School Package Reviews

I found Debbie when I was panicking in mid-Oct about R2 applications. At that time, I had a subpar GMAT and not even a draft school list. I had free consultations with a bunch of firms small and large, but I felt the most confident coming out of the conversation with Debbie. In our free consultation, she gave very practical and useful feedback. She suggested what schools I can consider based on my career goals and preferences. Some schools were ones that never crossed my mind beforehand. I appreciate how she left options open depending on my upcoming GMAT retake while other consultants didn’t think I could make it which discouraged me further in this stressful moment. Don’t be mistaken, Debbie doesn’t give you false hopes.

I also appreciate Debbie’s attitude towards potential clients. She never pushed me to purchase services and offered to recommend lower-priced consultants on her team. She reminded me about mbaMission’s service contract period, so if I wasn’t going to apply for MBA this year don’t bother starting a package yet. In all my free consultations, I asked how many schools clients typically buy for comprehensive packages. Debbie said 2-3 which I felt is an honest answer (rather than pressuring you to pay more) because you can reuse a lot of the content and learnings between schools. There are plenty of consultants out there who tell you to buy as many schools as you’re applying to. Due to the timing of the year, Debbie was also very practical in telling me what’s the max number of schools I should realistically apply to, and I decided to purchase a package less than that number.

I spoke with Debbie almost every week from Nov to Mar whether it’s back and forth updates to essays, questions from me about the process, and other status updates. The cadence came naturally because there’s just that much going on! I like mbaMission’s essay turnaround time cutoff, because that schedule pushed me to send essays over at a regular schedule in order to be the most efficient with revisions. It helps us both be accountable rather than other firms that just reply “as they get to it” which can be much longer the closer we get to deadlines. Debbie generally responds quickly to non-essay emails, 1-2 day response rate. She’ll let you know in advance when she’s taking off and how that’ll affect the response time.

Debbie is great at decluttering my thoughts and pulling out pieces that are actually relevant to essays and interviews. She will tell you straight up if certain ideas send the wrong message or are incohesive with the rest of your story. This is the harsh criticism I needed. Of course, feel free to push back since this is your application, but Debbie will work with you to find a middle ground. She’s knowledgeable about what the schools prefer and what works in applications, but also understand she can’t know every single itty-bitty detail. You still have to do your homework!

Coming out of this process, I’m glad I found Debbie to guide me. I’m not the type who’s thought about getting an MBA for years and my network doesn’t have any MBAs. The idea only came to me over the summer, so I had a lot to catch up on in a short period of time. She really gave me the confidence to push through and get admits to two M7s and two T10s which I doubt I could’ve made it without her. I chose Debbie due to her personality (also happy to support Asian women) because we would work very closely together during this period. That helped me feel comfortable asking her weirder questions relating to applications. Thank you again Debbie for your patience in responding to my long emails and addressing my boatload of comments in each essay. 

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When I first began my graduate school journey, I didn’t quite know what an MBA consultant was and began tackling applications on my own. I quickly realized that I had underestimated the degree to which grad school applications needed to be designed/tailored to tell a cohesive and all-encompassing story. As someone who was pursuing a dual degree and about to move to Australia from New York City for a professional rotation, I felt overwhelmed by all that had to be done and the standard that needed to be met.

Before moving from the US abroad, I had a 30-minute consultation with Katy, who immediately impressed me with her knowledge of the different graduate school programs (beyond MBAs), practicality and confidence in the guidance she provided, and her ability to be candid with me straight off the bat. I requested her support immediately and have never once regretted it.

Living in a new country, you naturally want to spend as little time at home on the weekends, although hard work and dedication are what graduate school applications demand. Katy helped me save tons of time on the 10 applications I submitted to MBA, MPP, and MAIR programs. Not only did she turn around essays, resumes, etc. incredibly quickly, but she also provided candid feedback on the content, made direct edits, and ensured I was telling my story in the most effective/strategic way possible by making the most of every section of the application. Katy was also receptive to my schedule, as I had to complete and submit 10 applications in 2 months (from mid-October to mid-December) due to work and personal travel commitments surrounding that time frame. From the beginning of the process through to the weeks following decisions, Katy was super open and excited about hopping on the phone, even for 15 minutes, to chat through my decision-making process and answer any questions I had top-of-mind. Even then, she remained straight-forward in her guidance and gave me her genuine opinion, rather than simply laying out the pros and cons.

