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575
11,800
Graduate: 9 Years Undergraduate: 9 Years
Firm
Booth School of Business at University of Chicago
Finance
Technology
Accenture
English
Senior Consultant
mbaMission
Florida
United States
Net Promoter Score: 9
Krista Nannery spent 18 years in the financial services industry at Morningstar, the investment data provider, mostly in Chicago and London, but also in Munich, Stockholm, São Paulo, and the Middle East. In addition to leading the development of Morningstar’s portfolio management and research products for international investors, she also spent time in human resources (HR), redesigning the company’s leadership development program and managing executive succession planning. Her HR experience led her to Accenture, where she helped companies make their HR processes more efficient. At Accenture, she was also responsible for candidate interviews for her practice.
Krista earned her MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, with concentrations in finance and marketing, and she holds a BA in English and German from the University of Notre Dame. At Chicago Booth, she was a member of the admissions committee and read hundreds of applications from prospective candidates. She also served as an admissions interviewer.
A keen writer and editor, Krista has held leadership roles at The Observer and Chicago Business newspapers. She has also had her work published in the New York Times, Saveur magazine, and other media outlets. In her spare time, Krista runs a popular Web site about traveling and dining out.
mbaMission is the world’s leading MBA admissions consulting firm and the only one exclusively recommended by Manhattan Prep and Kaplan GMAT. Our dedicated, full-time Senior Consultants work one-on-one with business school candidates to identify and showcase their strongest attributes in their applications.
When applying to an elite MBA program, you need elite experience on your side. mbaMission’s full-time consultants are highly skilled communicators with comprehensive knowledge of the MBA admissions process, and helping you navigate that process to your fullest potential is our sole priority. You can be confident of having our undivided attention, because admissions consulting is our exclusive focus. In pursuing your MBA, you are making an important investment in yourself, so choose a firm whose singular objective is helping you achieve your goals.
Our full-time team includes MBAs from all the top programs. Although you work exclusively with one dedicated consultant at mbaMission, you benefit from the experience and input of our entire team. Our consultants intercommunicate constantly, sharing information, ideas, feedback, and recommendations. We also conduct semimonthly meetings, require ongoing training, and hold an annual full-company conference, where we gather to discuss best practices and continue improving our skills and knowledge base. More than 20 full-time admissions experts combine their know-how and experience to advance your cause. We know that our being at the top of our game means you have the greatest chance of success, and together, our team will find the best ways to strengthen your application.
One-on-one consultation services, comprehensive admissions and school-specific guides, a robust blog, free eBooks, essay analyses, and other valuable resources—visit our Web site to find all that mbaMission offers.
FREE CONSULTATION Want to know your chances of being admitted to business school? Wondering how to differentiate yourself from other applicants? Sign up for a free, 30-minute consultation with an mbaMission Senior Consultant today!
FEATURED SERVICES Complete Start-to-Finish Package A la Carte Hourly Services Mock Interview Sessions Ding Review Pre-Application Strategy
RESOURCES Robust blog Free Interview Primers Free Personal Statement Guide Free Selecting Your Target MBA Program eBook Free Social Media Primer Business School Insider’s Guides MBA Admissions Guides Free monthly online and in-person events
Location: Florida, United States
Phone: 646-485-8844
Email: info@mbamission.com
Website: https://www.mbamission.com/consult-pq/
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If my word count was only limited to two, my review of Krista would be simple: The GOAT. I put a lot amount of thoughts into big decisions or purchases, so when I was considering whether or not to use a consultant or who to use, I turned over every stone. I explored every firm and talked to a lot of different people. I watched Krista’s video on MBAMission and really resonated with her emphasis on getting to know the person behind the resume, along with her signature chuckle at the end, and felt as though I’d be comfortable really opening up to her so that I could put my all into my application. She was my #1 choice out of all of the chats I had done with consultants and words can’t explain how happy I am that I made the right choice. Working with Krista surpassed all of my expectations. She overinvested in getting to know everything about me, not just my career, why I chose it and future ambitions, but the way I grew up, my family dynamics, the seemingly meaningless stories that have had an impact on my life, professionally and personally. Despite being hired as my consultant, it felt as though she doubled as a personal therapist throughout the application process. She was able to piece together all of the small details of my life, that even I had forgotten at times, and help me create cohesive and compelling essays tailored to each individual school that I applied to. Despite my love for Krista the person, her professionalism and passion for the job is the true reason why I’m so thankful I chose her. I’m not a strong writer, but Krista allowed me to simply put everything down on a page that I wanted to talk about and she was able to take it from there. She was able to help me take my excessively long brain dumps and edit them down so that they would be the most concise and powerful versions. Her attention to detail and her ability to scrutinize every sentence, word and punctuation mark, to create the strongest possible essay was something I hadn’t ever seen before (including from all of my supervisors, bosses and MDs to date). Outside of the essays, she helped coach me on every aspect of the application from reviewing my recommenders’ recommendations or helping me with extracurricular descriptions to the most minute details such as what I should be including about my family background. No matter the aspect of the application, Krista never let me settle for good: It had to be great. I know Krista sells out almost every year, but throughout my time with her, it always felt as though I was her only client. She often was able to get draft revisions back to me ahead of the MBAMission two business day timeline and was always available to hop on zoom to talk, no matter how large or small my problem at the time was (I’m surprised she didn’t bill my medical insurance for therapy charges). Throughout my application process Krista became much more than my consultant and now that I’m finished, I can say with absolute certainty that I’d trust her with my first-born child. She helped take my applications to a new level and because of her I was able to get a scholarship from Wharton, in addition to being accepted into my dream school, that I’m looking forward to attending in the fall: Harvard Business School.
Crafting good application essays has always been a challenge for me as a non-native English speaker, but Krista helped me navigate through the journey effectively. During the brainstorming sessions, she helped me find highlights in my career and daily life, and encouraged me to incorporate them into my applications, advice that turned out to be extremely effective and made my essay outstanding. Before drafting an essay, she would help me organize my thoughts and go over the essay structure, which greatly assisted me in making the essays flow logically. The interview prep sessions proved to be effective as well, as we prepared a lot of questions that were later asked during the interviews. Looking back, I realize that I initially underestimated the amount of workload required for the MBA application and the value of an admissions consultant. Working with Krista was one of the best decisions I made during my application journey. She saved me a lot of time and truly made everything possible.
I would highly recommend Krista. She helped me brainstorm some brilliant ideas for my essays, refine my interview answers, and secure two offers from my top choices. She’s super friendly and respectful. She truly cares about your success.
I started working with Krista unsure if I could get into a top MBA program. I was worried about my subpar GPA and average test scores. Overall, I wasn’t very confident in myself or ability to get in. Because of Krista, I got into my top schools PLUS I landed sizeable scholarships! I’m so happy and 1000/10 recommend!
More info: From the first interaction, Krista was the ray of sunshine that cut through the fog and turned this murky, arduous process into something very clear, doable, and possible. She is so warm and easy to work with and so knowledgeable. Krista has an amazing process for getting key information out at every turn. The intake was key, she asked what I needed and had a clear process for me leading up to apps. She sent me the right emails at the right times and kept me honest and accountable both over e-communications and in meetings.
Essays were where I struggled most. As we went through, she helped me find the interesting, amazing nuggets and helped me focus on those as I wrote. I gained SO MUCH confidence throughout the process and felt myself growing and communicating better. The edits, ideas, redirects, and feedback Krista gave me were invaluable and she really pushed me to tell my story in a compelling way. The turnaround time for edits was also really appreciated, I knew I was pushing it toward the end of round 1 and she often delivered well before her guaranteed 48-hour window. By the end of it, I knew I had amazing applications and there would be nothing better.
Also, I really appreciated that Krista knew what I didn’t know and then would then ask me about it or nudge me into doing it. This was VITAL because applications are overwhelming and there is so much that you don’t know until it pops up (or you miss it.) Krista prepped me for each turn while also sharing AMAZING resources for anything you could conceive (coffee chats with students, school guides, visits, interviews, etc.) She also answered all my questions and connected me to opportunities I wouldn’t have known about.
One last thing – I really appreciated how Krista is so genuinely kind, pleasant, and wonderful to work with. We all need someone super qualified and good at what they do but you don’t know how much you really need someone who really cares about you, is in your corner, and is there for you on this crazy ride. That’s Krista, truly the best.
Bottom line: Krista is an amazing coach and person. I got into my schools WITH scholarships and it was absolutely worth it. Invest in yourself. Go with Krista.
Krista is the best! She supported me through every step of my MBA application process and imparted invaluable interview, professional, and life advice along the way. I had an overall really positive application experience and ended up getting into 5 of the 7 schools I applied to (including HBS, Kellogg, Booth, Yale SOM, and Tuck)! After completing initial conversations with many consultants, the three things that stood out to me about Krista were (1) her organization and sense of care and urgency when reviewing work/sending comments; (2) her knowledge about different schools, the application process, and timelines; and (3) the kindness she showed throughout our time together while also adequately pushing me to reach my full potential.
I started my process early with Krista – before a lot of other consultants were even willing to take me on as a new client! I appreciated how she was willing to work on a schedule that I was comfortable with (aka very early), and I believe that her working style is a great fit for many types of candidates. She always returned work to me in a timely manner with clear comments on items I needed to revise and how I could frame my thoughts more clearly and succinctly for maximum impact.
She was also extremely knowledgeable about every step of the application process, from attending schools’ networking events to resume formatting to acing various interview types. These are just some of the reasons why I think having a consultant is a valuable resource. Krista is aware of statistics and trends that can overall help candidates approach their applications with an informed mindset. Most of all, she was able to help identify where my strengths lie and impart advice on how to craft the most compelling narrative given my background, experience, and interests.
Lastly, Krista was always compassionate and kind with her advice and suggestions. I definitely appreciate a “tough” approach when it comes to crafting the strongest possible application, but Krista did a great job of challenging me in an uplifting way. She was so thorough, especially with my interview prep, and I felt confident and ready for every part of the application journey.
Krista was not only a top notch consultant, but also a genuine mentor and friend who made what is usually a very stressful process much more manageable. Would 10/10 recommend Krista – it’s a decision you can’t go wrong with!!!
Overall: Krista is fantastic. I cannot leave a more positive or heartfelt review. Working with Krista was the best decision I made during the application process and the result: “The answer is yes!” (I got into HBS, my dream school!) The b-school application process is stressful, time consuming, emotional and overall exhausting. Having a guide like Krista was truly life saver. She is a dream to work with and without a doubt worth the investment.
