28,052Leland Reviews

Pamela is an excellent consultant. Her feedback is top quality, and she definitely knows how to tailor applications for each school in terms of essay balance, content, and delivery. As an international applicant, I encountered many feedback iterations, and I felt how Pamela helped my essays improve in each iteration. Therefore, I would 100% recommend Pamela to anyone but would also recommend her package deals only two months or more before the deadline, as the iterative process can take some time. I will be attending the Kellogg JD/MBA program with a scholarship.

After finishing college, I worked as a trader for a few years, but realized that that my understanding of the business world was actually quite limited. I spent considerable time looking for a position in another industry, but realized I was extremely pigeon-holed to finance. My Ivy league undergraduate degree often got my foot in the door, but I didn’t have any hard skills I could bring to the table. I decided to submit Round 3 business school applications. I needed to differentiate myself, being overrepresented as a white male with a finance background. I started looking for GMAT Verbal tutors and found Farrell on Craigslist. Farrell raised my Verbal score from 48 to 51 within only 8 hours; I would have spent more time studying but was short on time. Her way of tackling questions was extremely helpful and made me think a lot harder about what I was trying to answer. It was certainly challenging, but Farrell’s combination of motivation and reassurance helped me over that mental block. As a result, I was able to increase my score from 690 to 760 after just one month of studying. I chose Farrell to also serve as my consultant for the entrance applications. Given our previous time spent together, I felt assured that she would give me honest feedback. Farrell challenged me time and time again and pushed me to do better. At the same time, she encouraged me; always stating that I had what it took, and would be accepted to a top 5 MBA program. My originally unfocused essays later became well-developed narratives. With Farrell’s guidance, I was better able to articulate who I was, who I wanted to be, and how I was going to get there. Perhaps the greatest value that Farrell brought to the table was her conciseness; she knows how to say anything in less than 10 words. This proved to be extremely helpful in revising my business school resume, and for future resumes (we still have an ongoing relationship.) We spent a considerable amount of time developing my personal brand. Having a well-developed resume by the time I arrived at business school served me quite well. I found myself ahead of the curve when it came time to write resumes for internship applications, and only needed to make superficial changes. Most of my colleagues at Booth were highly impressed by the quality of my resume. Armed with a 760 GMAT and some well-crafted essays, I was admitted to Kellogg with the offer of a 60K merit-based scholarship, and to Chicago Booth with a merit-based scholarship of 50K. Everyone here at Booth says that getting a merit-based scholarship in the 3rd Round is impossible! I could not have been more fortunate, and I am extremely grateful to have worked with Farrell. She pushed me to do my best, but also provided support and reassurance that I could do it. It was certainly a challenge and required an investment of time, but I am extremely happy to have completed my first year at Chicago Booth. By rebranding myself, and attending a top 5 school, I am now positioned to transition into any industry I so choose. This summer I will be taking part in the Coca-Cola Management Leadership Development Program, which was my first choice among internships.

Farrell was a real life saver in the MBA application process. I first came to her to help me in developing a holistic application that was tailored to my target schools. Her process effectively identified key strengths and weaknesses in my candidacy and developed a strategy to give me the best chance of getting accepted. Two weeks into working with Farrell, I had realized my first choice school's deadline was actually in two weeks, and not in two months as I had originally thought. Farrell immediately sprang to action and made herself available around the clock. We would often have calls as late as 11pm and corresponded constantly through email. While I do not suggest completing an application in just two weeks, Farrell’s dedication and commitment to helping her clients put forth the best application possible is unwavering. With Farrell’s help, I was accepted to my first choice school, Kellogg.

Don’t look any further, you’ve found the best of the best. I cannot speak more highly of Pamela as a person and the capabilities she has as an MBA consultant. With Pamela’s guidance, I was fortunate to be accepted to my two top schools (Booth and Kellogg). I do not believe I would have had this same success without her vast knowledge of the application landscape. Pamela ensured that I was putting my best foot forward throughout all aspects of the application process: Admissions Events, GMAT Strategy, School Selection, Essay Prep, Interview Prep, etc. Pamela is a pleasure to work with. She brings a great attitude to each session and truly cares for each of her clients. I highly recommend Pamela to anyone going through the MBA application process. I would have been lost without her. If I could give 10 stars I would!

