I am very grateful for the role that Nicole Freeling played in our son's college selection process,…read moreand would like to explain it in some detail. My wife and I approached Nicole during our son's sophomore year. He had suffered a brain injury the prior summer and was struggling in school because of visual deficits and persistent head pain resulting from the trauma. At that moment, we were more concerned about how to get the right treatment for our son -- and the right accommodations in place -- so he could finish high school. But engaged Nicole because the decisions we made would ultimately affect our son's ability to attend a great university, and we wanted him to believe that this was still within his reach. He's a deeply intellectually serious young man, so we wanted to keep his horizons broad. Nicole did the research and returned to us with the conclusion that we should extend our son's high school career so he could focus on his recovery, and that a fifth year of high school would be a better solution for his circumstances than graduating on time with a less rigorous curriculum. We plotted his high school trajectory to maximize time spent in recovery during this junior year, ramping up the rigor and density of his coursework through a "gap year" that allowed him to finish his A to G requirements most at UC Berkeley and BCC, to great success. Nicole believed in our son and supported his application to a range of selective colleges. She had on-point advice on making the list, ensuring that it included schools he would likely get into as well as reach schools. Most importantly in this process, she encouraged our son to tell the story of his recovery, which he was not otherwise inclined to do. In the end, he was admitted early decision to a highly competitive college, where we believe he will thrive. We are all very grateful for Nicole and On My Way for their role not just in the college process, but in our son's overall recovery. These are good people.

I chose Olivia becauseshe brought the insight, expertise and best practices that I needed to help…read moremy kids. Olivia brought structure to how my kids should think about the types of school and the majors they should explore. She was tremendously helpful in deciphering the financial aid black hole for my and my husband. I love her collaborative approach with my kids and us parents. Working with Olivia helped open up opportunities, lessen the stress and even made the application process a little bit fun. I've already recommended Olivia to all my friends with college bound kids. You and your kids will be glad you decided to work with Olivia!!

I had an amazing experience working with Gourdy. He helped raise my ACT score a ton and was super…read morehelpful with all my college essays, from private schools to UCs. He really knows what he's doing and made the whole process way less stressful. He was also a big reason I got into UC Berkeley, which I'm super grateful for. On top of that, he's really knowledgeable but also funny, so sessions never felt boring. Definitely recommend if you want someone who actually makes a difference.

Gordy is an exceptional college counselor! He kept my son on tack and met all the deadlines even…read morewhen we had limited time. He was encouraging and used virtual services effectively. I also liked how he created google folders and made the whole process of essays and tasks easy and even fun! I would highly recommend Gordy!

Emily at Lodestar worked with me on my my college application essays. I loved working with Emily…read morebecause she took the time to understand the message I wanted to convey, and then worked with me to craft it in a way made my story unique. The final versions felt authentic to me, but very polished and with a much stronger message than what I started with. I ended up getting into my top choice school (which was actually a school my college counselor told me I shouldn't bother applying to because of how competitive their application pool is) and I'm certain that my essays are what helped me stand out from the pack!

I hired Emily for admissions services and couldn't be happier! She was professional, easy to talk…read moreto, and genuinely cared about my success. The process was well defined and enjoyable. Her interview coaching helped me to present the best version of myself. Very highly recommend! Sophie S. San Diego

What can I say about Judith and Positive Outcomes? Well it was positively the best decision we…read morecould have made for our daughter and family to navigate the incredibly complex college selection landscape! We did not even know where to begin and my daughter felt like she didn't even have a chance because she didn't have a 4.0 and perfect test scores, she was discouraged before even starting the search. Judith quickly got to know our student and she was genuinely interested and excited to hear about our daughter's passions. Because of this Judith really got her to open up and explore ideas for the essays and personal statements. After every meeting with Judith, our daughter felt more and more confident and even started getting excited about her options! Judith is extremely organized and knows all of the ins and outs of the college admissions process, I was pleasantly surprised by how deeply familiar she was with so many colleges across the country, she could answer almost all specific questions off the top of her head. If she didn't know the answer, she would quickly research and get back to us. Judith manages everything with the student, as a parent I only had to get involved when I wanted to, Judith empowers the students to own the process and be accountable and it worked! I'm happy to say our daughter got into most of the schools she applied to and we can't be happier with the college she has decided to attend. Thank you Judith!