Bedside Manner: Warm, supportive, honest, insightful, professional, bubbly. Gets to know you as a person beyond your application. Cheerleader, cares about you and is invested in you.
Essay specific: What made Krista really valuable during the essay process beyond just an objective third party’s feedback were 2 things: First, she provided very specific guidance on the structure and content of the essays. After filling out the comprehensive brainstorming doc (~19 pages), brainstorming with her over zoom and proving bullets on my ideas for a particular essay, there was so much content to work through. Krista not only digested all this content, but knew it by heart and came to the session with a blueprint for each essay – 250 words on x, 100 on y, then 400 on Z. This took all guessing away from the essay writing and let me focus on telling my story in the best way possible. It was a huge time saver and took away all of the guesswork.
Second, Krista understands how to speak the language of each school and what resonates with AdCom. Every school has a different culture, different things that they look for in students, different ways AdCom evaluates someone’s story. Krista’s deep first hand knowledge and experience on how to speak to each school and how they’ve historically reacted to someone’s story was invaluable to me. My story never changed, but the way I told it and what I highlighted did depending upon the prompt and the school. This was, for me personally, the single biggest value add. Krista was brilliant in helping me craft my story to speak to my target audience in a compelling way. No 2 essays of mine were alike.
Beyond those two points, the feedback she provided was always spot on. She was extremely responsive and detailed. Extremely adaptable to my feedback and the overall evolution of the essay. And always trying to show you at your best.
Interview Prep: Krista prepared me extremely well for all my interviews (5 in total). There wasn’t a single question I wasn’t prepared for or hadn’t thought about due to our prep together. She also gave very specific feedback to each answer I gave drawing on her accumulated knowledge of me.
Krista is the reason I was admitted into top programs including HBS, Wharton, Tuck, and others, and almost all with scholarship money totaling almost $500,000. Go with Krista, you won’t regret it.
From our very first conversation, Krista believed in me when I doubted myself. I was on the (slightly) older side yet didn’t have direct management experience; I came from a decidedly “non-analytical” background; and there was a long tail of other insecurities I had about my candidacy for business school. Krista saw something in me, and she helped me find and amplify my authentic voice. I was on the fence about hiring an admissions consultant because I considered myself a good (enough) writer, but boy am I relieved I was able to work with Krista.
I could not be happier that I chose Krista after doing many free consultations: Here is what I think she brings:
Krista has a preternatural ability to bring stories to life. As a person with a technical software background, I was concerned about explaining my accomplishments in a way that felt impactful yet understandable to a non-technical audience. It turned out not to be a concern at all. For every technical project that I explained in my resume or in one of my essays, Krista encouraged me to “paint a picture” for the reader. Going from an “I did this” to a “this was the impact” mentality was difficult for me, but with Krista’s help, projects that were so esoteric that I almost considered leaving out of my application were now the strongest advocates for my candidacy.
While Krista guarantees a 48-hour turnaround time for reviewing essay drafts, she consistently over-delivers, providing feedback more often than not within 24 hours. As a chronic procrastinator, I felt solace knowing that Krista had my back and actively supported me even—or rather, especially—when R2 deadlines were fast approaching. I was concerned that I wouldn’t be able to iterate on drafts of my essays quickly enough before the deadline, but Krista went above and beyond in establishing even quicker turnaround times that worked with my personal timeline. During times of unbelievable stress, it is a huge relief knowing that your admissions consultant is in the trenches with you, fighting just as hard for you as you are fighting for yourself.
I could go on and on about how she has key insights about specific schools and programs that you can’t find online, how she is always willing to meet with you for even the most trivial of concerns, or how she sends you pump-up emails on interview day because she is so invested in your personal journey, but if you’ve made it to this section of the review, I hope you are already convinced. Krista was able to take an incredibly stressful application process and turn it into a fun and enjoyable experience.
I cannot recommend Krista enough to anyone who is truly serious about maximizing their chances to get into a top business school. I can’t imagine what my application would have looked like without Krista’s help, and thankfully I don’t have to.
I had the pleasure of working with Krista during the 2022-2023 application season. She supported me through the essay writing, interview, and decision-making process. When I think back on my MBA application journey, one of the best calls I made was hiring Krista.
There are a few qualities that make Krista stand out:
1) Krista is a great editor – Krista had an uncanny ability to transform essays without changing the underlying tone or meaning. Some of my initial drafts were vague and not specific enough. Krista rejiggered them and made them more concrete. When my initial drafts were strong, Krista added details here and there that really pushed them to the next level. She would turn “solid” essays into “exceptional” ones.
2) Krista’s timeliness – I paid for Krista’s hourly services and was told that work would be returned within a 2-day timeframe. In the nine months that I spent with her, she never missed this window once. I knew when I sent in an essay, résumé, or org chart that it would be returned ASAP. In some cases Krista would even get back to me within 24 hours. I was particularly impressed by this because I knew she was juggling multiple clients at once. She did a great job of making each candidate a priority and getting back to people in a timely fashion.
3) Krista’s breadth of knowledge about MBA admissions – After my applications were submitted, throughout the interview phase and beyond, I would frequently ask Krista one-off questions about the next steps (e.g. what to wear to an interview, whether to do an interview virtually or in-person, how the employment verification process works, etc.). She was able to answer every question thoroughly, accurately, and promptly. She would even go above and beyond and provide me with links to resources off the Internet or at mbaMission that would give me a more in-depth explanation of a question that she had already answered. If I was in doubt, I knew Krista would be able to help.
Most importantly, though, with Krista, I never felt that I was going on this journey alone. The MBA application process is draining, mentally, physically, and emotionally. While it can be helpful to have family and friends there to support you, in my view, it is even more critical to have an expert who is well-versed in MBA admissions so that you can feel as prepared as possible for anything that may come your way. I felt that I had all of that in Krista and more.
In the end, I was admitted to four of the M7 programs, including my #1 choice: Wharton HCM. I know that it would not have been possible without Krista’s support. I cannot recommend her highly enough. If you are looking for expert help and guidance throughout the MBA application process, choose Krista. She was faultless from start to finish.
Krista understood my story and what I’m passionate about. She helped me showcase who I am in a very practical, descriptive, and consistent way across all of my MBA applications – and I got into 11/11 business schools (including Harvard, Wharton, and Stanford) with nearly $1M in scholarship money.
Some things that stand out about Krista:
1. Helped me maximize the time. From the very beginning, Krista advised me on how best to use the hours that I purchased from her. We regularly exchanged materials with very detailed instructions on where/where not to focus her review time – and she stuck to it every single time. This made me feel like she prioritized me and what I needed vs. running down the hours (which can be a concern for hourly services in any space). She also suggested what I could do on my own as well (e.g., grammatical reviews), so that she could focus on higher-value feedback for the money that I spent. Krista always tailored her approach to me, which made me feel cared for as a whole person during what can be an incredibly vulnerable process.
2. Invested in me holistically. Even with me being an hourly client, Krista still offered other materials (e.g., school guides and FAQs) and ongoing support (e.g., check-in emails the day of acceptance days) that made me feel like she cared about me holistically. Another way Krista showed her investment in me was by always keeping up with my storyline across all 11 of my applications. For example, Krista offered very targeted suggestions of what I should pull into one of my applications from an earlier application based on the prompt and what my story may have been missing. This helped me focus my efforts, use my hourly services more efficiently, and made me feel heard and seen – Krista truly believed in me and what I could accomplish.
3. Believed in me from the beginning. From our initial conversation, Krista believed in my applicant profile and what I could bring to every MBA program that I applied to. I had concerns about my test scores, which Krista did provide support for me to increase slightly, but I knew I needed my application to stand out in other ways. Not only did Krista help me strengthen my narrative, but she provided endless encouragement along the way. She gave me so much praise on my materials (when it was warranted) and regularly reminded me of how much I’ve accomplished in my career (and as a person) to get me to this point. Krista’s support had an incredibly positive impact on my entire MBA application process and kept me going when times were difficult.
Krista came recommended to me by a very close friend – and now I’ll recommend Krista to everyone I know. Although I’ll never know why these schools accepted me, I’m confident that my applications were better because of Krista.
I’ll start out by saying that I don’t think I would’ve been in the position of choosing between M7 offers if not for Krista.
When I decided to go with an MBA consultant my one and only hope was to find someone that would really champion me and who genuinely wanted to see me succeed – I got that and MORE from Krista!! We laughed, cried, and most importantly celebrated together and I couldn’t have asked for a better person to work with me on this journey.
I spoke to other MBA consultants, but once I spoke to Krista, I pretty much signed up for a package the next day. From the very first conversation, Krista was warm, friendly, and optimistic. I loved that she had clearly read through my resume in detail, and even recommended I apply to some M7 schools I had not thought of applying to.
Krista was probably the only person that could help me throughout this process. I’d say I’m someone that can be quite realistic to a fault, so much so that I cancelled out applying to some schools, thinking there’s no way I’d get in. Krista was there constantly encouraging me, even when things were not looking promising. In fact, I had said to Krista I was not applying to one specific M7 as there’s no way I’d get in. She was eventually able to convince me, and 2 months later, I received a congratulatory email from one of the top business schools in the world.
Throughout the process, Krista was always clear with instructions, paid great attention to detail, and would always get back to me exactly when she said would. She was so invested in my success that there were times she’d even remind me of things I had achieved that I could add to my applications! Her mock interviews were fantastic, and I learned so much about myself and how I interview. Krista also has a magic touch of transforming your essays, whilst still keeping your tone of voice.
Finally, Krista is extremely fun and bubbly, and we never ran out of things to talk about! Every zoom call we had, she’d always dial in with a different background photo of my country and we would end up talking about popular food spots in my city. As an International, I loved that Krista was always genuinely interested in learning more about my country and it always made our sessions feel very relaxed and informal.
My MBA journey was a wild rollercoaster. But that is where I am extremely grateful for Krista, she was always encouraging, optimistic, and supportive. I 1000% endorse Krista and could not recommend her enough. If I had to give one piece of advice to her future clients, it will be to trust her advice!!!! She really does know everything about the schools, and anything she suggests is always going to be in your best interest. So please do make sure you take her advice – you won’t regret it!
I used hourly services with Krista and I definitely recommend it! Even after doing a 30 minutes free trial with her, I was amazed at how valuable her advice was. After a few sessions, I actually purchased more hours as I found Krista’s support so valuable and helpful. She exceeded my expectations. In the end, I was accepted by four of the top 20 MBA programs and one with a full scholarship.
