Who is the MBA Exchange, Ltd ® ?

Our consultants are experienced executives who are MBA graduates or former admissions officers from Harvard Business School, The Wharton School, Stanford Graduate School of Business, Columbia Business School, Chicago Graduate School of Business, Tuck School oof Business, Kellogg Graduate School of Management and other leading MBA programs. We have admissions committee as well as admission consulting experience that can make the difference for you.

Dan Bauer, managing director and founder

An MBA graduate of Harvard Business School, Mr. Bauer's career includes management positions with Citicorp, MasterCard International, DDB Needham Worldwide. He is a trusted advisor to individuals seeking the best in business education. Before founding The MBA Exchange in 1996, his experience included interviewing and assessing MBA applicants on behalf of the Harvard Business School. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree summa cum laude from Ohio University. Mr. Bauer has served on the Board of Directors of the Harvard Business School Club of Chicago, and provided leadership for organizations including the American Marketing Association and Sales & Marketing Executives International. He is a member of the Independent Education Consultants Association, and an affiliate member of the National Association of Graduate Admissions Professionals as well as the Higher Education Consultants Association.

Heather Nicholson, senior admissions consultant

As a former Assistant Director of Admissions at Columbia Business School, Ms. Nicholson recruited, interviewed and evaluated applicants, as well as managing waitlisted prospects. She was responsible for planning recruitment seminars, and represented the business school at forums featuring top-ten business schools. Prior to joining The MBA Exchange, Ms. Nicholson worked as an admissions professional and admissions consultant for more than 15 years. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology degree from St. John’s University and a Master of Divinity degree from Union Theological Seminary.

Steve Johnson, senior admissions consultant

An MBA graduate of Harvard Business School, Mr. Johnson’s background includes strategic planning and M&A in the asset management arena. He has held a range of responsibilities including product management, strategic planning, and marketing with top companies such as Fidelity Investments, Intuit (makers of Quicken and Turbo Tax), and EXP Systems, a high-technology start-up. Before joining The MBA Exchange as a consultant, he helped numerous candidates apply successfully to top business schools, including Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, Kellogg, Haas, Texas and Purdue. An accomplished writer and communicator, Mr. Johnson has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale University, where he double majored in History and Economics.

Kimberly Raynor-Smith, senior advisor

Ms. Raynor-Smith has worked in business school admissions and recruiting since 1998. Prior to joining The MBA Exchange in 2004, she was Associate Director of MBA Admissions at The Wharton School where she recruited, interviewed and evaluated applicants and provided individualized support to female applicants. Previously, Ms. Raynor-Smith was an MBA recruiter at Bain & Company and the Boston Consulting Group. She has expertise in counseling candidates from application to post-graduation career. Ms. Raynor-Smith holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of New Hampshire where she majored in Psychology and Sociology.

Brad Pearson, senior admissions consultant

Mr. Pearson’s background includes over 11 years in graduate management admissions and administration. He was Associate Director of MBA Admissions for the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, overseeing approximately 4,000 applications per year. In addition, Mr. Pearson served as Director of MBA Admissions and Financial Aid for Washington University in St. Louis. Prior to that, he worked in corporate recruitment screening, interviewing and testing executive and technical personnel. He earned a Bachelor’s of Arts degree in Business Administration from Lewis University, an MBA degree in Marketing and Human Resource Management from Governor’s State University, and completed post-graduate studies at the University of Chicago and Washington University.

Leah Taylor, senior admissions consultant

Prior to joining The MBA Exchange, Ms. Taylor had 7 years of experience in graduate and undergraduate admissions. Most recently she served Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management as Assistant Director of Admissions and Recruitment for the Executive MBA program, consistently ranked as the #1 program of its kind. In that role, she interviewed and assessed US and international applicants as well as interacting directly with recommenders, faculty and alumni. Previously, she served as Assistant Director of Alumni Education, Alumni Relations and Development. Ms. Taylor's admissions career began at her alma mater Clarke College and then Loyola University Chicago. Her post-graduate studies were in non-profit management covering finance, accounting, contracts and strategic planning. She is a former member of the EMBA Council and the National Association of College Admissions Professionals.