Pamela was a tremendous support in my MBA application journey, partnering with me on everything from brainstorming to polishing through interviews. I was especially grateful for her school-specific insights and the time she put into making sure I had what I needed to be successful. For anyone planning to work with an MBA admissions advisor, I recommend spending time upfront to meet them, understand their working style, and find someone who is a good fit for you. Pamela is honest and direct, and she pushed me to make the right decisions when tough calls were needed. With her guidance, I decided to shift from my rushed R1 timeline to submitting in R2 – resulting in a much stronger, more reflective set of applications. I was ultimately admitted with scholarships to several programs, including Kellogg, where I’m thrilled to be attending!

This time last year, I had just exited a software startup that I co-founded. After considering my options, I decided to go to business school and started to study for the GMAT. When I had finally taken the test three months later, it dawned on me that my first Round 1 application deadline was only four weeks away! That’s when I called Farrell. I knew I needed help with my application essays. Even though I am skilled at writing technical documents for work, I had no clue what would make for a good personal essay. I was also in the dark about what essay content would capture the attention of the admission committee. And, although I didn’t realize it when I first called Farrell, I wasn’t exactly clear on why business school was the right choice for me. Farrell would always push back on my vague essay drafts, and instead forced me to explore the ‘why.’ She gave me tools and exercises that helped me learn more about myself. These all helped me get clear about my motivations for pursuing an MBA, motivations that shined through in my essay drafts. I was able to attack the essays with more confidence. However, what I valued most was her coaching, and her insistence that I get absolute clarity on my purpose for obtaining an MBA. This helped me frame excellent answers to the “why MBA” essay and interview questions. Thanks to Farrell’s coaching and unforgiving eye for detail, after interviews, I was down to a final decision between Stern and Ross. Farrell graciously arranged for me to speak with her previous clients who had attended each school. Today, I’m proud to say that I’ll be attending NYU-Stern this Fall. I couldn’t be happier, and I couldn’t have done it without Farrell!

As a strategy consultant at BCG, I’m surrounded by colleagues who get into top 10 business schools every year. I thought the application process would be straightforward and something I could manage on my own. I invested quite a lot of time in my R1 HBS and Stanford applications. Much to my surprise, even with a 780 GMAT, I was dinged from both without interview. Only then did I probe a bit more and then learned that almost all of my fellow consultants sought help on their MBA applications. Planning for Round 2, I set up some calls with the big Admissions Consulting companies and also with Farrell. There were three main reasons I chose to work with Farrell: • She was the only consultant who read through my R1 applications and had some feedback already prepared for our consultation call. • She had an honest, direct style. No beating around the bush, it gave me confidence that we wouldn’t waste time. • She is a lot of fun to work with. This is important, your admissions consultant is somebody you are going to spend a lot of time with! We worked together on both of the applications I submitted for Round 2 – Wharton and MIT Sloan, and I got admitted to both! The quality of my applications was unbelievably higher. There are several things where Farrell stands out: • Helping you tell a compelling story. The most important part of the application. Here you really need somebody who knows the nuances between the different programs, will study your past to know you inside and out, and has read thousands of essays. Farrell could always tell me when something would have a positive impact or detract from the value of my candidacy. Furthermore, she can even help you decide what you really want to do after the MBA, which is not always an easy thing to determine. • Keeping track of the global picture of your application and all the details. Every space on the application is an opportunity to tell your story and set yourself apart. And it is very hard to track all these details. Farrell made sure I leveraged all parts of the application to the highest advantage. • Cutting down those essays to meet the word limit. Farrell is world-class talented at this. Being able to include that extra example in your essays can be a deciding factor. • Moral support: Not to be underestimated. It is a long and tortuous process, and I was really grateful to have someone I could rely on to keep me focused and motivated. It is not easy to find a consultant who is really your partner, in your corner to help you in every aspect and even makes it fun. I cannot recommend her strongly enough. Work with Farrell – she will get you into business school.

I consider myself so lucky to have gotten to work with Farrell, and I know I wouldn’t have gotten into HBS without her help. I came to Farrell in mid-July hoping to apply round 1. In two months, Farrell coached me through taking the GMAT twice, rewriting my resume, submitting three applications, prepping for interviews, and ultimately getting accepted to HBS, MIT, and Darden. Farrell was my therapist, best friend, and toughest critic throughout the process. She insists on a lengthy introspection process before starting the applications, which ensures that she knows you incredibly well and understands your unique strengths / what will make your application stand out. Farrell has a very strong BS detector, and she does not put up with slacking off or not giving her 100%. She makes you work extremely hard (basically a full-time job on top of your day job), but that hard work pays off. And she’s really fun to work with (seriously, I miss our daily calls). If you’re considering working with a consultant, CHOOSE FARRELL!

