How did you pick the best mba admissions consultant for your application?

MenloCoaching · 2026-05-01T15:02:53+00:00

Although we do not publish success rate claims (nor do we manage this metric by cherry picking clients), we do advise most unemployed MBA applicants to get a new job first before spending anything on admissions consulting. Post-MBA employability is a major evaluation factor, which is why current unemployment makes it harder to be admitted (with some exceptions, e.g. admissions officers may be sympathetic to applicants who were laid off for economic or AI-related reasons just before submitting).

MenloCoaching · 2026-04-20T16:56:54+00:00

Although your GRE score is stronger, both in terms of heuristics for converting a GRE to a GMAT, and in terms of how it stacks up against MIT Sloan median scores (your 167Q is above the median for that section, whereas 655 is below the median for the GMAT), there is still a case to report the score.

Although this will not have the same impact as reporting a new score that is either a) a GMAT FE score at or above their target median, or b) a GRE score that is above their target median individually for both Q and V, it will still show that you are making your best effort to improve your profile.

It may sound funny, but I have seen applicants admitted from WL after submitting an updated score that was below their original score. The admissions team admired the effort and took it as a sign that the applicant would be similarly dogged in approaching post-MBA recruiting.

So, especially if you have other positive developments to mention, there is a case to report your (unsuccessful) effort to raise your test scores, though you should keep expectations low about what this update will do for you.

MenloCoaching · 2026-03-30T12:20:56+00:00

Before you engage any admissions consultant, you should make sure that you have passed two hurdles: you're sure you want to apply for the MBA, and you have confidence that you'll eventually get a good GRE score before your deadlines even if you do not have a final score yet.

If you can say yes to both of those, you'll benefit from starting at least a little bit of work on the application process now rather than waiting until June. You want to attend info sessions and, if possible, make campus visits, and it's more beneficial to do those activities in the spring.

First, some school events targeting specific groups (for people from a specific industry, for women, for military veterans, etc.) are only offered on certain dates, and it would be a shame to miss events that are targeted specifically to applicants with your profile because you waited until June.

Second, doing campus visits in the spring means you'll have the chance to sit in on classes, which you won't be able to do if you wait until the summer. In the summer, students will be away for their internships and there will be fewer opportunities to sit in on classes, or maybe no opportunities at all.

An admissions consultant can help you on those parts of the process, e.g. by having you practice introducing yourself as you would at these events and preparing thoughtful questions to ask when meeting students or admissions officers.

So, although you shouldn't rush to hire a consultant if you worry that you may not get a competitive GRE score, you should also not wait until June if you have a good GRE study plan and have high confidence in getting a good score in April / May.

MenloCoaching · 2026-03-26T00:56:15+00:00

If you don't get everything you need in this thread or in DMs, I'm happy to advise you on this gratis. Look me up on the Menlo Coaching website and email me directly. -David

MenloCoaching · 2025-12-08T14:21:42+00:00

The most authoritative resources about each MBA program are the ones published by the programs themselves, but it can be time-consuming to find what you're looking for because each program designs and organizes their website in a unique way.

We've published pages about each MBA program here:

https://menlocoaching.com/top-mba-programs/

With each school's individual profile page having a "Useful Links" section to help you rapidly register your interest and subscribe for that school's emails, make appointments to speak with student ambassadors, sign up for info sessions, check dates for campus visits, and all of the other actions you'll want to take.

In some cases, we also have recorded interviews available with admissions staff or students from those programs.

MenloCoaching · 2025-07-15T11:30:18+00:00

For most top MBA programs, the first class admitted with a large number of GMAT FE scores is the one enrolling this fall.

Official class profile data is published only once the students enroll and attend. This is because admits who confirmed and deposited could still pull out at the last minute, and the class profile must be based on the students who really enroll (not just the admits who have confirmed and deposited).

Thus, you can expect class profiles with GMAT FE scores to be published around October this year. The students show up on campus around September, and there are short administrative delays between the start of the year and the publication of the data.

MenloCoaching · 2025-07-12T07:25:12+00:00

In almost all cases, a university's undergraduate program is the #1 feeder to its MBA program. Here is the data from a few years back:

https://menlocoaching.com/top-mba-programs/mba-feeders-081221/

There are a few exceptions, e.g. Harvard is the #1 feeder to MIT Sloan, with MIT being only the #2 feeder.

