David and College Match were great to work with. David was a critical part of the college…read moreapplication process for my two children, now undergraduates at UC Berkeley and UCLA. His style of working with high school students is very easy-going and patient, asking inquisitive questions to help them identify their own approach and highlights throughout the complicated and intense application process. We started with David a bit late with our first child, but David quickly helped him catch-up and stay organized. With our second, we were able to involve David earlier in the process which helped space out the work better. He and his team were equally responsive and timely with their support. Thank you David!

My stepdaughter Catalina began her search & application process for graduate schools relatively…read morelate in the process, with just a few weeks before the deadline. Right off the bat, David was very accommodating with his time. From the initial consultation, I could tell that David was very skilled at determining her strengths & weaknesses & how they fit into various graduate MBA programs. He quickly got an intrinsic understanding of ''who she is'' & was able to devise an action plan to highlight her strengths for her school of choice. Based on a couple initial conversations we had, he generated a terrific list of core values which helped drive the rest of the process. Just to be safe, I shopped around a bit and found that David's fees were very favorable compared to some of the other well-known admissions strategists around the country, in some cases less than half as much. So we decided to stick with David. David would promptly answer our questions & provided strong recommendations for my daughter on how to articulate herself in the both the application and essay. He was always available either by phone or email and always made us feel like his top priority when we needed his assistance. I have to recognize that we called him perhaps much more than we should have, but he took it all in stride and was extremely accommodating, reassuring, patient and attentive. He was also excellent in researching the most recent admission trends for her top choice university so we could appropriately strategize the application and pitch her strengths in a way that helped turn the tables on the college admissions process. I would highly recommend David if you are looking for an expert in the graduate admissions process. He's worth every penny. - TT (stepdaughter), admitted to Stanford MBA

Caroline's summer college essay group was a great way to get our student started early on college…read moreapplications. I would definitely recommend this to other parents to avoid the stress of last-minute essay writing. Especially for those early action college apps due Nov. 1.

College Prep: Caroline is AWESOME! She worked with our M.C. daughter on her college essays. She…read morewas adamant that the wording needed to be done in our daughter's voice, they had to be her experiences, and she worked and was able to bring the best examples and writing out of her. It was surprising how well our daughter's essays were, and the wording matched her grades. There were 3 colleges where our daughter had lower GPA and test scores, yet was accepted as others were not. Perhaps colleges are looking for the "entire" student, but with Caroline's guidance our daughter got there. My only regret, we should have used her for SAT/ACT prep.

PLEASE NOTE! A WORD OF CAUTION FOR POTENTIAL CLIENTS: Barbara talks a lot about how much your…read morechild's story means in their applications, but her actions while editing my child's essays speak volumes about her capabilities and false pretenses about loving students. When my child would come to her with heartfelt essays about her experiences and hopes for the future, Barbara would brutally slash up my child's essays until they were bare boned. No story, no flair, no emotion, nothing. Not to mention Barbara also told my child that her essays were "terrible" or that she should not apply at all. Those same essays, without any edits, got her into incredibly competitive schools in and out of state. She also edits the essays in FRONT of my child right before they meet. She wouldn't spend time to thoroughly edit the essays beforehand despite asking for them a week in advance. To top it all off, Barabra is phenomenally bad at making good on her scheduling appointments and will force you to sign a multi-thousand dollar contract, to lock you in. She has made appointments with my child multiple times and then proceeded to cancel last minute because she double booked, or would force my child to wait.

The college process is truly daunting. Barbara helped us to break it down into manageable steps,…read moreworking with my twins from their sophomore year in high school through to the end of the application process. Notable points for twins: she works with each child separately, drawing out their specific interests and talents with regular one-on-one meetings. If they don't really know what they are interested in or they are interested in many different things (normal for a teenager!) she helps them figure it out so that by senior year they have a real portfolio of volunteer and community activities, internships, research projects and leadership experiences that they can use to clarify their interests and to get into excellent colleges! She is very honest and direct, while at the same time enjoying the kids' unique strengths and opportunities for laughs that come along the way. She helps them pick out schools that fit their characters and helps them streamline the process as much as is humanly possible for such a high-stakes venture. Thanks so much, Barbara!

