UPDATE: This article was originally posted on May 8, 2020. It has been updated with 2024/2025 information and tips below.
Whenever I sit down with a new client to start mapping out their MBA application process, I always hear the same thing: “There is so much competition out there. How can I make sure I am admitted into a top school?”
Considering the fact that the MBA application process usually takes around a year, it’s no surprise that getting into a top school is a process that involves completing numerous tasks and making thousands of small decisions that will impact how successful your application ends up being.
But making sure you build the ideal MBA application strategy for you is easier said than done. That’s where MBA consultants come in.
More than just helping you polish your essays, MBA consultants are powerful resources that use extensive industry know-how to help you obtain optimal results when applying to business school. Though they can help improve any aspect of your MBA application, we believe MBA consultants can help you improve your application strategy in the following 3 key ways.
MBA consultants can help you choose the right programs
One of the most important – yet most overlooked – first steps of the MBA application process is deciding which business schools you should apply to.
Though there are countless factors you should consider in your decision, the following are, in our opinion, some of the most important.
Length
The first factor that a consultant can help you consider is what program length is ideal for your situation and goals. Since 1-year MBAs were first introduced more than 50 years ago, the debate over whether a 1-year MBA is better or worse than a 2-year MBA has raged.
The answer to the age-old question?
It depends on your profile, goals, and expectations for your MBA experience. For applicants working in the tech industry (which tends to move quickly), for example, 1 year MBA programs may be more advantageous than longer programs. On the other hand, sponsored candidates may want to take advantage of their job security to enjoy the benefits of a longer program.
These are just a few reasons applicants may want to take into consideration when determining the length of the program. If you’re curious about other factors you should consider when deciding if you should apply to 1-year or 2-year programs, check out our post on this topic here!
Industry Specializations
Though all MBAs offer you the chance to improve your business administration skills, if you’re particularly focused on one particular area, you may find some schools are more able to meet your needs than others.
For example, if you want to break into Fintech, you might think all schools with strong finance programs would allow you to build the specialized skills you seek. However, this isn’t the case. Instead, you may want to look at the small handful of MBAs who have developed programs or tracks specifically focused on Fintech, such as NYU Stern or Cornell Johnson.
Furthermore, as interest in tech and social impact careers increases, schools are expanding their programs to better meet student needs. Be careful, however, as not all MBA specializations are created equal. Though many schools offer social impact programs, for example, some are highly focused on environmental sustainability, which may not be aligned with the type of social impact you want to explore during business school.
As such, devote some time to exploring the different majors and elective courses your potential target schools offer to ensure you can make the most of your MBA to reach your career goals. Because this is such a daunting task, given the thousands of MBA programs available, having a consultant to guide you and help you make your decision can be a massive relief.
Location
As the real estate mantra goes: location, location, location.
Though the world is increasingly global, where you do your MBA inherently still largely influences which opportunities you will have access to.
For example, let’s imagine you want to break into Private Equity and decide to go to Berkeley Haas. Though Berkeley Haas is a phenomenal MBA program, the headquarters of the firms most MBAs are dying to work for are a 6-hour flight away in New York City.
This doesn’t mean you can’t participate in New York-based recruiting and events, it just means you’re going to have to do a lot more planning ahead.
Another key issue is considering the country in which the program is located.
If you are keen to try to land a job in the US, it’s important to apply to US-based schools. This not only allows you a no-strings-attached one-year work visa through the OPT program, but it also makes it a lot easier for you to network with companies who are willing to sponsor your visa after your OPT runs out.
However, if you are looking to position yourself within Asia’s growing economies and industries, you may want to consider pursuing an Asian MBA. Or, if salary is your priority, you may want to consider getting an MBA in Australia. For international students looking to relocate abroad, Canadian business schools also offer an interesting alternative to US-based schools, as the Canadian government allows graduate school graduates to immediately work in any field or industry in Canada for 3 years after finishing their degrees. This can then be transformed later into Permanent Residency status.
Many of our clients also actively pursue opportunities in Europe.
For example, our client Marina knew she wanted to spend more than two years abroad but wanted to relocate to a safer country with a better work/life balance than her home country in order to jump-start her career and start a family.
