College Counseling Services
Currently accepting students in the Classes of 2029 and 2030.
(At capacity for the Classes of 2027 and 2028.)
Our comprehensive college counseling package provides the clarity and direction students and parents need for an organized, strategic, calm, and successful college application process, including a detailed curriculum and timeline. We employ three major workflows:
Academics & Activities
Exploring Interests and Building Credentials
Includes:
High school transcript review and course selection advice
Extracurricular activities review and advice
Timeline for ACT/SAT prep and testing
Career and Personality Assessments
College List
Choosing Best-Fit Colleges
Includes:
College list-building focusing on academic, social, and financial fit
Interactive, data-driven tools
Advice on demonstrating interest to colleges that consider it
Strategies for applying early decision and early action
Applications
Telling The Student’s Story
Includes:
Assistance with Common App personal statement and UC personal insight questions
Guidance on college-specific supplemental essays
Help with activities and honors lists
Assistance in selecting teacher recommenders and preparing for interviews
Hourly consultations are also available on a space-available basis, typically from January through May.
Let’s get started!
“My experience with Steve helped make the college application process less stressful and daunting.
I remember going into the process not knowing how to tackle elements such as identifying which schools to apply to, how to structure my main essay, or how to navigate the Common App. He helped me stay on track and maintain manageable deadlines while having a heavy courseload at school. With Steve’s help, I successfully navigated the process and displayed who I genuinely was as a student and a person! I couldn’t imagine doing this process again without his help!"
—Alan, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Frequently Asked Questions
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Some parents feel intimidated by how much the college admissions process has changed and value the insights and guidance of an expert. If you’re hoping for a less stressful college application process and individualized attention for your student, hiring an independent college counselor may be the right decision for your family.
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It can be helpful to start in 10th grade—such as to discuss course selection and extracurricular activities and develop a test-prep timeline; other families start working with us during 11th grade if we have space available.
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We work with all kinds of students. In our intro call, we’ll spend some time getting to know each other to ensure it’s a good mutual fit. We’ve found that we work best with open-minded, coachable, and communicative families.
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Our approach empowers the student to take the lead. While parents often weigh in at specific points, this is an essential time for self-discovery in your child’s life. We find that encouraging the student to drive the process, with our guidance, leads to the best results.
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It depends on where you’re applying, but—even for test-optional colleges—it is usually advisable for students to take either the SAT or ACT to maximize admission chances and merit scholarships. We recommend that students take a mock SAT and ACT to determine which test is a better fit and then prepare for that test. We work with students to advise on their testing schedule and, ultimately, whether to submit their test scores to specific colleges.
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Both can be advantageous depending on a student’s goals and a family’s financial constraints and priorities. Deciding whether to apply early decision and/or early action is a strategic decision usually made once we’ve completed a balanced college list for your student and the student has decided on their top choices. In most cases, students should at least apply early action wherever possible. See this blog for more information.
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We can provide high-level advice and merit-based scholarship support, though we are not financial aid experts. Our Resources page includes several free resources to help navigate the financial aid process.
Ready to get started?
Let’s help your student find their best-fit school.