I started the MBA application process with tremendous imposter syndrome - I knew I needed someone to guide me and hold me accountable to get to the finish line. I heard about Jennifer from a friend of a friend, and somehow clicked with her through my first consultation. At the time, I was speed dating with a bunch of consultants at other firms and came to the conclusion that Jennifer and the greater Stratus team were genuinely supportive of my MBA pursuits, not simply upselling services for the sake of business.

I worked with Jennifer from June 2022 through January 2023 comprehensively with 2 schools in R1 and 1 school in R2 (all M7 schools). She is the perfect sounding board (honest and supportive) when it comes to ideas and helps you build confidence in your story. I initially started the process very concerned about how to build my story and quite frankly, figuring out what it even was. Jennifer makes sure you put in the work, and in the end, you'll be very happy with the novel you've written for yourself. She goes above and beyond making herself readily available especially when I was feeling very defeated and needed an ear - her feedback is never sugar coated, it's real talk, but always enough to nudge you back on track. I appreciated her flexibility (sometimes last minute edits for deadlines) and attentiveness in interview prep (I was able to stress test my answers/stories with other coaches, an amazing plus!) and ultimately deliberating between multiple offers! Thanks to Jennifer, I was able to land $300k in scholarships across three top 10 programs (the foundation you build in introspection/strategy phase really sets you up for successful applications at other schools even if you don't work with Stratus comprehensively on all your schools).

I'm super excited to be starting my MBA journey at Wharton in the fall - a million thank you's to Jennifer!

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I entered the application process with glaring holes in my profile, and Jennifer helped me create a strategy to ameliorate these shortcomings. For example, I will most likely have the lowest or at least will be in the bottom 5 of my class for GPA, but with Jennifer's guidance I was able to enter the process with confidence and I had great results. Her help on my essays, generating my stories and her feedback on my applications in general gave me a lot of confidence that I could get in. Despite some large deficiencies I was accepted to a T10 with some significant scholarship. I couldn't recommend her enough.

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I highly recommend working with Jennifer and Stratus! She is absolutely incredible and made the biggest difference in my application journey. I was terrified of this process and felt that I had a lot working against me as I considered business school, with an undergraduate GPA much lower than the average at my top choice programs. Jennifer participated in a webinar with my Forte MBALaunch cohort, and I immediately knew I wanted to work with her.

Jennifer helped me explain the challenges I faced during my undergraduate years and provided constructive feedback at every step of the way. She also helped me stick to my timeline and followed up with me when I was working long hours and needed additional reminders to stay on track with my applications. Her guidance helped me take my confusing career goals and articulate them in a simple way that tied in my professional background and personal experiences.

When I started receiving invitations to interview, Jennifer set aside time to complete a mock interview for every school. I felt fully prepared for each one, to the point that I wasn’t even nervous for the actual interview! I felt more confident in myself and my candidacy by working with Jennifer.

She went above and beyond the entire time I worked with her, and I could tell she was just as invested in my MBA journey as I was. In the end, I received multiple acceptances with scholarships at every school, and Jennifer helped me navigate negotiating financial aid. I will be attending my top choice, Chicago Booth, this fall, and I wouldn’t be here without Jennifer. Beyond my applications, her guidance has helped me refine my career goals and identify what I really want to accomplish during my MBA program. I can’t thank her enough and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with her!

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I could not recommend Jennifer more! From the beginning, Jennifer made me feel comfortable. I was not very confident in the application process prior to working with Jennifer because I come from a non-traditional major/career for business school. Jennifer was able to help me see this as a strength and to use my work experience to my advantage when applying.

Additionally, I was very nervous when I started the application process because I was working long hours and was not sure when I could make the time for applications. Thanks to Jennifer, I had a structured approach to my MBA applications. This allowed me to stay on track timing-wise and to have a more stress-free approach to essay writing.

I most definitely recommend Stratus, the attention to detail and care the team puts into their work makes a tremendous difference. I will be attending Columbia Business School in the fall and can say with confidence that I would not be here without Jennifer and Stratus.

