1. Every year a change of coach, with no clear plans till the last year in senior year. 2. Coaches are overloaded and do not dedicate enough facetime to students. 3. It took 3yrs of pestering to finally bring onboard a planned, systematic website to organize all work and put a plan together 4. No materialistic help in terms of finding internships, helping create a brag sheet, or suggestions on differentiating. Newsletters are fine, but coaches wouldn't personalize or guide 5. No tangible help in recommending scholarships or how to get one. read more

I researched this business and after an initial meeting signed my daughter up. We explained our daughter needed help starting the process of preparing to transfer from Las Positas to a 4 year university. This included providing all the assistance needed with the application process and giving her confidence to go away. After her initial meeting which was the most valuable, she got little direction and came home even more apprehensive to move away. I had to ask for updates for what they discussed and in the end she stopped going as she didn't find the meetings valuable. We ended up doing all on our end. Very disappointed. read more

We have worked with College Planning Solutions since the beginning of my daughter's senior year. I was lucky enough to be introduced to CPS through a College Planning seminar at my office. I am so glad to get the introduction, it was an eye-opener on the process of applying to colleges and how to apply for financial aid. It was helpful for my daughter to have someone knowledgeable to ask questions during the application process, review her essays, and go over her applications. It was also nice (as a parent) to have guidance on financial aid and the process of paying for college. I really appreciate Ayden and Amy's kind demeanor and help throughout this process. And the help is not over, they will assist me each year until both my kids complete college. read more

I started working with Ayden and the team when my oldest son was a sophomore and my twins were freshmen, and I'm glad we started early. They started working with my sons on rounding out their high school activities and experiences long before the college application process and CPS provides access to tools and data that helped my sons better identify their strengths and interests. As we got closer to college application time, the team helped to identify schools that were a good fit for my sons' academic and extracurricular interests. I was also able to get a good idea of the likelihood of financial aid and how much. During the application process, Ayden's team did an outstanding job of reviewing essays, taking the pressure off of me in keeping my sons on schedule in meeting application deadlines. My sons responded so much better to the coaching, prodding, and encouragement from Ayden's team than they ever would have if it were solely up to me. In the end, my sons all got into at least one of their top school choices and have been very happy with their decisions. Ayden also pointed me to his colleagues at College Planning Experts who have been very helpful in mapping out how to pay for 3 kids in college over a 5-6 year period. It has been a joy working with Ayden not only because he's extremely knowledgeable and efficient in what he does, but he's also an incredibly nice guy and he hires and works with people who are equally knowledgeable and professional. read more

I would recommend anyone looking for help with college planning to use Ayden and College Planning Solutions. He was beyond helpful, beyond knowledgeable and always there to help in anyway. The process can be very difficult especially for first time parents like us make sure you reach out to Ayden early on in the process. He is one of the nicest, most honest people I have ever met. We are grateful for your help Ayden thank you so much for everything. read more

About Ayden and his team, they are the humblest human beings that you can get to interact with. He and his team are down to earth, they understand the nuances for the eager students and they make it most comfortable for them to partner effectively. They have been there in our journey as we navigate through this and with their thorough feedback loop, we have effectively managed that our daughter gets the best as they could objectively offer. Since we are the first generation families, they were of great help to navigate the nuances of the college admission process, selection of colleges, scholarships, and making sure we are on the correct course. My sincere commendations to Ayden and his team to make this process seamless for getting our first kid to college. We are signing up for our second kid as well because they are perfectly reasonable and keep their sincere interest in their hearts to make the families succeed. Best regards and wishing them for their continued success. read more

After having Ayden do the planning for our daughter to attend University of Oregon, he did a great with that . But Ayden was selling the financial part of financing our daughter's education pretty hard and very convincing. He works with Brian Safdari who recommended that we take money out of our home to pay for her education and that he would put it annuities for us . The money was put in annuities and realize by the time we paid off her loans(20 years) we would be paying a lot more in interest on her school loans then if we would have just taken the money and just pay in beginning. . We kept asking Brian how he makes his money, but he would beat around the bush. then after 3 years we realize that we were paying more for her education then if would have paid it up front in the 4 years. So the way they make their money is that if you take out the money before the maturity date they charge you a surrender fee which was more then $20,000 that we ended paying them. So DO NOT use Brian Safdari financial advisor!!!! As you can see this is my second review. The first was the beginning of us working with Ayden. But they were not honest on how the whole financial part of paying for college worked. After 4 years we realize it, what a SCAM!! read more

