Leland+ Content Library

8 Steps to a Complete MBA App: 7) School Fit & Application Strategy [6/18/2026] (Recording)

Applying to business school can feel overwhelming! You have dozens of moving pieces: essays, short answers, video content, resume, recommendations, outreach, research, and more. This workshop is the seventh of a structured 8-part MBA Identity Mapping series designed to take you from fragmented tasks to a clear plan of action. In this session, you will map your story directly to each school’s application components and develop a clear strategy for how your application will come together. These sessions walk you step by step through building one fully aligned MBA application. In every workshop, you will be assigned tasks to complete over the next two weeks, keeping you organized and accountable. By the end, you will have strong, authentic essays and a cohesive narrative that runs consistently through your resume, goals, recommendations, school strategy, and interviews. You are absolutely welcome to attend individual sessions if you only need focused help on a specific component(s) of your MBA application. This session moves your MBA application forward by translating your story, goals, and strengths into a clear strategy for each target school: • Map your themes and key stories to each school’s essay prompts. • Determine which experiences and examples will appear in each component of the application. • Integrate insights from your outreach conversations with students and alumni. • Identify any gaps or risks in your profile and plan how to address them. This is the phase where preparation turns into a clear application plan. Instead of staring at essay prompts and wondering where to start, you will have a structured outline of exactly what each part of your application will communicate. The MBA Identity Mapping process has guided 100+ applicants into every M7 program, all other top 20 U.S. programs, and leading international programs including INSEAD, London Business School, IESE, Esade, Oxford, Cambridge, NUS, and more. Clients consistently describe it as transformative because it replaces scattered effort with forward momentum and strategic clarity. If you are ready to translate your story into a clear plan for each school on your list, this is your next step.

MBA Essay Bootcamp: How to tell a story no other applicant can [6/18/2026] (Recording)

Unlock the secrets to crafting an unforgettable MBA essay with our MBA Essay Bootcamp! Join me, Hanie, as we dive into the art of storytelling that sets you apart from the competition. With my background as a Schwarzman Scholar at Tsinghua University and an MBA graduate from Columbia Business School, I bring a wealth of experience in admissions and essay crafting. In this session, we'll explore how to weave your unique experiences into a compelling narrative that resonates with admissions committees. Whether you're just starting your application journey or looking to refine your essays, this bootcamp is designed to elevate your application strategy. Spaces are limited, so RSVP now to secure your spot and take the first step towards your dream MBA program!

Showing Leadership Potential in your MBA App w/ex-Stanford Admissions Director [6/17/2026] (Recording)

Next to academics, the most important criteria that schools evaluate in your MBA application is 'leadership potential'. What is it, and how is it evaluated? While each school may differ slightly, there are several key elements that are common across MBA admissions. My goal is to offer actionable tips and a structured framework to strengthen your application in this area. I draw on more than a decade managing admissions at Stanford GSB, as well as helping to develop the school's core leadership curriculum. Following the session, I will share a video link (in case you miss it) and a PDF summary document.

How to Nail the Consulting Case Interview [6/17/2026] (Recording)

Strong candidates often know the basics of casing, but high-level consulting interviews require a more structured and polished approach under pressure. This session is for candidates who want to strengthen their performance in consulting case interviews and understand what separates good answers from standout ones. You’ll learn how to structure complex problems, communicate your thinking with clarity, and navigate the types of challenges that commonly appear in top consulting interviews. Join live to hear from a panel of experts with MBB backgrounds and ask questions about your own case prep. The panelists have extensive experience both interviewing and coaching candidates and will share the patterns they see across strong performances and common mistakes. Expect practical frameworks and insights similar to what’s covered in 1:1 case coaching

Home for Ambition #12 — Weekly Live Show [6/17/2026] (Recording)

Home for Ambition is a weekly live show, by Leland, for people trying to stay ahead as work, learning, and opportunity keep changing. Each episode tackles a handful of timely, high-signal topics across AI, careers, education, and the future of work. We expect thoughtful debate, unique perspectives, and practical takeaways you can actually use. It is not a typical interview show or a generic news recap. It is a live roundtable built to help ambitious people make sense of what is changing, understand what matters, and leave with a sharper point of view on how to navigate what comes next.

Banking to Buy-Side: IB & Venture Playbook [6/17/2026] (Recording)

Many finance professionals see investment banking as a stepping stone, but far fewer understand how to successfully make the jump to the buy side. This session is for candidates interested in venture capital, investing, and long-term finance careers who want a clearer roadmap for navigating that transition. You’ll learn how investment banking experience can be leveraged for buy-side opportunities, what firms look for in candidates making the move, and how to position yourself throughout the recruiting process. Join live to hear from two experts with extensive experience across both investment banking and venture capital and ask questions about your own career path. The speakers have firsthand experience navigating these industries and will share the patterns they see across successful transitions, common mistakes, and what differentiates candidates who break through. Expect practical insights and advice similar to what’s covered in 1:1 career coaching conversations.

