Finding a college advisor was difficult as you don't know what you'll get until you pay a huge…read moreamount of money and have valuable time spent. We focused on businesses where the owner was the advisor and learned the questions to ask that would align with our kid's needs. The problem with the first college advisor I contacted was he pushed the need to do research and gave online options. My son already won a competition researching articles for an idea he had and didn't feel the need to do an online version. He wasn't able to find a hands-on opportunity so he didn't want to go with someone who thought online research was the only path to success. James, the business owner and current sole advisor of Academic & Career Mentors, worked with my son's interests and advised on an individual basis rather than making him into a cookie cutter applicant. Before meeting James, we hired someone who had ~150 five star reviews on Google and over a decade experience as a scholarship reader at a top UC. Though there were red flags in our interaction, I mistakenly trusted the reviews/his background. He had a structured program, but time was moved along without effective guidance. His limited feedback was superficial and generic: add numbers and buzz words and cut down the word count. He gave the go ahead for essays that needed a lot more work. My son was frustrated by the lack of depth in his responses. When I voiced my concern, he suggested to my kid that he worked better without parent involvement. After ~1.5 months/6 meetings, the guy still didn't know my son's profile. With push back, I received half of my money back, probably to lessen the likelihood of me writing a bad review as I had detailed what was poorly done/not done at each meeting. For my son, James was much more effective/efficient with the meetings. He reviewed a couple of essays each time with more thoughtful detailed feedback and guidance for revisions. He spent time thinking through how to make the story, evidence, and connection stronger. He met with my son 1-2x/week which I don't think many advisors would do that frequently. He was accessible via email for quick questions and was timely in responding. I did interview another person while interviewing James. My son felt the other person was very personable and easy to talk to. However, after a lot of questioning about how he would handle essays, I sensed there would be limited in-depth analysis as well. To meet our desire, he was going to pay an essay reader (English major) to spend ~1-2 hrs on the PIQs and possibly 1-2 hrs on the common app to give more detail feedback. This led me to hire James as he seemed more invested (would give more effort, time, depth of feedback, comprehensive help, ie help with supportive essays as well, and wasn't as much on the clock). After getting to know my son and reading the PIQs he had drafted, James recommended to switch to another PIQ to allow better explanation of "the why" in my son's motives/ decisions. He worked with my son on the content, message, and ease of understanding as a reader. My son found him to be helpful in brainstorming ideas on how to tell his story and in finding programs that were specific to a school to give more evidence as to why he wanted to go to "x" school. James is a very analytical and fast thinker. As you are talking, he is searching his computer for more specific supported answers. He was also receptive to feedback when I read an essay and felt it didn't help my son stand out enough. He helped my son complete his applications on time. We've only heard back from one school (he felt it was a target school for him) so far that my son applied early action to, and he was accepted. Even with hiring James for help with applications to the UCs and 2 in-state private schools, my son had others, including his English teacher, read his essays for more feedback and because he applied to 5 out-of-state competitive private schools on his own. (James' fee structure/advising model has changed for 2026 though so you might not be able to pay for x number of schools anymore). He wrote and rewrote each of his essays multiple times. So to us, not only is James professional and ethical in his business, he is also very dedicated and proactive. He advises with the care of individuals (young people) in mind.

James did a great job reviewing my son's transfer application and pinpointed the exact reason why…read morehe did not get accepted (a class did not meet a requirement). He then devised a plan going forward, which included an appeal. Because of his great insight, we appealed and my son got into the college he really wanted. Thank you James!!

Maggie was very helpful over the phone with questions and I would definitely use her services again…read morefor tax prep! I had questions about how to manage my retirement funds effectively and how to mitigate tax penalties and Maggie was very knowledgeable about the potential impacts using just a few statements from my brokerage account! If I had known it was this easy I would not have spent months agonizing over what to do when we were able to answer my questions in less than an hour! Maggie is very responsive to inquiries sent through on the website and to phone calls!

Maggi was great. Super smart and passionate about investment planning and the tax consequences. I…read morestrongly recommend and would use her again.

So thankful that I came across the Accident Guys. They helped me through the entire process. They…read moreeven were able to give me some money upfront so that I could fix my car prior to my settlement. They made everything very effortless. And they got me the max amount available. I will definitely be referring them. Very Happy

They were quick to respond and help me with my accident. They have been in contact with me every…read morestep of the way and helped me get the care I needed. I definitely recommend them. Alondra has been my case manager and very helpful. My attorney, Maxwell, has been in touch every step of the way to tell me the next steps and what he has been working on for my case. I even referred them to another friend who was in an accident also since I received such great care!

Helped get a citation dismissed, recommend working with their team. They came recommended by a…read morefriend and they didn't disappoint.

I wished I could've gotten a better end result but they helped me nevertheless more than if I…read morehadn't utilized their services. The video showed I crossed the red light a fraction of a second after it turned red, it was a minor infraction, nothing I did was blatant, yet my ticket still ended up almost $300 after I already paid their $200 fee. IDK if they advocated for me or brought up any extenuating circumstances as I explained to them or just pleaded guilty on my behalf. Anyway it doesn't matter. That said, off the top I maybe saved $50 overall and potentially more because of no DMV points which would likely raise my insurance so that's really good! I just wish they could have brought the ticket price down a little more.