Leland+ for MBA/JD

The 2026 Recommender Prep Packet

This is your all-in-one recommender prep packet. This process shouldn't be as complicated as it is, and this doc is meant to simplify things dramatically for you. Inside you'll find: 1. An outreach templates for beginning the dialogue with your MBA recommender 2. The most important context for recommenders when writing your letters 3. An overview on how the process works for submitting your letter, including timelines & process 4. Specific school-by-school questions your recommenders will need to answer 5. An example architecture to answer the main questions in the MBA recommendation letter (Stanford GSB serves as an example guide) Reach out if you need some guidance on the recommender process, but this is the #1 resource I wish I had when I was applying. Knowing who to select, how to broach those conversations, and how to prepare them the right way so you end up with top-quality letters.

HBS Example Essay – Reclaiming Voice, Redefining Impact Through Social Enterprise

A powerful personal narrative tracing the applicant’s journey from religious constraint to social entrepreneurship, highlighting how lived experience, missionary service, and nonprofit leadership shaped a mission to expand women’s agency through scalable, data-driven solutions.

HBS Joint Degree Example Essay – MPP/MBA for Gender Equity and Global Impact

An essay detailing how a dual MBA/MPP will equip the applicant to scale gender-focused interventions, combining business acumen with public sector insight to drive systemic change.

GRE Score Distributions

This document shows a visual representation of the scoring distribution for quant, verbal, and analytical writing; and it also offers data insights for each.

Winning Essays from My Stanford GSB Admits [7/24/2026] (Recording)

Many applicants find a way to write at least one strong essay. But those who really maximize the essay-writing process develop clear narrative through-lines that connect the dots of their life, and articulate how they'll contributions to their target brand. Their two-dimensional writing brings out a three-dimensional personality. They have a “brand”. You know what they’re all about. This event will draw from example essays written by successful admits who I've personally coached, and helped land a spot at one or more top MBA programs. These essays were particularly strong in how they spoke to one another—how they created a holistic applicant who admissions committees could envision on campus. Their professional and judiciously placed personal experience offer evidence for why they’re the kind of person who will make a specific, meaningful difference in the world. During this session, we'll analyze these essays alongside you so you have a clear view into how you can apply what you've learned to your own writing, and put your best application forward for Stanford's top MBA program.

Winning Essays from My HBS Admits [7/17/2026] (Recording)

Many applicants find a way to write at least one strong essay. But those who really maximize the essay-writing process develop clear narrative through-lines that connect the dots of their life, and articulate how they'll contributions to their target brand. Their two-dimensional writing brings out a three-dimensional personality. They have a “brand”. You know what they’re all about. This event will draw from example essays written by successful admits who I've personally coached, and helped land a spot at one or more top MBA programs. These essays were particularly strong in how they spoke to one another—how they created a holistic applicant who admissions committees could envision on campus. Their professional and judiciously placed personal experience offer evidence for why they’re the kind of person who will make a specific, meaningful difference in the world. During this session, we'll analyze these essays alongside you so you have a clear view into how you can apply what you've learned to your own writing, and put your best application forward for HBS.

8 Steps to a Complete MBA App: 8) Essay Drafting & Finalize Application [7/2/2026] (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 is the final event 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 move from preparation to writing and turning your outlines into strong, authentic essays. 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 turning your preparation and outlines into written application materials: • Learn an efficient strategy for drafting your essays. • Understand how to move from outline to draft without losing focus or structure. • Ensure consistency while avoiding repetition across essays, resume, and recommendations. • Prepare other written and recorded components of the application. This is the phase where all of your preparation comes together. Instead of starting from a blank page, you will be writing from a clear plan that reflects the work you have already done throughout the Identity Mapping process. 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 turn your preparation into polished application materials and move confidently toward submission, this is your final step in the series.

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.

Drop in Q&A Rnd 1 MBA- Know your story and uniqueness. Not cookie cutter advice [7/19/2026] (Recording)

Round 1 deadlines are coming. Your essay is probably a mess. Your story probably doesn't make sense yet. That's fine — that's exactly what we're going to fix. I'm Bryan, Wharton undergrad, MIT Sloan MBA, and I've spent 12 years helping people turn complicated, non-linear careers into applications that actually get read. I've seen the cookie-cutter essays. I've seen the AI-written ones. Adcoms have too. We're not doing that. In this session we'll talk about what Round 1 actually means for your chances, how to find the thread that connects your story, what schools are really asking when they say "why MBA, why now," and how to stop writing essays that sound like everyone else's. No fluff. No templates. Just the stuff that actually moves the needle. Bring your messy draft. Bring your confused career pivot. Bring your "I don't know how to explain what I do" problem. We'll figure it out together.

