Judith Silverman Hodara

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!

Judith and Catherine were both amazing during my unique process. I originally started to work with them back in 2015. When starting the application process, I was hoping to improve my GMAT score. Unfortunately, I did not get my dream GMAT score. Instead of recommending to still apply in 2015, they both advised me to get my GMAT score up and then apply. I really appreciated that candid answer from them because they definitely could’ve led me down a different path. I eventually got the score I needed and worked with them on a fast track to hit R1 deadlines. They pushed me to put forth the best application and showcase my authentic self (instead of just writing what I thought the admissions wanted to hear). I am proud to say I got into my dream school and I could not have done it without them!