28,603Leland Reviews

I had an amazing experience working with Pamela. From our first brainstorming session, I knew she was the right choice. I felt very comfortable talking to her about what I wanted to highlight on my application, and I was very lucky to leverage on her experience as an MBA consultant to improve my essays. Her insights on how to approach the applications, and how to get the most out of my life story helped me get into NYU Stern. I applied to five MBA programs, and had just enough time to do it. Her work structure helped me overcome the time constraint, and prepare excellent applications. She was always available, and very flexible when time was of the essence. Whenever I was stuck on something, I could always reach out to her, and she would provide unique recommendations that helped me complete the process. Her guidance throughout the application process gave me the confidence I needed to succeed in my goal. I am very grateful that my brother (who also got into a top MBA program) recommended her.

Pamela was an invaluable asset throughout my application process, resulting in my acceptance at my first choice business school (Stanford GSB). Simply put, I could not have done this without her. Below I will provide some details on Pamela’s approach, and why I recommend her so strongly to my friends and family (and to you): (1) Unique pricing and approach drove real mentorship throughout the process: I worked with Pamela on my Round 2 applications for the school year beginning in the fall of 2020. We had our first session at the end of November with apps due the first week of January, so a very tight window of time to brainstorm my story, write and perfect my application. Pamela’s pricing and philosophy around the MBA process is unique. She worked with me on only one school (due to financial constraints on my end), and rather than price by the hour, she charges a blanket fee for each school. This model reflects Pamela’s broader approach, which is truly right there with you as a partner throughout the process. For example, when, I struggled with one of my essays, rather than limit or hold back her feedback based on what might fit into an hour, a single email, etc., Pamela worked with me through countless iterations, as committed to my success as I was. She fundamentally believed in my candidacy and that made a huge difference. As a result, working with her was not transactional (as many consultant relationships are), but felt more like genuine mentorship throughout this process to arrive at the best articulation of myself. (2) Method of advising protected the elevated the authenticity of my application: Not once, ever, did Pamela try to fit my story into a box or template, which is something I was afraid of when opting to work with a consultant. Instead, as we brainstormed, Pamela called attention to accomplishments and perspectives big and small that we unique to me. After an initial brainstorming session, where I was all over the map, she called out the elements of my story where she saw my authenticity shine through. As I wrote, Pamela only provided small copy edits (typos, grammar errors) and substantive edits (e.g. “this paragraph is not working”). She never re-wrote or overrode my personal writing style. This ensured that the tone of my applications was 100% authentic. When my family and friends read my final application prior to submitting for another set of eyes and edits, those who knew me best commented that the applications ‘sounded exactly like me, and authentically summarized who I am.’ I could not have reached that level of authenticity without Pamela’s guidance and distinct approach. (3) Introduced invaluable, and incredibly sophisticated and insightful expertise as every turn: I cannot emphasize this last point enough. From determining what I wanted to say to perfect the writing, Pamela’s insights were rich and incredibly sophisticated. She took the time to really get to know me — not just through formed templates (as most consultants do), but through deep conversations about how I viewed my accomplishments and goals. She also truly put herself in the shoes of the admissions teams, and of GSB specifically, to shed light on how every part of my application came across. This was particularly evident when iterating on two aspects of my application that were not working well — the climax paragraph in my “what matters most to you and why” essay and the structure of my “why Stanford” essay — which had the right pieces but not necessarily in the right tone. Pamela gave me honest feedback that aspects of the application were not working in their current form and shared a really nuanced view on why. Her suggestions for taking another stab were incredibly productive as I rethought my approach. The areas that I ‘reworked’ were things I think other consultants would have let slip through as “good enough”, without the rich insight that Pamela provided on how those passages interacted with the rest of my application. Both of these areas of my application ended up being among the pieces that I was most proud of.

