GMAT Club

Rachel Erickson Hee Reviews

Company: Fortuna Admissions

Rachel has been interviewing applicants to Stanford GSB for almost two decades and has met with candidates in a wide variety of careers, ranging from non-profits to finance to technology to retail. She is well-versed at extracting the types of stories most compelling to interviewers and brings considerable editing experience to her coaching role, having worked at a major publishing company. In addition to publishing, Rachel worked at BCG and the VC firm Bessemer Venture Partners. After business school, she blended her interest in business and publishing, working at Barnesandnoble.com and the digital group at Reader’s Digest, as well as in business development for an Internet start-up and a brand licensing firm. Rachel graduated from Yale University with a degree in Economics and Political Science and is an alum of Stanford GSB, where she was an Arjay Miller Scholar.

5.0 /5 Average Rating
Based on 8 reviews
April 14, 2023
nbs36

Joined: Apr 14, 2023

Posts: 0

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Rachel is Great!

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After striking out on all my applications in round one (after working on my applications by myself), I decided to turn to an admissions consultant with only about 3-4 weeks left before the deadline for round 2. Rachel was incredible. She was extremely responsive, intelligent, and thoughtful. My essays and resume were magnitudes better from her edits and comments, and I got into MBA programs I wanted in round 2! She also has continued to reach out with advice on waitlist strategies, and just generally checking in. I would HIGHLY recommend Rachel to anyone looking for a consultant - I couldn't be happier with the results.

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April 13, 2023
HBSGSB2023ADMIT

Joined: Apr 12, 2023

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Rachel is Truly the best!!

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I cannot Thank Rachel enough for her instrumental role in helping me get into some of the top MBA programs. Her continuous support, timely responsiveness, and deep investment in understanding my story and goals have made all the difference. From the very beginning, Rachel was exceptionally skilled at grasping my story, pinpointing issues with the story flow, and identifying the potential interest it would hold for various schools. Her understanding of my accomplishments, and of the school's values, Rachel encouraged me to apply to my dream school, GSB, despite my initial reluctance as I thought I would never even get an interview with GSB. Needless to say, I'm glad I did!
Rachel's ability to pinpoint issues in a client's story and improve the logical flow is nothing short of remarkable. She has an incredible ability in helping clients deliver their story in the most concise and interesting manner.
When it came to preparing for my MBA interviews, Rachel dove deep into my story and tailored her questions to simulate real interview situations, leaving me more than ready to face the real thing. Having worked with a total of three admission consultants over two years, I can say with utmost confidence that Rachel is the best. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend her to anyone in need of a top-notch admissions consultant.
Rachel's efficiency in her work is incredible. If you choose to work with her on an hourly basis, rest assured that you will receive the highest value for your investment. She uses every minute to provide the best possible feedback and assistance.
On a personal note, Rachel is genuinely one of the nicest individuals I've had the pleasure of working with. She truly cares about her clients' success and dreams, and it shows through her dedication and commitment.
I'm grateful for her support in helping me getting into my dream MBA school.

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August 27, 2022
elizabeth2024

Joined: Aug 19, 2022

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Admitted to HBS - HIGHLY recommend working with Rachel!

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I can't over-emphasize enough how much I enjoyed working with Rachel!!! I applied as a somewhat non-traditional candidate and while interviews with other consultants made me question if I was "right" for an MBA, Rachel was supportive of my candidacy from the get-go (while also being very realistic with solid feedback). Applying for MBAs programs is an incredibly introspective (and occasionally vulnerable) experience, so I found it incredibly helpful to work with someone who I knew believed in my candidacy and set high standards. Working with Rachel, by the time I applied, I knew I had put together my most authentic and best application I possibly could.

What I enjoyed most about working with Rachel was her ability to shift between helping me articulate and refine the “big picture” narrative as well as dig into the nitty gritty details (as she said, putting together an application is kind of like “a big puzzle”). After working through my career vision, I worked with her to develop the essay, which took many many revisions. She gave me incredibly helpful feedback and pointers on how to develop a logical flow, compelling narrative, and then gave feedback on word choice, grammar, etc.

Rachel also went above and beyond to make herself available as we neared the application deadline. A day before applications were due, I was still making minor edits to my resume, essays, and short answers. Rachel was super responsive and helped me work through last minute edits (which I should have done earlier).

In short, if HBS is your top choice, I HIGHLY recommend working with Rachel.

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December 21, 2021
adg121

Joined: Jul 28, 2021

Posts: 2

Kudos: 0

Verified score:
750 Q47 V47

Rachel is an absolutely fantastic coach!!

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Rachel is an absolutely fantastic coach!!! I spoke to several admissions consultants and Rachel stood out from the start – she offered a well measured review of my candidacy and I felt confident she could add real value to my applications. Right away, Rachel invested many hours in truly understanding my professional experience, extracurriculars and goals. I believe this upfront investment enabled her to support me in effectively creating a cohesive and compelling narrative.

When it came to writing and pulling together my applications, Rachel’s support allowed my story to shine. She went through 30+ iterations of my core essays, providing often very quick and thorough reviews (much beyond what I had expected). She would always quickly understand what wasn’t working and was able to offer a very strategic perspective on how we could refine or alter my strategy to something that worked better. Her publishing skills were also extremely handy in trimming unnecessary wordcount etc. once my story was down. In short, I felt very confident that when I hit submit, that I had put my best foot forward in my applications. Rachel was incredibly supportive throughout the whole (and what can be a very demanding) process, always being on hand to provide guidance or help with even the tiniest question. With Rachel’s help, I have now been admitted into HBS and I am looking forward to keeping in touch and sharing updates during and after my MBA program. I can wholeheartedly recommend her to any future applicants considering the very top schools.

