Menlo Coaching Admissions Consulting Reviews

I couldn’t have done the business school application process without Menlo. I think the most valuable part of the process was helping me think about how I wanted to present myself in my apps. They teased out stories, experiences, qualities that were unique to me and helped me articulate those. It’s very apparent when you work with them that they are talented writers and teachers (and very patient :)). Added bonus was that my consultant was previously a Product Manager, so they understood the kind of work that I do and am interested in pursuing.

On a more personal note, the application process can be very humbling, and there were times I felt very insecure about my application, interview skills, chances of getting in, etc. They helped boost my confidence and assured me that I was qualified for the schools I was applying to. They also probably spent more time doing interview practice with me than any other client (sorry!) to ensure that I was comfortable.

I also literally wouldn’t be going to Wharton without them because I thought of Wharton as a “finance bro” school that wouldn’t help me in a tech career and so I wasn’t going to apply. They explained how Wharton could be a good fit for my interests and encouraged me to reconsider. Their wealth of knowledge on all the different schools/programs was integral in my school selection process.

Overall, I’d highly recommend Menlo Coaching!

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I had an amazing experience working with Leslie. Being from Belgium and willing to embark on an MBA on the west coast of the United States, I reached out to Menlo quite late in the process when I realized that I knew too little about this very particular environment. Knowing that the competition is fierce to embark on a top MBA program in the US, I wanted to improve my odds and this is exactly what Menlo will provide you. With their intimate knowledge of the different MBA programs and their very professional planning, Menlo coaches like Leslie will walk you through the tricky and stressful application process with confidence and professionalism. Leslie, via her countless feedback, will definitely encourage you to elevate yourself and make the difference between a good and a great application.
Even though Leslie and I had a time zone difference of 9 hours, it never impacted the tight schedule to get my applications ready in time. It felt like Leslie was available 24/7. I could reach out to her during weekends, early mornings, evenings, and even during the holiday period which was particularly important since I applied in round 2.
Menlo Coaching is a full-service package with no limit on the hours they spend to help you. They only select candidates in which they believe and will do their uttermost to have you admitted to your dream school. This goes from the school selection, the essay writings and edits, the very important and sometimes forgotten interview preparations with multiple coaches, and finally the scholarship application. This full-service package implies a premium on the fee that made me first hesitant to embark on this journey with Menlo. But looking back, I’m confident that I made the right choice to get support from Leslie who pushed me to surpass myself and go to the essence of my story. The outcome was very positive. I was admitted to my dream school, Haas, as well as another program with an impressive merit-based scholarship. With the counsel of Leslie, I was able to negotiate my scholarship at Haas which offered me a generous amount covering more than all the costs of my application. Applying for a top MBA program is a long and tedious journey and the support of a coach like Leslie is definitely worth the price.

I sincerely recommend Leslie and the Menlo team to anybody serious about getting into his or her dream program. It makes the difference!

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I worked with Rebecca for Round 2 in the 2021-2022 app season. Evaluating myself, I think I have the profile to get into a single M7 caliber school if I worked hard myself and used a service like ApplicantLab. Rebecca's help really pushed me to take my apps to that next level and my results speak for themselves. I'm currently looking at admits to Wharton, Kellogg, Booth, Haas, and Ross with multiple scholarships and couldn't be more thrilled! I'm confident you'll get an amazing ROI if you work with her that will more than pay for itself. I don't think I would have done nearly as well without her and firmly believed she helped change my life.

The process starts with refining your resume and creating master stories for professional and personal essays. After lots of hours working with her, I was astounded at how strong my stories were and I'm confident I couldn't have gotten nearly as strong on my own just following generic advice online. After that, we went school by school and found specific things that would really stand out to adcoms and convince them I did my research and loved their schools, but also resonated with who I am, my story, and my goals. The end essays were incredible and I'm extremely proud of the work we did together. I'm confident that working with her, your end apps will be far stronger than what you'd be able to do alone.

From a more personal standpoint, Rebecca was extremely warm and amazing to work with. I've had multiple instances that could've derailed my app cycle (major problems with my recommenders) and having her there to talk me through it really helped keep me grounded and push through it. I really enjoyed spending time with her and am sad that our time is coming to an end (but I'm happy to be on the admitted side!).

