, she also provided me with moral support whenever things got challenging.

I applied to six schools out of which I received interview calls for three and was finally admitted into two schools. I want to thank Mary and Kathryn for helping me get into my dream school, that too with a good scholarship!

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