I am so grateful for Jennifer's support throughout the MBA application process. Her guidance helped me get admitted to HBS and several other Top 10 schools with significant scholarship money.   In September 2022, I connected with a few consultants from other firms, looking for guidance on how to craft my application in time for R2 deadlines. I felt incredibly overwhelmed and stressed out when speaking with consultants from other firms. At the time, I was working diligently to boost my GMAT score and really needed someone to support me and hold me accountable on my applications.  When I met with Jennifer for a consultation, I could immediately tell I was in good hands. I worked on 3 schools with Jennifer and always felt that I could count on her honest, candid feedback. She is incredibly encouraging, knowledgeable, and effective in helping each client reach their goals. Jennifer pushes candidates to dig deep to reflect on what inspires/motivates them, and she provides exceptional support in clarifying your personal mission in a way that highlights your unique attributes and authentic voice. She is incredibly professional and responsive (I always got a response in under 48 hours!), and a wealth of knowledge on what adcoms are looking for across MBA programs.   I found Jennifer's advice to be incredibly candid, encouraging, and growth-oriented. She helped me build confidence in my story throughout the application/interview process. Her deep understanding of the HBS process in particular helped me with the interview and helped me to be VERY well-prepared for all the types of questions that they can ask.   For anyone who feels unmoored by daunting MBA application process, working with Stratus will provide the structure and support you need. I am so excited to be starting at HBS in the fall -- many thanks to Jennifer! 10/10 would recommend investing in yourself and working with Jennifer.

Do yourself a favor and work with Melisa! As a nontraditional applicant I had many fears about the admission process. I chatted with a few other consultants but within the first 10 minutes of my intro call with Melisa it was clear that she could help me achieve my goals. With Melisa’s support I was able to receive full-rides at 4 of my top programs!  From the very first day Melisa took the time to truly understand my story, help craft my narrative, identify my strengths and put together the best possible applications, all while encouraging me to be my most authentic self throughout the process - she even provided guidance on identifying the best target schools when I was indecisive. Not only did she provide guidance but she was always one email away. I knew I could reach out to her with anything and she’d provide me with a thoughtful response in a timely manner.   Melisa went above and beyond in helping me edit my essays and preparing for my interviews. When everything seemed to pile on in the last few days leading up to submitting apps Melisa was so incredibly supportive and flexible with her schedule. I was lucky enough to have received interviews at all of the programs I applied to and even though I had not purchased packages for all of the schools Melisa went out of her way to ensure I was prepared for each of them. She was extremely generous with her time and proved to be genuinely invested in my success.   I know for a fact that I would not be in the position that I am in right now without Melisa’s support. I am beyond thankful to have worked with someone as genuine, dedicated, and knowledgable as her! If you are looking for a consultant who will not only provide results, but also encourage and motivate you throughout the process, you have to work with Melisa!!

Melisa was beyond amazing to work with, and I’m confident that my application was the best it could be after working together! I went back and forth on deciding to hire an admissions consultant but ultimately decided it was worth the upfront investment, and it more than paid off since I’ll be going to Booth with a $100K scholarship!  From the beginning, I felt Melisa genuinely cared and had my best interests in mind. We worked together for over eight months and had weekly video calls in the thick of applications! She took the time to get to know me and really learn my story, which is necessary to create strong and authentic applications. She went above and beyond in giving me her time and expert advice. Most importantly, I really enjoyed working with her and she made the daunting application process feel manageable. Melisa is the best guide, confidant, and cheerleader!