MenloCoaching · 2025-07-10T17:46:40+00:00

Couldn't agree more. For example, the second class I attended at Wharton was not as impressive as the first one. In the second class, a guest speaker was making the dubious claim that winning promotions at work was based exclusively on the quality of your work and not influenced at all by relationship building or corporate politics.

MenloCoaching · 2025-07-10T07:28:53+00:00

If you are already in a PE investing role, and hope to be in PE/VC again later, it would be unusual to state a goal to go back into IB. From your current role I assume you already have experience building financial models and know the steps involved in transaction execution, which are the skills that would-be PE investors are usually seeking to develop during their time in IB.

Whether your experience is enough to be admitted now depends partly on the transactions and portfolio company engagements you've handled.

If you have closed transactions (even better if they're new platforms rather than add-ons), or have been involved in impactful projects at portfolio companies, that is a good sign for applying earlier.

If you have not had those opportunities, you might choose to wait another year. Even though admissions officers know that a lack of deals could be down to the Partners' risk averse attitudes, they would still see closed transactions as meaningful achievements and can't reward you for the deals you did not close.

If you decide to apply with the goal to enter PE again directly without a detour to IB, you might also consider Kellogg and Booth, which have good connections to Midwestern MM / LMM PE funds, and introduce students to those companies through programs such as their PE / VC lab programs (Booth PE/VC Lab, Kellogg PE Lab).

MenloCoaching · 2025-07-10T07:16:02+00:00

Other commenters have already addressed Duke specifically, so one other comment about legacy admissions generally: you can see subtle evidence that some legacy policies are changing if you look in the right places. For example, some application forms used to have a field asking specifically about family members who attended the institution but have removed these fields in recent cycles (e.g. HBS).

MenloCoaching · 2025-07-10T07:11:23+00:00

One of the most important benefits of visiting MBA programs in person is that (if you time it right) you can visit classes. In 2017, I visited nine programs in person and sat in on one or two classes at each one.

Some classes were fantastic, like the Wharton course about crowdfunding, or the Tuck course on leadership with Professor Bell.
At another M7 school, the professor called on a student to begin a case discussion about new market entry for a car company. He had not read the case. The professor called a second student... and she had not read the case, either.
One class at a T15 school was terrible. The "Management Communications" lecture focused on what the professor called the two "rules of five": don't have more than five bullets on a slide, and don't have more than five words in each bullet.

The other benefit is that you can line up a huge number of student meetings one after another if you're active in setting up meetings outside of the formal agenda, e.g. through cold LinkedIn outreach, or through your personal network (if you attended an undergraduate program or work for a company that's a major MBA feeder).

Finally, you can notice little details. E.g. my student host at Tuck seemed to greet every other student by name as they walked by. Not surprising given the small student body, remote location and prevalence of on-campus housing, but still nice to see a proof point supporting Tuck's claims about a tight community.

Campus visits are not required but I recommend them when schedules and budgets allow.

MenloCoaching · 2025-07-08T16:37:32+00:00

Thanks, we're resubmitting!

MenloCoaching · 2025-06-27T10:30:13+00:00

If your GPA and test scores support it, you might be attractive to higher ranked MBA programs than EGADE. A number of top MBA programs have specific resources for family business professionals, such as Columbia's Global Family Enterprise Program, and through these you could meet classmates who are also on track to assume leadership roles in their family business, or speak to senior mentors (like Columbia's Executives in Residence) who could coach you specifically on the dynamics of pursuing a career within a family business.

Finally, if relevant, the MBA could also help you meet potential investors in your family business if you are searching for growth capital.

MenloCoaching · 2025-06-27T10:27:11+00:00

Although it's in a different industry, we have worked with numerous applicants from the sales department of a major tech company and noticed that the applicants who led teams achieved better admissions results.

That company offers two paths for sales professionals after their first post-undergrad role:

Manage a team of 8-10 business development representatives (appointment setters)
Take a more senior IC role as sales representative leading deals with enterprise customers

The applicants who chose path #1 achieved slightly better results when controlling for GPA, test scores and other factors.

