142
Finance
Banking-Inv.
Sponsored
Michigan-Ross
MBA
Matriculated school: Michigan Ross
I believe that I would not have been able to secure an offer of admission from my target school without Round One’s support. In my case, from the point at which I was selected as a company-sponsored candidate to the 2nd round application deadline, I had approximately nine months—a relatively tight schedule. During that time, I struggled greatly with test preparation (particularly the GMAT), and in addition to services such as résumé and essay counseling, I am deeply grateful for the advice I received regarding scheduling and mental resilience. Below, I would like to highlight several aspects in which Round One truly stands out.
I have heard that some counselors significantly alter content, sometimes resulting in the creation of a persona that feels far removed from the applicant’s true self. Round One does nothing of the sort. Instead, through counseling, they carefully dig into the applicant’s own past experiences and future goals, clarifying what one’s true strengths are and what one ultimately aims to achieve. In my case, I was able to rediscover strengths that had come to feel “ordinary” to me, and based on those, set a future goal that was a natural extension of who I am—yet one step more ambitious. In that sense, the opportunity to take stock of myself and articulate my future outlook authentically—something easily neglected amid the demands of daily work—proved to be invaluable not only for graduate school applications, but more broadly as well.
Round One limits the number of applicants it accepts in order to maintain quality. As a result, they were able to respond flexibly even during peak periods immediately before application deadlines. In my particular case, because I struggled with test preparation, I decided to add several schools to my portfolio just before the 2nd round application deadlines. Even in this situation, both Stephen Round and Emma Round welcomed the change positively, without the slightest sign of reluctance, and helped me put together a well-organized plan to accommodate the sudden portfolio expansion. In this respect, I felt Round One differed greatly from counselors who prioritize only high-scoring applicants or become difficult to reach during peak periods. (For applicants like me who did not secure an offer in the 1st round, the period right before submission can be extremely stressful.) Being supported through the addition of multiple schools was therefore a tremendous source of psychological stability as well.
Type A interview preparation was extremely helpful when it came time for interviews. Rather than simply advising on what to say, the coaching included detailed feedback on word choice, body language, and gestures during the interview. Feedback from Type A sessions was provided separately in the form of several Word documents, which allowed me to reread them multiple times before interviews and keep the pointed-out areas firmly in mind during my own preparation. As for Type C training, because questions were developed based on my own past experiences, I was able to ask questions in my own words rather than relying on generic, formulaic prompts. In this respect as well, I felt that I moved one step closer to securing an offer of admission.
Finally, if I were asked to choose a counselor again, I would without hesitation choose Round One. I received tremendous support at every stage of the process, from the very beginning of the application journey through to the post-interview phase.
The graduate school application process can be lonely and demanding, but I encourage you to persevere and do your best!
