About us

A Wharton MBA graduate with a BS from MIT, Scott has been an MBA admissions consultant for 17 years, helping hundreds of applicants worldwide gain admission to top MBA programs. He sat on the Board of Directors for the Association of International Graduate Admissions Consultants for 6 years and was an invited speaker at the GMAC Conference with admissions committee directors from every top school.

Before becoming a full-time admissions consultant and helping applicants from Tokyo to San Francisco (and beyond) achieve their MBA dreams, Scott gained experience across consulting, financial services, and strategy & corporate development roles. He led Global Strategy and Corporate Development as the Director of a 700-person independent publishing company.

He also worked for InterContinental Hotels Group in Global Strategy, as well as JP Morgan and Deloitte Consulting in Mergers & Acquisitions. Scott’s firsthand experience in many of the jobs applicants have today or hope to obtain post-MBA helps him advise them on the best ways to not only get into their top-choice schools but also position themselves for their dream jobs.

In his free time, Scott enjoys visiting vineyards to taste wine in new regions, listening to live music, and staying active outside.

Wish him luck as he tries to plant more vines in his backyard!

MJ has served in senior admissions leadership roles at top business schools, including The Wharton School of Business, UCLA Anderson, and the International University of Moscow, Russia.

She served as Admissions Director at The Wharton School of Business and as an assistant dean in Admissions at UCLA Anderson. At the International University at Moscow, MJ taught Organizational Behavior, International Trade, and Negotiations to MBA and undergraduate business students.

Throughout her career in admissions, MJ contributed to boards and committees for organizations such as the General Management Admissions Council (GMAC), the Forté Foundation, and the MBA Tour. She frequently spoke on panels and delivered presentations to alumni and prospective MBA students worldwide. Her insights were featured in prominent publications, including Business Week, The Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, MSNBC, China Post, and more.

MJ earned a baccalaureate degree in Economics from Guilford College and a degree in History from Arizona State University. She graduated summa cum laude and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. She also earned a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree from the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) at Columbia University in New York City.

In her free time, MJ is an active volunteer in the community. A lover of gourmet coffee, she can frequently be spotted spending time with friends at local coffee shops.

Frenk is a former Associate Director of Admissions at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, where he evaluated and interviewed Full-Time MBA applicants globally from 2018 until late 2021.

Frenk was the admissions liaison to the Kellogg student affinity networks and oversaw end-to-end admissions for the MSMS program with Northwestern University. Frenk has led hundreds of domestic and international sessions as brand ambassador for the Kellogg MBA programs. Additionally, Frenk leads national MBA recruiting for Deloitte Consulting, where he has gained a deep understanding of the post-MBA employment market.

Frenk earned his Bachelor’s degree in Communication from the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. In his free time, Frenk enjoys traveling, cooking, and recreational sports.

As a former Bain & Co Consultant and Forté Scholar with a Yale SOM MBA, Erin has over 20 years of professional experience. Erin began her career consulting for clients across the healthcare, consumer products, and finance industries at Bain.

She then joined the marketing department at American Airlines (formerly US Airways) before returning to business school. As a brand marketer at Mars, Inc., Erin later guided top consumer brands including M&M’s and TWIX, and still has a passion for helping clients enter the consumer products industry.

Since joining Personal MBA Coach in 2015 to run the company’s marketing and operations, Erin has worked behind the scenes developing Personal MBA Coach’s extensive knowledge base and comprehensive project management system. She also leads Personal MBA Coach’s talented team of editors and works with a limited number of clients each year.

Erin graduated Summa Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Colby College. She currently lives outside of Boston with her husband and two children and enjoys spending her weekends both coaching and cheering on her kids on the soccer field.

Richard has an MBA from Wharton and an MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School. At Wharton, he served as an Admissions Fellow, conducting interviews and leading Team-Based Discussions.

Following Wharton, Richard worked in the finance department at Google before transitioning into the education field. Prior to business school, he spent 5 years in the finance industry working at Goldman Sachs, HSBC, and Citi.  Richard’s diverse background gives him a unique perspective on both the professional and academic aspects of the MBA journey.

Richard has been working at Personal MBA Coach for over five years. This experience, along with his role as an alumni interviewer for Penn, has positioned him to help applicants refine their stories and stand out in the admissions process.

Cyrus has an MBA from Harvard Business School and an aeronautical engineering degree from Imperial College London. Cyrus has extensive experience coaching candidates and has been serving as a coach in various forms for over 10 years. Having transitioned from engineering to venture capital himself, Cyrus particularly enjoys guiding engineers who are interested in making a career transition. He also has expertise in AI software development.

Prior to business school, Cyrus worked at Salesforce as a sales engineer in London. In this role, he defined digital transformation programs and supported the company’s strategic enterprise clients.

Of Persian descent, Cyrus was born in France and grew up in the UK. His broad network across the U.S. and Europe, and his understanding of highly contrasting cultures, environments, and styles, allows him to guide his clients in building compelling business school applications.

Ade Popoola earned her MBA from Harvard Business School and her BA from Harvard College. While at HBS, she served as an admissions representative, managing prospective student engagement and supporting prospective applicants.

Additionally, as a management consulting mock case interviewer for HBS’s career and professional development, Ade helped HBS students transition into consulting. After earning her MBA, Ade worked as a consultant and a manager at Bain & Company. Prior to joining HBS, Ade spent 8 years in nonprofit strategy, including working at the JP Morgan Chase Foundation and KaBOOM.

Ade has over 8 years of experience coaching MBA applicants, including reviewing applications and conducting mock interviews as an MLT prep alum. Ade currently lives in Chicago, IL, and in her free time enjoys cycling and playing basketball.

Lacey Chaum holds an MBA from Stanford GSB and a BA from the University of Pennsylvania. Before earning her MBA, Lacey worked in consulting at Prophet, developing compelling brand and growth strategies for large companies. While at Stanford, Lacey was an Arbuckle Leadership Fellow and spent time coaching and mentoring peers throughout their MBA experience. Her passion for storytelling and guiding others led her to become a consultant for Personal MBA Coach.

Lacey also has professional expertise and interest in the AI, start-up, and supply chain industries. Lacey lives in New York and spends her free time strength training, cycling, and testing new baking recipes in her kitchen.

Nicole is a former Associate Director of Admissions at Columbia Business School, where she evaluated and interviewed MBA applicants globally from 2015 until early 2021. She also served as the admissions liaison to the Healthcare and Pharmaceutical Management Program and oversaw admissions for the JD/MBA dual degree program with Columbia Law School.

Furthermore, Nicole managed recruiting for Columbia Business School’s Executive MBA Program. Nicole has travelled to Africa, Asia, Europe, and North and South America to recruit MBA talent, deliver presentations to applicants and lead global companies, and host events for alumni and prospective students to connect. She frequently participated in panels for the Forté Foundation and the MBA Tour, and has been interviewed for multiple MBA admissions publications.

Nicole earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Neuroscience from the University of Pittsburgh and her Master of Science degree in Human Capital Management from Columbia University in the City of New York. In her free time, Nicole enjoys traveling by plane to reach new places and by bike to explore them.