Ayden and College Planning Solutions far exceeded our greatest expectations and more for our daughter. 1. Promises kept - always. If Ayden says it's going to happen, bank on it. To be completely honest I wasn't too sure if he could pull off everything he said but I was willing to give it a whirl. Why? 2. Ayden loves kids. He connects with kids and most importantly he supported us at every step of the process. Priceless! 3. If you're a 'Tiger' Mom or Dad beware. These folks believe in making the student responsible for almost everything. Ayden provides the tools, staff and guidance. I was told to, 'Go get coffee twice' before I got the message. 4. Net. Net. My daughter was accepted into her, 'stretch' college. Wow! read more

Listened to a presentation through our high school and they booted me off the call before the end as they didn't want to pay the school the spiff promised for attendance. I spent over 40 minutes on the call with my video on as requested and was still removed. It was a very heavy sales pitch for their services but is mostly information you can learn on your own or through the counselors at your students high school. This was all about money and not the success of the student. read more

CPS has been great in helping our oldest get into college. Ayden introduced us to a private college not on our list when we were only considering public schools. Our son was accepted and received financial aid making it more affordable than a UC. The school is perfect for him and he loves it there. Ayden helped us along the way in understanding the financial aid process with FAFSA. He worked with our student and also helped narrow down majors of study. Best fit colleges and comparisons between private and public was enlightening to say the least! His team helped with the college application process including the writing aspects. We are now working with Ayden and our second high school student. Give CPS a call and setup some time to talk to Ayden and understand how he can help make the collage application process easier and more affordable. read more

The College Planning Solutions team is amazing! Ayden was never too busy for us. Anytime we had any questions we always received a quick response with our questions immediately being addressed. The team walked us through each step of the way. I was so relieved to have this kind of help and support for me and my daughter with what can be such an overwhelming process. Ayden, I can't thank you and your team enough. read more

I have been helped by Ayden for almost two years now, and he has consistently provided timely, thorough, and kind service! He has helped calm any nerves regarding finances and attendance at my university through wonderful explanations of concepts and how the financial aid system works. While I am the oldest sibling, there was not much of an example for me to follow regarding how financial aid applications should be completed to have ideal outcomes. It only took one visit to College Planning Solutions to be educated on all the important aspects of the process, and I left knowing I had found a perfect resource. Ayden assured us that he would help to maximize our financial aid packages through my university's office, and we have been fortunate to have consistently received generous aid since he began helping us. My college experience would not be the same without Ayden, and when financial aid application periods roll around I know exactly who to reach out to. Thank you, Ayden! read more

We have nothing but wonderful things to say about Ayden and his team. Ayden and Amy were great. From the time we started with them till the day my nephew received a scholarship for baseball. I know many would say you could do this on your own or find this stuff online but for a grama that is raising her grandkid and an aunt that is crazy busy trying to help financially, I can say that Ayden and Amy stepped in and guided my nephew by his hand. They helped with all the essays, paperwork for everything, colleges and anything else you can imagine. They did it all with him even helped him pick the best college based on his financial needs, interest and education. It was so nice to have them every step of the way and I didn't have to worry about a thing, I mean anything. They did it all and it was awesome! I can never thank them enough for all their work. I would tell anyone to go with them and if I ever have a kid of my own in the future, I hope Ayden has someone to take over b/c I will be calling again. If not, I have two more nephews :). Thanks again Ayden and Amy! You guys are the best! read more

Ayden and his team have advised our student and family throughout high school to ensure we were on track. The academic counseling, college application selection and preparation, and financial advising were top notch. Our daughter was accepted to six schools (three public and three private) and received academic/financial scholarship offers from all three private schools. She will attend Fordham University in Fall 2022 with free tuition. read more

Ayden and his staff were highly recommended by a close friend, and he surpassed our expectations. They did a wonderful job helping our daughter with this hard process, and we are forever grateful read more

I waited until we had finished all the primary work with Ayden and Amy. I was a little skeptical at the beginning as it is certainly an investment to hire them to help with college selection and applications. Now that it's been all said and done, it was very much worth it. My daughter is not a straight A student, and SAT average score. I am not wealthy and had not saved anything for college. Another nuance is my daughter really wanted a school that accepts diversity, as she is gay. I thought she was destined for a state school, but Ayden and Amy helped her (not her parents) figure out what were the best schools that would meet her needs academically and socially. They helped her with her weekly to do's. They reviewed financial applications, got the best essay reviewer and stayed on top of everything! They had a small private school I would have dismissed immediately if they hadn't convinced me that she had a great chance at scholarships. Low and behold this great school, offered her so much, we will not have to burden ourselves or get with big student loans. I am confident that this never would have come to be without their help. She was accepted to 8 colleges in all, and offered many partial scholarships. In the end she received 33k a year, the rest we are able to pay out of pocket. College is a huge step, I believe it is worth investing in doing what you can to help your kids. Note I also had a good friend that used them the same time as we did and found it also a huge help. So I know we were not unique. read more

