: Accepted into Kellogg, Anderson (120K), Interviewed by CBS & Haas, W/L by Booth

While searching for a consultant for the MBA application, I occasionally saw an article about tips for writing a good essay. The detailed information and guidance within the article attracted me to view the MER webpage. When I read the positive feedback from students, I scheduled a call to understand more about MER. After the introductory zoom call with Poonam of MER, my heart told me that MER is the one that I want to take for my MBA application process.

School selection is a process of figuring out which school will help me achieve my career goal. I enjoyed the school selection process with Poonam, as our discussions clarified my logic for selecting my target programs.

The counseling session on zoom is one of the parts I enjoyed the most in the application process. It's a process of learning. We brainstormed to make each resume point short and robust. The resume-building process gave me a deep understanding of my past achievements. I took her suggestions to build each bullet with the STAR method. For essays, I still remember the confusion when I prepared my first drafts essays for Haas. I had 100 ideas but could not decide where to start and end. Our discussion provided me with directions

I appreciate the questionnaire of 25 questions that she made me fill out to brainstorm ideas before starting the application. It provided me with a lot of materials we later used in essays. Also, the questionnaire helped me find the right story that fits the essay topic (especially for Stanford), which I didn't realize before. Her guidance helped my essay flow more smoothly and led me to do self-reflection sincerely. The self-reflection she encouraged me to do also helped me a lot when I prepared 2nd round school essays. Poonam significantly helped me highlight my strengths in my resume, essay, and interview. She helped me show my best aspect to the admission committee and suggested many stories I had ignored earlier. Her editing was excellent, especially when we needed to meet the word limits.

Poonam always answered my questions and provided practical advice. Her guidance was not limited to the professional level; she also helped with emotions. I truly appreciate her encouragement and moral support after my Round 1 failure, which led to my success in Round 2.

For LoR, my recommender initially didn't follow the proper format . Poonam’s guidance and feedback were beneficial. Also, I faced a peculiar situation regarding my recommenders, as both my recommenders quit PwC in late November 2022. Poonam helped me draft an optional essay explaining why taking my LORs from them was crucial. This was indeed helpful. Poonam's response time is within 24 to 48 hours, and she was very particular about following the timelines. But I couldn’t follow it well and shared some draft essays late. So sorry for the inconvenience.

The interview was my weakness in my application process, and I wasn't well prepared for Round 1. However, the interview tips, mock interview session, and her detailed feedback on the mock interview greatly helped me prepare for 2nd school's interview. Following her advice, I practiced more, felt more confident and kept getting better in my subsequent interviews.

I am happy to say that I have been accepted into Kellogg, Anderson (with 120 K scholarship, and UC Davis (70 k scholarship). Also, I was interviewed by CBS and Haas and waitlisted by Chicago Booth. I am excited to join Anderson in Fall. I would not have been able to achieve this without Poonam's help. Thank you, Poonam. I am 100% sure I will recommend MER to my friends who want to apply for the MBA program.