For a bit more insight I’d highlight a few things:
1. Her high-level guidance helped me better position myself and leverage my strengths. She definitely knows a lot about the process and what schools are looking for. Applying to the top MBA programs is a challenging process and often you might feel lost. However, even after a few minutes with Krista, I felt like I knew exactly what I had to do and felt a lot more confident.
2. She has small tips for your interview that I think make a big difference. Her mock interviews were amazing! I think I had good answers prepared but she helped me make them perfect.
3. She is very well-organized and has a structured approach. She tells you her schedule and turnaround times from the beginning and follows it very carefully. This was a very stress-free approach for me and I appreciated it a lot.
4. She is a great person, attentive, and truly cares about the applicant. She has been extremely supportive and I always felt like she really cared about me. She helped me be more confident throughout the process.
When I first started working with Krista, I had a lot to figure out. I didn’t know where exactly I wanted to apply, how good of a candidate I was, what my story in my applications could be, etc. Krista helped me figure out absolutely everything and navigated me flawlessly through the very strenuous process of applying to business school. I think I would have been a very average business school candidate without Krista’s help and she turned me into a great candidate.
I’m so pleased with my results after working with Krista. She not only got me into a top school, but she also got me a significant merit scholarship. There is a slight chance I could’ve gotten into this school on my own, but I am 100% certain I would not have gotten the merit scholarship without Krista’s help. In that regard, hiring Krista was an incredible investment for me because her services actually ended up saving me money!! And I don’t think it’s possible that I could’ve received the same or better results with another consultant. There was nothing she could’ve done better and her guidance was spot on every step of the way. She is professional, she responds to everything super quickly, she will keep you organized, she will make sure you are doing everything possible to maximize your chances at any given school, and she will work tirelessly until every aspect of your application is as good as it can possibly be (I think we did over 15 edits of my resume alone). My only regret in working with Krista is that I did not follow her advice more closely at times.
I’m so thankful to have had the privilege of working with Krista. She is not only incredible at her job, but she is also a great person. I give her my highest possible endorsement and can’t say enough about her.
I had the opportunity to work with Krista throughout my long MBA application process, and I couldn’t have done it without Krista by my side at every step of the way.
Starting in the 2020-2021 cycle, I applied to several programs, and even though I received a generous scholarship from a program last year, I ended up postponing my MBA for another year given that I received a big work promotion and wanted to gain hands-on management experience. When I decided to reapply in 2021, Krista provided me with extra support at no additional charge. She was there for me when I needed a mock interview partner the second time around and was generous with her time. Her resourcefulness helped me to always put my best foot forward.
What I appreciated about Krista was her tireless dedication and communication style. She sets clear expectations upfront and is very responsive. If you put in the work, Krista will help get you into your dream school(s). For me, that was MIT Sloan. She truly goes above and beyond for her clients, and I highly recommend Krista to future MBA candidates looking for a partner throughout this process.
I worked with Krista Nannery at mbaMission and she was fantastic! She took the time to really understand who I was as a person, my history, my short term and long term goals and what I wanted to get out of an MBA program to best help me craft my stories, essays and overall application. There were very clear deadlines for everything and the turnaround time was always followed. I got very helpful and actionable feedback on every part of my application and I felt that we were connected throughout the entire process, from the initial conversation through when I was deciding between school acceptances. I was hoping to get into at least one school and ended up getting offers at 5/7 – which definitely would not have happened without Krista’s amazing expertise, past experience, overall guidance and wonderful support throughout the process. Overall, I highly recommend, Krista!
There are truly no words to describe how wonderful it was to work with Krista. She took what was originally a stressful, daunting and complicated process and made it simple. Krista is organized, knowledgeable and strategic — she took time to learn exactly about ME, and then helped me craft a thorough application at each school that both stressed my strong-suits and the elements that each school cares about. She was also a pleasure to work with — she was enthusiastic, kind, and responsive. She goes above and beyond for each of her clients and is a true supporter of the people she works with. While some other consultants I interviewed started to pick apart the weak parts of my application, Krista was only constructive and strategic. In the end, I received an admission offer at my dream school. This is in large part due to Krista — she helped me show the AdCom the real me. She’s a wonderful partner and champion in this process — couldn’t recommend her more strongly to anyone going through this process.
After working with Krista for six months, I can definitively say I would not have had nearly as strong an application without her. I was recommended to her by a friend who gave such a glowing review that I wasn’t sure it could possibly live up to the hype. It turns out the hype may not have been enough.
A few key highlights: I applied to a school that based on my GRE and GPA would have been a clear reach. With Krista’s help, I was able to create a great application, and even get an interview.
The second key was Krista’s suggestions for my video essay. My initial idea was lackluster, but Krista mentioned thinking more outside the box and using photography as a basis for the entire video. From there, it sparked a ton of ideas, and we were able to work through the writing to get it as crisp and sharp as possible. The video essay turned out to be so strong that it was the catalyst for my acceptance to both schools I ultimately considered.
Overall, it was an extremely positive experience. Krista genuinely cared about my success and would pick interesting insights, ask great questions and make connections about how to make an excellent application. She also set me up extremely well for interviews, and I could not have gotten into school without her help.
Used a package service with Krista and got in nearly EVERYWHERE, including Stanford GSB, Wharton, and Columbia. She knew the ins and outs of every school and their applications, made the process as stress-free and fun as possible (grueling as it was), and the worry I’d previously had that I was missing something, somewhere, went away because I was confident Krista knew everything. She was also fun, kind, generous, energetic, and I felt like she was really rooting for me throughout. I LOVED WORKING WITH KRISTA and saw her as a trusted friend/advisor throughout. She also helped me apply to CBS on a tight time crunch, sending masterful thoughts my way and steering my app towards success with only days and hours to spare. I couldn’t recommend her more highly! She is the Michael Jordan of MBA consulting.
Krista is simply fantastic. After obtaining my GMAT score, I decided to apply to MBA business schools, but I did not have any experience. The only advice I could get was from some agents introduced to me by my parents. That had been neither rewarding nor enriching and was very inefficient. I went into a panic, and after reading through reviews, I decided on mbaMission. I chatted with Krista initially, and she was the one who has been with me throughout this long and arduous process from the beginning to the end. Krista has been very effective in pinpointing the next step of action. She is experienced and organized in every step taken to ensure that my time has been used effectively. With so little time at hand, not a single second had been wasted without her giving me valuable feedback on my short answer questions or my essay drafts. As a person who values effectiveness and efficiency, I think Krista is one of the best I have ever encountered, and working with her is seamless. I think Krista is valuable to all those seeking assistance on their MBA application. It is very easy to get confused with MBA applications in essay writing, short answer writing, the GMAT (if you need to retake it), networking, and talking to the admission staff. And Krista is there for anyone serious about their MBA applications. How do you approach the alumni and schedule meetings with MBA admission staff, you ask it, and you will be answered. Thus, I would like to offer a word of advice for anyone who wants to apply for their MBA with Krista, never be afraid to ask questions regarding your MBA applications; in truth, you are helping yourself by doing so. And from my experience, if you did, she would help you. Not only did Krista support me in terms of her professional expertise, which is one of the most refined, but she also supported me emotionally. After being waitlisted by other MBA schools, I was disappointed and disheartened, but I felt much better after confiding with her. She has been optimistic, and I was encouraged by her kind comments. She has this phrase, “it is never over until it is over” sometimes, waiting for a decision can take you into an emotional turmoil which makes the experience not so exciting. Still, Krista certainly makes my experience more light-hearted. I am grateful to have Krista to help me with my MBA application. However, I am even more grateful to have met her and to know them as a professional and a friend. I hope she stays healthy, and I hope anyone who wishes to engage Krista to help with their MBA application has the best and brightest future.
Krista was incredible to work with. She was very attentive, offered great essay ideas/feedback, and responded to all my questions in a timely manner. I would highly recommend utilizing her services!
I worked with Krista on an hourly basis throughout Round 1, and have only positive things to say about her and working with her. In particular, there were three facets of our working relationship Krista provided that I found especially valuable.
(1) Structure. Because I worked with Krista on an hourly basis, I was pointed and specific about how I wanted to use my time. Krista understood this immediately and worked on the parts of my application (e.g., my essays and resume) where I asked for help and didn’t waste time on other areas. For instance, I would send across agendas for our calls with times to spend on each topic, and she always willingly and happily stuck to my proposed agenda.
Furthermore, just because I was an hourly client did not mean I didn’t receive more holistic support. Krista shared many materials that helped put guardrails around the application process, as well as resources such as resume checklists, school interview guides, and FAQ lists that guided me over the past several months. Working with Krista proved to be a structured and planned-out process which I greatly appreciated.
(2) Actionable feedback. Every piece of feedback Krista gave me was critical, direct, and actionable. Every critique was reasoned through and came with a suggested remedy. This feedback made my revisions straightforward and my applications much improved. It also minimized the number of rounds of revision necessary, which I appreciated as an hourly client. This is not to say Krista was harsh by any means; rather, she gave actionable feedback, which is what you really need as a client.
(3) General and emotional support. This last part is perhaps the most valuable part of working with an admissions consultant, and Krista provided it in spades. She expertly guided me, a first-time applicant, through this process she’s navigated many times before with many other clients. She also provided emotional and moral support throughout the process – after all, she knew my MBA hopes and dreams better than anyone else. Krista truly cared about me, my goals, and my feelings throughout, and when I got into my top choice school she was as elated as I was.
Overall, I greatly appreciated working with Krista throughout Round 1, and know my applications were better for it. If you’re looking for someone to partner with you throughout the application process, I unequivocally recommend Krista.
As an international student, I was unfamiliar with the US MBA process but Krista was my guiding light throughout. She provided invaluable guidance on which schools to target, thoughtful feedback on my application and amazing interview prep. She is a true oracle and everything she said came true, including me getting into all my target schools (HBS, CBS, Yale and NYU)! She knows this process inside out and I really couldn’t have done it without her. She is also a lovely person to work with and provided encouragement and reassurance when I doubted myself and the process. If you are considering a consultant you 100% won’t regret working with Krista!