Med School Application Strategy AMA: Stop Guessing & Secure Your Acceptance [6/7/2026] (Recording)

When you're building a medical school application, generic advice doesn’t cut it. Your path is unique, and so are your hurdles. You’ve likely spent hours agonizing over conflicting opinions online: Is my MCAT score balanced? Does this clinical experience sound meaningful? How do I address that one bad semester without sounding defensive? The truth? Every minute you spend guessing is a minute you could spend strategically strengthening your application. This live, unfiltered Ask Me Anything (AMA) session is your direct line to an expert medical school admissions strategist. We'll discuss strategies tailored to your situation in real-time and answer your burning questions about what admissions committees actually care about when deciding between applicants.

The $10K Conversation: Negotiation Strategies That Actually Work

In this live workshop, we’ll break down exactly how to negotiate your salary and job offer confidently, professionally, and strategically. Whether you’re applying to graduate internships, early-career roles, or experienced professional positions, this session will teach you how to advocate for yourself and potentially increase your compensation by thousands. We’ll cover: - The biggest salary negotiation mistakes candidates make - What recruiters actually expect during negotiations - How to research your market value - What to say (and what NOT to say) - Scripts for emails and live conversations - How to negotiate beyond salary: PTO, bonuses, flexibility, and more This session is designed to be practical, interactive, and confidence-building — especially for professionals who were never taught how to navigate these conversations. Come ready to learn the strategies behind the conversation that could change your earning trajectory for years to come.

AMA: Prepare NOW for Admissions This Fall - MFE & STEM Master's [6/5/2026] (Recording)

Thinking about an MFE, MSCS, Data Science, Analytics, or other STEM master’s program? Join this AMA for honest advice on admissions, competitiveness, recruiting, career outcomes, and whether a program is actually worth it. We’ll cover: - School selection - Resume & profile positioning - Career changer applications - Essays & materials - Networking as part of your strategy Bring your questions — especially if you’re targeting Financial Engineering, quant finance, AI/ML, or technical career pivots.

5 Best Practices for Writing an Excellent MBA Essay [6/3/2026] (Recording)

Great MBA essays don’t just sound polished, they make admissions readers remember you long after they finish reading. This session is for applicants who want a clearer understanding of what separates average essays from truly compelling ones. You’ll learn five core best practices for building a strong narrative, writing with more clarity and specificity, and aligning your essays with what top MBA programs are actually looking for. Join live to ask questions about your own essays and hear practical guidance from an expert MBA coach with dual degrees from M7 programs. The speaker has worked closely with applicants on crafting standout applications and will share the patterns they see across successful essays and common mistakes. Expect actionable insights and feedback similar to what’s covered in 1:1 admissions coaching conversations.

GMAT Quant Isn't About Math: The 4 Skills That Decide Your Quant Score [6/16/2026] (Recording)

About this event You've done hundreds of problems. You know the formulas. Your score isn't moving. Here's why: the GMAT isn't actually testing your math. The math on Quant is high school level — it has to be, because there's no calculator. What separates a 600 from a 700+ isn't more content knowledge. It's the four test-taking skills that decide how every problem unfolds: how you choose your path, how you manage time, how you handle stress, and how you maintain focus across 45 minutes. In this 60-minute session, we'll deep-dive each of those four skills using the same framework I use with my 1:1 students on Leland. You'll see live problem walkthroughs showing the difference between a 4-minute "compute the obvious thing" path and a 20-second "make your life easy" path — and you'll learn the single mental move that makes the second one feel natural. By the end, you'll have a personalized diagnostic of your own weakest skill — and a concrete 4-week plan to actually move your score. --------------------------------------- What you'll learn Why "more practice" doesn't fix the plateau — and what does The 4 Test-Taking Abilities behind every top score (Strategy / Methodology, Time Management, Stress Management, Focus) and how each one maps onto specific in-the-moment moves The one mental question to ask before every Quant problem that re-routes you from the long path to the short one The skip decision framework — when to invest, when to bank time, and how to make the call at the 1-minute mark instead of the 2-minute mark An anti-paralysis protocol for the moment you go blank on test day Your personal TTA profile via 3 live polls — including a 4-question diagnostic that tells you exactly where your prep should focus next --------------------------------------- What you'll walk away with A clear picture of your weakest skill out of the four — and why it's almost certainly the lever that will move your score the most A calibrated 4-week prep plan A short list of pattern-recognition moves you can use on your very next practice session --------------------------------------- Who this event is for - Pre-test or mid-prep MBA applicants targeting 700+ - Students who have plateaued despite putting in significant prep hours - Anyone whose mock scores consistently trail their practice scores by 5+ points - Students who have done content review and want to know what to do next This is not a content-review session. We will not cover formulas, definitions, or "how to solve a quadratic." If you're at the foundational-content stage, this event will be most useful after you've done your first content pass. --------------------------------------- Format 60 minutes, live Fully worked problems demonstrating compute-first vs. think-first approaches Open Q&A at the end --------------------------------------- About the host Josh P. is a GMAT coach on Leland who works with students across all three sections — Quantitative Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning, and Data Insights. He has developed a structured methodology for diagnosing and addressing the test-taking skills that determine scores — refined across hundreds of 1:1 students over multiple years. The four-skill framework taught in this event applies across the whole test; tonight we focus it on Quant. His students span pre-MBA candidates targeting top-10 programs, professionals returning to the test after a long gap, and applicants who have hit a plateau and need a fresh diagnostic to break through. Book a free 1:1 intro on his Leland profile to discuss your own GMAT prep.