With this in mind, her Italian passport proved the key to our application strategy. We focused on European schools with top recruiting opportunities (namely, INSEAD, IESE, and London Business School). After successfully graduating from INSEAD, Marina used her fluent Spanish to land a job at Amazon in Barcelona.
Ultimately, there are lots of considerations to make when deciding where you want to study. There’s no one “ideal” place to obtain your MBA, but the location will ultimately play a role in your future. MBA consultants have in-depth knowledge of the different benefits that each school and region offers, so they can be immensely helpful in this step!
Competitiveness
The most important reason we believe you should employ an MBA consultant when deciding where to apply to business school is this: MBA consultants can help you evaluate the overall strength of your profile and determine how likely you are to get into certain programs.
Though no MBA consultant can predict the future with 100% accuracy, consultants can help you understand how likely you are to receive an offer of admission based on your unique profile.
Determining your competitiveness includes considering multiple data points and comparing these data points to admissions trends at your target schools. By helping you develop a strategy that makes sense based on your unique profile, your consultant will help make sure you obtain your best result at the end of the application process.
Though the factors listed above are critical to think about when deciding where to apply to business school, working with an MBA consultant will help you ensure that you take into consideration factors that only apply to your case. This can include personal factors (such as applying with a partner), financial factors (such as which schools offer better scholarships), or even recruiting concerns!
As such, though we suggest all applicants do preliminary research and reflection on multiple MBA programs, having the support of a consultant is essential when determining your final school list.
MBA consultants can help you make sure your profile stands out
Any good marketing campaign starts with understanding who your target audience is.
This is no different when it comes to business schools. Though all schools essentially offer the same product: an MBA, the product features are as different as a Ferrari’s are from a pickup truck’s.
For example, London Business School really values internationally-minded candidates, so your personal brand for LBS should focus more on your international strengths and vision. On the other hand, Kellogg seeks to admit candidates who show dedication to collaborative leadership and social impact.
Every school has a different “fit,” so you should plan to tailor your application to each school. The following are just a few elements of the application you should discuss with your MBA consultant to ensure your applications are successful.
Determining your personal brand
One of the first things I tell my clients who are applying to an MBA is that you won’t get into a top program by being like everyone else–you’ll get in by standing out.
But figuring out how to stand out and how to keep your “uniqueness” consistent across your application can be very difficult if you don’t have some sort of guide.
This is why all of my clients start their MBA applications by defining their personal brands.
A personal brand is a powerful tool you will use not only throughout your application but also during your studies and later on when you re-enter the job market. Great, right? But how do you get to the point where you have your personal brand?
One of the best ways to do this is to work with a coach or consultant you trust, as they can help you understand how to focus on different elements of your profile yet still ensure you submit a cohesive application.
Choosing the right recommenders
Though you have little control over the actual content of the letters of recommendation sent on your behalf, you do have the power to choose who you ask to recommend you.
Some candidates think this is somewhat of an automatic decision, yet choosing the right people for the job will ultimately determine if your letters shine or flop.
When choosing your recommenders, you should always select professionals you have recently worked with who are able to talk in detail about you as a professional. Additionally, the schools set out certain limitations you will want to be sure to follow. Find out more about how to choose your recommenders wisely here.
You may have lots of people in mind and need to decide between them, or perhaps you don’t have any idea whom to ask – in any case, choosing the right recommenders is a key move in the MBA application process that your consultant can help you make strategically.
Deciding which stories to tell
Writing your MBA admissions essay may feel like an intimidating task. With precious little space, what should you tell the adcom? How much detail should you include? Whatever you do, it is important to use the space you have effectively.
This is where an expert can come in – by helping you brainstorm your ideas, choose which ideas best highlight your strengths and skills, and edit your essays to perfection, essay editors can support you every step of the way. We know which strategies work best depending on the school, your personal background, and your goals. More than anything, we know that the key to a successful application means choosing the right stories.
In theory, you can use practically any story from your past in your MBA application. That all depends on the overall message you want to impart to your reader and the personal brand you intend to use throughout your application.