Working with Krista and mbaMission was a fantastic and productive experience. They supported me through every step of the application process and I was ultimately admitted to Sloan, Kellogg (MMM), Tuck, and Ross. Krista will push you to produce the best possible application materials, and she is kind, collaborative, and encouraging throughout the process. I was referred to mbaMission by a friend and had several intro calls with a few mbaMission consultants. Right off the bat, I was impressed with the openness of the consultants – they truly want to match your working style and make sure the process works best for you, while offering you the advantage of their experience and knowledge of the different schools. From my first conversation with Krista, she was realistic about the schools that I could apply to with my test scores, undergrad GPA, and background. She also encouraged me to switch from the GMAT to the GRE and gave me suggestions about tutoring services I could use – this push was vital to me successfully increasing my test scores. Additionally, Krista was incredibly encouraging as I was studying for the GRE, often reminding me that the studying was worth it and I just need to push a bit longer. Once I had the test scores needed and we had talked through what schools I would be applying to, Krista helped me sift through my background and brainstorm possible essay topics. She continually provided constructive feedback and pushed me to put out my best work. Her expectations of me were clear and I appreciated the structured approach she put in place. I received interviews at 5 of the 6 schools I applied to. Not only does mbaMission provide free interview guides for each school, but Krista was also vital to my interview prep. Each mock interview was treated as a real interview, and she guided me on how to best present my answers. Ultimately I had a series of successful interviews and at each step felt extremely well prepared for the different interviews and interviewers. All in all, working with Krista and mbaMission was one of the best investments I have made in my life and highly encourage anyone interested to reach out to their team.
I don’t think I would have made it to my dream MBA program, being admitted to a number of schools with over $300k scholarship without Krista.
I am an organized and honest person and was looking for a consultant of similar traits. I was hooked right at the free 30-min consultation when I walked away from the meeting with a comprehensive page-long summary and next steps from Krista. You could easily tell from a conversation if the other person is genuine and invested in your success. I opted for a start-to-finish package with 2 schools but I could almost always turn to Krista for high-level advice wrt schools even outside of the package. Krista often checked in and made sure I was on the right track, again, even for schools outside of the package. Her support didn’t end upon my admits, it was greatly expanded afterwards ie. scholarship negotiation, broadening my network and transitioning to b-school.
Krista is an amazing consultant and companion. I am not just talking about her breadth of admissions experience, but specifically of her emotional support during the process. MBA application is a soul-searching yet stressful process. Krista always provided a helping hand and encouragement but she could be as persistent and diligent whenever I was about to give up on my GMAT. Her diligence was a key factor in my higher standardized test score and I couldn’t thank her enough for that.
When I was searching for a consultant, I was looking for someone whom I can trust. You will probably tell your consultant your deepest secrets and stories that not many people know of. And Krista somehow, I don’t know how, managed to know my stories better than I did. It was really helpful when you were prepping for the interviews and confronted with difficult questions. Needless to say how useful that was in putting your essays together so as to set up your story theme and how they should be intertwined with one another. Her amazing editorial skills really helped without getting in your way of crafting your own essays.
I would definitely recommend Krista to anyone looking for a consultant to work with. She is quick at turnaround – she was even writing from the beach when it was extremely urgent, responsive and responsible for each of her advice. Krista would turn to her team of experienced consultants for you if needed. You’re not buying a package with just a consultant but with a team who is invested in your application. Good luck with your journey!
When I reached out to mbaMission, I thought of applying to Columbia, Yale, Booth, and HBS (did not really believe I could get into HBS). After a few calls with Krista, although still not sure about her arguments that GSB and HBS would love me, I decided to apply to HBS, Stanford GSB, Booth, Yale, and Wharton. We have worked hard for 5 months straight to prepare those applications. When it comes to Krista’s way of working:
– She was very precise and diligent when it comes to clearing up confusion or misunderstandings in my essays. For example, for one sentence in one of my essays, she kept asking me within 3 or 4 drafts ‘But explain to me what it really means. Imagine you are explaining it to someone from outside of your industry.’ She would not give up until she was sure the admission committee would understand it! It was so helpful! – Her turnaround time was shorter than promised almost every single time – She would meet up with me whenever I had doubts about any piece of my application – Krista really wanted to get to know me to help me ‘sell’ my story and she helped me believe that my story is powerful enough to get to top schools – Her suggestions to change something in my applications were always based on solid arguments and Krista’s previous experience – Krista will connect you with her previous clients studying at schools of your choice – it was helpful when it comes to my decision making
I was admitted to 3 out of 5 schools (including HBS and GSB) I applied to and I am sure it was thanks to Krista’s help. If you really want to get the most out of this service, open up to Krista and share your story in the most transparent way it is possible. Krista will help you structure and polish your story in a way you would never do by yourself! Bonus: Her sense of humor will always make you laugh 🙂
Working with Krista Nannery was the single best decision I made in my MBA application journey. I am thrilled to have gotten into my dream school and I am convinced that if it wasn’t for her constant guidance, support, and expertise I would not be in this position.
Essays: Her biggest strength is the environment of trust she creates. This helped me open up to her on my life experiences during the essay brainstorming discussions – the foundation for the essay content. She always offered targeted advice and has the ability to story-tell in an engaging but efficient way. This was especially important for someone like me who had lots to share but struggled to be within the word counts. She constantly went above and beyond on the number of essay drafts and never once missed her 2-day response rule – often responded within a day.
Strategy: Krista’s knowledge of the overall admissions process and the specific schools was helpful throughout the process. She helped put together a target school list based on my profile and interests. When it came to strengthening my improvement areas, she had invaluable suggestions.
Mock interviews: Her questions and feedback during the mock interviews were extremely valuable. Krista recreated an interview environment in those mock interview sessions and her choice of questions depending on the school were spot on. I walked into every interview confident.
Krista was more than a consultant to me – she was a patient guide and caring friend. The application process is exhausting with lots of ups and downs. It’s impossible to put a price on having someone by your side who truly cares about you and your dreams. I strongly recommend working with Krista – it’s the best investment you will make!
I started my MBA admissions process completely overwhelmed, with pieces of the puzzle figured out, but not sure how to fit them together. I had so many questions, which added another layer of stress to an already incredibly stressful process. I spent several months resistant to seeking the help of an admissions consultant due to the price but eventually decided that having the support of someone who knows the MBA admissions process inside and out would be a huge benefit. This decision led me to MBAmission, and to Krista in particular. In my initial consultation call with Krista, I knew she was fantastic! She came into the conversation knowing about my career path to date, and with specific suggestions on when to apply, where to apply, specific aspects of my application that needed strengthening, and how to do so. In a half-hour call, I could tell that she was already invested in seeing me succeed. For the first time in the months I had spent researching and prepping, I walked away with a new sense of confidence and direction that is reflective of my overall experience working with Krista. Over the course of our several months working together, Krista helped me clearly articulate my goal in pursuing an MBA, think about the aspects of my experience/career/personality that made me a unique candidate, consider how to best communicate and structure my story, and much more. I was impressed by her turnaround (so fast!), her editing ability, and knowledge of each school’s application process and preferences. The best part about working with Krista though, in addition to all that I’ve mentioned, was her commitment to my case and to me personally. She was so supportive and encouraging, always checking in on how I was feeling about the process, which pieces were overwhelming, and outside of MBA admissions, how work was going, how I was spending free time, etc. Now a year later, I’ve been admitted to my dream school, and am preparing to attend in the fall. I could not have gotten there without Krista and am beyond grateful for her support! Thinking back to my initial hesitation, I’ll say now with full confidence that working with Krista was the best money that I’ve ever spent and made for a very positive MBA admissions experience.
Going into the application process, I was a bit intimidated that I didn’t fit the ‘traditional’ applicant profile, but from the first time I met with Krista, she helped to dismiss these doubts and I was confident she was the perfect partner to help me navigate this process. I connected with Krista’s warmth and kind demeanor, but also appreciated her firmness at times to push me towards optimal success. She specifically encouraged me to stay diligent in my efforts to raise my GRE score until I was able to achieve a score I needed and we felt confident in, which I believe ultimately played a role in my success.
Krista has a productive partnership style – she is very responsive and instructive over e-mail and uses video meetings when necessary. I left each meeting with Krista clear on my next steps and she made it easy to follow a timeline that felt realistic, but ensured we were going to hit our key deadlines. Her feedback style was constructive, yet encouraging and she always explained her thoughts and was open to talking them through so that I felt comfortable with the direction we were proceeding in.
I greatly appreciated Krista’s breadth of knowledge on each of the schools I was applying to and that she was able to guide me on how to best tailor my story for each school specifically. With my resume, she greatly helped me re-shape it to highlight my industry expertise and encouraged me to weaponize anything that made me unique. She made me feel confident in my story and candidacy and was diligent in going through drafts of essays to ensure they were where they needed to be at submission time.
In Krista you get so much more than a consultant – you get a mentor who is genuinely invested in this process with you. More than anything, I am grateful for Krista’s patience, encouragement, the confidence she instilled in me, and the areas she pushed me to improve. Krista’s commitment to her clients is further expressed in the excitement and happiness she feels when they succeed. Having achieved great results with acceptances to three schools, including my top choice in Wharton, I would strongly recommend Krista to anyone who is embarking on this admissions journey.
I have been thinking about getting an MBA for a while because as a project manager, I thought my projects would be more successful if my company had strong organizational support, but I do not know how to build a strong and effective organization. After talking with an alumnus from my Master’s program, he strongly recommended Krista to help me with my applications.
Krista helped me position myself and picked the best school combination for me. Before talking with her, MIT was the only school on my list. After reviewing my profile (an international female with 10 years of experience in manufacturing and an engineering background), Krista suggested adding Fuqua and Tepper. Because of my undergraduate GPA (3.0), Krista suggested I take a class, Math for Management through UC Berkley online to strengthen my profile. I got an A, a great improvement for my understanding of math and also good for my applications.
Krista helped me improve my resume tremendously. The final version is the 7th revision. After sending Krista my brainstorming document, we started the back-and-forth exercise to keep modifying and improving my resume. Her smart questions made me dig deeper. For example, for my project manager role, I only mentioned “led project team”, but Krista asked me things like “How many people did you manage and what did they do?”, “Do you know the male/female ratio in the company? How many project managers are there? “, “How many people did you manage?”, and “What about international work?” Because I am working in a male-dominated industry, I am the only female project manager in the company. But before Krista asked me these questions, I did not notice how unique I was and how impressive my job was!
My hobbies? First time, I simply put running. Then Krista replied ‘I think you probably have more hobbies than what you listed! Think about this and add more! Ok, I sat back and told myself, “Yes, I like watercolor painting, practicing piano, doing home crafts.”
There were times I hoped Krista would take a nap and not reply to my email so quickly, so I can get a little bit of time to relax. She was the one on top of everything and I knew as long as I followed her pace and suggestions, she would guide me to my dream school.