MBA Application Teardown: Transform Your “Why MBA / Why Now” Essay [7/16/2026] (Recording)

Struggling with your Why MBA, Why Now essay? You are not alone. This session is the opening of a three-part MBA Application Teardown series, where I take real, anonymized application materials, tear them down the way an admissions reader would, and rebuild them into something sharper and more memorable, live and in front of you. We begin with the essay at the center of every application: the goals essay that answers why you want an MBA and why now. Across the three sessions, we rebuild the pieces that carry the most weight: your goals essay, your short answers, and your resume. Attend all three to see how a complete application comes together as one coherent story, or drop into the single session you need most. In this teardown, you will watch a generic goals essay become a specific, compelling one: • See how an essay that feels deeply personal to the writer reads as generic to an admissions officer, and exactly why. • Learn the difference between stating your ambition and making it credible and memorable. • Watch vague career goals sharpen into a clear, believable through-line of why an MBA and why now. • See how the rebuilt essay becomes the spine that every other part of your application must reinforce. This is the essay everything else hangs on. Once your goals essay is sharp, your resume, short answers, recommendations, and interviews all have a center of gravity to point toward. Getting it right is challenging because you cannot read your own goals the way a stranger will. Watching it happen to someone else's essay is a great way to see your own clearly. I have guided more than 100 applicants into every M7 program, across the top 20 in the U.S., and into leading international programs, including INSEAD, London Business School, IESE, Esade, Oxford, Cambridge, NUS, and more. Get the essays that everything else depends on admission-ready. Register now to claim your spot in the live teardown.

5 Common MBA Application Weaknesses and How to Overcome Them [7/16/2026] (Recording)

Are you worried about potential weaknesses in your MBA application? Join me as we identify and, more importantly, talk about how to overcome common MBA application weaknesses. Having worked through a couple of these myself to earn admission into multiple M7 programs, I look forward to helping you maximize your chances of admission at M7s and beyond.

HELP -- I'm Non-Traditional! AMA with Jessica B [6/8/2026] (Recording)

You didn't take the standard path. That doesn't mean you can't get into a top program — it means you need a sharper strategy than most. This is an open AMA for applicants who don't fit the typical mold: career changers, military veterans, physicians, founders, late-career applicants, people with non-linear resumes, or anyone who's ever wondered whether admissions committees will know what to do with them. I've worked with all of you. Since 2006, my clients have come from backgrounds that don't map neatly onto the McKinsey-to-HBS pipeline — and they've gotten into M7 programs anyway, frequently with scholarship. Three times Poets & Quants has recognized me as one of the best admissions consultants in the field. Bring your specific situation. Ask me whether your background is a liability or an asset, how to frame a career that's hard to explain in 250 words, whether EMBA or full-time MBA makes more sense for where you are, or anything else that's been keeping you up at night. No slides. No agenda. Just answers.

Intel Collection for the MBA: Schools, Careers, and the Application [6/11/2026] (Recording)

This is the second session in the MDMP for MBA series series structured around the seven phases of the Military Decision-Making Process. Each session stands on its own, but together they form a complete framework for military and veteran applicants to systematically and strategically approach the MBA admissions process. In this session, we'll focus on mission analysis and cover how to collect HUMINT and AI-enabled SIGINT to improve your understanding of the critical elements of MBA application: target schools (including class profiles, employment outcomes, and culture), post-MBA career paths (industries, functions, recruiting pipelines, compensation), and the components of the application itself (essays, recommendations, and academic preparation. We'll also cover resources available to military and veteran applicants, from the GI Bill and Yellow Ribbon to Service to School and school veterans clubs. By the end, you'll know how to build your candidate school list, how to research post-MBA careers, and how to gather the intelligence that makes every later decision in the process a sound one. Hosted by Ian Kennedy, former Army Special Forces (18E, 1st SFG) and Stanford MBA/MS, who has coached military and veteran applicants into admissions at Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, LBS, Duke, and more.

Example HEC Paris MBA Essays

Multiple real, successful applicant essay sets covering all HEC Paris prompts. See exactly how admits structured winning answers before you write your own.

MBA Scorecard: Rank Every Program to Find Your Fit

A personalized Excel scorecard for ranking every top MBA program that autopopulates based on key criteria you should evaluate in narrowing down your list to your top-choice programs. Weight only the factors that matter to you (e.g., specific career funnels, geography, cost, culture, academics), and score each program out of 100, and see your rankings update live. This includes a filled-out example as well so you can see what a final product looks like. Delete anything that isn't useful, and keep the rest so this search is custom-tailored to you.

Professional CV - two Masters and three Doctorates + work experience!

For anyone looking for a clean, simple, thorough CV template! Includes my background of multiple undergraduate degrees, two Master's degrees, and three Doctorate degrees, along with research bibliography and work experience. Translatable for those entering MBA, Masters, PhD, medical school, dental school, physician's assistant and more.

Sample Columbia Business School Essays

Stuck staring at the Columbia essay prompts? See exactly how admitted applicants pulled it off. This collection includes more than twenty complete essay sets covering every recent CBS question. Read across industries, geographies, and career stages to find approaches that resonate with your own story.

2026-2027 Columbia Essay Brainstorm

The complete brainstorming workbook for Columbia's 2026-2027 essays. Inside: step-by-step exercises for every prompt, from short answers to Essay 1 goals to Essay 2 collaboration stories to Essay 3 "co-create" arguments, with structured charts to help you organize your stories, research, and outlines before you start drafting.

Guide to Negotiating MBA Scholarships

Everything is negotiable, including your MBA scholarship. This guide walks you through the full strategy for increasing your award, from leveraging competing offers to highlighting recent achievements to following up effectively, plus four plug-and-play email templates covering the most common scenarios so you can negotiate with confidence.