Joanne Garcé-Rodríguez, senior admissions consultant

Ms. Garcé-Rodríguez has been an admissions professional for the past decade. Prior to joining The MBA Exchange, she served Columbia Business School as Admissions Manager for the Executive MBA Program reviewing applications, interviewing applicants and managing waitlisted candidates. Ms. Garcé-Rodríguez was also an Assistant Director of Operations for Columbia undergraduate admissions and then Director of Admissions for a small private college. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture from Barnard College and Master’s in Higher Education Administration from Teachers College at Columbia University. Ms. Garcé-Rodríguez is fluent in Spanish.

Dawn Clare, admissions consultant

After graduation from Harvard Business School, Ms. Clare entered the entertainment industry. As a vice president at Warner Bros., she focused on mergers and acquisitions, business development, marketing strategy and new ventures. At Paramount Pictures, Ms. Clare’s duties as a VP included channel and joint venture management, international business development, and global programming. She previously worked as a management consultant in the entertainment group of Booz Allen Hamilton. As a life and career coach, Ms. Clare has advised numerous applicants seeking admission to top-tier MBA programs. Prior to joining The MBA Exchange, her background included serving as an admissions panelist for prospective students, including women and minorities. Ms. Clare earned her MBA from Harvard with concentrations in finance and marketing. She also graduated from Pace University with a Bachelor’s of Business Administration degree magna cum laude.

Jessica Burlingame, admissions consultant

Ms. Burlingame has advised healthcare organizations nationwide on financial, clinical and organizational strategy and performance since earning her MBA from Columbia Business School. Prior to joining The MBA Exchange, her experience included private and investment banking, as well as editorial and business development roles with The Condé Nast Publications and Vault.com. Ms. Burlingame began working with prospective MBAs as a GMAT instructor for The Princeton Review, and interviewed candidates for Columbia Business School. She speaks fluent Italian and conversational Spanish and French. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Comparative Literature from Columbia University.

Alex Min, admissions consultant

An MBA graduate from the MIT Sloan School of Management, Mr. Min’s background includes sales, sales management, corporate strategy and international business development for Fortune 200 companies such as semiconductor distributor Avnet and $12-billion conglomerate Textron. He served in the United States Marine Corps as a pilot and staff officer throughout Asia and the Middle East. Prior to joining The MBA Exchange, Mr. Min helped numerous MBA applicants gain admission to top-tier business schools by providing application assessment, mentoring, and interview preparation. As an applicant, he earned acceptance to INSEAD and IMD as well as MIT Sloan. In addition to his MBA degree, Mr. Min holds a bachelor of science degree in art and design from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is fluent in Korean.

Ajoy Reddi, admissions consultant

Prior to graduating from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, Mr. Reddi's background included strategy consulting as well as equity research at Credit Suisse First Boston and Price Waterhouse. He has been directly involved in many aspects of the admissions process – from recruiting and interviewing applicants for the Chicago GSB to providing GMAT instruction and private tutoring on behalf of Kaplan Test Prep. In addition to his MBA, Mr. Reddi holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University. He is fluent in French.

Yaron Sadan, admissions consultant

A graduate of Columbia Business School with an MBA in finance, Mr. Sadan has over a decade of value equity investing, trading, algorithmic modeling, asset allocation and financial advisory experience. Prior to founding his own boutique money-management firm, Mr. Sadan worked for Goldman Sachs and Sanford C. Bernstein. Before joining The MBA Exchange, he was an independent MBA admissions consultant and GMAT tutor. Mr. Sadan has achieved success with a wide variety of business school applicants, including military veterans and other career changers. In addition to his MBA from Columbia, Mr. Sadan earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology & Society from Cornell University. He speaks fluent Hebrew.

Peter Farago, admissions consultant

An MBA graduate of The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania , Mr. Farago has over 13 years of marketing and product management experience spanning the consumer packaged goods, software, video gaming and wireless industries. His background includes working for companies such as Electronic Arts and Microsoft. The majority of Mr. Farago’s business experience is in building early-stage, LBO and VC-backed companies. He joined The MBA Exchange in 2003 and since then has helped applicants gain admission to top MBA programs including Stanford, Harvard and Wharton. In addition to his MBA from The Wharton School, Mr. Farago holds a BS in Marketing and Finance, with a minor in German, from the University of California, Berkeley.