Krista also helped me pick the best people to write recommendations for me. At the beginning, I planned to get recommendation letters from my previous boss and a staff member from my Master’s program as I was hoping to keep my application quiet, so my job will not be jeopardized. After talking with Krista, she pointed me to the right direction: I should pick up someone from my current employer because I am applying for an MBA – Admissions is looking for candidates with strong business skills and potential, not volunteer experience. I took Krista’s suggestion and had a very candid conversation with one of my employer’s vice presidents. Surprisingly, he did not hesitate to support me and was excited to write me the recommendation letter. The resulting letter was really strong. Krista mentioned she loved the letter as the VP provided detailed information about his working experience with me and the strength of my candidacy. Krista also stuck with me through all the ups and downs. It has been a long time since Krista and I we worked together, from September 2020 until May 2021. For sure, Krista went far beyond her responsibility. Krista was always at my side. When I got the MIT interview invitation, I shared the great news with her immediately. When I got the offer from Duke, Krista was the first one I messaged as I knew she would be as happy I as was. At a few points during my application process, I worried I could not get enrolled this year, Krista showed her empathy to me and at the same time, pushed me to improve my candidacy, take another Executive Assessment test and look for more leadership roles. Krista set a great example to me to never give up. When I took my 2nd EA exam, I only improved 3 points and was disappointed, Krista told me every point counts and business schools like to see people keep trying. Krista is right. When the Fuqua admissions office called me, the woman told me that I did exactly what they expect a candidate to do – keep trying. Krista and I we had a lot of fun work together and she helped me to know myself much better. One of Fuqua’s essays is ‘25 random things about yourself”. I scratched my head and was not sure where to start. Krista told me she wanted to see at least 35 random things! That is so demanding! But that was the right thing to do, because we can have a bigger pool to pick the best 25 things. Krista suggested that I search for suggestions and feedback from my friends and coworkers. It was a fun and surprising experience; I got so much feedback from the people around me. their points of views really surprised me. After the 1st draft, Krista and I started to go through each single item on my list and picked and chose the best ones to show the unique side of me. By looking back the whole application process, the word I heard from Krista the most is “impressive”. Krista made me realize the accomplishments and feel more confident in myself. I highly recommend her as your consultant
I chose to work with Krista Nannery because I was a non-traditional MBA candidate and new to the application process. I’m so glad I did. Krista was there for me every step of the way. From the start, Krista took a sincere interest in me. She took the time to learn about my career history and my future goals, and was invaluable in helping me refine my personal narrative, particularly about why I was applying to specific MBA programs. She was great with turnaround times, always enthusiastic, and extremely knowledgeable about the entire application process. I especially appreciated her feedback during my interview prep. My decision to work with Krista was well worth the investment. I was admitted to several T15 programs and received large scholarship offers from two: an extraordinary return on investment. I highly recommend Krista Nannery.
I had the opportunity to work with Krista after I got rejected for all my target schools using other consulting services. After I started working with her I immediately saw the difference and felt way more confident.
Krista focused on every detail of my application, even those that I had never considered important. She also kept me on track of the timeline which sometimes flybys but more importantly she also gave me a lot of feedback that sometimes other consultants try to sugarcoat but as an applicant is important to be aware of, especially in my case since I come from a usually overrepresented pool (finance). She also made a lot of suggestions that I am sure played a pivotal role in my application.
Now I can happily say that I´ll be attending my dream school (Wharton) and received two other offers from great schools. But I am sure that I would not have done it without Krista´s help. She genuinely cared about my application process and all the high and lows that it represented. I am always going to be grateful to Krista for helping me achieve one of my dreams.
I am the only one of my friends who applied to business school, so working and talking with a consultant was very comforting during an extremely stressful year. From the beginning, Krista helped me break down every piece of the admissions cycle into digestible pieces, so I did not feel overwhelmed at the daunting application year that I had in front of me. I was in a less-than-ideal situation, still taking the GMAT during the applications process. But throughout the year, Krista helped me understand every single option to consider, including school selection and testing options. Lastly, Krista helped immensely with learning how to tell my story concisely. There is extra work at the beginning to lay out every detail of education of professional background. But the extra work was 100% worth it when I realized how little 200 words really is. It felt great to work with Krista because I could not have expected to replicate her experience and knowledge through google researching. At the end of the interviews and before decisions were released, I had a weird sense of content because I felt like I gave everything I had to the applications. Thankfully, that was not the case, and I could not be happier with Krista’s help.
I had a wonderful experience with Krista Nannery – who helped me navigate every step of the MBA admissions process – and get me into my #1 choice. The experience Krista brought the table was clear: she has a successful corporate background and years of MBA admissions consulting. She was a value add at every step of the process.
My undergrad was from a non-target school and I currently working in a ‘niche’ industry – so I wanted to partner with an experienced consultant who could help me put my best foot forward. I spoke with several other firms – but felt like I was solely in a sales pitch. In contrast, in my first meeting with Krista Nannery we were down to business! We did a resume review, goal discussion, and began our game plan. After our intro, I partnered with Krista on a 3-school start to finish package.
In our first few meetings, Krista spent time to really get to know me and my goals. Through our brainstorming exercise, she worked closely with me to review prior experience, undergrad background, and involvement to help form a cohesive story and find areas worth highlighting in MBA applications. Krista also gave tangible, near-term recommendations for ways to bolster my ‘outside of work’ involvement. As part of the package, Krista shared the full library of mbaMission materials (i.e., detailed school overviews, interview guides, etc.).
A less glamorous, but important part of the MBA process was the GMAT. Krista worked with me by reviewing my practice scores for each section, and ultimately recommending a switch to the GRE (the right choice for me!). She gave specific advice on a study plan / where to spend my prep time to get the scores into the ‘sweet spot’ for my target schools (hint – worth taking the real test more than once).
Coming into the process, I was most nervous about the essays. Fortunately, this was one of Krista’s strongest areas. For each school, we had a full hour discussion to talk through the prompt and form initial views on the essay / stories to highlight (each school looks for different elements and need to be tailored). Krista approached this exercise in a highly structured manner – which helped me think about what was most important and how could I convey my strongest areas (without missing any critical elements). In every draft / iteration, it was clear Krista puts significant thought into her feedback – and she consistently challenged me in areas where I could add more detail or enhance elements of my essays. There is limited ‘real estate’ in the MBA applications (essays & short answers) so every word matters – Krista truly challenged me to use the space wisely and her input was critical in forming the final product.
After receiving interview invitations, Krista was hands on in the preparation and we had mock interviews for each school. She prepped me with details from her prior applicants, predicted specific questions I might get based on my application (correctly!), and gave personalized feedback on interview style. She focused on how I could communicate my story in a concise and effective manner.
The MBA admissions process can be long and complicated (and can be stressful while working a busy job). Having Krista as a partner through the process helped keep me on track and reduce a lot of stress. At every step of the chain, Krista was highly responsive and always adding value. Krista was kind and genuinely wanted to see me succeed – and I have been thrilled to directly recommend Krista to my close friends who are applying for MBA programs this year.
If someone is looking to apply to an MBA program, the FIRST thing they should do is contact MBAmission and specifically Krista Nannery. In the beginning, I felt overwhelmed by The MBA application process, but from my first meeting, I was given a roadmap to my end goal. Krista helped me be confident throughout the process, from opening my applications to interview and acceptance. She is prompt, clear, committed to each client, and above all extremely knowledgeable about the admissions process. Working with Krista, I felt genuinely supported, valued, and also pushed to achieve my full potential as a candidate.
I worked with Krista during the 2019-2020 admission season via a 4 school package. First and foremost, I had not even considered applying to Haas (which I am attending) until Krista pointed out how good of a cultural fit I would be. Krista was absolutely invaluable throughout the entire process and went so far above and beyond in terms of keeping me on track and providing actionable, concise feedback. Krista will fill your inbox with a weekly list of to-dos and keep you on track. Her emails are sometimes intimidating, but it’s fantastic how much guidance she provides. She was always a friendly ear and an excellent conversationalist; I felt like her only client. I am also endlessly grateful to Krista for saving my candidacy by encouraging me to take the GRE instead of GMAT. I would use Krista again in a heartbeat; my only regret is that I didn’t take more advantage of her help.
Krista is an amazing coach. Her thoughtfulness, concern, and direction are second to none and it was a pleasure working with her during these last two months.
When GMAT waivers were released around mid-April and early-May, my parents insisted on me applying to every school with a waiver. Krista was extremely fair and honest by pointing out (via each school’s employment reports), that certain schools would unlikely help me reach my goals, despite the fact that this likely meant less work for her.
Krista and I arrived at a four school plan and immediately began a push as the rolling June 1 deadlines approached. Krista was beyond accommodating, at times responding well before the 48-hour requirement, as well as informing me when I would receive her comments. Krista has a true gift in helping her clients convey their story and making it shine. As someone who often struggles with feedback, I appreciated the way that Krista reviewed my work while also providing explanations as to why she was suggesting specific changes. Krista also showed a true interest in my experiences and story to fully maximize her ability to help.
During our mock interview sessions, Krista displayed her true expertise. Krista interviews for her alma mater and was able to prepare me for the different question combinations I might face. I’ve never performed so well in an interview in my life and I credit Krista for not only teaching me how to respond but also building my confidence. My situation was obviously unique due to the pandemic and only applying in rounds 3+ without a GMAT, but I would not have gotten into this top program without Krista.
I’m not someone who likes to spend money, so choosing to hire an admissions consultant seemed outrageous to me. However, I told myself I would only go through the application cycle once and would give it my very best shot. By hiring Krista, I knew I was giving it my all. In hindsight, it’s hard to tell what actually got me into various schools (Berkeley Haas, Yale SOM, and Michigan Ross), but I knew by using an admissions consultant I was putting my very best foot forward. If I were to do the process all over again, I would not change a thing.
I decided to go with Krista because we shared a common interest in international travel and I felt that she would take the time to get to know me. I realized this after our initial free 30-minute consultation. I wasn’t wrong and am so happy with my decision to work with Krista for my MBA applications. I felt like Krista took the time to get to know me and cares about the people she works with. A great tool mbaMission provides is a brainstorming document to populate prior to beginning any applications. The document takes over 10 hours to complete and seems like a bit of a waste when you’re spending so much time on something that isn’t directly writing essays. However, this document helped Krista get to know me and really understand me from a personal and professional perspective.