I have used Judith's admissions expertise twice. After getting into my first choice university with…read morea scholarship, I recently used Positive Outcome for Admissions Success' services again for my law school applications. As someone who considers themselves an excellent writer, I had major writer's block when it came to writing about myself. Judith helped me get over my fear that I sounded like I was bragging, and got me to highlight why I was a competitive candidate for school. Judith has a talent for getting you to bring out the most interesting aspects of your story, helping you consider the most advantageous angle. She talked me through my experiences to understand my strengths. Then she worked with me to edit out the fluff to create strong concise points and an effective essay which truly reflected my character. With college applications, you are presented with limited space in which to demonstrate who you are. Positive Outcome helped me make the best use out of the space I had, eliminating unnecessary information so that my strengths were highlighted. With Judith's guidance, I was able to produce a personal statement that I was proud of. I was accepted to my first choice school with a $50,000 yearly leadership scholarship. This scholarship would not have been possible without Judith's help. She got me to reflect and really draw from the strongest parts of my experience-- to show I was a leader, not just say that I was one. I am currently waiting for law school acceptances without stress, knowing I sent in my best application materials.

Elaine is a world-class advisor--thoughtful, capable, compassionate, and responsive…read more She worked with our twins for several years as we navigated the stress and uncertainty of the college process--where to apply, how to think about value, and how to strike the right balance between reach, target, and safety schools. The process today is daunting. With Ivies accepting just 3-5% of applicants and UC schools also extremely competitive, it's too risky to go it alone and hope for the best. Elaine dedicated an extraordinary amount of time and care guiding our kids through every step. No matter the situation, her advice was always thoughtful and transparent. She responded quickly to every question, usually the same day or within 24 hours. Of course, no advisor can work miracles if a student isn't already committed and putting in the effort--but for motivated students, even the strongest ones, her guidance is invaluable. She also helps set realistic expectations for both kids and parents, which is just as important as anything else. Now the results are in. Both of our kids are strong IB students who were active in music and leadership programs. While the Ivies ultimately proved too far a stretch (despite their qualifications), they were accepted to several top UC and state schools, as well as USC, LMU, and others. Our daughter has chosen UC Berkeley, where she also received a significant merit scholarship--something we were especially grateful for given the cost of college today. Our son was also offered spots at UC Berkeley and UCSD, but has USC Thornton in his sights. If you have a child entering or already in high school, I highly recommend starting with Elaine for an initial consultation. Our whole family--especially our kids--is grateful for her guidance, which led to outstanding options at some of the top public and private universities in the country. We couldn't be more thrilled with the outcome and look forward to the next chapter with twins in college.

Elaine Chan helped my daughter apply for college for the fall of 2023 and I can't say enough…read morepositive things about Elaine! Let me try though... First of all, Elaine is extremely knowledgeable and professional- she does her research on colleges and keeps very up-to-date on the changes in universities and in the application process, even going on regular in-person visits to check out college campuses herself. She offers very personalized counseling services because she gets to know the student in conversation as well as through assessment tools. She counsels the student and family to apply for best-match colleges based on all relevant interests including academic, social, environmental/"vibe", geographic, financial, etc. Secondly, Elaine is super accessible and an awesome communicator (dare I say, to a fault, with the speed in which she answered emails and texts??) and she is very organized. Elaine makes herself available to answer questions and to be helpful in any and all ways she can. Elaine is resourceful and provides important resources and support without overwhelming the student with TOO much information. Elaine is very easy to talk with and helped make the college application process practically painless! Thirdly, Elaine knows how to bring out the best in the student by helping the student understand and capitalize on their strengths and coaches the student in the essay writing and in all the other application requirements. Because of Elaine's deep familiarity with the college application process, she is able to counsel the student on approaching college application in a strategic manner. Lastly, Elaine is a genuinely wonderful person- she is warm and caring and we felt that she had my daughter's best interests in mind in all of her meetings with Elaine. Additionally, Elaine has a special place in her heart for first-generation college students and has extended herself above and beyond for students who would otherwise not have the knowledge, resources or support to apply for and attend college. We are grateful for Elaine's help and would give her 6 stars if we could!!