When Farrell and I first started working together, I had a plan, but I was lost. I was following the standard career path for my industry; start in engineering, get an MBA, move into business development. There was nothing in my plan that aligned with who I am or what I believe in. Farrell saw through this, and so would an admissions committee. We started with introspection and goal setting. We dove deep into my entire life story, not just my professional journey! I told her of the good times that I love to share and the hard times that I’d rather forget. Farrell got to know me better than I know myself. She posed challenging questions that pushed me to my emotional limits but helped me uncover who I am and what I bring as a unique individual. After learning about who I am, the school choices fell into place. Farrell identified MBA programs that aligned with my goals and pushed me to research each one, connecting me with her past clients who were current students or alums and recommending podcasts and business school guides. It felt like pieces of a puzzle coming together. I could see myself at each institution, working towards a future that would bring me true fulfillment. After choosing the schools, crafting the essays was next. Farrell has developed a process that is structured and clear. She identified the stories that would bring life to each essay, coaching me to bring out in my writing the unique qualities that I will be able to share with my future classmates. She provided me with untethered feedback, designed to bring out the best in me and my writing, even if I felt the words were tough to hear. We worked through drafts, day and night (it felt like Farrell never took a holiday, she was that committed!) until together we had created something that would show the admissions committee who I truly am in a way that they would really hear. When I got my first interview invitation, I was over the moon. When I received my 7th interview invitation, I was in shock. Farrell was just as happy as I was, but she wasn’t in shock. She would never lie to make me happy and was always transparent about my chances, but she was confident that she had helped me present myself in a way that made me stand out among a pool of brilliant candidates. Throughout the interview process, Farrell was dedicated to helping me adapt my story to each individual interview. We outlined anecdotes and fit them into a framework that I will use in interviews for the rest of my life. I recorded myself on video and she provided honest feedback that helped me refine my stories into short, effective responses that captured the key messages that I want to convey. Most importantly, Farrell was my biggest fan and I walked into every interview feeling like I deserved a place on that school’s MBA program. In the end, I chose to accept an offer from Harvard Business School with offers from Duke, Kellogg, MIT, and Berkeley and waitlists from Yale and Stanford. $25K offer from MIT and $60K from Duke. Great results for someone without any diversity points to speak of and a 720 GMAT. However, I gained so much more from this process than these results. I learned about who I am, what I bring, and what I will bring me true fulfillment in life. Farrell has been my admissions consultant, my life coach, my harshest critic, my biggest fan, and my best friend, and I’ll forever be in her debt.

I LOVE WORKING WITH FARRELL. I used other admission consultants in the past, and I didn’t receive any good results. This year, I worked with Farrell on my application. Farrell coached me to apply to an MBA program in Round 3. I got admitted to Darden with a decent amount scholarship which is a big surprise to me! I would say it is the best decision that I have ever made in my life. She is the best! Below is a list of her values that I didn’t find in others. 1. Personal – Farrell does not do a cookie-cutter approach. She paid close attention to understand me as a person rather than just an MBA applicant. Working as an independent MBA consultant, she has the advantage to offer best-in-class quality services to everyone. As an applicant who comes from a non-traditional background, I knew that I need to find and sell my uniqueness in my application. I really needed someone who is accessible and easy to approach to help with my application. No doubt, Farrell is the best match for me. While working with her, I felt confident in my application because I felt her enthusiasm and strong willingness to learn about me as a person. She asked probing questions to encourage me to think deeper about my motivation and values. After completing my application, I was extremely satisfied because my personal brand and value are well presented and elaborated like they had not been with the other consultants. 2. Results-Driven – Farrell is responsible and committed to delivering the best outcomes for her clients. Not realizing how fierce the competition would be this year, I put all my eggs into Top 5 programs for Round 2. Unfortunately, I was rejected by all of them. Farrell pulled me out of the disappointment and helped me actively evaluate the situation. She researched programs that fit my personality and can help me achieve my post-MBA goal. With Farrell’s recommendation, I became more open-minded and applied to Darden. She was able to put herself in my shoes and recommend a program that will fit me well. It turns out that she is absolutely right! 3. Life-long coach – The best treasure I received from working with Farrell is the lasting impact of her coaching. She put a lot of effort to get to know me as a person and discover my unique value, which has made me become more confident. She always has a long vision in mind and thinks about what the best for me in the long term would be. Even though the application is done, I still chat with her a lot to get advice for my career development. 4. Commitment – Integrity is one of Farrell’s key values. She always gave me candid and straightforward feedback which really improved the quality of my application. She delivered what she promised and never disappointed me even once. It can be scary to let someone else set the pace, but I fully believe in her and recommend her to anyone. You won’t be sorry!