I worked with Krista on three schools (two of which I was admitted). The feedback Krista provided was always extremely helpful. Even when I received conflicting feedback from other reviewers, Krista was able and willing to reason through everything with me. Krista served as my source of truth with a helpful yes or no answer to all my questions. She placed more emphasis and care on me as a person, wanting me to submit applications I felt were my very best. Not once did I feel like her “client”. Krista made time for various discussions about my essays and future applications. One of the things I liked most about using an admissions consultant was the timeline they’re able to keep you on. I was able to start my applications at the beginning of July and take a two-week break in September before submitting it. This helped to spread out the work and ensure I was not doing everything last minute. Krista always kept to the two-day turn around promise.
I thoroughly enjoyed working with Krista and feel like I’ve gained a fantastic mentor in the process. I can’t recommend working with her enough!
Krista Nannery helped me gain admission to a T10 MBA program by helping me truly understand my career goals; helping me write strong, impactful, and memorable essays; and helping me prepare effectively for behavioral interviews and group interview activities. Moreover, I feel like Krista really cares about helping me reach my career goals, and over the past 6 months, I feel like she has grown into a friend rather than a consultant.
If you read nothing further than this, please read this: She will absolutely strengthen your candidacy for your MBA program of choice. I went from settling for a T35-T50 school with a median salary outcome of $100k to a school with a median salary outcome of $145k. Just considering this, my ROI IS OVER 300%. If you consider scholarships and intangibles like experiences and network, my ROI is significantly higher.
Before Krista: planning to apply to T35-T50 schools
After Krista: Applied to 7 schools Admitted to 2 T10 (one with a small scholarship) Admitted to 2 T15-T20 (both with half scholarships) Dinged WITH interview from 1 M7 school Waitlisted with interview from 2 T15
Here are some highlights on what Krista helped me with:
1. Brainstorm. She helped me brainstorm potential essay topics by thinking about my personal, undergraduate, and work experiences. This was SO important because ALL of us have valuable experiences to share with admissions committees, but we sometimes discount those memories. As an experienced admissions insider, Krista helped me understand my unique experiences and how I could showcase them on my applications.
2. School selection. After considering my career goals and family needs), she helped me select schools that would be a good fit for me. Again, there is SO MUCH MISINFORMATION and stereotypes on the internet about MBA programs, so I’m glad that I had someone as knowledgeable as Krista on which schools could help me achieve my goals. She helped me pick 7 schools to apply in Round 1 since I wanted to be finished by early 2020. Krista was REALISTIC with me about my chances at certain schools, something I really appreciate after this humbling process.
3. Essays. Krista’s help in this area likely helped me get a scholarship from a T10 school. Krista helped me plan and put together top-notch essays. I tend to ramble (can you tell?) and Krista helped me refine my essays to the most important topics. In some cases, she helped me restructure my essays to make a stronger, more impactful statement. To be clear, she did not write my essays, but she did make my essays 100% better. If you’re a regular person like me, I promise you, your essays will be so much better after working with Krista.
4. Recommenders. Krista helped me manage my letters of recommendation very effectively. First of all, she gave strict timelines that I used in order to get my applications in on time. This was very important since one of my recommenders took FOREVER to get back to me. When one of my recommenders gave me bland feedback, Krista helped me put together conversation points that helped me speak with that recommender. He ended up writing a fantastic letter of recommendation that included specific examples. Krista really saved the day here.
5. Interview prep. This was HUGE. MBAmission provides free interview guides for top programs. These guides include actual questions and what to expect. Krista took this a step further and conducted mock interviews with me. This gave me a significant advantage over other applicants since I had an idea of the pressure that I would feel answering real interview questions. Krista asked actual behavioral questions that sometimes caught me off guard, but this helped me during the real interview. In one scenario, 100% of the questions during my T10 interview were asked either in our mock interview or in the Interview guide. HUGE ADVANTAGE!!!
6. Advice and Friendship. I feel like Krista really cared about me, my family, and my helping me reach my goals. At no point did I ever feel like we had a transactional relationship. During this entire process, I feel like Krista has grown into a family friend, someone that I can trust for real, honest career advice. I think we all need someone like that in our corner.
When first contemplating an admissions consultant, I was very hesitant as many others probably are due to the cost. I took the jump after my initial consultation with Krista and think it was the best decision in gaining admission to a program that will change my life and well worth the investment.
Krista worked with me in essentially every step of the process except GMAT prep. The three things that benefitted me the most were school selection, crafting my story, and her personal interest in my success.
School Selection: Krista and I talked in depth about school selection. She introduced me to a wide selection of schools that she thought would be a good fit for me that I had not considered. Through our conversations, she opened my eyes to how school fit could effect my future career and experience at a school and ultimately helped shape the list of schools I applied to.
Crafting My Story: Coming from a non traditional background, I was at a point in my life to transition to a new career but wasn’t exactly sure how I would make the transition. It’s important to have your own broad vision but not knowing what you don’t know makes it hard to paint a complete picture. Krista’s experience really helped fill the gaps in my story and allowed me to better communicate the “where I’ve been, where I’m at, and where I want to go” story. She also helped to translate the essays we worked on together to fit prompts for other schools that I worked on myself.
Personal Interest: I think the most important part of my relationship with Krista was her personal interest in my success, her professionalism, and dedication to what she does. Krista is deeply passionate about what she does and it shows. She has always returned my documents with corrections early, sometimes same day depending on her workload. She is extremely responsive to email for quick questions and easy to schedule skype calls with to talk about progress throughout the application process.
Having Krista and the resources of mbaMission by your side through your application process is probably the best decision you can make. With Krista’s help, I have acceptance letters from two top 10 programs with scholarships. It was truly a pleasure working with Krista this past year and cannot recommend her enough.
Krista at mbaMission is a true delight. She was highly responsive, organized, and resourceful regarding each school’s admissions process, key programs, and application components.
Krista was able to highlight each school’s thematic areas while helping me seriously shape my application narrative. She did this efficiently (I was an hourly client) and with exceptionally high standards.
I was considering working with another well-regarded admissions consulting firm, but after my 30-minute introductory call with Krista, I could not imagine working with anyone else. I could always count on Krista to provide thoughtful, detailed feedback on my essays and applications while maintaining good humor, perspective, charisma, and enthusiasm.
During the process, we discovered that both Krista and I are big readers, and I really enjoyed getting to know Krista on a more personal level, sharing our book lists, and chatting about our favorites. I highly recommend Krista for your application needs and consider myself lucky to have found her services. I was ultimately admitted to my first choice program in R1!
I’ve worked with Krista Nannery for the second round of my MBA application. Words cannot describe how much Krista has helped me along the way, but I shall try. And I hope you read through this long review to understand how awesome Krista is.
Without Krista’s help, in the first round, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. I have a decent profile, a good GMAT score, and I thought I didn’t need the help of an admission consultant. After all, years ago when I applied to engineering grad school, I did it myself and received admissions to all schools that I’d applied to, including household names such as Stanford/MIT/Berkeley, and some even provided me a full ride. I thought applying to business school would be no different, that I would apply to a couple of top schools, and some will accept me for sure.
The outcome of my first round application was disastrous, to say the least. I was getting dinged left and right by top schools, and the ones that didn’t reject me outright put me on the waitlist.
I knew I needed help. Applying to business school is hard. It’s more than just a good profile and a good GMAT score. It’s about how you present yourself, it’s about what to put in front of the admission office with a limited amount of space, it’s about your own brand. I was lucky that I didn’t apply to one of my dream schools – Chicago Booth in the 1st round, and I started my application in the 2nd round with Krista’s help.
My essays changed drastically with Krista’s guidance. We had a discussion back and forth about my experience and what to present/how to present with the limited space. Whenever I sent Krista my essay, she almost always replied in about 24 hours, even though the contractual requirement is 48 hours. Her comments are thoughtful and direct, starting from the structure and content selection of the essays to the detailed wording that would make me shine the most. You’ll be surprised by how knowledgeable Krista is about what makes the best case for the candidate, and how she helps you put your profile in the best light possible.
Indeed, the two Booth essays are the best ones I was able to put together in the entire application process. Additionally, Krista also advised me on how to better communicate with my recommenders about what might be helpful to include.
And so I received the interview invite from Booth, the first and only M7 invite I got in the entire process. Krista then helped me prepare for the interview, from my content, to my demeanor, from the traditional Why MBA/Why now/Why Booth questions, to the more specific ones for Booth from her knowledge and mbaMission’s database. I’m confident to say that I did well in my interview.
Remember I was waitlisted in the 1st round? Krista also helped me strategized about what to do and additional material to be submitted for these waitlisted schools. But what made Krista an amazing consultant wasn’t just all the material/strategy help she provided. What set Krista apart was the fact that she truly cares about me. She cares about what I was going through and encouraged me through the hard parts. For me, this is the most important part, because when I receive bad news in the process, I don’t want to share with my family as I don’t want them to worry. But I had no problem sharing my news with Krista, be it good news or bad news because I knew she is my friend. I knew Krista would be ecstatic if it was good, and I knew she would give me as much support as possible if it was bad. I always felt that she was equally invested in my case, and we were in this together.
When the time came, I got into Booth! Moreover, I got off the waitlist for Haas and Yale SOM as well! As I said, Krista has much to do with all these acceptances.
But Krista doesn’t stop here! As I said, she was truly invested in my case, and when I had trouble deciding among Booth/Haas/SOM, she even connected me with her personal connections that went to these schools so I can discuss with them! Additionally, Krista has quite an international background and a great understanding of China/Southeast Asia, and thus she was able to provide me with a tremendous amount of knowledge about different schools’ resources in the international stage. If this is not caring, I don’t know what is!
Everybody says that an MBA is a life-changing experience. I haven’t gone through it yet, but I can honestly say that the application process for me has already been a perspective-changing journey. It challenges me to reflect on what I’ve done so far in my life, and what I want to do in the next phase. In retrospect, to go through this process successfully, you need hard work, you need a strategy, you need preparation, and most importantly, you need supports from a friend that is equally invested in you. I can vouch that Krista has provided me with all these at the highest level and then some, and I’m lucky to have her helping me along the way!
Thank you, Krista! I wholeheartedly recommend her service for future applicants!
Krista was tremendous to work with throughout the MBA process. She was patient and took the time to understand both my educational and career goals. She was helpful in identifying programs that would be a strong fit for me and provided me with the tools to be successful. More specifically, she responded rapidly to any questions I had and gave me the confidence to succeed. Furthermore, she has gone through the MBA application process herself, which sets her apart. I would highly recommend Krista for anyone who is pursuing an MBA. He breaks the process down into steps that are digestible and easy to follow.
