I was on the higher side of experience from the average experience of full-time MBA course and was also rejected from two of the b-schools. It was then that I was searching for guidance and to understand what is going wrong in my application. I found SBC and had my first call with Christine. It was eye opening. She not only guided me in focusing on the right schools but also helped me to come out with my best version. I instantly connected with her like a friend, very comfortable in sharing my fears, my doubts and she was always there to support. We went through multiple versions of my essays, refining and fine tuning them till both of us were satisfied. She made sure I write and re-write all my essays and CV, asked very intriguing and thoughtful questions which helped me to realize that from my own experience there is so much I can contribute and bring to the table. She also arranged a mock interview before my two rounds of interviews at HEC. At the end, it was all worth the effort and hard work when I got admitted to HEC. I was ecstatic and I knew Christine too was waiting with bated breath and she was constantly encouraging me with her positivity. I cannot thank Christine enough for all the inputs, support, guidance and encouragement that she has given. Thank you once again.

Working with Stephanie has been enlightening and seamless. After rejection in the 2020 admissions cycle, I knew I had to reassess my application. A friend recommended working with an admissions consultant and after thorough research, I chose to work with SBC. My first interaction with Stephanie consisted of honest and valuable feedback. I was facing an uphill battle; an untraditional background and blemishes in my undergrad studies. I shared my story and through her guidance, I developed a cohesive narrative and a linear strategy. From there she made school recommendations, resume edits, and numerous essay reviews. Throughout the process I also found myself reaching out to her frequently to touch base or ask minor questions. As the first person in my family to pursue an MBA, I lacked the “insider” info or the support from someone who has been in the trenches. Stephanie served as my go-to, she contextualized everything and provided me with the lens of the adcom. My work with Stephanie transformed my candidacy and restored my confidence in the application process. The pride she takes in her work, attention to detail, and responsiveness are unmatched. With Stephanie’s help, I received interview invitations from every school, with early admission into one and pending decisions from others. Not only is Stephanie’s craft and knowledge exceptional, but her support and kindness make her an ideal consultant. I would fully endorse Stephanie and the SBC group to any prospective MBA candidate!

My journey towards an MBA is long and winding (ca. 3 years), but working with Joey at SBC finally resulted in my acceptance to my first choice program (M7).   As an older international applicant with a non-traditional background, I was nervous about the experience at first. One should not underestimate the amount of work that goes into this process. I worked with Joey at SBC on two occasions - once on an hourly basis, once as part of the “All-in” service. If in doubt, definitely go for the latter.   My first attempt resulted in a ding - lesson learned is that one cannot complete three sets of apps in a few weeks, although Joey’s help was immense every step of the way. Despite the odds, we arrived at a quality final deliverable. Although a major setback, Joey took the time to go through a post-mortem and we devised a new strategy.   I signed up for the “all-in” service, which meant that we could spend a lot more time going over the application materials and strategy. It’s hard work for everyone involved, but in particular, for Joey. He was also immensely helpful in helping me prepare for my Zoom interview. An incredibly useful tool that SBC offers is the “flight test” of the application, which helps to uncover any last-minute mistakes (yes, I had a typo on my resume). A few weeks ago, I received my acceptance letter from my first choice school.   What did I learn from all of this?  1. Get a consultant. Especially get a consultant if your background is non-traditional.  2. Take the time to get to know the person you are working with. Joey was an absolute delight - he knows his stuff, challenges bs where he sees it, and having worked with him over the course of a year, he was the #1 champion for my candidacy. This is important!  3. SBC knows what they are doing. I spent some time looking at different firms but landed on SBC quite early on. They are responsive, they do not take you on as a client if they don’t think you have a chance. No false promises - it’s a thoroughly professional approach throughout.  4. MBA admissions is a difficult game with both incredible lows and highs. With that being said, I am convinced that I could not have done this without the guidance of Joey (my consultant), Esther (our matchmaker), and the rest of the SBC team. I am so grateful for all their help!

I cannot speak highly enough of Erin and the Stacy Blackman team. I applied to two MBA deferred enrollment programs, and I was accepted to both thanks to detailed insight from Erin. I am a candidate with a sub 700 GMAT score, and I sincerely believed my score would hold me back from admission at top schools. Erin helped me perfectly craft my narrative and show my quantitative skillsets in other areas of the application than the test score. Erin helped me hurdle this challenge with great insight into my essays, helping me creatively articulate my interests and skillsets to the admissions teams. Erin is honest, insightful, and always available. I cannot thank her enough and sincerely recommend her as a consultant. I am so excited to be attending my top choice school in a few short years!

I had the opportunity to work with Colette for my MBA application. She was extremely helpful throughout the process. She coached me on my resume format and content and helped me think through the essay questions. She asked direct and thoughtful questions to guide me in telling my story in an efficient and captivating way. She was patient and provided great feedback in a timely manner. I feel very grateful for the opportunity work with Colette as she got me to a point at which I was proud to submit my application. She was an extremely valuable resource and I felt as if she was genuinely committed to my success. I would highly recommend working with Colette and the Stacy Blackman Consulting Team.

