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mbaMission

mbaMission A la Carte Hourly Services

Admissions Consulting

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5.00★
9 mbaMission reviews
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- Program Compatibility/School Selection
- Brainstorming
- Outline/Essay Review
- Resume and Short-Answer Review
- Recommender Strategy
- Interview Preparation
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Joined: May 13, 2019
Purchased: Nov 12, 2018
Country: United States
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I highly recommend Melissa Merchant!

May 13, 2019
  • Teacher: Melissa Merchant
I have nothing but positive things to say about my experience with Melissa. After less success in my Round 1 application cycle, I decided to work with a consultant and apply again in Round 2. I worked on a 2-school package with Melissa and was accepted to both schools with scholarship awards. Those results speak for themselves!

Melissa’s exceptional attention to detail and incredible knowledge of what each school values in its candidates made a huge difference. While I had already done some of the leg work after applying in Round 1, Melissa's probing questions helped me dig deeper into my story and weave together my various professional and personal experiences to show where I had been, where I wanted to go, and why an MBA would help get me there. I was so impressed by how well Melissa got to know my story and was able to help me tailor it to each aspect of the application process.

Melissa also challenged me to be more detailed about why a certain school was the right fit for me. Not only did this help strengthen my application and interviews, it also helped me truly understand what type of MBA program I was looking for, and ultimately enabled me pick a school that I truly believe is uniquely positioned to help me achieve my personal and professional goals.

I highly recommend working with Melissa! She has the right combination of expertise, professionalism, energy, and compassion that not only makes her a great consultant, but also a wonderful cheerleader and mentor throughout the application process.
Joined: Feb 19, 2019
Purchased: Jun 3, 2018
College: Princeton University
Major: Political Science
Industry: Consulting
Country: United States
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Melissa Merchant -- Amazing Consultant!!!

February 19, 2019
  • Teacher: Melissa Merchant
Melissa is a thoughtful, caring, and diligent consultant who will put you in the best position possible to get accepted to your dream MBA program. Melissa was able to extract insights about me and my story throughout the process that I would never have been able to surface on my own. She is an extremely talented essay editor and knows what admissions committees are looking for when they read your personal statements. Without her, my essays would have been much weaker, and I'm not sure I would have gotten the results I did.

More importantly, Melissa provides deeply caring and personalized mentorship. She was always extremely accessible and knew my story inside and out, despite working with many other clients at the same time. She is a straight-shooter and gives actionable feedback, which also means that when she tells you how awesome something is, she means it! She is very honest and pushes her clients in all the right ways. I can't say enough good things about Melissa.
Joined: Jan 27, 2019
Purchased: Apr 18, 2018
College: Northwestern University
Major: Economics
Industry: Consulting
Country: United States
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Awesome experience with Melissa

January 27, 2019
  • Teacher: Melissa Merchant
I absolutely loved working with Melissa on a 2 school package. I did a lot of research on consultants, and Melissa stood out as a great fit based on mbaMission's reputation, and Melissa's professional experience and similar school selection. The biggest area she helped with was creating my story. mbaMission sends over a huge document to fill out your personal and career path, and Melissa spent 2 hours going through the document, asking probing questions, and by the end we had a consistent story that I was able to use at each school. I had an idea in mind of how I wanted my story to look, and she was able to point out the parts which might be problematic when applying, as well as the key areas to highlight when applying. We also had a school-selection discussion before this, where I was able to list what I was looking for in a school, and Melissa went through the pros/cons of each school which would be a fit. Melissa was incredibly knowledgeable and was able to provide school-specific insights that I don't think I would've been able to find myself. She was able to provide best practices in all areas of the application too, including how best to prime your recommenders, how/when to show interest in each school, and a clear timeline. One area I would like to see a bit more focus is on some of the "formatting" best practices, such as making all essays into PDF. Some of these are probably pretty self-explanatory, but I would want them to be more explicit. I was ultimately admitted to two schools and waitlisted at the third (I only applied to three schools).
Consultants are obviously very expensive, but I would 100% recommend Melissa to anyone who is looking.
Joined: Jan 23, 2019
Purchased: May 22, 2018
College: Queen's University
Major: Business
Industry: Textiles and Apparel
Country: Canada
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Excellent Experience with mbaMission & Melissa Merchant

January 23, 2019
  • Teacher: Melissa Merchant
My time working with Melissa Merchant and the mbaMission team on my applications was incredibly productive and rewarding. The guidance, insight, and feedback provided the foundation for me to effectively create and submit my applications on time and with minimal stress.