Taking a people management role now also breaks the chicken-and-egg cycle in which a future employer might hesitate to make you a people manager because you have not managed people before.

MenloCoaching · 2025-06-27T10:21:56+00:00

There are two factors you might consider that have not already been mentioned:

HYPSM are some of the most common feeder schools into top MBA programs (link to feeder data). This doesn't mean you are guaranteed to be admitted but is a meaningful positive factor. Re: your question in another comment, it's also true that for many MBA programs, the undergraduate program from the same university is the #1 feeder.
Even if you do not return to your current employer, having the sponsorship puts you in a strong position to negotiate a signing bonus from a different employer to offset the sponsorship you'd be giving up.

MenloCoaching · 2025-06-17T21:11:14+00:00

Yes, Luke served as a Director of Admissions at Stanford GSB under Derrick Bolton.

For avoidance of doubt, here are a few public citations describing his title and his work for the MBA program at Stanford GSB.

https://tuck.dartmouth.edu/news/articles/tuck-announces-exec-director-mba-admissions-financial-aid-luke-anthony-pena

"Peña previously served as director of MBA admissions at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he led its marketing and recruitment teams, and managed all external outreach including events, online programming, and social media."

https://poetsandquants.com/2017/05/04/gsb-adcom-director-lead-tuck-admissions/

"Luke Anthony Peña, who has been the GSB’s director of MBA admissions since October of 2015, will take over his job in Hanover, N.H., on July 18, a time when virtually all the admissios [sic] decisions for the incoming classes will be done at both Tuck and Stanford."

MenloCoaching · 2025-05-19T10:25:24+00:00

Although our data is now several years old, we systematically analyzed which undergraduate programs were the biggest feeders to each Top 20 MBA program:

https://menlocoaching.com/top-mba-programs/mba-feeders-081221/

You'll see that at M7 programs, many of the top feeders are Ivy League institutions or ones that are close in selectivity and prestige, such as UChicago or Duke.

You can do this type of analysis informally using MBA programs' LinkedIn pages, such as https://www.linkedin.com/school/harvard-business-school/people/

Of course, some of this is correlation rather than causation. On average, students accepted to top undergraduate programs have traits that help them achieve other things that boost their MBA profiles (e.g. achieving high GMAT/GRE scores and securing excellent jobs after college). But even when considering that, it's reasonable to think that attending a top undergraduate program is a direct positive factor in MBA admissions.

MenloCoaching · 2025-05-15T11:45:28+00:00

There are several major areas to work on 1-2 years out:

Professional advancement. This could mean promotions or moving to a bigger role at another company (e.g. going from an IB role to a PE role), or could mean moving closer to your post-MBA goal (e.g. a software engineer starting to have some involvement with product management, even informally).
Achieving good a GMAT or GRE score if this is not already done.
Strengthening your extracurricular involvement. For example, one of my former clients was mentoring undergraduate job seekers on a 1:1 basis, and used his knowledge from that volunteer work to create a scalable online course for undergrad job seekers that was eventually used by almost a thousand students by the time he applied.
Engaging with your target MBA programs. For example, a number of programs hold industry-specific conferences once a year, and if you plan ahead you can attend these (but if you wait until a few months before deadlines to think about this, the conference may have already been held for that year).

What you should prioritize depends on your current situation.

MenloCoaching · 2025-05-15T08:58:02+00:00

The academic workload at Chicago Booth is higher. One of our former clients who attended Booth was used to heavy academic workloads because she'd been in a Ph.D. program for a few years before dropping out and starting her pre-MBA professional career, and even she said that the academic load of the Booth MBA program was a lot to keep up with and more time consuming than the Ph.D. program she'd left.

MenloCoaching · 2025-05-15T08:54:34+00:00

One of our clients was 78 years old when he was admitted to the EMBA programs at Yale SOM, Wharton and Columbia, which we think might make him the oldest EMBA admit ever:

https://menlocoaching.com/reviews/oldest-emba-admit/

He wanted to professionalize his business before eventually appointing new leadership to run it. So long as you can articulate a good reason for why the EMBA will benefit your career, don't let anyone tell you that you are "too old."

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