Wrapping up, I recommend working with Rebecca in the strongest terms. You'll be in amazing hands and will be shocked at how strong your apps are at the end of the process. Good luck!!

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If you are coming across Alice’s profile, consider yourself lucky. She is the best person to have in your corner as you take on the MBA admissions journey. I worked with Alice targeting schools in Europe and Asia. Alice is not just someone with great insights into what works and what doesn’t in an application, but also someone who would never give up on you. Let me give an example here: I struggled in keeping my nerves calm during the GMAT test despite doing very well in the official mocks. I missed many internal deadlines working on my GMAT score (I seriously felt it is only fair for her to move on with others after my extended tussle with GMAT), but Alice always had my back and you want such a person in your corner during this roller-coaster ride of MBA admissions. I cut too close to the deadlines despite and if not for Alice I wouldn’t have even been able to submit them in time. I ended up with 3 admits from top schools including an admit from the most prestigious university based in UK.

Alice and her team put in genuine efforts to understand me and my background, they identified valuable experiences which I never really realized I had myself and molded them into great application essays. Menlo Coaching is a one stop for all your admission needs. Be it GMAT (which if aren’t yet done with then blindly work with her team-mate Chris) or Interview coaches, Alice is supported by the best in the industry. Alice made me feel as if I was her only client and I got all the attention I wanted.

Alice always and every time tried to get me the very best that I could achieve. She never compromised on my application. I am sure Alice puts more thought and effort than her applicants themselves. She was worth every cent I spent and more, I walked away knowing I showed the best version of myself to the adcoms.

Picking an admission consultant can be very confusing, I have been there. If you want to maximize your chances at your target schools, I suggest working with Alice. Thank you for everything Alice.

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I worked with Rebecca for 2021 Round 1 applications for full-time MBA Class of 2024. I applied to six top-tier schools, received five interview invitations, one waitlist offer, and three offers of admission. I've ultimately decided to attend Harvard Business School!

In a nutshell: Rebecca was a total game changer. It's hard to understate how critical Rebecca was to my success, particularly related to my essays. If you are looking for the highest caliber of MBA admissions coaching, seriously look no further than Rebecca. Working with her was one of the best decisions I ever made.

Starting in March 2021, Rebecca advised me on all aspects of my application: GMAT strategy, MBA program choices and networking, defining my career goals, finding my personal story, picking recommenders, preparing my applications/essays, and preparing for interviews. Perhaps similar to many candidates reading this review, I had no clue what I was getting into... just take the GMAT, decide on a few schools based on rankings, throw together a few essays, hit submit and get accepted, right? WRONG! There is so much to this process that I wasn't aware of, and Rebecca was crucial to helping me understand how it all works. Whenever she asked me to change something in my applications, she was also able to explain WHY. It's clear she knows the ins and outs of the admissions process and that context was extremely helpful. Rebecca gave me the roadmap to the process, which gave me the confidence I needed.

Rebecca was an excellent project manager. She kept my entire admissions process highly organized, allowing me to focus on one step at a time throughout the year without worrying that I'm missing anything. A few times during the year, my work would get crazy, but Rebecca kept me on track when I started to fall behind. Without her politely and consistently nudging me along, there's no way I would have had enough time to submit my best work.

While Rebecca was hugely impactful to all aspects of the process, her biggest contribution was her feedback on my essays. Her background in journalism is apparent in her unique approach. She was incredibly effective at helping me pull out the most important and unique aspects of my personal story and professional experiences. Once we had those raw materials, we iterated numerous times on each of my essays; on every turn, Rebecca would push me even further to expand on details, cut the fluff, and nail the delivery. As a result, my essays were impactful, concise, and polished. I consider myself a decent writer, but Rebecca is at another level entirely. I will forever be a better communicator because of Rebecca's incredible coaching and generous personal dedication to my applications.

At every point in the process, Rebecca was an absolute pleasure to work with. Rebecca was always courteous, personable, and insightful. When your coach is just a great person to be around (like Rebecca), it's easy to build a strong rapport. Rebecca and I built a high level of trust and candor that made the process incredibly effective and enjoyable. I think the ability to build a strong relationship with clients is the most important quality in a coach, and it sets Rebecca apart from the rest.

