Judith Silverman Hodara

This was my second time applying to business school. Judith and her team helped me reflect on what went wrong the first time, hone my story, and think deeply about my goals for business school and post-graduation. Her feedback was exact and encouraging throughout the entire process. Thank you, Judith!

I was always very clear that I wanted to get into Wharton. I did my preliminary research on consulting firms and consultants who had strong connections to Wharton. After I read about Judith, I was very keen on working with Fortuna. I reached out to them and finally spoke to Matt. After that, I had no doubt in my mind that they were the team I wanted to work with. Judith oversaw my essays, recommendations, and even the interview prep. She is extremely supportive and encouraging, which is something you need over and above the application work. It was a delight to work with her and I do credit the team for my success. The team at Fortuna is exceptional and highly recommended. I wish them all the luck.

This was my second go-at-it. And I came to Fortuna needing help to figure out where I went wrong the first time around. Speaking with Judith and Matt, I was able to drill down to what parts of my story were lacking and how to communicate the salient parts of my personal and professional trajectory in a way that would resonate with an audience. Judith was very helpful in helping me find my story and tell it. She helped in editing my drafts and made recommendations that I would not have been capable of conjuring on my own. Thanks to her and Fortuna’s help, I got accepted at an M7 school with > 50% tuition scholarship and waitlisted at another M7 school.

Judith is easily the best consultant I have worked with so far. I applied to Wharton in 2017 and Judith guided me throughout the process. She helped me tremendously in preparing for the Team-Based Discussion and the Healthcare Management Interview. She did these practice interviews numerous times to ensure that I was very well prepared and I was. I was very impressed with her level of insight into the application process and her patience with me on getting grips on the interview and application process.

Not only did she help me during the interview process, but she also helped me in drafting a “Killer” essay to impress the admissions team ultimately getting me an interview at Wharton, which I initially thought was impossible, but Judith made it very much possible.

Besides the skill and expertise that Judith brings to the table, she was also a Head of MBA Admissions at Wharton, setting her apart from her peers. That is a position that most consultants do not have and this was one of the reasons I decided to work with her.

For me, Judith and the Fortuna Admissions Team are simply the most qualified for MBA applications. They provide an excellent service that is nonpareil compared to their peers.

I worked with Judith on the Wharton group interview and off the bat, I knew she was invested in my success and extremely knowledgeable about the process, what they were looking for, and how to prepare. I especially appreciated her patience and honesty in helping me hone my pitch. I was getting frustrated at what needed to be changed and she rallied through with follow-up calls to made sure I understood and got there. Couldn’t have gotten in without her!

I was super confused when looking for an MBA admissions consultant – I wasn’t entirely sure about shelling out a ton of money on top of the ridiculous amount that I spent already. I decided to do a handful of the “free consultations” with various companies before finding Fortuna and talking with Matt. He was super clear, transparent and genuine in how he viewed my profile in the 30-minute call – he didn’t try to sell me on the full package (even though it was the MUCH more expensive route). He was transparent that he thought I didn’t need the full-school package but rather could reach out to him/Fortuna later for a more “ad hoc” engagement. I really appreciated what didn’t seem at all like a sales pitch and rather a genuine conversation.
Onwards to me doing my applications myself…after I completed the vast majority of the applications and decided to reach out to Fortuna for a “last minute check” on the school I considered my top choice. I was connected with Judith at Fortuna and send her my entire application. She thoroughly reviewed all 4 of the essays and other “qualitative comments” sections of my application and provided very useful improvements, one of which was to entirely re-write one of the short response essays. All communication with Judith was via email and a phone call. The final application review process with her was very efficient and really did provide the outside expert view on how to make the essays really “pop”. The end result was me getting accepted to this school (my top choice) with a substantial merit scholarship. Would highly recommend Fortuna, especially with my positive experiences with Matt & Judith.

I worked with Judith Hodora right before my group interview. From my first touch point with Judith, she was compassionate and encouraged me to focus on my strengths which definitely helped me calm my nerves. We also discussed specific ideas I could undertake on the interview day to tackle aspects I had missed. She was definitely invested in my success and even volunteered to go out of her way to give me extra coaching on the Sunday afternoon right before my interview !! This was quite heart warming and really made me feel like I was ready to ace D-day. Her experience having seen numerous candidate profiles really comes through. I would 100% recommend working with her throughout the process. Great mentor to have !

My experience working with Judith was great. I was initially drawn to Fortuna after speaking with both Judith and Matt, her business partner. I had spoken with multiple consulting firms, and Fortuna really impressed me with their attention to detail on my background and what I was hoping to accomplish. Judith gave a lot of great insight into the admissions process at the various schools, drawing on both her own experience in admissions as well as that of her colleagues. I wasn’t sure how much detail was needed for each of the essays. During my first pass at an essay, she came back to me and said that I really needed to go deeper and provided a handful of helpful questions and comments that forced me to get super specific with that school. Throughout the process, she was willing to look over essays and answer last minute questions, and overall was an incredibly useful and calming presence throughout the process. Additionally, she held interview prep sessions for both 1-1 and group interviews, all of which were invaluable.

Judith brings to the table her years of experience as an admissions director, to review applications from the lens of admissions committee. I found her inputs on my applications invaluable and worth every dollar spent at Fortuna. She maintained the perfect balance between projecting my authentic self and making me stand out in the applicants pool. She went out of her way and worked through her weekend along with me for my Yale application at a time when I was approaching the deadline fast and Judith’s hands were already full. She was instrumental in helping me highlight my strengths and convey my intended message in the application, in the most succinct and presentable manner. She ensured optimum utilization of the consulting time I had with her, conducted multiple mock interviews and kept my morale high throughout the process. With Judith’s help and my determination, I got admitted into my top choice school – Yale SOM. I can’t thank her and Fortuna enough for this service.

I worked with Judith at Fortuna and could not be more thankful for her help. My first conversation with Judith was great – she was very calm, knowledgeable, and really took the time to hear my story. She provided constructive feedback and advice even during my initial free phone consultation, which immediately drew me to choosing Fortuna. They were initially going to place me with a specific consultant who had extensive experience with Wharton, but he/she was not available at the time – thus, Judith helped me instead and did not charge me extra even though she goes for the higher director’s rate. Judith was extremely responsive, efficient, and provided very helpful feedback to each iteration of my essays and application. With not much time to complete my application, Judith was never the bottleneck – she was rather a calming presence. I knew my story, but she helped refine it and frame it in a compelling way on paper. When I got to the interview stage, I had no idea what to expect as Wharton’s group/team-based interview is unique – luckily, Fortuna also offered mock team-based interview training, which I found very helpful. I went into the actual interview feeling confident and well prepared because I had gone through it with other candidates and received feedback on my performance from Judith. I felt reassured and confident every step of the way with Judith’s help because I knew she had extensive experience evaluating candidates as an admissions director herself. I will be attending Wharton in the fall and am extremely grateful for Fortuna and Judith’s support. I truly received individualized attention (even as an hourly client), and am extremely happy with the outcome!