I decided to hire a consultant because I knew I had strong leadership and work experience but was not confident in my ability to translate it onto paper. I only had about 6 weeks to complete my applications, so I needed someone who could quickly absorb my story and efficiently help me translate it on paper. I decided to hire Pamela because I felt that she really listened to what story I wanted to tell but was also honest about how best to tell that story. I am VERY happy I hired her because I was accepted to 5/5 schools (Michigan, Duke, Darden, Tuck, and Georgetown) with scholarship money at two schools. Working with Pamela was a seamless process. We had weekly calls where we would discuss the topic of an essay. I would then write a first draft, which seemed to always miss the mark. Pamela would send back the essay with thoughtful and detailed comments. I appreciated that she used what she knew about me to push the essay to be better. For example, she would say “ I like this idea, but I think story X is actually stronger for this question.” Pamela was efficient, knowledgeable, and personable. She was flexible and clearly put a lot of care into her work. As we were getting down to the wire around New Years, she would send me back essays in a matter of hours just to make sure that we both felt comfortable with the result. What I appreciate most about her is that the essays I submitted sounded like the best version of me. She helped me to craft my voice so that I really felt like the schools got a clear representation of me as a person as well as my professional goals. She would then take her knowledge of the school to ensure that I was highlighting different parts of my experience for the programs it where it would matter most. I would recommend Pamela to anyone applying to school!

Like many others who frequent Poets & Quants, I almost went with a consultant from the top 10 list they publish every year. It was actually through luck that one of those consultants referred me to Pam, as they saw us as a better fit. Unlike most candidates, I was already quite far along in my application process. My initial intention on hiring a consultant was to have a second set of eyes on my essays and someone to tweak my resume. A few sessions into working together, I discovered she would bring immense value that I didn’t even know I needed. She diligently gave me feedback on essays, helped me brainstorm and craft my story on certain pieces that needed to be scrapped last minute and counseled me through school selection. She’s down-to-earth and amicable to work with, but will tell you the blatant truth when you need to hear it so expectations are set. I appreciate her efforts in meeting turnaround times and for giving me a thumbs up ONLY when she believed my work was at its best. During an unfortunate testing crisis, she supported me emotionally and talked me through my options. At the end, I was accepted to Duke with a $60,000 merit scholarship (which I had not expected but thanks to her was made possible). If you are looking for a consultant to guide you, I cannot recommend her enough. She only accepts a handful of candidates every year so I would reach out to her as soon as you feel comfortable starting your application process. Through this pandemic crisis, Pam has supported me and provided regular check-ins as both a friend and an advisor. She helped me through the waitlist process for one of my schools, giving me helpful feedback on updates I wanted to send AdCom. When I approached her asking to retry one of the M7 schools I was previously rejected to, she was supportive and transparent. Instead of jumping the gun and agreeing like most consultants would, she carefully reassessed my new profile (with added accomplishments I had achieved since the last round) before giving me honest feedback on my chances of acceptance. Together we decided to move forward in pursuing the opportunity. Like always, she was consistently responsive and gave me invaluable critique on my essays and resume updates. I was working with a tight timeline knowing that my full tuition deposit was due at another school soon, but Pam guided me along the way and told me to reach out to AdCom whenever necessary. Long story short, I received an interview (of which she prepped me for), she followed up to ask how the interview went (as a good advisor would) and a day later I was accepted to Columbia, the school of my dreams. If you didn’t read anything else above, read this: Advisors like Pam are rare and hard to come by. I hope you’ll be lucky enough to work with her!

It has been my life goal to go back to business school but this dream has always been pushed aside due to other competing priorities in my life. Finally, after 10+ years of work experience across the globe, i knew that the time was right for me to get into the EMBA programs in the top business schools. While preparing for an exam and getting a good score was something that I always excelled in, I knew that the second half of the process – Essay writing, Choosing the right school and most importantly knowing how to get through this was definitely alien to me. Pamela was a recommendation through a friend, who herself had worked with her as an admissions consultant. The first time I spoke to Pamela, she was patient and spent her time trying to understand my profile. There are many reasons why I think she is amazing at what she does but for me personally, I felt immediately comforted and knew right away that she was someone who will be my support system and ally to get me into Business School. That’s why I chose her. 1) Focus on the story and not the content : Very early in the process, she asked me to forget the essays, interviews and spent countless hours trying to make my story and target goals clear. This was invaluable and the right approach as once we finalized on that, all the other components of the application process were easy. 2) Honesty and transparency : Pamela is focussed on sticking by her principles of being honest and is a perfectionist. She is clear that if my work didn’t sound good, she would be upfront to me. Looking back, I’m thankful for her and this inherently made me believe her and trust her more. 3) Experience and well connected : Being an AIGAC consultant, she is part of the industry and makes it a point to attend conferences and keep herself abreast about any changes. Even though my contract with her was focussed on just one school, she did educate me of the other schools which were achievable and encouraged me to try those schools as well. 4) Hard worker who goes above and beyond : I had less than two months to complete my application. Being a full time employee, i had limited time availability to connect. She tried her best to be flexible to make sure that we could connect weekly. There were numerous times when she stretched at her end to make sure that my deadlines were met. Needless to say, I can vouch for her as an admission consultant and I’m certain that she will be an invaluable asset for you.

