Understanding MBA Admissions Consulting Prices

Are you considering hiring an MBA admissions consultant and curious to understand how MBA admissions consulting prices work?

It’s confusing, we get it! In today’s article, we’ll do our best to clarify the various ways MBA admissions consultants charge for their services and share the pros and cons of each.

As MBA admissions consultants, we recognize this topic may feel subjective. Our goal is not to sell you anything. Instead, we want to explain how pricing works so you can make an informed decision.  It’s purely to lay out the way our industry tends to package and price its services so you can decide for yourself what is best for you. Ok, PSA over, let’s move to the content.

MBA Admissions Consulting Prices – Hourly Services

We’ll start here as hourly services are the most straightforward, on the surface at least. With hourly services, you pay for the time a consultant spends on your application. This includes calls, document edits, and emails. Most consultants charge $300+ per hour.

Pros

• While firms may have a minimum number of hours they require, you can usually add more hours as needed. This allows you to ensure you like the firm and/or your consultant before committing a large sum of money.
• You can allocate the hours as you see fit. Your consultant will help you determine the best use of your time but should ask for your ok before completing any billable work. This means you can devote a larger number of hours to your top choice / stretch programs and fewer to other schools, if you are so inclined.

Cons</strong>

• A major downside to hourly services is the temptation to rush the early stages. Working ‘on the clock’ may discourage the deep exploration needed to define your ‘story.’ This upfront work is critical for a compelling application.
• This early work is critical to a strong application. However, you may not see the benefits until your materials come together. Some consulting firms don’t even offer hourly services (we do, but on a limited basis) because they feel it’s hard to do their best work when they can’t take as much time as they’d like at every step of the process.

MBA Admissions Consulting Prices – A la Carte or Pay by Service

Here, we’re referring to services like resume reviews, final application reviews, mock interviews, etc. Generally speaking, the consultant will do one review of your materials (resume, essays, etc., depending on the service you’ve selected) and note areas where they could be improved. A mock interview entails a live session and then either individualized written or verbal feedback afterwards. The service may allow for a limited amount of back-and-forth communication with your consultant via email or phone.

At Vantage Point, we offer a unique variant on this service type through our Amplify Hourly Packages, which bundle together support in certain high value areas at a price that is less than a comprehensive package (described further below) but provides a more structured approach than working with us hourly. These are great for clients who have started on the application process on their own but want help taking their materials (resume, essays) to the next level.

Consultants usually set a la carte prices based on their hourly rate and estimated time. This provides a fixed cost for specific tasks.

Pros

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• Certain services can really lend themselves to a ‘one off’ approach, such as mock interviews where it’s almost better if the person you speak with has only the information your actual interviewer will have, like your resume. The same goes for a service like our Adcom Trial Run where a client sends their near final application to a member of our team who used to work in admissions for one of the top MBA programs. He/she reviews it as they would have while on an admissions committee and provides feedback accordingly.
• If your budget it tight but you want a professional set of eyes, this is a lower cost option than a comprehensive package and there is 100% clarity into what you’re getting upfront (although a good consultant will be very transparent as to how you will work together with any type of service arrangement).

Cons</strong>

• The big con with this type of service is the fact that, for the most part, there is limited iteration with the consultant. In a resume review, your consultant provides feedback on your specific draft. You must then incorporate that feedback into your final version effectively. For reference, we often iterate 10 times with comprehensive clients on their resumes and up to 20 times on a set of essays. Understanding feedback and putting it into practice are two different things (and the latter can be much more difficult).

MBA Admissions Consulting Prices – Unlimited or Comprehensive Packages

Comprehensive packages provide hands-on coaching throughout the application process. At Vantage Point, we start Round 1 engagements between April and June. We continue working together until you enroll. We work with them to select the schools to which they will apply, zero in on their career goals, define their ‘story’ or what differentiates them from other applicants, draft their MBA resume, select and prepare their recommenders, write their essays, practice for interviews, and more.

You can choose how many schools to include in your package. The first school in a package carries the highest cost. This covers the ‘heavy lifting,’ such as setting career goals and defining your story. These foundational tasks remain the same regardless of how many schools you apply to. Each additional school then requires only a smaller supplemental fee.

Unlimited package prices generally start at $5,000 for one school. Three-school packages cost approximately $7,500 or more. This is a significant investment, but it reflects the work required to build a top-tier application.

Despite the term “unlimited,” consultants do not handle everything. They don’t write your essays for you, hit submit on your applications or make sure all the components are in by the deadline. They can’t guarantee you will be admitted to your dream school (if they say they can, run). Applying to business school is a lot of work, there’s no getting around it.

Pros

• A comprehensive engagement is the gold standard for a reason. At every stage, your consultant ensures you ‘do all the right things.’ This includes everything from school networking to preparing your recommenders. They know what schools are looking for and will help ensure these characteristics are brought to the forefront of your application in a way that is authentic to you.
• The business school application process is stressful. Endless questions arise along the way. These range from mundane info session queries to complex scholarship negotiations. Having an expert available to answer questions provides reassurance.

Cons</strong>

• A comprehensive engagement is highly personal. Your consultant needs to understand your background, goals, and experiences. This helps them guide your application effectively. Take time to find the right fit. Look for someone with relevant experience and a style that matches your needs. Do the leg work upfront to ensure you find someone who is a good fit for you. It’s not only important that you get along with them, but they should also have experience with clients like you.

We hope that helped clarify MBA admissions consulting prices for you! Our packages are described more fully here. As always, feel free to reach out to schedule a free consultation.