As Business Schools globally have reported increases in MBA applications received[1], many applicants are turning to the use of an MBA admissions consultant to help them achieve success in an ever-competitive selection process.
Here, we talk to Sam Weeks, Founder & CEO of Sam Weeks Consulting, an MBA admissions consultant for top-tier business schools, to understand what he does and how he helps his clients. We hope this will help you decide if you are considering this route.
What is an admissions consultant?
An admissions consultant helps determine applicants to get admitted into the most competitive universities. Admission rates at top business schools, for example, are below 10%. It has become even tougher during Covid to win a place, with more professionals up-skilling and fewer spots due to social distancing requirements and deferred applications.
Research suggests that about 20%[2] of business school applicants hire a consultant to help with their applications.
How does an admissions consultant help?
I focus on applications to business schools. That mostly means:
Resume reviews: If you’re investing months of effort and hundreds of thousands of dollars in business school, you want to make sure you’ve got a shot at the schools you’re applying to. By reviewing their resumes I help prospective applicants to gauge their chances of admission based on GMAT/GRE scores, academics and professional achievements.
School selection: Different schools have different cultures. Successful applicants often talk about having a good “fit” with the schools they were admitted to. It’s hard to quantify, but it comes down to ambition and values. Schools know this too and actively seek out applicants who fit. Given that I’ve visited most of the top schools and met hundreds of professors and alumni, I can help applicants apply where they fit best.
Application essays: Business schools ask applicants to describe their background and reasons for wanting to attend business school in essays. These essays vary in length between 100 and 2000 words. These can be overwhelming! I help applicants decide which stories best demonstrate their values and experience, and I help to write them in proper form.
Mock interviews: If a school likes an applicant’s profile, they’ll invite them to interview. Business school interviews are very different from job interviews – shorter and motivation-focused. By doing mock interviews together, I help my clients to express their stories in a compelling way and to outperform in these interviews.
Does it work?
I have an MBA from Oxford University and I’m a business school expert: Check out my quotes in the Financial Times MBA rankings 2020. I have a distinctive writing style. The results speak for themselves: Last year I worked with 20 clients. Of these, 18 received offers from one or more of their target schools – that’s a 90% success rate. These same clients were awarded $434,000 in scholarships.
Where can prospective students find out more?
Check out my blog for red-hot application tips. Visit my contact page to sign up for “Sam Scribbles”, my newsletter about admissions trends. See what past applicants have said about my work on Trustpilot and Poets&Quants.
Finally, I’m always happy to meet MBA applicants at all stages of the application process. Schedule a free Zoom chat to discuss your application here, or ping an email to sw@samweeks.com.
[1] Forbes.com: MBA Applications Are Suddenly Soaring
[2] mba.com Prospective Students Survey Report 2015