Admit:
Harvard Business School

Jamie cracked the HBS application and showed his unique potential amongst a pool of private equity applicants!

Admit:
Harvard Business School
Jamie seek us for advice on how to write an application that'll highlight his 4-year experience in banking to make him distinct from other candidates.
Because of the competitive and rigorous HBS application process, Jamie started working with us a year in advance through our Plan Ahead Services. He also opted for our School Selection, Essay Editing, Interview Prep, and Waitlist Strategy services.
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Applicant Persona

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Nationality

USA
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Undergraduate

Finance from an Ivy League university
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GPA

3.7
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GMAT

760
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Profession

Private Equity Professional

Challenge

Junior private equity investors often pursue an MBA in order to advance in their investment careers, so the big challenge was finding a way to differentiate Jamie from the many other applicants with similar backgrounds also vying for slots at the top business schools.

How Did Inspira Futures Help?

Started building an appropriate profile for Harvard way before the application deadlines

HBS focuses on all-round personality rather than a single-dimensional focus. As Jamie worked with us on the Plan Ahead Service, we mapped out places for him outside work where he could start to demonstrate community involvement and show leadership skills. Jamie was passionate about immigration issues, so we worked with him to strategize ways to become involved in the field. Through our brainstorming, Jamie ended up joining a national immigration non-profit and started its Chicago chapter.

Our consultants also helped him start an internal mentorship program at his PE fund to groom junior investors into long term leaders. By starting this process early and focusing on regular check-ins and well-managed project timelines, we ensured that Jamie was able to build the perfect profile in time for his HBS application.

Emphasizing life stories more than work stories

Taking a multi-pronged approach for the application, we focused on life stories for the main essay while relying on his resume, recommendation letters, and optional questions to focus on his work experience. 

By the time we began work on the HBS application, Jamie had a wide variety of leadership experiences outside of the office as a result of the advanced planning we had done through the Plan Ahead Service. By launching the Chicago chapter for the non-profit, Jamie was able to make a substantial impact on the local community. He not only led the fundraising single-handedly but also recruited a volunteer team to scale the organization. 

We helped Jamie build this community story and helped him trace incidents throughout his life on where he had gone above and beyond to support people in need. By using anecdotes, his story turned out to be powerful and emotionally affecting and brought out a real Jamie and showed his depth beyond buyout deals and leverage financing.

Results

Jamie had applied to Harvard Business School and Wharton School. He got admits from both. He chose to go with Harvard.

Don't Take Our Word For It.
Hear Their Stories.

“I have been accepted to HBS!!!! I am overwhelmed with joy and excitement at being accepted to one of the most competitive programs on earth. I really appreciate all of the support and guidance you have provided during this process. This has been a work of 2 years! All our hard work from school selection to developing the essays and to interview prep has finally culminated to this amazing moment. Your advice encouraged me to start the not-for-profit and to be honest it turned out to be the best decision of my life. Not because I got into HBS but because I could really shape so many people’s lives! You guys have been so much beyond an admissions consulting firm and I really owe you for this!! Thanks guys, thank you.”

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