Overall, Rebecca was crucial to my outcomes. Without her help, there's no way I would have had the same level of success.

If you're reading this because you are considering Rebecca as your MBA admissions coach, I'm confident you're making the right choice. Get on her client list ASAP before her slots fill up, and never look back!

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I am very fortunate to have Rebecca as my coach throughout the MBA application. I am in 30s and have non-traditional background, without million-dollar deals nor multi-national marketing experience. I know I need a coach who is experienced but creative to guide me through this process. Together with other supports from Menlo Coaching, Rebecca helped me land offers from top programs.

Structural and efficient process
Rebecca has very good sense about application timing and what process it takes to craft a good essay. This is important because MBA application is extremely stressful and anxious that even impact daily work and life. With an experienced coach, I could multitask six schools in one round and had each application ready at least a week ahead of the deadline. Rebecca is compassionate and provides emotional supports by not only understandings, but solid professional experiences to relieve stress.

From story brainstorming to essay completion, we kept tracking all working process. Without formulated methodology (i.e. find personal brand or label etc.), each version is heading to the direction where makes the essay and application better, without wasting time swinging between versions. Of course, we did have differing viewpoints at time, and sometimes new ideas may pop up along the application. However, all the decisions were upfront and finalized through conversations. For example, we had different thoughts to put extracurricular activities on my resume. I was finally convinced not because I did not know which was better, but because Rebecca had a clear thought to highlight my unique experiences together with other components in my application.

Both my recommenders were from non-traditional background without any experiences in MBA recommendation letters. Rebecca showed me high-level communication skills interfacing and guiding them write strong letters through just two rounds of interactions. Except for a briefing document covering deadlines and suggested examples, I was blind in the process, but I felt confident that the final letter would be strong with Rebecca’s help.

Detail, detail and detail
Application is a holistic evaluation, but the holism is a sum of numerous details. When working with Rebecca, we never let a single detail slipped. Rebecca pushed me to do thorough research about my career goal using whatever available resources, such as summarizing key findings from LinkedIn profiles, networking with alum who went to similar paths and deep diving into potential employer’s website. Each of these served as pieces of evidence making a compelling career goal argument.

When talking about school resources and contribution, Rebecca suggested me to find target alum and current students to validate my thoughts. Each name mentioned in essay was deliberately chosen to support my understandings about the school programs or clubs. Rebecca may spend hours help me work on one essay ending. She did research from school blogs, relevant websites, and came up ideas; we discussed, and I talked reached out to alum and students to pitch ideas and get feedback.

Let’s talk about outcomes
First, and this probably happens to almost every applicant, but not many will talk about rejection. I got five acceptances from the six schools that I applied, including HBS, Sloan and Kellogg. While the rejection was a surprise and we put a lot of efforts into that school, the process isn’t a guarantee for a clean sweep of 100% acceptances. I did not have any regrets about my application package (I would have submitted the same one if I had a second chance).

More importantly, I am very excited to get a yes from HBS! Rebecca guided me to tell a story that tied my personal experience, professional achievements and future, to show not only my capability but also the human side. I believe it was the combination winning the acceptance.

By the end, I truly recommend Rebecca as an admission coach. Besides application, I learnt so much from her: writing, communicating (my recommenders are pretty hardcore), and project management skills. Rebecca makes the application an incredibly joyful and fruitful life experience!

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I had an amazing experience working with Alice. Wanted to pivot out of my middle office job, I reached out to Menlo early in the process, more than a year before the Round 1 deadlines. During our initial assessment, Alice provided pivotal advice that proved critical to my admission success, including retaking my GMAT and beefing up my volunteering experience. The former ensured that I had a score that was competitive among the very competitive Asian male and finance demographic pools and the latter helped me develop my overall story and showcase my social consciousness to the AdCom. Throughout the process, Alice and I built a genuine connection. She knew the elements of my life story very well and pieced them perfectly together during the brainstorming process. The turnaround of the essay edits was incredibly efficient, with clear and actionable feedback. The interview prep also got me very comfortable in front of the interviews throughout all my interviews, and answers often came right out because of how familiar I was with elements of my story. The outcome of the application season was more than I had hoped for. Booth as my top choice offered me $50000 in scholarship. I wholeheartedly recommend Alice to anybody who is serious about getting into his or her dream program.