Dora Fang, admissions consultant

A graduate of the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, Ms. Fang’s background includes sales, marketing, and strategy in the automotive, motorsports and medical devices industries for companies such as Mercedes-Benz, Harley-Davidson, Guidant Corporation, and Texas Pacific Group. In addition, she was an entrepreneur, founding an off-road driver-training school that grew into an adventure outing and vehicle outfitting specialist. Ms. Fang has been involved in the admissions process since 1996 – from recruiting and interviewing applicants for the Tuck School of Business and Duke University to GMAT instruction and private tutoring for The Princeton Review. In addition to her MBA from Tuck, she holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Policy Studies from Duke University. She speaks fluent Mandarin Chinese.

Elizabeth Bender, admissions consultant

An MBA graduate of The Fuqua School of Business at Duke University, Ms. Bender majored in marketing and management. Prior to joining The MBA Exchange, she had over 10 years of corporate experience in the pharmaceutical industry. Ms. Bender has held management positions in marketing, sales and human resources for a leading pharmacy benefits management company. She gained further experience in sales and information technology at Eli Lilly and Company. At Fuqua, she worked in the admissions office where she advised MBA applicants. Her own admissions campaign produced offers from four top-tier schools. Ms. Bender holds a Bachelor of Arts degree cum laude in Mathematics from Hanover College. In addition, she studied services marketing, leadership, employee and customer loyalty, and business ethics at The Center for Services Leadership at Arizona State University.

Jean Zhu, admissions consultant

An MBA graduate of Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, Ms. Zhu majored in marketing, management and strategy. She has worked for Fortune 300 companies in the personal computer, telecommunications, test instruments, and Internet services industries. Her experience includes business development, product marketing, market research, and corporate strategy. Ms. Zhu has served as an application reader and interviewer for the Kellogg School of Management. In addition to her MBA from Kellogg, Ms. Zhu holds a Bachelor of Science degree cum laude in Computer Science and Management Information Science from the University of Minnesota. She is fluent in Mandarin Chinese.

Raj Agarwal, admissions consultant

A 2000 MBA graduate of The Wharton School and a licensed attorney, Mr. Agarwal also graduated from the University of Miami School of Law, which he attended on full scholarship, and also its undergraduate School of Business. Before joining The MBA Exchange in 2004, his corporate experience included working at Texas Instruments where he co-managed and invested the company's cash and valued its real estate assets. He was also the head of finance for TI's analog broadband business unit. In addition, he has worked in operational finance for large public British and French companies. Mr. Agarwal has taught GMAT preparation courses, and served as a Graduate Assistant application reader/rater on the Wharton MBA Admissions Committee.

Dr. James M. Spitalny, Ed. D., education advisor

A licensed clinical and school psychologist skilled in diagnostic testing and counseling, Dr. Spitalny is a respected and accomplished professional serving individuals, institutions and corporations. He holds a doctorate in counseling psychology from Rutgers University, master's degree in clinical psychology from Fairleigh Dickinson University, and bachelor's degree in psychology from Ohio University. Dr. Spitalny specializes in helping applicants overcome issues regarding GMAT test and admissions interview anxiety.

Colleen Douglass, career advisor

With over 15 years of experience in all areas of human resources, Ms. Douglass specializes in career development. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Business and Organizational Behavior from Indiana University and an MBA degree, concentrating in Human Resources, from the University of Texas at Austin. Ms. Douglass is certified to administer top-rated assessment instruments, including The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and The Strong Interest Inventory.

Our Associate Consultants

Distinguished MBA alumni from Harvard, Stanford, Wharton and other top schools, these professionals are seasoned executives experienced in a range of industries and management disciplines. They help MBA applicants to connect with the best -- and best-suited -- MBA programs. Our consultants are assigned according to relevant experience and understanding of each client's particular background and aspirations. As a team, we have admissions committee and admissions consulting experience that gives our clients the best of both worlds.

Our Client Alumni Advisors

Our international network includes first- and second-year business school students at leading schools. Former clients of The MBA Exchange, these outstanding students provide us with timely insights and lessons learned from their recent successes in the fierce competition for business school admissions. In appreciation for the contributions of The MBA Exchange to their own success, these individuals volunteer to share their school-specific knowledge with our current clients.