From my first conversation with Krista, it was clear that she was incredibly smart, encouraging, kind, and fun. While I was apprehensive to spend $6k (two school package) on a consultant at the beginning of the process, the return I received on my investment far exceeded my expectations. Deciding to work with Krista was likely the most important decision I made in the MBA admissions process. Krista helped me with school selection, identifying great programs that I had originally overlooked. She recommended schools that not only have strong brands but also have great resources and recruiting opportunities specific to my post-MBA goals. Krista provided me with great advice on how to use the essays and my resume to communicate compelling aspects of my candidacy outside of professional experience. By including a more personal element in my essays, I was able to show that I am a more well-rounded candidate. Additionally, Krista helped me identify aspects of my candidacy that should be explained further in the optional essay. This advice was very helpful because it allowed me to control the narrative on aspects of my story that I otherwise would not have known to explain in more detail. After I submitted my applications, Krista helped me prepare for interviews by conducting mock interviews. This preparation helped me to relax and present well when it came time for real MBA interviews. Krista is incredibly reliable and always turns feedback around quickly! This was especially important to me because I was working on the applications on a tight timeline and needed a consultant who was very responsive. In the end, I received admission to a top school, where I am incredibly excited to start this fall. I owe a debt of gratitude to Krista for going above and beyond my expectations and helping me achieve my goal. She was a true pleasure to work with and her guidance and encouragement made a huge difference in navigating the difficult MBA application process. If I could do it all over, as one of the first steps in my preparation for business school, I would have set up a preliminary call with Krista and retained her.
I worked with Krista from mbaMisssion on an hourly basis. She really took the time to get to know me as a person, which gave her a full understanding of my profile. Her feedback led to stronger essays and a more powerful resume. She responded timely and was available for scheduled skype calls. She also had knowledge of the process and good tips for the application and interview. The service is expensive, but it really helps put your best foot forward and is worth the cost is worth to get you into a strong MBA program. Sign up for your free 30 minute consultation before starting any applications to talk to Krista, she can provide guidance and direction.
I was skeptical of using a consulting service at first, but not I can’t even picture what I would have done without them! I was walked through the process step-by-step, had someone to bounce ideas off of and get direction when I needed it, and another set of eyes to go over my work whenever I needed it.
Krista was a pleasure to work with. Knowledgeable, communicative, and able to give just the right push to get things done. She had a satisfying answer to every question I had, and her feedback was always great, whether she was proofreading or brainstorming with me.
I highly recommend using the service. The price is steep, but it’s well worth the money!
I signed up for hourly consulting services with Krista Nannery less than a week before Christmas last year. I was feeling dejected about my MBA prospects, having been waitlisted/denied at the two schools I had applied to in R1, and desperately needed help with my essays for three R2 applications.
From day one Krista was cheery, positive and professional. Her sunny demeanor re-energized me and her enthusiasm for the programs I was applying to reminded me why I started the application process, to begin with. What I liked most about working with Krista was the way she seamlessly transitioned between specific, detail-oriented feedback on my writing (like punctuation and syntax errors) to very broad, holistic feedback (really making me think through why I picked certain examples for my essays and whether there were better examples I could be using).
She was also incredibly quick with turnaround times, especially considering we were working around the Christmas and New Year holidays. She often returned materials to be well ahead of the stated deadlines for mbaMission consulting.
She also made the consulting process very personal by sharing her own reactions and similar experiences to what I wrote about in my essays.
After my applications were submitted, Krista checked back in for news on interview invites and also gave me helpful guidance on making my final choice once admission decisions came in.
At the end of the day, I ended up getting interview invites at all three schools that Krista helped me apply to, and was admitted to two M7 schools with scholarship money at both. It definitely would not have been possible without Krista!
Krista is a fantastic consultant, friend, and mentor. The whole MBA process was intimidating for me. I wasn’t around a lot of MBAs where I grew up professionally, so I wasn’t quite sure how I would fare or even where the whole process was leading me. But with Krista’s help and mentorship, I could see the entire picture-not only in what schools were right for me but also what career options were in line with my values. After our 30-minute free consultation, I knew Krista would be the perfect consultant to help me. Krista was the consummate professional during the application process-always prepared for our meetings, quick to return products (and to gently remind me to get back on track when I fell off task), and insightful in her feedback. By the time I hit submit, I was 100% confident that I had the best application possible. I had complete trust in Krista’s judgment and would recommend her to anyone who wants to chase their MBA dreams.
I had the pleasure of working with Krista after speaking with many other consultants and she was absolutely fantastic. From our very first call, I knew that she was someone that I could trust and be comfortable around.
What I loved about Krista:
– From the start, I could tell that Krista is very experienced and organized, which made the whole chaotic application process much easier to navigate and enjoyable. She knew what had to be done, kept me on track, and turned everything around super fast.
– Krista was really great at helping to ease my stress. Throughout the process, I often approached her with problems that seemed like a huge deal to me, and every time she was able to provide simple and elegant solutions. I knew that I could rely on her anytime I had a question/concern and would be able to receive great advice promptly.
– She is an excellent writer and communicator. Krista has a simple, clear, and beautiful writing style that made my essays much more compelling. I loved that she never tried to take away my voice, but simply took what I wrote and gave smart suggestions to enhance it.
– Overall, Krista is just a wonderful person to work with. She is fun, kind, relatable, supportive, and she was always cheering for me. I was very comfortable talking to her and I genuinely enjoyed all our conversations.
Ultimately, I was admitted to Booth and I don’t know if I could’ve done it without Krista. I highly highly recommend her to any future applicant – you won’t regret it!!
A friend suggested I enlist a consultant to help me with my business school applications, in order to increase my chances of success. When I started doing my research, my initial reaction on finding out about the cost of MBAmission was ‘no way’; it felt too expensive and I was convinced I could write a decent essay or two on my own. How lucky I was that, despite my initial hesitation, I decided to stump up the money and chose Krista.
From the early brainstorming stage I knew I had found the right person. Krista challenged me to be really reflective and dig deep into why I’d made the choices I had, which helped me develop a genuinely introspective approach to my applications and the wider question of ‘why business school’. She then created a map of my experiences, which enabled us to select the best examples and craft detailed essay outlines, in a way that made the essay writing itself feel very enjoyable. I cannot tell you how much time this saved! By the end of my first draft I honestly felt I had something that was nearly ready to submit. However, Krista continued to help me refine my thinking to ensure each example was well rounded and delivered with impact. Her favorite phrase – ‘more specificity’ – helped me continue to work at my application and ensure I was really proud of the streamlined clarity of the final versions.
Throughout our four months working together Krista was incredibly responsive, making me feel like I was her only client. She pushed me choose a stretch school and helped me craft applications that got me an offer to both my target and stretch school. After my wife, she was the second person I told that when I was offered a place. Words cannot do justice to the value of the support she gave me and I would, and do, recommend her to anyone!
I worked with Krista on five applications (all round 1) during the 2018-19 cycle, and was admitted to my top choice program. I started working with her fairly early in the year (March/April), which helped get school selection, visits, and resume writing done well ahead of deadlines. This helped me focus on essays alone in August and September, and finish all my applications on time without any last-minute scrambling.
Krista’s experience with the admissions process and her passion for working with clients truly came across at every stage of the process. She was incredibly responsive through the process, from turning around drafts to answering minor questions about application form details, and she usually was ahead of the promised two-day turnaround as well.
Krista helped me in three key aspects on my essays:
1. All my work experience was at a boutique consulting firm where the work is complex and difficult to explain to a layperson. As a result, my initial drafts contained a lot of detail that was not necessary for the admissions committee. Krista helped me trim this down to the essential points only, leading to a much tighter story and providing additional room to bring out other facets in my essays.
2. She helped my own story and personality come through in my essays – when my drafts lacked specificity, she helped me brainstorm original ideas to pull in, rather than shoehorn me into anything boilerplate. Some of my friends who have worked with other consultants had a bad experience on this front, where they were simply told to say certain things instead of getting support to find the ideas they believed in.
3. Lastly, going into the application process, I was a little concerned about two weak spots in my profile – some past academic issues and being on the lower end of the work experience spectrum. While I knew I would have to address these in my essays, my writing wasn’t effective in discussing any emotions or feelings in those situations. Through several discussions and rounds of editing, Krista really helped take craft portions of my essays to a more compelling story.
After application submission, I prepared for video essays and interviews with Krista as well. Aside from fine tuning the content of my responses, Krista noticed certain certain behaviors/ response patterns that I consistently fell into while answering interview questions. With her advice, I was able to avoid these during application interviews (and also improve my overall interviewing skills for recruiting in business school and beyond).
I’m thrilled to be attending my dream program soon and I’m very grateful to Krista for all her help and support through the process – I’ve already recommended her to some of my friends and would do so unhesitatingly to any other applicants!
Let me begin this by stating that before I decided to work with Krista as my consultant, I held free consultations with a handful of other consultants/companies. I knew the application process would be long and grueling, and so I looked at it as a learning experience and a chance to grow. I really did my research to ensure I’d pick the right consultant: I wanted a consultant who would challenge me to be the best version of myself – thereby putting me in the best position to get accepted into a top business school – and who at the same time I would actually enjoy working with.
I decided to go with Krista because I felt that she would do both. And I was right.
Krista guided me through the long journey – always there to answer difficult questions (or even the most basic ones), motivate me, and provide mental support – and she really challenged me to think hard about my story and to continually improve my work – whether it was my resume, essays or interview answers. I applied to eight schools – the first four with Krista and the last four on my own – and once I worked on those first few schools with Krista, I had a great feel for the entire process and was able to do very well on the last four by myself.
Ok, so what made Krista so amazing?
1. Krista’s advice on school selection was excellent. We slightly altered my school choices based on things that came up throughout the process. In fact, I wasn’t even planning on applying to the school that I’ll be attending this Fall until Krista suggested that I apply; she knew that it was a great option based on my career goals and that I would like the school’s culture. I ended up choosing it over another school that she helped me get into that I had originally considered my top choice. I probably would not have considered the school I chose to attend had Krista not been there to offer her guidance!
2. Krista really knew which aspects of my story should be highlighted so that they would shine in front of the admissions committees. While it’s not always obvious at first, everyone has a story, or something that makes them unique – and Krista knows exactly how to pinpoint it and then come up with a plan for creatively showing this to the adcom.
3. Krista was a pleasure to work with! I knew that I was progressing every time I received her input – whether it was edits to an essay or feedback during a mock interview. But it’s not just about the results – it’s about how you get there. It was Krista’s wonderful presence that made me truly enjoy working on my applications. I would be at work and when I saw her emails come through, I’d stop everything to read her feedback – because I knew it would be enjoyable to read. And I loved chatting on the phone with her – she brought energy and enthusiasm every time we spoke.