Last year (2021), I took the GMAT and scored a 730. I did not want to take any chances with my MBA applications and wanted to work with the absolute best. I must have talked to at least 35 consultants across the globe. In our first conversation from the get-go, Donna blew me away. She was the first consultant who had gone over my resume and other details that I had shared with her before the call. She told me the strengths of my application and how she can help guide me in telling my story. Our call was scheduled for 30 mins. But it lasted almost 60mins. At the end of it, I knew she was the best consultant I had talked to. So when I asked her for the charges, I was slightly hesitant because I had not budgeted that much money for the applications. I asked Donna if I should buy her hourly services. She left the decision to me, but told me that if she puts in the hours, hourly services will cost me more than the comprehensive package. I slept over this for a couple of days but then decided that I needed to be in the right hands. And so I signed up for her comprehensive package.  I cannot thank Donna enough to have helped me find my voice to write the most personalized story that I could ever tell. She and I spent the first month only on me sharing my story with her and brainstorming the exact reason why I even wanted to do an MBA. Then once we had my story and reasons for MBA ready, she got it all reviewed by Susan Cera. They both guided me to the main highlights of my achievements and my goals post MBA and helped me articulate it as well as I could. When it was time to work on my resume and my essays, Donna did not cut ANY corners at all. She believes in "tough love" because she wants the best for her clients. During the entire essay drafting phase, we had numerous calls and she must have put countless hours in reviewing each draft that I was writing. And she was giving me detailed feedback about each draft. Only when she was satisfied, she would send the essays to the school reviewers of that specific school in their team at Stratus. And then they would give more detailed feedback on how to improve the application further. Never ever did she look at the clock and tell me that she has spent way many hours on my application that she would have liked. There were so many times when I needed to get on call with her on very short notice and before I would ask her, she would set up a mutually convenient time. Sometimes within 15 mins of our email conversation. She even helped proof-read the entire application with me. She will never write the essays or the application for you. Trust me, she will teach you how to craft your story. After all my applications were submitted (6 of them), she took my mock interviews and provided me with live feedback and also a recording of the entire interview for me to watch later and make specific notes in areas of improvement. Then there were days when I used to feel low and not confident if I will make it into any of my dream programs. And she would drop me a note or sometimes get on video call to cheer me up and motivate me and ask me to stay positive. She does not believe in forecasting how many and what all admits one will get. She only believes in crafting the best application and putting the best foot forward. I can confidently say that she must have put 100+ hours on my 6 applications.  While I am still waiting on one decision, I have been accepted at an M7 program! None of this would ever have been possible without the help from Donna, Susan, and the rest of the staff at Stratus. I cannot be more thankful to each one of them. At this point, I am confident in saying that I was truly blessed to have been referred to by GMATNinja and that the money that they charge is way less than what Donna (and the team) truly deserve. The fact that she helped me get into a dream school and has been there for me every time I needed it, is something that I cannot be thankful enough for. She is my guiding light. My angel. I am writing this review so that it could help motivate others to join her and get the best in their applications for themselves. She is the best in the business and I wish her all the luck and love and more than she expects. I wish I could give her 10 stars. :)

The application process seems so overwhelming at first, but Jennifer broke it down into a simple process. She took the time to get to know me, my past, and my aspirations. She was incredibly prompt on any and all correspondence. I cannot express how good it feels to have a professional like her in your corner. With her help, I was able to get into my top school (something I did not think was probable). I highly recommend Jennifer and the entire Stratus team. Please don't hesitate to reach out to her. On top of being a talented professional, she is an incredibly kind person.

Jennifer and I were connected because of our similar career backgrounds and I could not be happier with the help I received from her. from the very beginning she took the time to understand who I was not try to build me into the mold of a traditional MBA student. Stratus's process of helping to discover who you are and your goals helped set the foundation that allowed me to be successful throughout my MBA journey from essays to interviews. More than that, this self-discovery has helped me articulate what I want out of my career in the future and will allow me to find success long after the MBA application journey.   Without Jennifer's help and guidance I can honestly say I would not have been as successful at this process. I walked away with 3/4 acceptances all with sizeable scholarships. I cannot recommend stratus or Jenifer enough!

Jennifer and I were connected because of our similar career backgrounds in human capital consulting. Immidiatly after speaking with her I felt like I could tackle this whole process. For the first time when speaking to an admissions consultant I felt that the actually understood my goals and were not just trying to fit me into a box for admissions. Jennifer was able to help me turn my somewhat nuanced story into one that I could articulate and drive towards. Her help in shaping my story goes beyond just getting into an MBA program but has given me a direction to drive my goals to well into my career. I am forever thankful to stratus for this and also the fact that with them I was accepted into all of my top 20 schools with scholarships.