Applying for the Weekend MBA at Imperial College London was not as strenuous in comparison to the admissions process for Ivy League B Schools, however I needed an MBA consultant who would be able to assist me in highlighting my story to the ad coms in the best way possible.  After researching a few companies, I came across Stacy Blackman and I made an initial contact with Bill who specialises in Part time MBA consulting. After a brief chat and a profile review, he reassured me that my choice of school with my work experience was a doable project. He also provided me with a choice of working with Mark who is a UK based consultant and had experience of being in ad-coms of the top b schools here. I decided that as a UK student applying to a UK programme it would make sense to work with a consultant here.   I had an initial chat with Mark who resonated Bill's views and advised me that my profile is definitely a good fit for Imperial. As I was only applying to 1 school, he recommended that I chose the Hourly service option and a few hours should be enough for me. . Due to his experience Mark greatly assisted me with the aspects of the application such as career planning questions, resume and personal statement to best highlight my story and my motivations for studying the MBA. His responses and comments were generally very quick and he was also open to additional questions. Mark also carried out mock interviews with me to give a realistic feel of how MBA interviews are which immensely prepared me for my interview at Imperial.  All in all Mark was a great consultant in my application process and Stacey Blackman Consulting has been a pleasure to work with!

I was coming from an untraditional background and was doubtful that I could even get an interview at my top choices.   Joyce helped me frame my experiences and application in a way that truly made me stand out, and showed my value to top MBA programs. She was so caring, yet honest about my weaknesses as an applicant, and helped me either turn them into strengths, or improve on them to create a powerful, unique application.  She was an amazing resource with my resume review, helping me break down a complex job/industry for Admissions Officers. She helped me see how each part of my application would be perceived by an Admissions Officer, which was critical in framing my application, asking for recommendations, and even prepping for interviews.  She was a God sent when it came to my story, showing me how to frame a cohesive story that was concise, yet fully showed every aspect of who I was and who I wanted to be. I came into our first call thinking that my essay was nearly done. She was honest, stating that other applicants may have the same essay. Over the course of our work together, she took a story that wasn’t very unique, and helped me turn it into a powerful one that showed how unique of an applicant I was, and how my experiences shaped me. She cared so much about my story that she would often email me with additional ideas outside of our calls!  She was very attentive to the different schools that I was applying to, and truly helped me create the best application tailored to each of my top choices.  I ended up getting into Wharton, GSB and HBS, and I could not have done it without the help of Joyce!  When it came to making a decision on my schools, she was an AMAZING sounding board and really helped me solidify my choice. JOYCE IS AMAZING!

I was first introduced to SBC from a friend of mine who used SBC's service as well to get into my dream program - Wharton Lauder. She spoke very highly of the company, and after having a few calls with two other companies, I decided to go with SBC. I come from a very typical applicant pool that is nearly impossible to stand out unless there's a stellar GMAT score, which I did not have. When other companies were busy persuading me to lower my goals to mediocre schools, SBC's Sarah Tsai and Yvette Romero were the ONLY people who were honest YET believed in me and my potential.  After the intro call with Sarah, I was quickly paired up with Yvette, who I must say was a match made in heaven. Yvette and I shared somewhat very similar background and that helped us to come up with possibly the best story I could narrate. Yvette was very quickly able to to pin-point my strengths and weaknesses (which is really amazing). Even when I couldn't quite put what I wanted to say in a sentence, she was able to catch the idea into a succinct sentence (I call it Yvette's magical moments). She was also never shy about giving the right feedback and applying that "tough love" to make sure I stay on track and focused. This, I must say, is the quality that you need from your consultant. You NEED someone who's brutally honest and will tell you the truth to help you get there - Yvette was the one for me.  After numerous drafts (probably 7 or 8?) per essay, I was able to submit my applications to two schools and a half(?). While I was dinged from one of the schools I worked on (but it's the most competitive school out there, so I knew it was a long shot), I was invited to interview with both Wharton and Lauder. As I purchased the all-in package, Yvette and SBC's mock TBD helped me prep for my interviews, as well. These were very helpful because thanks to Yvette and SBC's mock TBD, I knew exactly what was expected from my Wharton interviews.  Today, I heard back that I am admitted to both Wharton and Lauder with a bit of scholarships ($). Given the competitiveness of the program (

I reached out to Yvette after a recommendation from a colleague who got admitted to both HBS and GSB. I worked with Yvette on an All-In Package for the same two schools, and had a great experience. From the very first conversation, Yvette helped to apply rigor and structure to my application and career goals, while still keeping my story authentic to who I am. Yvette applied "tough love" well, motivating me to come up with well-reasoned, "no-BS" answers for everything. By the time I submitted my application, I had done significant introspection, which paid off tremendously down the line as I was preparing for interviews. At the same time, Yvette was kind and understanding, always happy to hop on a call to help me calm my nerves, such as when I was unsure as to who should write my recommendations, despite a large time difference (I was based in Asia). Ultimately, I was admitted first round to both HBS and GSB, and thank Yvette tremendously for the help!