If you want to tell the adcom that you value hard work, for example, you could tell them how you first learned about this by working as a teenager every weekend at your parents’ business. You could also tell them about how all-nighters at work helped increase your company’s profits.
Alternatively, you could express your strength of determination by talking about practicing ballet or not giving in to doubt despite coming from underprivileged circumstances.
As you can see, there are plenty of options when it comes to stories. All the more reason why they must be chosen with care – often, my clients start their essays out with stories and writing that seem great to them but might not bode so well for an adcom in particular. Fixing these key mistakes in essays is a task a skilled MBA consultant can help tremendously with.
Helping you tell your stories the best way in essays
One of the most common mistakes we see in MBA essays is that candidates fail to tell compelling stories. This is important because if your stories are not compelling, they will not be persuasive.
You must be persuasive for your essay to be effective. Remember, you are ultimately convincing the adcom to accept you into their school.
Many candidates attempt to tell stories that do not have the right amount of detail.
They might not clearly highlight what their role in their story was, fail to demonstrate a problem that needed solving, or not give the reader enough information to understand the context of the story in the first place. A compelling story must have all of these elements to keep a reader’s interest piqued until the very end.
In other words, the key to a compelling argument is structure.
If you’re not used to selling your profile or writing compelling stories, writing your MBA essays may seem like a daunting task.
After multiple drafts, you may realize that you are not creating a compelling argument because your stories have no common theme or that they lack a clear structure. Any of these mistakes are easily avoidable.
Even if you have addressed all of these issues, there may still be something missing. Maybe you can’t set the tone you are aiming for, you can’t get your text to sound professional, or you are just having trouble identifying your values or formulating a story for your MBA admissions essay in the first place. Whatever your problem may be, our experienced editing team at Ellin Lolis Consulting is here to help.
Ensuring your stories shine in interviews
Storytelling is not just for your essays – it’s a helpful tool to use during an MBA interview as well.
Your verbal and nonverbal behavior will be on display during the interview but don’t try to impress the interviewer with lofty language and vague-sounding statements. Try to remain conversational and personable using language that is clear, concise, and compelling.
You should also consider what your nonverbal behavior is saying. Do you come across as animated and engaged—or do you seem bored and shy? Are you using the proper tone, hand gestures, and volume to present your best self?
With years of experience helping applicants navigate the interview portion of the application process, MBA consultants are key to making sure you continue to put your best foot forward and use your MBA interview to truly wow the admissions committee.
Determining how to handle unexpected circumstances
Finally, no application cycle is complete without some sort of unexpected challenge to tackle along the way.
For example, my team and I helped our client Pedro draft a deferral letter after his company put new sponsorship policies in place. Last year, I helped another client who discovered she was pregnant decide which programs best aligned with her goal of completing the MBA while also becoming a mother. I have also helped numerous candidates navigate the challenges of applying to business school as a couple.
Though these may be extreme cases, every application has its ups and downs and unexpected twists and turns. That’s why we at Ellin Lolis Consulting believe it’s essential for you to have a partner you trust by your side during the whole process.
MBA consultants are a powerful ally during the application process
During the MBA application process, you will need to make thousands of decisions that will impact your life for decades to come.
Having a trusted ally who can use their deep knowledge of your profile and what different business schools offer can be the difference between loving your MBA program and wishing you’d done everything differently.
Additionally, many of our clients come to us with a general idea of what they want to do with their careers after they complete an MBA but lack specifics. Our career coaches step in at this point to help you define what you want out of your career, create concrete short-term and long-term goals for this career path, and identify which business schools can best help you turn these dreams into reality.
For us, though, it’s more than just helping you build the strategy that will get you into your target schools. It’s about providing the support you need along the way. In the words of our client Rafaela, “Thank you so much for supporting me throughout this journey. You are more than a mentor, you are a person who never lets someone give up on dreams. You believed in me more than I believed in myself, and I will never forget that.”
98.9% of our clients get accepted to at least one of their preferred programs, and we’d love to help you, too! To get the support that you need along your MBA application journey, sign up to apply to work with us today!
Real MBA Essays That Got People In
School-specific sample essays that got our clients accepted