I was a little overwhelmed by the MBA application process, so I was looking for someone who would help make the process less stressful and more manageable.  Jennifer helped keep me on track and maintain a clear head throughout the process while encouraging me to present myself in the best light. I felt comfortable sharing personal anecdotes when brainstorming essay topics and loved her ability to cut down on words to keep my writing concise (and within the word count).   I spoke to some other consultants at other firms who were more aggressive in their approach, wanting me to re-take the GMAT again or start a non-profit. I really did not want that and instead wanted someone who would be more encouraging and help me feel confident in telling my story.   I started out with their fundamentals and strategy package and then upgraded to the comprehensive package. I really appreciated that Jennifer talked through the options with me and wasn't trying to upsell me. 

I would highly recommend working with Melisa and Stratus. Melisa helped me get into four of my top-choice schools, with substantial fellowships at three of them. She supported me from the beginning of my application process to the end. Melisa was always very responsive, and was available to answer any questions I had about schools and applications, no matter how trivial they seemed. She helped me shape my story and goals so well that I had a clear idea of how to approach each essay question. Her detailed advice and feedback on my resume and essays was instrumental in my admissions.   Melisa also helped me prep for interviews. I really benefited from Melisa’s experience in this area, and she helped me present my story in a way that was well-defined, but still genuine. I was admitted to every school I interviewed with, which I could not have done without Melisa’s help.   Something I really liked about Melisa was her positivity throughout the process, as it can be daunting at times. I had a non-traditional professional background, and she helped me present it in the best possible way. Her encouragement, positivity, and support is what set her (and Stratus) apart from other MBA admissions consultants I’d considered, and I’m so glad I was able to work with her. Highly recommend!

Soterios is an expert consultant. He provided hands-on guidance and feedback throughout every step of process and got me into HBS. While working with Soterios, I always felt supported and that he was 100% dedicated to getting me into my dream school.   Key Strengths:  Crafting My Story - Provided a framework for identifying my top selling points as an applicant and advised on how to build those into a compelling story (that helped me overcome weaker parts of my application).   Maximizing My Essays - Offered detailed, iterative feedback on my essays to maximize every sentence.   School-Specific Tailoring - Leveraged his expertise and Status’s community to recommend alterations to essays that fit what each Admissions Office is looking for.   Rigorous Interview Preparation - Soterios prepared me for the stress of the interview process by pressure testing me in mock interview sessions. Without this I would not have succeeded in the real thing.

Meeting Melisa via Stratus to help me with my admissions process to a top part time MBA program was hands down one of the most memorable experiences. Having worked with Melisa for over 6 months on my application, simply saying I found one of the best admissions counselor is an understatement. Melisa took genuine interest in not my application - making the entire process a self exploratory process about oneself. She places emphasis on the initial process which eventually makes the other parts of the application much easier to put together.   I was focussed on applying to only a single program MBA program. Coming from a technology background, I was not sure how I would convert my deep technical experience understandable to an admissions reviewer. Melisa was super insightful, taking interest into understanding my background and making me answer my own question about how my experiences might be translated to something more understandable by everyone.   Melisa was super responsive with helping me with reviews on my essays and my resume and would usually get back to me within a day or two and not only communicated with my via emails but was available to chat via phone at a time suitable to both of us. Melisa went above and beyond in getting my essays to the best version of themselves even if it meant 4-5 extra edits. Melisa spent so much time and energy into my application, make me feel confident at every step in the process and really brings out the best version of myself throughout not only the essays and the resume but the interviews as well.  Having managed to get into a top EWMBA program, I attribute an equal portion of this stepping stone to success to Melisa. I will miss is working with Melisa. I am very blessed to have gotten the opportunity to work with Melisa and the Stratus team. Melisa was not only super helpful in helping me with admissions but her wealth of knowledge and experience having gone to a top MBA school herself helped me with providing for a mentor who ensured that I made the right choices even after admissions. I highly recommend Melisa to anyone looking for an awesome person to work with, a super friendly, genuinely caring and super informative admissions counsellor.