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I could not have asked for a better consultant and a smoother application process, all thanks to David! I applied R1 this year and got into HBS, Sloan ($) and Stern (full scholarship). I started working with Menlo Coaching two years ago through the comprehensive Early Bird program but had to defer my plans for a year due to my partner's relocation. David and his team were super understanding and supportive! The things I like most about David:

1) 100% focused on you - even before we started writing essays, David spent hours talking to me about my background and childhood story. After these conversations, I realized there were so many things I had forgotten or thought were unimportant, which ended up being instrumental for my essays later on. I also came into the process not sure what my post-MBA plans should be. David went above and beyond to connect me with his previous clients in different industries. Thanks to these conversations, I was able to talk confidently and genuinely about my post-MBA plans.

2) Expert feedback - writing personal essays has always been my weakest point, and David really worked hard to make sure that my narrative was the strongest, pushing me to think beyond my limits. We had over 5 to 10 iterations for every essay that I wrote, and the end product was so much better than I could ever come up with by myself!

3) Extremely knowledgeable about MBA programs - in the beginning, I used to feel overwhelmed with all the application info available online. With his years of experience in the field, David always cut to the chase and gave me honest feedback. This was extremely helpful when interviews rolled around since I was prepared to talk about the strengths of each school. Also, David had several mock interviews with me, some tailored to each school's style of interviewing, which helped me feel soo much more confident going into each interview!

4) Super organized and responsive - every time I sent a draft over to David, he had his feedback ready in one day or less, and it was pretty extensive feedback, too. I never doubted that I wouldn't be able to reach David in times of need, even during peak periods. Leading up to the R1 deadline, he started having weekly 1:1 sessions with me to make sure that I was making good progress on my drafts, which really helped me not procrastinate and have the easiest and smoothest application process I could ever hope for.

Looking back on my experience with David, I realize that it was so much more than just a consulting service - David brings a humane side to his job that allowed me to be introspective and figure out what exactly I want to do with my life after MBA. I highly recommend anyone who knows they want to do an MBA in the future to reach out to Menlo Coaching and join the Early Bird program, which made it so easy for me to prep for applications on top of my full-time job. Although the price can feel a little steep, you definitely get what you pay for and beyond - I have a friend who was able to negotiate her scholarship to a full ride thanks to David, which more than offset the cost of the service. I also recommend their new in-house GMAT prep course with Chris Kane, which helped me get a 730 in 5 weeks of studying. If you are looking for a consultant on top of his game, David is the one!

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As a straight Asian male, I had countless consultants tell me that my odds at either HBS and GSB were incredibly slim. Alice not only believed in me but spent countless hours to help me craft my story, prepare for interviews, and research the schools. We probably went over at least a hundred drafts total. Ultimately, she helped me get into BOTH HBS and GSB, which is a situation I would have never imagined one year ago. I couldn't have done it without her and the great team behind her. Thanks so much Alice!! Would highly recommend her and the amazing Menlo team!!

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I’m really grateful to work with Alice and the rest of Menlo Coaching team for my R1 application this year. Like a lot of people who have been through this process, I felt really overwhelmed at the beginning, facing a tight schedule to prepare the GMAT while having a quite busy job. Alice not only helped me to figure out the timeline that perfectly fit but also offered tremendous guidance of how to relax and be focus. She has been such an insightful and effective mentor along the way!

As we were drafting the essays, it was beyond my expectations of how responsive and patient Alice was to whatever questions or worries I had. Her expertise and dedication in crafting compelling essays are incredible and so effective. Rounds after rounds of editing has improved my essays to an entirely new level. And she’s always willing to even give it a final little push. As she said, she wanted it to be as perfect as possible. And most importantly, I can tell that Alice truly cares about my story and she can always help me to discover the deeper side of it. This is just invaluable as I’ve learned more about myself during the past few months and felt more confident facing the upcoming challenges.

Alice has been a professional coach, an inspiring mentor and a great friend! She’s is the top in the business and someone you can truly count on during your MBA application. I can’t recommend Alice and Menlo Coaching team more strongly and it’s going to be great journey working with Alice!

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