My son worked with Alex on his post-graduate schools and doctoral program applications, and working…read morewith Alex made huge difference. He was extremely knowledgeable about the process and easy to access at any time. My son accepted to a fully funded program.I highly recommend Alex if anyone looking for a coach to help with their writing . Thank you Alex!! I m grateful for your dedication and availability

Dr. Blum worked with my son on his college personal statement. Coached him over 5 sessions on how…read moreto organize, edit, transition and finish his statement. What we really appreciated was Dr. Blum did not write or direct the paper. He helped my son through the writing process. Strategies my son will use long past college. Highly recommend his services.

I highly recommend Alice Chen as a college admissions consultant. We met Alice when my son was in…read more10th grade. When we first met her, we knew she was the right person to help our son with his college application. She planned everything ahead and kept my son on track with all the application processes. She was always creative and shared new ideas from different aspects of the applications. She was tireless in her enthusiasm and generous with her time, especially during the holiday season. She gave my son the most considerable support. The competition is fierce for Asian male engineering students, and she helped my son create the strongest application possible. My son has already been accepted into an Ivy League university and another Top 10 University. She is an outstanding mentor - she works not just on the essay but on developing the potential of each of her students.

I am very grateful to have worked with Alice throughout the college application process!…read more Before I met Alice, I felt very unsure and stressed with deadlines, having gone through many different ideas/drafts for my essays. By asking specific questions and providing prompts for thinking, she helped bring my writing to life. In addition to providing advice/direction, she also always eased my stress and was a pleasure to talk with. With Alice's feedback, I was able present my best self to my colleges, helping me get accepted into my top choice school early.

I've taken Kaplan before so I'm curious as to how Princeton Review is. I might look into other…read moreoptions in addition to self-study but am interested in investigating this. (2025)

The college counselors are AWFUL. My friend has a 4.0 GPA, valedictorian, and a high score on tbe…read moreSAT, along with solid extracurriculars and 5 leadership positions, but her counselor here only destroyed her confidence and told her that she couldn't even get into a crappy state school with a 50% acceptance rate. The counselor is clearly a snob who's not interested in helping students, only crushing their dreams and telling them to aim lower. I listened to the entire counseling session, and the she was extremely rude and bitter and all around not helpful. She just threw insults at my friend in 100 different ways. Her whole agenda is to instill fear into applicants so they'll pay her more. The counselor was genuinely one of the worst people l've ever met and it's shocking to me that she can feel good about herself. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to name drop, but she had a very pretentious name that started with a D. If this sounds like your counselor, RUN.

or Sallie was a fantastic resource over the past year and a half. My child loved working with her,…read moreand together, they worked on all of the applications and college essays. Sallie made herself available whenever my kid wanted needed her. The college application process was a breeze. I am not kidding you! How often do you hear parents say that? My kid got into the school of their dreams, into their honors program, with a scholarship! And Sallie helped make that happen. I am so pleased that we went with Sallie Bryan. She made the whole process downright enjoyable. Thanks Sallie!

Let me just say that SAT and college preparation can be a stressful process. Mike helped my…read moredaughter feel at ease with the process by spending numerous hours mock testing, analyzing her while testing and then giving her tips on how to maximize and understand the material. Mike was super flexible yet dedicated to meeting our needs and schedule. As a result of working with Mike my daughters SAT and confidence increased! It doesn't get better than that. I highly recommend Wright Minded Tutoring and am so glad that he was referred to me by a coworker!

Mike is one of the best teachers I have come across. He is perceptive, flexible, and kind. He…read moretailors his teaching style to really fit the student's needs and preferences, and he makes any type of learning, even standardized test prep, an enjoyable experience. My skills grew so much with Mike's support and I highly recommend his services.