The Top MBA Admission Consulting Firms Of 2024

A TEAM APPROACH AT STRATUS

Susan Cera is MBA Director at Stratus Admissions Counseling

At Stratus Admissions Consulting, a firm founded in 2006, the majority of the consultants are also former admissions committee members. Candidates are not only paired with admissions counselor who coach, mentor, and guide applicants through the application process; they are also connected with an admissions strategist, school-specific reviewers, and a proofreader for additional support. Since 2021, the firm has won its clients $40 million in scholarship money, with $9 million in the past year alone.

Susan Cera, who had worked on the admissions committee at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, serves as the MBA Director of the firm. She has a mountain of favorable reviews from clients, including this one from an applicant who came to her last December for round 2 deadlines. The candidate had been hoping to apply in round one but a family emergency made that impossible. “Despite her full roster, she listened to my story and wanted to help me, so she took me on for three applications,” wrote the applicant. “She ended up working with me on all eight schools I applied to. I got into six schools (three M7s) in R2 with substantial scholarships, and am matriculating at HBS in the fall! I interviewed other counselors who told me everything wrong with my app and tried to talk me into applying to safety schools as a priority. But from the get-go, Susan was kind, motivating, and positive, and she worked hard to help me frame my non-traditional background. I strongly feel that working with Susan was the best investment I could have made during my application process.”

Donna Bauman, a senior MBA counselor at Stratus, is among several of their consultants winning rave reviews. An Indian male engineer candidate recently sang her praises after getting into Harvard Business School. “Coming from an Indian male engineering background,” writes Kshiteej Prasad. “I was not sure if my story would really stand out in an uber-competitive applicant pool. Donna was very reassuring and first off made me believe in myself. She helped me understand my motivation for doing an MBA much better which gave me a different perspective and helped me narrate my story with a lot more conviction. From helping build my essays to preparing for interviews, Donna was a pillar of support throughout the process.”

Yet another Stratus coach, Lisa Cummings, also wins praise for her astute handling of clients. “I did significant due diligence with all of the admissions consulting firms/consultants, and knew right away that Lisa & the whole Stratus Admissions team was the real deal,” says an applicant who was also admitted to HBS. “Lisa’s greatest strength is that she’s not afraid to tell you what you need to hear. I personally attest to the outstanding coaching & mentorship Lisa provided.”

Most Favorably Reviewed Medium-Sized MBA Admissions Consulting Firms

Firm	Positive Reviews	Coaches with Testimonials	Average Client Satisfaction Score	Ratio of Testimonials to Reviewed Coaches
1. Stratus Admissions Consulting	39	8	9.99	4.9
2. Career Protocol	32	6	9.91	5.3
3. Gatehouse Admissions	25	8	9.84	3.1

Note: Medium-sized firms have between five and nine consultants and a minimum of 25 assessments during the Sept. 1 2022 to August 31 2023 period of review

PERSONAL MBA COACH TOPS THE BOUTIQUES

And among the smaller boutiques, Scott Edinburgh’s Personal MBA Coach takes the first prize with 48 favorable reviews and a 9.92 client satisfaction score. Edinburgh also sits atop our list of the most favorably reviewed individual consultants in the past year, with many rave reviews from grateful clients who believe they would never have been able to get into the schools they did without his help. His small team of consultants includes MJ Shores, a former admissions director at The Wharton School and a former assistant dean in admissions at UCLA Anderson.

In addition to the typical comprehensive consulting packages offered by all firms, Personal MBA Coach also provides la carte help with such things as interview prep, scholarship advice and scholarship essay editing, waitlist strategy, and even a ding report for applicants who were turned away by a school.

One recent client got into four of their five target schools last year–in round three, no less. “Initially I was going to apply to an MBA program next year, but after speaking with Scott in February, he convinced me I had a shot at getting during round 3,” writes the client. “At this point, I had not even taken (or even started studying for) the GMAT, so I was definitely skeptical, however he and his team guided me every step of the way. He helped me put together 5 applications, study for and take GMAT, and write all my essays in the span of 2 months. I ended up getting into four of the five programs I applied to (with scholarships), including my top choice!”

Most Favorably Reviewed Small-Sized MBA Admissions Consulting Firms

Firm	Positive Reviews	Coaches with Testimonials	Average Client Satisfaction Score	Ratio of Testimonials to Reviewed Coaches
1. Personal MBA Coach	48	2	9.92	24.0
2. Admissions Gateway	40	3	9.88	13.3
3. Sam Weeks Consulting	24	3	9.96	8.0
4. MBA Prep School	22	4	9.86	5.5
5. Admitify.com	20	2	9.89	10.0