Melissa did a great job of being proactive. She provided me with resources and guidelines very early on in each step of the process. This helped reduce the anxiety that comes with meeting first round deadlines for multiple schools. Also, her ability to structure a narrative about me, my career aspirations and my experience was robust and concise.

I would highly recommend working with Melissa on your application journey. She is patient, helpful, and will challenge you to put your best foot forward with your applications and interviews.
Joined: Jun 26, 2018
Purchased: Mar 20, 2018
Country: United States
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Amazing!

June 26, 2018
  • Teacher: Heidi Granner
I am in the unique position of having had the chance to work with Heidi twice on MBA applications (once for full time programs and once for part time programs). Prior to working with Heidi, I had elected to work with a "budget" (but still not cheap) service that did not provide the high level of service I would have expected.

While applying to full time programs a few years ago, I worked with Heidi on an entire three school package and added two additional schools via hourly services. Heidi provided good constructive criticism throughout the process. She was quick to provide responses, positive, and extremely knowledgeable. Over the course of working with Heidi, my essays evolved immensely, creating a cohesive and compelling story. Without Heidi's guidance, I would have never been as successful in my application process as I was (I was invited to interview at all five schools I applied to, interviewed and was accepted at one, and decided to cancel the remaining interviews). Unfortunately, due to work circumstances I decided not to enroll in a full time program.

Thus, a few years later when I decided to apply to part time programs I did my best to track Heidi down in order to build upon our past experiences and work with her again. Once again, she was prompt and provided good criticism while helping me quickly and efficiently craft new applications from my old and some new material. With her help I was admitted to both programs I applied to.

Overall, Heidi challenged me throughout the process and not only helped my applications evolve but helped me become better as well. Without her assistance, I would have never been able to develop the well-rounded applications I ended up submitting.
Joined: Jun 20, 2016
Purchased: Jun 29, 2017
Country: United States
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Trust me -- go with Melissa Merchant!

May 4, 2018
  • Teacher: Melissa Merchant
Several friends recommended that I hire an admissions consultant for my apps, so I decided to give the free 30-minute consultation a try. My plan was to shop around different companies and consultants before committing, and my very first consultation was with Melissa. After the first few minutes with her, I was sold and knew that I didn’t need to look any further. After our consultation, the actual thought in my head was, ?There’s literally nothing I would change about her and our dynamic, so I might as well end my search here!?

For me, the toughest part of the app process was essay writing. There were stories that I knew I wanted to share, but I couldn’t get the messaging down myself, and especially not within the word limits. Melissa helped guide my thinking to dig deeper, and at the end, my final essays were still very much "me" -- MY stories, and in MY words ? just told in a MUCH more effective way. Her guidance for my resume and interview preparation was also tremendously helpful and insightful.

Melissa is everything you’d possibly want in a consultant ? she’s reliable, personable, and knows what the admissions committee is looking for. I couldn’t be happier with my experience, and she’s one of the first people I called when I got into my dream school! I truly think that I wouldn’t have been able to get into all the schools I did without Melissa on my team.

Anyone in the market for an admissions consultant -- save your time and end your search here! I recommend Melissa 100%.
Joined: May 3, 2018
Purchased: Oct 3, 2017
College: Penn State University
Major: Accounting
Industry: Investment Management
Country: United States
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Melissa Merchant - Best Coach Ever!

May 3, 2018
  • Teacher: Melissa Merchant
When I decided to apply to B-School, I debated whether or not to use an admissions consultant. A friend of mine recommended I give mbaMission a try for at least the free 30 minute consultation. After speaking with Melissa in that initial conversation and getting a very positive impression, I decided that I would purchase a couple of hours for a second, and professional opinion on some of my essays. This turned out to be the best decision I made during the application process. My coach/coachee relationship with Melissa snowballed from there and I continued working with her throughout the entire application process because I kept getting so much value out of her feedback.