Pamela was an invaluable resource during my application process. Her honest feedback and assessment with my essays and applications undoubtedly enabled me to put my best foot forward. Thanks to Pamela's help and review I was able to get into my top school! I am extremely glad I decided to work with her, and would absolutely recommend Pamela to anyone looking to apply to a graduate business degree program.

I was a little lost (and late) starting my applications, but Pamela really helped me focus my application on my strengths. Pamela’s no-nonsense approach is just what I needed. She let me know exactly where I needed to improve and what steps I needed to take- including re-taking the GRE. Pamela was also incredibly helpful navigating the waitlist and knew the best way to succeed. I would not have been accepted at Tuck without her help! Highly recommend.

Coming from a more nontraditional background, I was skeptical of admissions consultants and whether they’d be able to help me showcase my experiences and articulate my unique social impact career vision. I thought I’d be lucky to get into a school or two. Needless to say, Pamela was the perfect person to work with during this crazy competitive admissions cycle — I ended up getting into multiple top 15 schools with massive scholarships!! After deliberating between my top choices – Berkeley Haas and Yale SOM – I plan to attend Yale SOM in the fall. You should partner with Pamela for your MBA apps because she’s: 1) A GREAT listener: Obviously this is fantastic for when you’re developing a narrative, but Pamela pays attention to the smallest of details in your profile and helps you tie them into your essays to stand out. She encouraged me to incorporate unique parts of my background I had dismissed (e.g. becoming a dancer in college). On my admit calls, schools specifically noted that they appreciated that I chose to write about these things in my essays. 2) Highly efficient and thorough: Pamela provides quick turnarounds but does NOT skimp on quality. Whether it’s reviewing your first draft or your sixth draft, she provides invaluable feedback and is truly invested in taking your work to the next level. 3) Genuinely direct: Pamela wants you to shine. This means she will not hesitate to tell you if something is weaker and needs work — which I love! Let’s be real, none of us have time to beat around the bush when we’re working on tons of essay drafts. You need someone to give you clarity. 4) A true supporter: Pamela 100% believes in your candidacy and is invested in you. She has gone above and beyond for me throughout the process and gave me the confidence to apply for schools that I thought were reaches. Right now, as I deliberate between offers, she’s giving me great advice and guidance, even though her work is technically done. When I reflect on the admissions process, I know that the months I dedicated to narrative development would not have gone as smoothly without involving Pamela. She encouraged me to be myself and allowed me to highlight and sharpen unique aspects of my candidacy. Ultimately, that’s what put me over the top in this extremely competitive admissions cycle. 11/10, would highly recommend 🙂

When I started working with Pamela, I had no idea what I wanted to do with an MBA and she was instrumental in getting me focused on specific target areas that made sense for me. I got into my top choice - NYU - and I would not have been able to do that without Pamela's expertise and extreme attention to detail.

Let me begin by saying that when I kicked off my MBA applications journey, I was double-minded on whether I needed a consultant. I got referred to Pamela through a friend and decided to work with her. Fast forward 4 months later and an acceptance letter from my top pick (Columbia Business School), I can confidently say that this would not have been possible without Pamela’s help and support. The best way to describe her style is genuine. Throughout the application process, she provided incredibly candid feedback on everything from my content to communication style. When she says something is “not good”, it’s because she has her clients’ best interests in mind — and I truly appreciated that. I also very much appreciated that she was always open to getting on the phone with me if I needed further clarification on comments or wanted to brainstorm some ideas. She is super-efficient and provides quick turnarounds. All in all, now that I am at the end of the tunnel, I can say with the benefit of hindsight that I understand the value an MBA consultant can provide. That being said, I am sure that “value” will only be unlocked if you pick the right consultant, and I am very happy that I did exactly that.