Applicant Lab (“AL”) gives you the best bang for your buck without compromising the quality of advice that you receive. Like most applicants, I was initially hesitant to use the platform because my MBA apps were going to be one of the most important things I did for my career and I was willing to spend $ to get the best advice possible. However, AL was offering a one month free trial at that time so I thought, “What’s there to lose?”. Little did I know then, that it would be instrumental in getting my admits to M7 schools.
I think the strength of AL is that it provides you with all the guidance you need to develop a stellar application. It arms you with all the knowledge/expertise that you need without going overboard with the advice so that you can still develop an application that is unique and tailored especially to you.
The other strength is Maria herself, whose dynamic personality is very entertaining. It permeates her videos and even her written guides, which eases the otherwise serious burden of the B-school application process. She also seems to genuinely want all applicants to develop their best application possible, even if they have smaller budgets for consultants.
I think Applicant Lab is definitely a game changer because it makes top-notch admissions advice accessible to a broader base of people due to its affordability. It’s thrust of “Levelling the playing field” is quite admirable and I would recommend it to all my friends aiming to pursue an MBA. I won’t be surprised if online platforms like Applicant Lab would be the norm in the years to come.
