An MBA from a top business school can be the ticket to achieving your professional dreams, but getting accepted to an elite program is not easy. Hiring an MBA admissions consultant to assist you in delivering your best possible application can give you a major assist, but is it worth the investment? And how do you find a good one? In this post, we’ll explain what you should look for in determining whether a consultant is the right one for you – and what to steer clear of.
The Benefits of Working with an MBA Admissions Consultant
You can find endless discussions on forums and message boards about the value of admissions consulting. One of the more common arguments against using a consultant runs something like this: “I know so many MBA students at top schools who got in without an admissions consultant. It’s just not necessary to hire one.”
If you were to take a poll of business school admissions consultants, you would find that the majority of them were accepted to the MBA programs they attended without the assistance of a consultant. Some, especially the more senior ones, likewise did not take a GMAT prep course. However, over the past 30 years, preparing to take one’s admission exam via a course or tutor has gone from being an act of desperation to a strategic choice that offers a competitive edge, to a mainstay of the application process. And a similar trend has occurred with admissions consulting. At this point, working with a consultant is not crucial for every applicant, but it is definitely helpful. The question is not whether it’s possible for an candidate to get accepted to a top MBA program without a consultant, but rather whether the advantages of hiring a consultant are worth the cost.
So, let’s look at some of the benefits of working with an experienced admissions consultant:
- You improve your chances of being accepted to a “better” school. By “better,” we mean one that offers more professional opportunities in your area of interest, a higher probability of increased earnings, a deeper and more valuable network, and an educational experience more to your liking.
- A stronger application can help you secure a scholarship. Such funding could save you tens of thousands of dollars.
- You’re less likely to have to reapply. Applying to business school, when you include application fees, test fees, and travel expenses, can cost several thousand dollars. Applying successfully the first time will save you from having to expend even more money and time reapplying in the future.
- The process will be not only less time-consuming but also less stressful and frustrating (for both you and those close to you). A good admissions consultant will keep you on track and advancing efficiently through the admissions process. Plus, you won’t need to spend time figuring out everything they already know about how to navigate it.
The experience, objectivity, and skill an admissions consultant provides can often be worth many times the cost.
Evaluating Potential MBA Admissions Consultants
When assessing whether a consultant might be a good match for you and your admissions-related needs, pay attention to their experience, process/working style, differentiating factors, accessibility, candor, and cost. However, do not assume that an individual must have earned an MBA themselves (and one from your target school, in particular) or been a member of a school’s admissions committee to be an effective consultant.
Experience
Absolutely ask about the consultant’s level of experience with your programs of interest, your demographic group, and your industry. At the same time, understand that a really good consultant is always discovering new programs, learning about significant changes in existing programs, and staying up-to-date with the types of applicants competing for seats in the class. A consultant at the top of their game will be current with all the trends and know how to help you present yourself as a distinct, fully realized individual – beyond the stats and the stereotypes. They will be able to guide you in sharing your story in a compelling way and highlighting your valuable qualifications.
Process/Working Style
Ask how the services you are considering will be provided in practical terms. Learn about turnaround times for edits, how long you should expect to spend on each application, what forms of communication are used or preferred, and who exactly you’ll be working with. If you start out talking to a salesperson, before you sign on, be sure to ask to speak with the consultant with whom you would be working. You’ll want a chance to evaluate your potential connection with that consultant before you commit.
Differentiating Factors
Ask what the consultant considers special and uniquely valuable about their offerings and expertise. You should clearly understand what makes their service different. Look for testimonials on their website, especially those that are recent and, whenever possible, from applicants who were accepted to your target school(s).
Accessibility
Ask about the consultant’s accessibility. When can you expect to be able to reach them? Are they available on weekends and/or holidays? In the evenings?
Candor
Will the consultant be fully honest with you throughout the application process? For example, if you target an MBA program that they believe is beyond your reach or draft an essay they feel is off target, will they tell you frankly? You want to know that the feedback and advice you’ll receive will be genuine.
Cost
Most consulting firms list their prices on their websites, but the services offered can often be multifaceted or complex, so ask questions to confirm exactly what you would be getting for your investment. Make sure you understand whether the fees are for package or hourly services.
Unnecessary Qualifications
An admissions consultant needs to know how to help you tell your story in a clear, coherent, and compelling way. To be qualified to do this, they do not need to have attended — or worked in admissions at — the school you’re applying to. Likewise, they do not need to have earned an MBA themselves.
A consultant’s degree and alma mater are irrelevant to their ability to help applicants present themselves effectively to an admissions committee. So focus instead on their experience with and insight into the admissions process, their editing skills, and their capacity to serve as a mentor.
A Note About Essay Writers and Application Agents
When researching your options for getting support with your MBA applications, be aware that essay writing services and application agents are not the same thing as admissions consultancies. Consultants guide and mentor applicants through the application process, helping them brainstorm for, revise, and polish their essays. On the other hand, essay writers actually create essays for applicants – serving as ghostwriters, rather than advisors. And business school administrators all agree that submitting ghostwritten essays is unethical.
Application agents counsel candidates on selecting the programs they should apply to. However, schools pay these agents to procure applications. Sometimes, agents are paid by both the school and the applicant. This creates a clear conflict of interest. Applicants should be counseled to apply to MBA programs where their goals will be supported and they have a reasonable chance of getting accepted – not to ones that benefit the agent or school instead.
Next Steps
You’ve taken an important step toward creating a successful application by reading this post, and the next logical step is seeking personalized advice tailored just for you. Consider scheduling a free, 30-minute free consultation with an experienced Accepted MBA admissions consultant today.
As the former executive director of admissions at Carnegie Mellon’s Tepper School and assistant dean of admissions at Georgetown’s McDonough School and the University of Pittsburgh’s Katz School, Kelly Wilson has 23 years’ experience overseeing admissions committees and has reviewed more than 38,000 applications for the MBA and master’s programs in management of information systems, computational finance, business analytics, and product management. Want Kelly to help you get accepted? Click here to get in touch!
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