I purchased the 3-school package with Katy for HBS, HKS, and Wharton. Of the 10 programs I applied to, I was accepted to 7 – MBA (UPenn Wharton, UChicago Booth, MIT Sloan, Dartmouth Tuck); Master of Public Policy/MPP (Harvard Kennedy/HKS, UChicago Harris); Master of Arts in International Relations/MAIR (Johns Hopkins SAIS Europe). I will be pursuing a joint MBA/MPP degree starting this fall – an MBA from Wharton and MPP from HKS.

I am steadfast in my belief that I would not have reached the same outcomes if it weren’t for Katy. I could not be happier with my decision and our partnership, and would recommend her to anyone considering additional support throughout the process. It’ll be more than worth it – thank you Katy!!

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Katy is the key to a successful and positive MBA application process. I found a friend and mentor in Katy -- I came out of every one of our conversations with insight and food for thought that was pivotal not only in my application process but also in my personal and professional development. Katy is one of the most patient and generous people I've met - she will give you as much time as she has no matter how often you need to talk, or how many times you need to talk through the same subject. She is honest and won't be afraid to tell you the truth but is also incredibly compassionate in her delivery. Katy has incredible insight on the MBA process, schools, and overall knowledge of industries. I was consistently impressed at how much Katy knew about different topics and how well she was able to help me pivot to make my story more and more robust and creative.

With Katy, I was able to achieve admission to one of my top schools. With the work we did together, I used that writing for my four additional applications where I was admitted to each one with scholarships up to 140k.

Without Katy, I would not have known where to start in crafting my story and knowing how to write properly for an MBA application. I am so thankful for the opportunity to work with her. Consider yourself lucky if you are able to snag a spot working with Katy!

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I would highly recommend John to anyone who wants to get into their “reach" school. I decided to get an MBA late in July and signed up for a 4 school package in November. I was so tied up with the GMAT that our work only started in late November (In hindsight, I would recommend you to start working with a consultant the moment that you decide to get an MBA). I got offers from 3 schools (one of them with scholarship) and 1 waitlist. CBS was my dream school and I'm heading there this fall!

Despite how my GMAT score was below the median, John encouraged me to look beyond it. John's greatest value is the storytelling, crafting a coherent and compelling narrative for my career transition and uncovering my unique attributes that I otherwise would have overlooked. John is extremely committed, supportive, and engaging, putting in more time and effort than contracted. Due to the time difference, our meetings are often early morning/late night, but every meeting was worth it and essay exchange was highly productive. The interview prep effectively streamlined the process and relieved the stressfulness. I had an urgent interview and we managed to scheduled the mock interview at 6AM (my time zone) with just a few hours of notice. He emphasised that it’s a “conversation” and I’m naturally good at communicating, so do not over prepare.

The school package is expensive, but I think it’s worth it because going to school is an even bigger investment and you want your 1st choice!

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Julie-Anne was incredibly supportive in helping me craft a compelling application for business schools. Having lived in multiple countries and worked across various industries, I was initially uncertain about which experiences to highlight and how to structure my application. Julie-Anne guided me through brainstorming and organizing my application package, offering insights on which experiences to emphasize and suggesting ways to enhance my profile, such as taking additional coursework. She diligently provided detailed answers to all my questions, even consulting her colleagues on topics she was less familiar with. Her feedback was prompt and thoroughly detailed, offering specific improvements and suggestions.

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Kate was an unbelievably exceptional consultant.
One of my biggest concerns with the process was balancing work and the applications, but Kate made sure I was completely on top of all of my deadlines, regularly checked in, and ensured I was always on track.
As someone who very often gets stressed and anxious, Kate promptly provided extremely sound and logical advice to all of my questions (which I had a million of) and even emotional support. She was exactly the type of calming influence I needed. She always made me feel my concerns were legitimate and valued, was always available, and always willing to chat.
She has exceptional understanding on the schools as well and gave me so much advice on how best to approach each school, talking through with me and pulling out the strengths I had. I ended up being accepted to both the HSWs I worked with her on.
I cannot speak highly enough of Kate and I would very very strongly recommend her.

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Kim was an instrumental piece in the MBA admissions process for me, and I thoroughly enjoyed my experience working with her. As someone with little knowledge about the MBA admissions process, I had a huge variety of questions about schools, essays, tests, and more that Kim was able to answer in a timely and clear manner.

