Judith Silverman Hodara

Founder

Highlights & Achievements

Former Head of MBA Admissions at Wharton
Nearly 20 Years in Admissions at the University of Pennsylvania
15 Years of Admissions Coaching Experience
EdD in Higher Education Management at University of Pennsylvania
Frequent Contributor to the Financial Times, WSJ, Economist, and Poets&Quants

Few industry leaders offer the depth and longevity of experience that Judith Silverman Hodara brings to Fortuna. As former Head of MBA Admissions at The Wharton School, Judith led the admissions committee, reviewed thousands of applications, and traveled across Asia, Europe, and the Middle East to recruit top global talent. Her insight into both the Wharton process and broader US admissions landscape makes her one of the most sought-after voices in the field.

Prior to co-founding Fortuna Admissions, Judith also served as Associate Director of Admissions for Penn’s undergraduate programs and later as Director of Academic Affairs for the Rothberg School at Hebrew University. Across her 30+ years in education, she’s built a reputation for combining rigor, warmth, and deep institutional insight in support of her clients.

Judith holds an EdD in Higher Education Management from the University of Pennsylvania. Her expertise has been featured in outlets including the Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, The Economist, and Poets&Quants.

After a lifetime as a bookworm, Judith now finds balance hiking the Appalachian Trails near her home – usually for the trail mix. She’s a fan of 70s dance music (much to her teenage daughter’s embarrassment), and never passes up a chance to throw on a good costume or find the scenic route.

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Real Reviews From Real Clients

Candidates Love Working With Judith

Big-Picture Meets Precision
“Judith has an unparalleled ability to connect the dots across diverse experiences, combining big-picture narrative strategy with sharp, detailed feedback. Her flexibility and dedication were outstanding.”

Stanford GSB admit

Truly Invested From Day One
“I was blown away by Judith’s dedication and her prep for the Wharton TBD. From day 1, she was truly invested in my success.”

Wharton admit

With Me at Every Step
“Judith’s years of adcom experience really show. From clarifying my career goals to structuring essays and interview responses, she supported me at every step. Amazing.”

Multiple schools admit

Wharton Insight That Delivers
“Judith’s deep Wharton insight and strategic guidance made all the difference. It was a complete delight to work with her.”

Wharton admit

Q&A with Judith

Why are you passionate about coaching?

Leading the admissions team, I frequently wished I could “say more” or give more specific advice to candidates with whom I interacted. I always enjoyed the chance to speak with candidates when they came to our office, or when I met them in their home cities. It’s that kind of engagement that I wanted to be a greater part of my work; which is why I felt that joining Matt and Caroline to found Fortuna was the perfect way for me to use my counseling skills outside of the confines of leading an admissions committee.

What’s your favorite client success story?

My first call with one client entailed him listing ALL the reasons why he felt that he was not a good fit for business school. He named things that he felt were against him: liberal arts major, basically viable GMAT score, undergrad institution, professional firm that wasn’t “blue chip.” But he also had this amazingly personal story that drove his reasons for wanting to get an MBA. Over the following months, we worked together to put that mission and commitment front and center of his presentation. Hearing his voice when he got his admissions and scholarship news made me incredibly happy.

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