I would recommend College Planning Solutions to anyone with children planning to attend college. My daughter is a Senior and I thought maybe we were too late to seek help but that was not the case. Ayden helped us through the entire application processes. He checked in regularly and made sure my daughter had all the information she needed to make a decision on what schools met her needs. read more

Our family used Ayden for some of our college planning needs (an appeal, working with multiple colleges to make sure everyone was on the same page, selecting the correct classes to take to to meet major and graduation requirements, and more...) I would highly recommend College Planning Solutions and Ayden for anyone requiring college planning assistance. read more

I went to Ayden's workshop and learned how to send a student to a private university for less then the cost of a state school. He taught the families the formula to free money that high school parents did not know. He is extremely knowledgeable and think every parent should go see. All his strategies will save your family over thousands of dollars at any college. Thank you Ayden for having the passion and knowledge to help families in this complicated process. read more

I've been really lucky to work with Ayden and Amy for the past two years! As a community college student, choosing which schools to transfer to can be very stressful and tricky, but CPS made the process so much easier and efficient! Besides helping me pick schools that were a good fit for me, CPS helped me edit my college essays, guide me through applications, and apply for financial aid. I really appreciate the personal touch that Amy and Ayden emphasized during the process; they took the time to get to know me and my goals for school and my future career. Before choosing CPS, I called a few other college planning advisors and was quickly questioned about my GPA and scores. Ayden, however, only focused on what my goals were and how to achieve them. In addition, both Amy and Ayden have patiently answered every single question or concern I've had during the past two years (and there have been a lot of them)! As I am getting ready to transfer now, I'm excited to say that I've been accepted to most of the UC's and some other private institutions. I can't thank CPS enough for all the help they've given me and I definitely recommend them to anyone who is looking to attend a high-ranking educational institution. read more

I've have been working with Ayden Masudi since September 2017, when I attended one of his classes in Union City next by James Logan High School. I had to say I was nervous at first, thinking if he is legit or will he really help my family. After talking and working with Ayden week after week, I've found that he is the best thing happened to me & my family!! Every questions I've asked, he's been very responsive and on point! He made my kids college planning and FAFSA process so easy and simple. Both of my kids are now going to attend top colleges this Fall; and I cannot thank Ayden enough for his help. I would totally recommend Ayden for help if you want to start planning your kids college. read more

Ayden and College Planning Solutions were very helpful for me and my daughter this past year. I am a single parent and CPS was invaluable in helping keep my daughter and me on track to get financial aid forms, applications, essays, etc. finished and turned in on time. It is so helpful working with people who are familiar with the process and can help provide insights and tips along the way. There are so many working parts to the application process; I was so glad to have help and guidance from CPS. read more

Ayden and his staff are absolutely outstanding individuals and exposed us to funding and resources that have allowed us to send our children to private institutions. Ayden is always there to help and answer questions/take phone calls at any time of the day including weekends and I find him to be one of most caring, helping and polite individual. We had a college matter that required immediate attention last weekend and without hesitation Ayden was on the matter and got it resolved immediately. The team is supportive and do not daunt the complex college process - they actually make it stress free! Ayden is on top of things which we appreciate tremendously. Prior to Ayden we had another advisor and my son would leave that individual's place in tears. He was constantly criticized for not having a 4.xx GPA which according to her was a requirement of any University despite him being a tennis athlete and captain of the team and playing National tournaments. Without any hesitation I recommend College Planning Solutions - read more

I have used Ayden Masudi from College Planning Solutions for two of my daughters and he has been very helpful in the entire process. Basically he took over the whole process and I didn't have to do anything. His team worked with my daughters on the entire application process, essay and all financial related documents. I would highly recommend him for any of your kids college needs. read more

I've been fortunate to work with Ayden and his team at College Planning Solutions for over one year. I first met Ayden at an informative presentation on college planning at Castro Valley High School. During all my interactions with Ayden, one thing was apparent--his kind attention to my concerns for my son's success in the college admission process and his wealth of knowledge about how best to maximize my son's financial aid award. I called Ayden recently to get a quote on the cost of having him assist me with my son's financial aid submission for next school year, and I was surprised and pleased that he wouldn't charge me additional for this service! He also gave me income threshold information for my son and other important information about private lenders that will allow me to be removed as a co-signer after the first year of the loan. As a single parent with a fixed income, I appreciated knowing this information. I also found Ayden's proprietary database on college statistics very helpful. The database gave me access to information all in one convenient place and saved me tons of research hours. And, as a result, my son was considered and accepted to two respected private universities in Northern California for which he would not have had it not been for his on-campus interviews and personal statements. read more