DWY: Lead Gen Hotseat [6/6/2026] (Recording)

In this live session, we'll show you how to build an AI-powered intake and follow-up system that captures leads and nurtures them automatically. Agenda: - Welcome & Quick Win (5 min) - Mini-Framework: AI Lead Gen for Law Firms (10 min) - Live Hot Seats: Real intake and follow-up system teardowns (20 min) - Recap & Resource Drop (5 min) - CTA: Book a System Builder Sprint for your law firm (5 min) What you'll walk away with: - A blueprint for an AI intake system tailored to sourcing practices - Examples of automated follow-up sequences that convert - A step-by-step action plan you can start building this week Ready to build your system? Book a System Builder Sprint after the session.

Avoid Messy Algebra on the GMAT: Mixtures and Weighted Averages [6/4/2026] (Recording)

GIVEAWAY DURING THE EVENT: Join live for the chance to win a free GMAT Bootcamp seat! Mixture and weighted average questions on the GMAT often look calculation-heavy, but top scorers know how to solve them with far less algebra than most test takers use. This session is for MBA applicants who want faster, cleaner ways to approach these common quant problems. You’ll learn how to recognize efficient setups, avoid the messy calculations that waste time, and apply strategies that improve both speed and accuracy on test day. Join live to work through problems step by step and ask questions about your own GMAT prep. The speaker is an expert GMAT tutor who scored a 790 and regularly helps candidates simplify difficult quant concepts. They’ll share the patterns they see across high scorers and the kinds of shortcuts and frameworks typically covered in focused 1:1 prep sessions.

Insider Tips for the Harvard Kennedy School App from Former AdCom [6/16/2026] (Recording)

Applying to Harvard Kennedy School requires more than simply demonstrating policy interest or public service commitment. This session will provide insider perspective on how the HKS admissions committee evaluates candidates, what distinguishes successful applicants, and the common mistakes that undermine otherwise strong profiles. Attendees will gain practical guidance on how to position their experiences, essays, and career vision to align with what HKS looks for in future public leaders.

AMA: M7 MBA Admissions and MBB Recruiting [6/9/2026] (Recording)

Want to break into an M7 MBA program and land an offer from MBB? Join Alec Emmert, a Wharton MBA, former McKinsey consultant, and former McKinsey interviewer, for an open, judgment-free coaching session on MBA admissions, consulting recruiting, and career reinvention. Alec was admitted to Wharton at 35 with a 2.85 undergraduate GPA and later joined McKinsey after being rejected in a previous application cycle. In this session, he’ll share the lessons, strategies, and hard-earned insights that helped him overcome nontraditional odds and answer your questions directly. Bring anything you want to ask about MBA applications, M7 positioning, consulting interviews, networking, overcoming weak spots, or building a compelling story.

Secondary Applications & Interviews: Securing Your Medical School Acceptance [6/17/2026] (Recording)

Many medical school applicants focus heavily on the primary application, only to discover that secondaries and interviews are where acceptance decisions are often won or lost. This session is for applicants who want a stronger strategy for navigating the final stages of the admissions process. You’ll learn how to write compelling secondary essays efficiently, prepare for common and challenging interview questions, and present a consistent, authentic story throughout your application. Join live to hear from two medical school coaches who have recently gone through the process themselves and successfully navigated the path to acceptance. They’ll share the lessons, strategies, and patterns they observed firsthand, along with practical advice on what helped them stand out. Expect actionable guidance and insights similar to what’s discussed in 1:1 admissions coaching conversations.