Karen Doster

Admissionado

Chicago, Illinois

United States

Net Promoter Score: 10

Consultant Bio

Only a handful of Karen’s Kellogg classmates routinely wore shorts to work prior to their MBA. Karen, immersed deep in the startup world, was lucky enough to be one of them.

Karen graduated from Dartmouth College with a bachelors in Government, then dove straight into marketing research in Washington, DC. After a few years advising Fortune 500 clients on a range of strategic messaging challenges, she left to become the fourth employee of a startup called Cove. She loved the fast, casual environment and the service: a sweet network of co-working spaces in DC and Boston. However, when the CEO/Founder asked her to put together a detailed budget for all locations, she knew it was time to head back to school and brush up on her business skills.

At Kellogg, Karen held leadership positions the Kellogg Admissions Committee, Net Impact, and Cork & Screw, a club for wine enthusiasts. She fully immersed herself in Chicago’s entrepreneurial ecosystem through internships with a Chicago VC firm and Exelon’s corporate innovation team.

In her spare time, she enjoys the latest celebrity gossip, testing new vegan recipes, and pretending to train for half marathons.

As someone with a somewhat non-traditional background, Karen loves working with applicants who need some help standing out from the crowd.

Company Information

Admissionado is a results-driven MBA admissions consulting agency. We have a lust for smart ideas and tactics that – quite simply – work. We embrace a two-person specialty approach to consulting, leveraging the talents of strategic business geniuses with masters of writing. Browse through our website to get a sense of our style, our process, our team, and our case studies. We’re a no-nonsense crew, committed to delivering a boutique experience that stretches potential and earns admit letters.

Menu of Services and Associated Costs

We offer three different packages to accommodate individuals with different needs and budgets. Our Gold and Platinum packages include everything under the sun: deep strategic guidance plus comprehensive essay development, along with all the supporting elements such as interview prep, resume and LOR support, and unlimited access to your MBA consultant. We also offer a more economical Silver package (starting at $3,250) for those who prefer a more targeted experience: deep strategy plus comprehensive essay development (and the flexibility to add on any individual elements as needed).

Location: Chicago, Illinois, United States

Phone: 866-409-4753

Email: pquants@admissionado.com

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P&Q Consultant Reviews

  • Incredibly Skilled Consultant!
    1 year ago
    Working with Karen--and the entire Admissionado team-- was truly a blessing and a highlight of my MBA application experience. As a Kellogg applicant, Karen's clear pride and deep experience with the program made her the only consultant I wanted to work with, and she did not disappoint. From our initial Zoom call, Karen listened intently and openly to my story, asking nuanced questions to understand what made me unique, and how I could best craft my story in a memorable way for the adcom, and then summarized it eloquently and succinctly in an Action Plan that felt realistic. She was kind, very open to hearing new ideas or processing new additions to my essay drafts, and was consistently in my corner. I felt completely comfortable ...
    Read the full review
    Class of 2023 Admit
    All reviews are independently verified by Poets&Quants staff.
  • Amazing To Work With - Thanks Karen!
    2 years ago
    Karen is an amazing person to collaborate with on business school applications! I'm heading to Stanford this fall and I'm grateful to Karen for being instrumental to my application journey. From the moment I met Karen during our first get-to-know call, she listened intently to my story, my dreams, and why I wanted to pursue an MBA. I felt that she genuinely took the time to know me as a person beyond stats, resume headlines, and extra-curricular catchphrases. It made me comfortable to share deeper, more personal anecdotes of my history and see her as a true ally from the get-go. From then, during the actual application strategy and writing process, Karen perfectly complemented my creative, idea-loaded style of writing with her structured, laser-focused approach, quickly ...
    Read the full review
    Class of 2024 Admit
    All reviews are independently verified by Poets&Quants staff.
  • Extremely Helpful & Great To Work With
    2 years ago
    When it comes to business school counselors, Karen was everything I dreamed of and more. Her comments on my essays were extremely insightful and she was always available whenever I needed help. Following an initial Zoom session, Karen helped me sift through all of my professional and personal experiences to really create a cohesive narrative throughout my application, making the process fun and interesting. I could describe our process more but the results speak for themselves. I was accepted to both institutions I applied to with scholarships. If given the chance, I highly recommend working with Karen!
    Class of 2023 Admit
    All reviews are independently verified by Poets&Quants staff.
  • Thank You, Karen!!
    3 years ago
    Coming from a non-traditional MBA applicant background, I was immediately aware of the gaps I had in my application and the help I would need to close them. I needed someone who could not only counteract my weaknesses (low undergraduate GPA and unique background) but could help me speak to my strengths. After interviewing multiple firms, I was incredibly lucky to find Karen and the entire Admissionado team. From day one they dove into my story with intense rigor and positivity. It seemed like I was the only person Karen was working with due to the speed and kindness in which she always responded with. Each time I took the GMAT, Karen and the entire team reached out with words of encouragement and celebrated with ...
    Read the full review
    Class of 2023 Admit
    All reviews are independently verified by Poets&Quants staff.
  • Very Helpful With The Waitlist Process
    3 years ago
    After I was waitlisted at two schools, I retained Admissionado's services to help me navigate the waitlist process. Karen was very helpful in identifying whether there were any gaps in my application, and what more the schools may be interested in seeing from me. In addition to helping me craft and edit submissions, Karen was very responsive throughout the process when I had questions about how to communicate with the admissions committees. The waitlist process can be opaque and filled with uncertainty, so I very much appreciated her insights from her past experience with the admissions committee at Kellogg. With this help, I was accepted to my top choice school. While I can’t say for sure whether I would have gotten in without this help, it ...
    Read the full review
    Class of 2023 Admit
    All reviews are independently verified by Poets&Quants staff.
  • Thank you, Karen!
    4 years ago
    I can’t speak highly enough of my experience working with Karen Doster and the Admissionado team. Let’s be honest, the application process is daunting, though with Karen's expertise I knew I was in good hands. For me, the hardest part was getting my story of why an MBA and why now dialed in as I, in my opinion, had a very convoluted path with non-traditional work experience and a non-typical undergraduate degree. That is where Karen and Admissionado shined. With a few Skype calls, Karen was able to pull bits and pieces out of me and help weave them into a cogent story that flowed with my goals. It was seriously impressive how well she understood the kind of person I am and ...
    Read the full review
    Class of 2022 Admit
    All reviews are independently verified by Poets&Quants staff.
  • Highly Recommend
    4 years ago
    Karen is amazing. She took the time to get to know me way beyond my resume and her assessment of my strengths and weaknesses was spot on. She was able to help me put my best foot forward and focus on the aspects of my application that were unique and would matter most to the adcom. She worked around the clock to make sure I had what I needed and even replied within 15 minutes one Saturday when I needed something answered urgently. After I was accepted into Kellogg, she went above and beyond and sent me a list of recommendations based on my career interests. I highly recommend working with Karen!
    Shiv Mahbubani
    Part-Time MBA Class of 2020 Admit
    All reviews are independently verified by Poets&Quants staff.