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December 20, 2021
mbaadmit2024

Joined: Dec 20, 2021

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

HIGHLY recommend working with Rachel

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I could not be happier after working with Rachel. She was extremely thoughtful and diligent through the 5-6 months we worked together. From the start, she asked deep questions to help me unpack prior experiences and some of my core values, which would go on to drive my application. As I worked on my 30+ drafts worth of essays, Rachel carefully reviewed them and came up with new thoughts/comments every single time. She constantly questioned whether the product was strong enough and even when I was exhausted, she continued to push me to keep going so I could submit the very best version of myself. She was incredibly helpful every step of the way, and I'm happy to report she helped me gain admission to a top school I'm excited to attend. The business school application process is tedious, but having Rachel on my side made my process 1000% better.

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December 20, 2021
ay11111

Joined: Oct 22, 2020

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Verified score:
760 Q50 V41 (Online)

Rachel is the best!!!

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First and foremost, Rachel was absolutely instrumental in helping me get into my dream school, Stanford. When I first started the process at the beginning of the year, Fortuna’s director suggested that I had a 12-15% chance of getting into the GSB, an estimate that I felt was fair. Stanford was a reach given my background.
I was fortunate to be able to start the process early, about eight months before the deadline. At the beginning, Rachel took the time to really understand my story, my motives, my strengths and weaknesses, and helped me strategize which attributes I needed to highlight, and through which stories I could best share my strengths. Rachel was one part MBA coach, one part therapist, as she dug deep into my motivations and helped me find meaningful answers to questions about purpose. Rachel is an incredibly kind and caring person, and I really enjoyed the opportunity to develop a strong relationship with her.
Rachel worked with me on the Stanford essay for 26 drafts, continually sending feedback paragraph by paragraph, then sentence by sentence, then finally word by word. By draft 20, I was ready to throw in the towel and hit submit, but Rachel insisted we could make the ending stronger, really pushing me to the next level. In the end, I had a much better final product than I expected, and I felt at peace because I knew I put in my best possible work. I am so appreciative of the amount of effort Rachel put into my application. She sent me ideas and edits way past a normal bedtime, and always had a quick turnaround time on any new material.
When it came to the interview stage, Rachel helped me tremendously by teaching me how to frame my stories to highlight the attributes Stanford was looking for. She drew upon her decades of experience interviewing candidates, and it made the interview seem much less scary and opaque.
This whole process has made me a much more confident person, as I now understand myself much better. It’s also helped me define and refine my vision and what I want to do in the next decade. I felt that even if I hadn’t gotten into any MBA programs, I still would have found this experience to be valuable for these internal gains. It was so valuable in fact, that I would still want to repeat this process in ten or twenty years (even without applying to schools), when I’m at the next fork in my career, because it gave me so much clarity in my life.
I honestly don’t think I would have gotten in without Rachel’s help, and for that I will be grateful for a lifetime.

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June 28, 2021
sj0819

Joined: Apr 18, 2020

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Rachel is EXCEPTIONAL!

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Rachel is hands down an AMAZING coach. She was instrumental in my application and my admission to 4 top schools including my dream school: Harvard Business School! 

Early on, she invested the time to get to know me and understand my personal journey and my work experience. Because of her genuine interest in me, Rachel challenged me to dig deeper and to be introspective during the essay writing process. She was able to diligently sift through my stories to uncover recurring themes and help me refine my thoughts. She often challenged my assumptions and provided honest feedback even when it countered my initial thought process.
Looking back, I have so much admiration for the honest and tough feedback that she provided to help me craft a compelling story and find my own voice. 

Her ongoing encouragement was key in helping me surmount the roadblocks encountered in a particularly challenging year (test retake, writer's block, self doubt). She was particularly helpful in our mock interviews by providing direct and actionable feedback that enhanced my interviewing skills.

She was highly responsive and flexible throughout the entire process. Her turnaround time was exceptional. Our sessions were always productive and enriching. She leveraged the Fortuna network and knowledge base to help thoroughly answer my questions about the specificities of the different school programs.

While I had some awareness of the MBA application process, I underestimated the time, effort and commitment that the process would require over a period of time.  She was tactical and helped me stay on track of each step of the process. We worked through numerous essay edits and introspective exercises, even in the wee hours sometimes. Her can-do attitude, her empathy, and her attentiveness are unmatched!

Beyond being an amazing coach and subject matter expert, Rachel is a genuine and caring person who offered me support and advice as a friend would. While working with her, I have also gained an amazing advocate and mentor. I could not recommend her enough! 

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December 09, 2020
iriswu61

Joined: Sep 18, 2018

Posts: 0

Kudos: 0

Verified score:
710 Q47 V41

Thoughtful, patient, dedicated - Rachel is an OUTSTANDING coach!

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Rachel is incredibly attentive and thoughtful. From the get-go, she invested a ton of time to get to know me as a person, taking copious amount of notes each time. This was especially helpful when we brainstormed stories for each of my MBA essays, and she would bring up anecdotes that even I forgot about! Rachel also exhibited an incredible can-do attitude as she read and provided thoughtful commentary to each of the 26 drafts we went through for my main MBA essay. Rachel's publishing background was truly an asset as she helped me cut down words and improve the flow of my essays.

But, the most impactful part of our relationship was how she helped me clarify my long-term career vision. I actually made a job switch during the application process becasue I knew that the new job will bring me one step closer to my goals. I would not have had the courage to do this if it wasn't for Rachel's thoughtful guidance.

I am super excited to keep Rachel updated on all of my future endeavours, not just business school. She has had a HUGE part in my successes, and I cannot recommend her enough!

THANK YOU RACHEL!

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