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Jennifer at Stratus was so helpful during my process. I found Stratus when looking for an admissions consultant to help me with my essays. Jennifer made sure to listen to my unique experiences and strengths and helped me articulate my goals. Stratus has a number of exploratory exercises which helped me dive deep in to my long-term goals and key development areas. The investment into the hourly package more than paid off! I was fortunate enough to be accepted to a number of top programs with merit scholarships. I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to work with Jennifer and cannot recommend her enough.

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Initially, I was pretty overwhelmed with the MBA application process. I don’t have many friends or family members who’ve gone through it and didn’t know what to expect, but from my first consultation with Jennifer, I knew I’d found someone who could guide me. Jennifer actually took the time to get to know me beyond my “stats”, and I appreciated that Jennifer talked me through all the Stratus packages without trying to upsell me. I ultimately went with the one-school comprehensive package, and Jennifer was super helpful in giving advice that I could apply across the other schools I was also applying to, too.

In terms of support, Jennifer and the Stratus team were fantastic. I struggled a lot to articulate my career goals until I started working with Jennifer - and within a few weeks of working together, I had a crisp, articulate career path mapped out for the next 3, 5 and 10 years! Jennifer kept the whole process organized and manageable with a calendar, modules, milestones, etc. Her approach really took all the stress out of applying to MBA programs, so I could focus on self-reflection, and because of her I actually enjoyed the process of applying to b-school!

The last thing I’ll add - Jennifer is really encouraging. I wasn’t even considering applying to Wharton until Jennifer encouraged me to, and I ended up being admitted with a scholarship. Ultimately, her guidance helped me land acceptances from 6 of the top 10 programs, with scholarships at all of them - something I couldn’t have imagined in my wildest dreams!

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Jennifer Jackson has been a fantastic guide and sounding-board to me for the 2 months during which I was putting together my application at Kellogg, including the video essays and the interview. I was initially not confident to apply in Round 1, since I thought I needed more time to prepare my essays and ask for recommendations at my company, but Jennifer's confidence in my candidacy and her meticulous planning convinced me that I could indeed submit a strong application in Round 1. Kellogg is a big application, and we worked together every second day from August onwards (her professionalism is impeccable; I always got a response within 2 business days!) to refine my Resume and career goals, write strong essays that brought out my professional and personal journeys to the fullest, and to speak with my recommenders about my professional achievements and awards. Susan Cera from the Stratus Team also kept a close watch on the development of my application and helped round out the rough edges. Not only this, Jennifer also helped me prepare for the video essays, scholarship essays, alternate program essay and my interview by conducting mock interviews, where she gave me extremely detailed feedback on my answers considering their format, tone and content, which I found extremely helpful during the D-day! In general, Jennifer is kind, generous and has an ability to put anyone at ease and open up to her, a commendable quality in a consultant who needs to help you select your best stories for the application.
I had chosen Stratus as during my very first 30-minute free consultation call, Susan Cera had taken the time to review my Resume in detail and had come prepared to speak to me, something I did not see other consultants do during free chats. I am so happy with my decision, and am headed to Kellogg next year!! It'll still be some time before I believe this!

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Before Jennifer was recommended to me through a friend, I was hesitant about MBA consultants. Not after I met Jennifer! We connected instantly and I loved her authentic self. I valued her experiences and opinions and most importantly, I trusted that she had my best interest at heart. She helped me stay on track with my essays and applications. Most importantly, this process is wonderfully designed to discover yourself and Stratus has just the right team to make that happen. I was happy that through my stories and experiences, Jennifer helped me see a version of myself that I didn’t see before. This eventually helped me got into my dream school, Wharton! I would highly recommend Jennifer and her team at Stratus! Interview prep and offer negotiation guidance were also extremely helpful!

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Jennifer was incredible throughout the entire process, from start to finish. She was a fantastic professional resource, helping me with my essays, positioning, personal narrative, and interviews. She is very detail oriented and client focused, tailoring all of her recommendations specifically to me, my background, and the schools I was applying to. Jennifer was also a fantastic personal resource, keeping me upbeat and positive throughout a very difficult and arduous admissions process. Ultimately it ended in success and much of that is thanks to working with Jennifer. I would not hesitate to recommend her to any of my colleagues, personal contacts, or anyone looking for help when applying to get an MBA.

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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!

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