Krista was truly invested in my success, something that motivated me to always work harder and come back stronger.
Another thing that I appreciated while working with Krista is that she never told me that I had to do something – she only gave me her advice, and left it to me to decide the best route having been told what the possible outcomes or consequences might be. Krista has worked with tons of applicants and knows the ins and outs of the process, so whatever advice she gave me I knew it was coming from years of experience.
I think the most valuable takeaway from working with Krista, however, is that not only did her expertise and guidance help me to get into top business schools, but it prepared me for business school itself and I’ll carry what I learned from her with me throughout my career. I learned how to craft my story in a convincing way and really understand which of my accomplishments to highlight in what situation, and to present myself the best way possible.
This is a valuable skill that I’ll use on resumes, cover letters, and job interviews for the rest of my career.
If I were to do it all over again, I wouldn’t think twice about who I’d choose to guide me through the process – without a doubt, it’s Krista Nannery.
I was very fortunate to get in touch with Krista Nannery at MBA Mission through a free 30-minute consultation. Immediately, I felt at ease because I felt like she understood where I was coming from – my background, what I wanted to achieve, and where I wanted to go with the MBA program. To be honest, I wasn’t even sure if I wanted to pursue my MBA when I first got in touch with Krista and the entire MBA admissions process seemed so daunting that I thought about waiting another year to apply. After listening to my story, however, Krista helped me formulate a clear picture of my goals and helped me prepare for the application process even though I was starting just two weeks before the R2 deadlines.
Krista became the biggest advocate and cheerleader throughout the process. Having started so late in the game, I worked on some of the essays just days before R2 deadlines and somehow Krista always turned them around within a business day. The feedback she provided was so instrumental in taking my essays to another level – she encouraged me to think creatively about my experiences and to convey them in a manner that delivers the strongest message to the admissions committee. She was very knowledgable on different programs and what each school was looking for, which helped me determine which aspects of my experiences or personality should be emphasized in each application to ensure it gets presented in the best light. Krista is also an amazing writer – she will be able to pinpoint areas to enhance in your essays in subtle but such effective ways, which is so important when writing admission essays with specific word count requirements.
Most importantly, Krista was so supportive and encouraging during the entire process; sometimes I felt like she believed in me more than I believed in myself. She gave me a ton of confidence and helped me stay true to myself during a process that can sometimes be overwhelming to navigate on your own. I really cannot thank her enough for guidance and I would highly recommend Krista to anyone looking to enhance their MBA candidacy. As for results, I was accepted to my top choice program with a significant scholarship and I owe it much to Krista’s help.
Thank you Krista and mbaMission!!!
I knew there were a lot of competitors in the MBA admissions consulting space, so I made sure to do my research. On top of reading multiple external reviews and testimonials, I took advantage of each consultant’s test call to get a gut feel. Out of everyone that I talked with, Krista was really the only person that didn’t act like a salesperson. Instead, she took a full hour to understand my background and my aspirations; it was easy to tell that she was caring and would pay attention to you as a person.
This definitely carried over into the entire process of 1.5 years of working with her, from several months before Round 1 all the way to the end of the waitlist process. Here are the highlights of working with Krista:
1) Thoughtful and probing in edits – She made it clear from the beginning that she was not going to be writing the essay herself, but rather that she would be a guide to help probe out my own thoughts and points. This was to emphasize the originality and uniqueness of my essay. In doing so, Krista was always thoughtful when giving updates and edits by posing various hypothetical questions in how to make a point stronger or why a certain point was necessary. 2) Direct and straightforward – at the same time, however, over 15 deep iterations of an essay, Krista wasn’t afraid to be blunt and give objective feedback when needed. She deleted entire sentences and paragraphs when she felt it wasn’t strong or contributed to my overall message, but was not tyrannical about it – she always explained the reasoning behind her edits. 3) Strong preparation for business school interviews – Krista provided extensive preparation for the interviews, including multiple rounds of mock interviews along with deep feedback. Not only did she help me work on the interpersonal aspect with tone and intonation to guide me with the proper delivery, she also cracked down on the concrete content of the answers to the questions to make sure they were well-structured and concise. 4) Maintained a strong personal relationship even after I got admitted into school – she referred me to MBA internship positions for a large financial services firm that she previously worked with.
I highly recommend Krista to anyone really looking for a personalized consultant with great insights into any industry and school.
I had a wonderful experience working with Krista Nannery on my applications. The business school application process is a stressful and sometimes lonely experience. Knowing that Krista was in my corner was the only part of this process that actually made things easier and less stressful. Krista was able to understand my story in-depth and guide me to craft a cohesive narrative. For example, with essays, she helped me assess which stories both addressed the prompt and best illustrated my skill set and experience – and then she’d help me elevate that story in my own voice. Her objective perspective on my career and story was helpful in ensuring my application resonated to an unfamiliar audience (adcom) succinctly. Beyond her coaching (and therapist-like counseling), she also ensured I stayed on track from a project-management perspective. She’d push me along when I was spinning for too long on an essay draft. There are so many pieces involved in crafting a compelling application and Krista helped me juggle it all. Working with Krista was a terrific investment. I was accepted to 3 of the 4 schools I applied to, with a 50% scholarship to one of them. I advise my b-school interested friends that I wouldn’t have done the application process any other way.
Krista was very helpful during the whole process. I decided to work with her right after my free consultation session as she sounded like a really smart and dedicated person, which was exactly what she was. Krista helped me shape up my essays very well, and particularly she helped me narrow down the topics for them according to each of the schools I applied to. Her cheerful personality made the whole process entertaining instead of stressful and when reading essays from friends who were working without consultants I could definitely see the difference her insights made on my own. It was a great experience working with her and I recommend it highly!
I wanted to attend business school, but I had no idea where to start. I asked my network how they got through the process, and all of them recommended using mbaMission. What should have been an incredibly stressful ordeal turned into a streamlined process that kept me confident in my outlook the entire time. Krista responded to questions in a timely manner and was available to talk at reasonable hours. She helped me narrow my list of schools and produce a compelling story for each application. It really felt like she knew me better than myself after our first sessions together. Krista was a pleasure to work with, and I’ve recommended her to everyone I know applying to school in the coming years.
Krista Nannery is a great admissions consultant and truly provided me the support to get into my dream school! I don’t think I could have put together such a high quality application or would have handled it the way I did without her. I can’t recommend her enough. First, Krista is extremely competent. She’s thorough in her comments on my material, and always gives me such high quality feedback; I’m also so amazed how she always manages to do it within mbamission’s two day turnover timeline (sometimes earlier). She also writes extremely well – she has an amazing way of cutting down your words without letting go of any substantive content (and in fact making your material tighter and cleaer), and has this way of bringing out your personality in your writing. Importantly, Krista is creative – I love how she can magically transform my boring essay outlines into such colourful stories to capture the AdCom’s attention. Second, Krista i s experienced with the MBA Admissions process, and could provide me with such great, wise advice (not to mention emotional support) to handle situations I encountered in the admissions process. She gave me great feedback for my interviews (e.g. how to structure my answers, the tone to maintain in my interviews, the length of my answers etc.) – I definitely wouldn’t have performed as well on my interviews without her feedback. I also encountered distressing situations during the process, including when my interviewer didn’t respond to me and took a while to submit his feedback, but Krista provided me wise advice on how to coolly handle this situation, and even emotional support. Third, Krista is just such a wonderful person to work with, and truly made this painful MBA admissions process more pleasant for me. She’s funny, personable and passionate about her job, and I felt that she genuinely cared about her clients. I found it easy to talk to her on a whole range of issues I was concerned about over the phone, and she would always patiently address them. She was also enjoyable to speak to because of her bubbly personality, and would have interesting stories to share about her own MBA experience and previous jobs. If you’re thinking of engaging an admissions consultant, I would confidently endorse and recommend Krista. I genuinely think she has all the skills and qualities that make a great admissions consultant, plus also great experience to help you navigate the admissions process.
Krista Nannery was assigned to me as my consultant for the “Start-to-Finish” package for 6 schools whose applications I worked on from June – November 2016 for Round 1 of the 2016-2017 admissions cycle. Wow, was I lucky to have Krista, I could not have asked for anything more in the experience. She helped me beyond what I even thought was possible for an admissions consultant. The most important way she helped me is probably one that goes overlooked when judging the value of a consultant. I am a white male with a pretty bland job, and in general I thought there just wasn’t anything that interesting about me. Krista completely changed the way I view myself, and for that I cannot thank her enough. She took the time to really get to know me and learn about all of my accomplishments and desires. She disagreed with my assessment, and over time convinced me that there were interesting and unique aspects of my profile that we could use. When it came to the essays, she had ways of tying together experiences and stories that best conveyed my message. When we would discuss topics for a given essay, she would bring up things that I had completely forgotten about. She would point out patterns in my history and personality that I didn’t even know existed. At times, it seemed that she knew me better than I knew myself. This was a priceless component of our collaboration that I am sure made the difference in my applications. Aside from her magical ability to make a bland applicant shine, Krista was brilliant in all the technical aspects you might expect from a consultant. She is a marvelous essay reviewer and would help me transform my wordy and rambling prose into crisp, clear B-School essays. She also knows the process inside and out. She always had a plan and was one step ahead of me. As I was finishing one phase of the process, she had already mapped out what to do next, and so was constantly pushing me to get the most out of the process. If I ever asked something particularly new, she always had a colleague or contact she could ask for a second opinion, which she would get back to me extremely quickly. And that is the other thing, Krista is FAST and EFFICIENT. I sometimes felt like her only client- she would turn things around much faster than the MBA mission contractual 2-day turnaround policy. At first I was slightly worried when Krista mentioned that she was based on London (I was in NYC), but this actually turned out to be an advantage. While I was sleeping, she was working, so that when I woke up in the morning I had a beautifully edited draft of my latest essay waiting in my inbox. Krista will work really hard for you and get the job done, period. Aside from all this, what really sets Krista apart is her personality and dedication. She has what I would best characterize as a bedside manner. The process can be stressful, but Krista will always make you feel better and get your head back in the game. For me this happened when we did our first mock interview, which I did extremely poorly. Krista handled it very well, and had some great suggestions for me. She made sure we scheduled another round before my first interview. Her advice made all the difference; I came back a different candidate, one totally prepared for my interview. Because of all this, Krista is not just my consultant, but now my friend; I feel very lucky to have met her. It is because of her that I was accepted to Booth and Wharton. I enthusiastically recommend Krista to future MBA applicants.
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