Stratus is Poets&Quants’ Top Medium-Sized MBA Admissions Consulting Team
Since 2006, we have helped thousands of MBA applicants from more than 50 countries gain admission to their target business schools—and earn millions of dollars in merit scholarships—with our unique team-based, personalized approach. Our dedicated team of experienced MBA admissions counselors is there every step of the way to help YOU as an applicant.
Why choose Stratus?
Team-based, personalized approach to MBA admissions consulting
Just as business school admissions committees will read your application multiple times, our staff of highly skilled admissions counselors, the majority of whom are former admissions committee members, will repeatedly review and provide feedback on your application materials throughout the process. We not only pair you with a dedicated Admissions Counselor who will coach, mentor, and guide you—we also connect you with an admissions strategist, school-specific reviewers, and a proofreader who provide additional support.
Expert MBA Admissions Counselors
Our team members combine decades of wisdom and experience with profound insights on how admissions committees think. Having relevant information and critical work experience means our team understands the hard work and the nuances involved in pursuing a higher-education degree. As alumni of top-ranked business schools, we can also speak to the challenges of and offer introspection about the business school application process. Our expertise will help you find schools that will be the best fit for your career goals.
Personalized services for every step of the process
Whether you’re looking to revise your application essays, receive guidance on articulating your goals, update your resume, or prepare for your interview, our counselors will be by your side throughout your admissions journey. They can identify and help mitigate weaknesses in your profile, all while keeping you motivated during the sometimes grueling application process.
MBA Four-School Guarantee
We at Stratus invest in your MBA application goals like no other admissions consulting firm. If you are working with us on four or more business school applications in Round 1 and are not accepted to any of those programs, we will support your applications to two more schools in Round 2—at no additional cost to you! That’s how committed we are to your success.
We have a proven record of success and a clear understanding of how to help you get into your target MBA programs and reach your career goals
Our team-based, personalized approach to MBA admissions counseling has helped young professionals gain admission to all of the top-ranked business schools worldwide, including Harvard Business School, the Stanford Graduate School of Business, UPenn Wharton, MIT Sloan, Columbia Business School, and INSEAD, as well as dozens of others.
At Stratus, we take our clients’ success seriously, and it shows! With a 83 Net Promoter Score, our clients are fiercely loyal and highly satisfied with our services. We are proud of our hundreds of five-star reviews on Google, GMAT Club, and Poets&Quants from past clients. In addition, in 2024 Stratus was named the #1 medium-sized MBA admissions consulting firm on Poets&Quants with an "eye-popping" 9.9/10 client satisfaction rate. Not only that, but our Director of MBA Admissions Counseling, Susan Cera, was named the top MBA admissions coach in 2021 and a top-five admissions coach in 2022 and 2023. Senior MBA Admissions Counselors Donna Bauman and Melisa Prevost have also been recognized with perfect 10/10 scores. We are not just consultants—we are leaders in our field.
Five-Star Reviews on Google, GMAT Club, and Poets&Quants
Net Promoter Score
in Merit Scholarships since 2021
Ranked Medium-Sized MBA Admissions Firm in 2024
Business school applicants love working with us! Read what just a few of the thousands of happy Stratus clients have to say:
Thanks to Donna, I secured admission to two M7 schools with merit scholarships at both (even with a weaker GRE quant score, something I was nervous about throughout). I highly recommend working with Donna for your MBA Admissions journey – she’s the best partner I can imagine!
I cannot sing your praises enough. I am at Michigan thanks to all your help! Every time people ask for advice about the process, I always recommend they check out Stratus. You have been a huge help over the past several months. There is no way I could have done it without your guidance.
I applied to only one school with no backup plan, and Kelly was my secret weapon. She helped me tailor every part of my application and interview to successfully resonate with my target school. This means that she not only knew everything there was to know about admissions for my target school but also how to work with me to perfect my messaging. She was also friendly, responsive, candid, and just nice to work with.
Latest Blog & Resources
Four Strategies To Find Scholarships for MBA Programs
The cost of attending an MBA program, including both the tuition and the opportunity cost of lost employment income, can be larger than the investment to purchase a home. With such high stakes involved, every MBA applicant should consider pursuing scholarships. Here are four strategies to help you maximize your options: 1. Be above the...
14 Tips to Enhance Your Business School Profile
If getting an MBA is in your future, every day counts as you build your business school profile. Whether you intend to apply to MBA programs next year or several years from now, you should take time NOW to plan your next steps so your profile will be competitive. Here are 14 tips to guide...
November Pre-MBA Checklist for Round 2
If you are considering submitting MBA applications in Round 2, will you be ready in time for early-January deadlines? Will your application be the strongest application you can submit? Or might you be a substantially more compelling candidate in September of 2025? As you contemplate your next steps, here are six questions you should be...
Build Your MBA Leadership Profile Through Community Involvement
Although giving blood, participating in charity runs, and making financial contributions to worthy causes are noble endeavors, they are not viewed as leadership or community engagement by admissions committees at top MBA programs. Similarly, you do not have to start a nonprofit or sit on the junior boards of multiple organizations to demonstrate your leadership...
Schedule a free consultation!
Learn how Stratus’s team approach can help you get accepted to your top-choice business schools. Start with a FREE consultation with one of our Admissions Counselors. Our team is ready to dive into your goals, answer your questions about your profile and the application process, and help you boost your appeal to admissions committees!