More than anything, Melissa helped me understand my story on a deeper level and in a way that would resonate on my applications. Furthermore, she helped me discover my potential by forcing me to dig deeper on every essay, resume bullet point, interview prep call, etc. Because I could tell she cared about my dreams and aspirations for business school and beyond, I was able to trust her throughout the entire application process. The value of having a coach and loyal friend (who I knew had my best interest at heart) in my corner while navigating the challenging process of applying to business school was immeasurable.

In addition to the soft skills and intangibles she provided, Melissa is incredibly smart and energetic. Her insight, expertise, and passion provided a much needed boost to my applications. I totally (and have already) recommend working with Melissa to anyone considering applying to business school. She helped me get into my dream school and I couldn't be more excited about what she helped me accomplish. I look forward to sharing future successes with her for many years to come!
Joined: Apr 29, 2018
Purchased: May 31, 2017
College: Indian Institute of Science
Major: Computer Science
Country: India
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An unforgettable experience!

April 29, 2018
  • Teacher: Heidi Granner
Applied to 5 different schools, four among them were part of the elite M7 group. Not a single ding. Invited to interview from all five of them! Now, I am on my way to enroll at my dream school, Chicago Booth! Yes, my decision to work with Heidi turned out to be a killer deal for me. But the problem with quoting just impressive statistics like these is that they are but a snapshot of a nearly year-long process and very often don’t exactly reveal the entire story. Heidi made me realize that success rates alone don’t define a consultant. It is the experience that counts. Working with Heidi was one of the best and most memorable part of my entire application journey and when I say this I am least guided by the end results. It was a realization that hit me barely a couple of weeks after I started working with her. Patient, diligent, considerate, accommodative, and I can go on with more and more adjectives to describe her. But above all, it was her comforting presence and her cheery outlook that made me feel so self-assured. At no point during the entire process did I even have an iota of doubt about the outcome. Being an Indian male with an engineering background, it was supposed to be insanely difficult to differentiate me from the entire applicant pool. But Heidi managed to do exactly that in style. I still remember the very first call we had, when Heidi, after having read my entire biography, zeroed in on seemingly inconsequential stories of my life as must-haves in all my application essays to differentiate myself from the Indian applicant pool. That statement from her stands out as a remarkable prophecy today. And it was not just about creating quality essays. Being a Booth graduate herself and having been a consultant at one of the Big 3 consulting firms, she’s not just an admissions consultant but a perfect mentor to guide you in your post-MBA goals. I can confidently state today that my business education journey started the very same day I started working with Heidi. Long story short, if you are ever looking for a person who would go beyond being just an admissions consultant and stay with you as a friend/mentor/counsellor to guide you and steer you through the rigorous application process then Heidi is the one you should be looking for. I have extremely fond memories of my application journey only because of Heidi and they are mine to cherish forever!
Joined: Mar 23, 2018
Purchased: Nov 11, 2017
College: Queen's University
Major: Geology
Industry: Energy/Extractive Minerals
Country: Canada
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Amazing consultant

March 23, 2018
  • Teacher: Jen Kedrowski
I had the pleasure of working with Jen on an hourly basis to help with my MBA applications. I first called Jen for the 30 minute free consultation in a total panic about my future (ha) to which she was not only helpful, but also a friend. Jen and I maximized our hourly services together and her strength was really noticeable in shaping my story into something each b-school I applied to would resonate with. Together we worked on a strategy for schools, essays and applications, and mock interviews. I come from a very technical background (geologist!) and Jen was able to translate my industry specific experiences and jargon into a relatable story for admissions.

Even on an hourly basis, I felt that Jen really knew my story inside and out, and was rooting for me the whole way. She fielded more than a few panicked phone calls/emails during the process (especially after my HBS interview!). But more than a consultant, I feel that Jen was a friend who had been through the process herself in the past, could understand the tough nature of it, and had my back the whole way through. She believed in me when I needed it most.

With Jen, I was invited to interview at 5/6 schools to which I applied, and ultimately was admitted at most of them. I've accepted my offer to attend HBS in the fall and truly couldn't have done it without her.

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