I had the pleasure of working for Ayden as a Student Positioning Counselor and enjoyed working with and meeting many talented and motivated students and their families along the way. I appreciated Ayden's ability to get to know each student's strengths and personality and see their potential. CPS provides a wonderful, supportive environment where students and their parents can explore the college admissions process with ease and support. read more

My husband and I can't thank Ayden enough. He came highly recommended to us and in the midst of a raising a busy teenage daughter, having to plan for college financially seemed to be a daunting task. We met with Ayden and our financial fears were lifted when it came to feeling prepared for one of the biggest investments as parents. He is extremely personable, patient and knowledgeable. He has a great sense of urgency and always followed up to make sure our needs were met and our questions were answered. Ayden is such a great resource and we will continue to recommend his services. Thank you Ayden for taking care of our family! read more

Ayden, Amy and his entire team are highly knowledgeable about the entire process of selecting and applying to the right colleges. Amy was super helpful in coaching my daughter on the required essays. Prior to working with CPS, private universities would not have been on our radar due to sticker price shock. Ayden and team helped educate us on a strategy that fit well with my daughter's accomplishments and interests, and as importantly, financial considerations. My daughter has committed to Chapman next year and we owe a great deal of credit to College Planning Solutions for their expertise and assistance. I will use them again as my son begins his college planning. read more

I attended Ayden's workshop last year when my daughter was starting her junior year. As with most parents, it's such a long and overwhelming process to help your teenager get ready for college. Without Ayden's knowledge and expertise, I know I would be in a difficult financial situation. His expertise was effortless and very thorough. I'm proud to report that my daughter was successfully admitted to the college she wanted to attend and received 75% in grants and scholarships. We would not have been able to do this without Ayden's guidance. We are forever grateful and an advocate for his service. Highly recommend him! Thank you Ayden!! read more

My wife and I met Ayden Masudi while planning for our son's college financially. Ayden is very knowledgeable and able to provide professional assistance in all aspects of college planning. He helped us to maximize the money made available by universities, as well as money available thru federal and state sources. Ayden and his staff are easy to work with and he is always quick to respond to phone messages and emails. My wife and I highly endorse and recommend CPS. read more

Didn't get the assistance we expected and paid for. Counselors not available for various reasons and we were not notified. Told to write essay and contact counselor in two weeks. No guidance. Ayden Masudi literally emailed us "Our office hours are Monday-Friday 9am-5pm. Out of courtesy I responded to your email..." When we emailed again because two counselors had not responded or set up any meetings, we received from Ayden "Again our office hours were mentioned above." Ayden must subcontract out the work. He ended up refunding our money rather than doing the job. Much better college counselors out there. So glad we left, found a great one who actually works outside of 9-5 and provides guidance. read more

After hearing a presentation from a different "college planning" organization about college financing at our oldest son's high school, my wife and I met with representatives from that company. We quickly and with great disappointment found out that group was primarily focused on selling very costly financial insurance products. Helping families work through college planning was, unfortunately, clearly an afterthought for them. It was about them getting money out of our pockets into theirs. A good friend of ours recommended Ayden's team's services. With skepticism and doubt, we reached out to him a couple of years ago fully expecting a replay of the same play book as that first group. We were SO wrong! Ayden was a breath of fresh air! He is not about selling product--he and his team are there to serve families and help them through this college planning journey. Period! He tirelessly and patiently worked with us, providing amazing support and assistance to position our son to have the perfect doors opened for a great education at a more than affordable cost! I am most impressed with and appreciative of how he takes time to get to know the individual students he works with. He definitely cares greatly and genuinely about the students and their families, seeking their best interest throughout the process. I cannot say enough for what he has done for our family! He is an incredibly caring and genuine--definitely the real deal! He has been a true blessing to us! We cannot say enough about him and his team! Ayden is now working with our second son, who is now in his senior year. Our third son is a freshman and we're hoping Ayden has room for him. I have highly recommended Ayden to several friends even those who have a high salary. I do the same to any other families looking for assistance. read more

We hired College Planning Solutions our daughter's Junior year. She is our only child so we had one shot at navigating the highly, over-complicated college process. Now a 2020 high school graduate, we have found Ayden's guidance an absolute blessing during this crazy pandemic as higher education is scrambling through uncharted waters. College Planning Solutions is a great value considering their services span throughout your young adult's college education. read more