Melisa was a breath of fresh air. I interviewed a few different consultants and consulting agencies before deciding on Stratus. Melisa was the deciding factor. Other consultants at other firms told me to change who I was inherently as an applicant in order to better my odds of getting in. Melisa on the other hand, saw who I was not only as an applicant but as a person. She highlighted the strengths of my application rather than the weaknesses. By doing so, I was able to craft an application that was perfectly authentic and true to myself. Every conversation we had left me feeling motivated, confident, and excited for the next steps. I really appreciated her guidance especially because I had some difficult aspects in my application (lower quant score and I am an owner of a family business). I never felt overwhelmed during the MBA process with Melisa as my guide. We had weekly phone calls throughout the entire process, start to finish. She assisted me with overcoming my test anxiety, writing out my MBA goals, thinking about my long term plans, crafting/editing my essays, supplementing my resume, and preparing for my interviews. The entire team at Stratus was friendly, incredibly responsive, and showed they cared for me. I was not just a number to add to their school “ding” data, I was a person they were rooting for to succeed as a woman in business. With the help of Melisa, I received an interview at all 5 schools that I applied to, was accepted to 4 schools and waitlisted at 1. I received scholarship money from all 4 business school programs. I am happy to report that this fall, I will be enrolling in a top ten business school with a $100,000 scholarship. Many thanks to Melisa and the Stratus Team. I already miss our weekly calls! Melisa is the best!

I worked with Melisa on an hourly basis and she was worth every dollar. I chose her because she was so genuine and encouraging during our initial consultation. Since I was on a budget, she worked with me efficiently and was quick to respond to any questions I sent her way. I was a bit lost in the application process but she worked with me every step of the way and helped guide me to ensure I submit quality essays. No need to interview other consultants...she's all you need and more.

I interviewed 4 different consultants from 4 different companies, and Melisa was the obvious choice for my MBA journey. I worked with Melisa via an hourly package, and she was more than generous with her time, recommendations, and resourcefulness. I chose Melisa because she was honest and thoughtful about the maturity of my story and profile, and helped focus my energy where it counted the most. She honored my voice while ensuring all my bases are covered - I would highly recommend Melisa again and again.

I cannot recommend Melisa enough. By the end of the 2020 R1 application cycle, I had not only gotten a full tuition scholarship to one of my top choices, I had learned a lot about myself and had become more confident in the direction of my career. From our very first call, I sensed an authenticity to Melisa that I hadn't sensed in other consultations. I started the application process with very little idea of why I wanted an MBA other than to pivot out of my current career or what the application process looked like. Stratus' process is tried and true. Throughout the first few weeks working together, we dug into experiences, events, and feelings that had mattered to me throughout my life, and, in doing so, I figured out what type of impact I wanted to have in my career. As a very private person, I was initially nervous to share some experiences because, while it was important to me, I didn't think anyone else would care. Melisa made me feel comfortable talking about myself and pushed me to think past the experience to examine why it was important to me. I felt like I was talking to someone I had known for much longer than just a few weeks. Initially, I told Melisa that I wanted to pursue consulting, and eventually, throughout the introspection process, I realized, thanks to Melisa, that another path was more aligned with my career aspirations.   Once we figured out my 'why' and 'how', Melisa helped me to nail down my story. I was worried I'd struggle to stand out as a male, finance applicant, but she helped me to leverage my personal experiences into a cohesive, unique story that pulled together my background, current career, need for an MBA, and future career aspirations. It was truly my story and I was proud of what we put together. Throughout the outlines and essay drafts, Melisa was always always always available to talk or ask questions. Every time I had an outline/essay returned, I felt like Melisa had really looked at it from an adcom perspective and provided thorough and thoughtful feedback that helped me to put my best self on paper.   After receiving interview invites, Melisa took me through a few mock interviews and provided some specific tips that really helped me to verbally communicate my story and experiences in a succinct, impactful manner. Come interview day, I felt prepared and confident in explaining the relevance of my experiences and story to an MBA and future career.   Melisa was a total pro all throughout the process. All edits and reviews were returned promptly, and in most cases early. She worked around my tricky schedule, and even made time on the weekend to help me brainstorm after we decided to scrap and restart one essay. Professional through and through.   More than anything, it really felt like Melisa was in my corner, and I am very grateful for that and all the work that she did. I would not have had the success that I did in the application process without her. She is the best and I highly recommend working with her!