With a wealth of knowledge about schools and applications, Kim helped me from start to finish. She walked me through building my list of schools, understanding my priority of those schools, managing my time while working on applications, and handling acceptances as they came in.

Kim met with me regularly and always responded quickly over email when I had questions, always providing helpful information that often went beyond what I had initially thought to ask about. One example that stands out was around my test scores. While I wasn’t particularly happy with my GMAT score, Kim introduced the idea of taking the Executive Assessment, which I ultimately performed better on. This not only allowed me to feel better about my candidacy, but also opened the door for more schools that accepted the EA in lieu of the GMAT, and I truly do not think I would have had the options I did without her guidance here.

Outside the tangible parts of the admissions process, Kim was a pleasure to work with. I truly felt she understood my career goals and personality, which made it a joy to meet with her regularly. I am so grateful for Kim’s guidance, insights, and kindness throughout the process, and I would highly recommend working with Kim and mbaMission!

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Susan is the consultant who teaches you how to do it, which is more than what to do. She gave me direct feedback and pointed out what I did not get. My whole understanding/skills were improved so much in the process.

I did not have the idea of applying to an MBA program until 6 months ago. Susan went through my background file and understood who I am. From the outside angle, she gives me the strengths I should leverage - you know, people may not understand themselves fully (at least, I am a person who needs that comment). She also helped me plan the time and prioritize things. Finally, I could meet all the deadlines and get into a M7 school that fits my personality.

Moreover, she also gives me great feedback for interviews. At that time, she knew me well, and she was able to point out some areas I should improve my communication style. I was able to correct this and clicked with my interviewer.

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When I contemplated engaging an admissions consultant for my MBA applications, I was uncertain about the investment versus the value it would bring. But I wanted to learn what additional benefits admissions consultants had to offer. I talked to several folks, but Kate stood out more than anyone else. As an Indian male engineer, I recognized the competitiveness of my background. Kate helped me uncover my unique strengths, shaping a genuine and compelling narrative tailored to the schools I targeted. After experiencing her exceptional service with one MBA application, I was so satisfied that I chose to engage her for another school as well. And it doesn’t stop there. Kate has an amazing network of current and former MBA students. During the application process, she connected me with current MBA students at the schools I was interested in. This was extremely helpful in comparing MBA programs across culture, organizations, and career potentials. Even better, currently I’m going into my second year of the MBA program and trying to transition into product management (PM). Through Kate, I was able to connect with a current PM at the company I am going to intern with over the summer. I wholeheartedly endorse Kate as an admissions consultant. She offers comprehensive support from application to post-admission success, ensuring your journey to top programs is both fruitful and fulfilling.

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I'm an Asian male applicant with average to below-average GMAT score for HSW (was worried about this). I am also extremely picky (spoke to ~10 consultants before going with Gavriella based on strong recommendation from friend at HBS who had worked with her). My personality is also the highly proactive and detail-oriented type, so it was important that I worked with someone who is highly communicative/responsive as well and wouldn't make me feel like I'm being too demanding when I'm asking questions that I feel are necessary for me to know to feel confident in our process.

Gavriella was the perfect consultant for me. Three things I'd like to highlight. (1) She was very practical and always gave it to me straight. I'm the type to want the honest truth. I'd want to know my chances at a certain school so I don't waste resources. I'd also want to know how bad or good my essay draft is so I can revamp efficiently. (2) She is an impressive writer and storyteller. My HBS friend mentioned this as the main reason she had liked Gavriella and I can confirm this. (3) She is highly communicative. This was important to me as mentioned above. She'd also always make time for me for Zoom calls on the day of. She certainly made me feel like I was one of 1-3 clients when she probably did have more because she's so highly demanded. I do know she makes sure to take less than she can take on so she can dedicate herself fully to her clients. (4) I know I said 3 things but one more...she passed the vibe check...! You spend so much time with your consultant especially if you do an all-in package so I think it's so important you work with someone pleasant and with whom you'd, for example, grab dinner with. 4 months after my Wharton acceptance, I still think about how fun it'd be to treat Gavriella and her beautiful kids for a dinner (or Toys r Us) with the merit-based scholarship money she helped me earn. Unfortunately we do not live in the same city :)

I told her BEFORE the results came out that the ROI on my investment had already checked out, largely because her process helped me better understand what I want to do professionally and find confidence.

I strongly recommend Gavriella. If you're on the fence and would like to speak with me directly about my experience, please feel free to reach out to Gavriella and we can discuss setting something up.

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