We are so thankful we found Ayden, the founder of College Planning Solutions. He and his team are extremely knowledgeable and professional in planning and executing the process necessary to prepare for college. Their services are thorough and comprehensive, providing guidance with career selection, test and essay preparation, school applications, and what parents are concerned about the most, the cost and financial preparations for college tuition. He really cares about the success of your child and family! Even when we moved to another state, he was there to help us each step of the way! We are grateful for his service and would highly recommend him and his company! read more

College Planning Solutions is great. Ayden provided guidance in college selection and help us develop a plan for payment for college. He gave us detailed information that I believed allowed us to build solid foundation for my daughter's future. Highly recommended! read more

Ayden Masudi has helped me for my daughter's college planning. I went to him at a very last minute, Ayden personally helped us out not only to help us decide which college is best for my daughter but also help her get extra scholarships. Ayden is the BEST! He takes good care of his clients. Excellent Support! I highly recommend using his services to plan for your child's future. read more

My son was a fair student (3.35) with fair test scores (21 and 1300). We got into about half of the schools he wanted (UC's were impossible with these scores) but in the end he wanted UofAriz. With Ayden's guidance were were able to get enough money from the school and other sources to make it comparable to cost of UC's. I cannot tell you how many people ask us how we did this! I can only tell you it would not have happened without his experience and guidance. Hat's off to him and his team! read more

We used Ayden for both our girls and as two working parents we didn't have much time to navigate the whole FASFA process, so we really appreciated all the help. Ayden was honest and transparent during the whole process. He let us know that based on our income and my daughter's grades and SAT scores, they could still get great academic scholarships from private universities, and state schools would not be the most cost effective route (we were surprised). We never even considered private universities because of the cost. His team helped my daughters stay on track with all the key admissions dates, essay writing and helped them identify schools that would line up well with their goals. Their computer admission and cost modeling were almost dead on. He identified safe schools (pretty much slam dunks) and stretch schools (Ivy Leagues and Stanford) and schools in between. My eldest daughter was accepted to every UC she applied to and received almost full scholarships to some great private schools (USC, Santa Clara), she chose UC Berkeley (of course the most expensive option). Our second daughter faired equally well and decided to attend Cal Poly SLO (at least a bit less expensive). We were not expecting Ayden's team to do all the work as it should be a partnership. They set up appointments with my daughters and they worked directly with them to make sure things stayed on track. It gave us the peace of mind we needed in this very competitive college application process. I am very surprised by the negative reviews that state they never did anything but take their check or just hand them a notebook. That couldn't be further from our experience. My eldest daughter graduates from Berkeley this year and will be applying to med schools in a few months and we plan to reach out to Ayden to see if he can assist in that process or refer us to someone that specializes with that type of application process as we do trust his years of experience. Ayden has also continued to complete the annual FASFA renewals for us over the past 4 years as part of our original fee. He set realistic expectations and my daughters applied to some schools we would have never considered (because of the perceived cost) before meeting with Ayden. My daughters were originally only considering applying to UC and State schools. In the end they had more options then they could have possibly imagined. And choices are a great thing, especially in this crazy college process. read more

We learned about Ayden in the middle of college acceptance letters for one of our kids and chose to utilize Ayden's services through the college years of both children. We have been very satisfied. First, Ayden has always been attentive and responsive to our emails and calls. I work full time and my job schedule doesn't always allow for communication to happen between 9 and 5, so I appreciated that Ayden made himself available when I could communicate. He patiently answered questions and helped us with the daunting task of the FAFSA. He was always honest and helped us understand how one of our children would be able to attend an expensive private school which we never believed we could afford. He was well worth his fee for our family. He provided the services we were promised and I would not hesitate to recommend him. read more

RUN as fast as you can! This place is a total scam! If I could give a negative stars I would. After receiving the money almost a year ago, we have received no help. Oh yes, I did the FASFA myself and their team also did it..umm I did it myself so thanks for overlooking considering I have other adult children I did it for I am sure it was fine. BUT ok, let them. Needless to say, after months and missing every scholarship opportunity we haven;t heard from them once until my son had to call and get a status and ask "aren't you helping me". Save your money and use school resources or some other help. We already know our son is receiving financial aide thanks to me and my form, however al the other promised help to get scholarships were never worked on or discussed once payment was received. I plan to report to BBB and all the local schools and post on every community website to save others the headache by reporting my personal experience with Ayden and College Planning Solutions. Its sad for someone to take advantage during these times. read more