From our initial call, Melisa made it clear the process was more than just helping me gain admission to my programs of choice. Instead, we spent a significant amount of time identifying my core values and how these shaped my long term goals. This in turn helped to lay the foundation for why I was looking to pursue my MBA in the first place.   In 2020 the application process was constantly evolving, but Melisa was my sounding board throughout the uncertainty. She was always very timely in her feedback and available by phone or email whenever I needed. Even small things like sending me school events or LinkedIn profiles that matched my career interests demonstrate how Melisa really goes above and beyond. Additionally, while you work with one consultant, you benefit from the collective knowledge of the Stratus team which is tremendously helpful as well.   As I write this I am deciding between two of my top choice programs with a fellowship offer. While the decision to work with a consultant is significant investment of time and money, I believe it’s well worth it as you come out of the process with a clear understanding of yourself and a roadmap for how to achieve your long term ambitions.

Jennifer was an incredible person to work with, super experienced and punctual. Firstly, I went into this process as a nervous, not-very-confident non-traditional applicant. From the get-go, Jennifer provided me with so much confidence by helping me highlight my greatest strengths and selling points and hence laying a really strong foundation for my story while making sure I kept my own unique voice. Second, she's an amazing editor; she really helped me make my essays more succinct and easy-flowing. Ultimately, all of this helped me get into three top schools, including a global top-5!

Jennifer helped me get into my dream school and made the application process as stress-free as possible! Jennifer took the time to get to know me, my background, and what I was hoping to gain from an MBA, and she helped me narrow in on the schools that would be the best fit for me and highlight my strengths through my application. I really appreciated how she provided guidance and suggestions that helped me take my essays and applications to the next level but never tried to change my writing style or the essence of what I wanted to portray. She was so supportive throughout the process, provided an achievable timeline, and was a calming presence as I submitted my applications and prepared for interviews. She has a thorough understanding of schools and the application process, and she provided valuable insights that I never would have known without her. She made the application process enjoyable, and she even helped me learn more about myself that I will carry with me beyond business school. She was always quick to respond and accommodated my schedule for calls and prep. I am so thankful to Jennifer for all of her amazing guidance and would highly recommend working with her!

I had an accelerated admissions process because I decided to Apply Round 4 during COVID. I was accepted at both Kellogg and Columbia because she was editing my essays every night and we were able to turn the whole application around in 2 weeks. Couldn't recommend her more.

My experience with stratus has been nothing short of amazing. I applied to schools last application cycle and did not feel like the firm I hired to help make my application personalized enough - I felt like i was treated like a number. Obviously, I was not accepted in the last cycle which is why I turned somewhere else. After a few consultations with Susan - I knew she would be the right fit for me moving forward. She really spent the time getting to know me and my story and why I wanted to apply for business school. She also helped me understand more about the business world as well- which was a great help since I am coming from a STEM background. I feel like Susan was very thorough and really got to know me on a personal level. She gave me advice on what to do to make my application stand out and extra things or classes I can do. She helped me revise my resume from an overcrowded page that was hard to read to a beautiful, simplified page that was easy on the eyes. She helped me with both my essays and help me craft a story to explain why I need an MBA and what has happened to me in my life this past year and why I needed the MBA more. Before writing the essay she made us do a few reflection/ intersection exercises to get to know myself better and determine the qualities I want to write all my essays around. After that, we used those qualities to shape my draft which then turned into my essay. This writing process was a great way to make sure everything I wanted to include in my story was there. She also looked over my application before I submitted it to make sure everything looked good. After I submitted my application, I reached back out to her when I had an interview invitation. Susan helped me prepare for the interview and then connected me with a school-specific counselor to have a mock interview. A few days after my interview, I got accepted to my dream school. I could not have done this without Susan. I felt like she truly cares about me and my mission and is so grateful we were able to work together. I am so blessed that I had the opportunity to work with her. When in doubt go with Susan!!