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.

My daughter and I often joke that Elaine came to us from on high just when we needed her most! We…read morehad no idea how to navigate the college application process, but with Elaine's excellent help (she is calms, clear, organized and inspiring) we were able to make it! My daughter ended up getting into her first-choice school and Elaine's amazing help made that possible. But more than what school she got into it was just wonderful having Elaine to guide us and bounce ideas off of throughout the process. It's not easy out there and there is no one right decision - through it all Elaine made us feel like we had a strong guide on our side.

The Center Director Aaron is fantastic. My daughter went to Mathnasium for years (before Aaron…read moretook over) and is interested in coming back to work. Aaron has been SO supportive of her and her process...super encouraging and reaches out to me to check in on her and keep communication and the supportive environment open to her. I am so impressed, I felt I had to leave a review so other parents looking for a great leader to help their kids - this is definitely the place. And they learn a lot of math. :)

This place used to be five stars but since the new guy took over from Scott the hours are super…read morelimited (with no weekend time the to only time our son does not have school or activists) and the prizes are downgraded and the kids don't like it as much. Used to be five star but just keeps going downhill. Very sad. Hope Mathniusm will take back the franchise and give it to someone who will stay open a few hours a week.

Fusion has been a complete game-changer for my son. His teachers are all experienced, creative,…read moreengaging and flexible and have been able to tailor the curriculum to match his interests and learning style. His love of learning has been rekindled. Prior to Fusion, we struggled with school refusal -- now he looks forward to going, no joke! Each day, we receive updates from his teachers about his progress. The administrators are also wonderful and went above and beyond to understand his learning style as well as a few health issues. We never have to worry about him falling behind if he needs medical treatments. There is incredible flexibility with how assignments are given and he can learn at a fast pace. I give Fusion a 10 out of 10. So grateful to have this school in Marin.

Both my kids are thriving and realizing how well they can learn with a personalized program. From…read moreboth almost failing in public schools even with IEP, Fusion has helped them realize that they can achieve fantastic results.

I really can't say enough good things about Mathnasium and Michael who runs this location. My son…read morehas always shown an interest in math so we started him here young, at age 5. Michael was so attentive and committed to helping my kindergartner get comfortable in those early days. He really understands kids!! Now my son is spending 2 hrs a day there. He LOVES it. The whole getting tickets, spinning the wheel and getting prizes is a great model especially for younger kids who are so driven by rewards. It's the best extra curricular hang out and worth every penny.

My two kids have been attending for over a month and have made a great progress. Both are more…read moreconfident at school and do not ask for help with homework. Very friendly and attentive staff and great structure. Highly recommend!

Huge waste of money and time! My daughters took eight lessons with this unhelpful prep course. One…read moregained 0 points and the other gained only 50 points. When I asked if they could offer something to us, because of the lack of results, he blamed my daughters and he said he would offer nothing to help with a future test.

My 16 Yo and I learned about Marin Test Prep at an MTP planning seminar (see website for free…read morevideo). We spoke with the presenter before and after the event, and my child immediately embraced the idea of MTP as a partner. The SAT/ACT test is a critical factor in the Univ. admissions evaluation. In order to optimize test prep, it is crucial that the test taker engage and commit to giving it a best effort and follow the program (including the incremental work which is mostly just taking actual test sections and reviewing the results with the MTP partner). We were fortunate enough to be able to work with Adam, who quickly helped my child realize that we would probably score better on the "Old" SAT, and mentioned that we could still take the "Old" SAT (something we never heard before) My child took an ACT practice test at Marin Test Prep (free 4-hour proctored test) and an SAT (Old) practice test to confirm which test worked best. Adam developed a customized study and test prep process and with a weekly 1.5 hr study session and follow up practice tests at home, I am certain that the score on the initial SAT will be significantly higher than it would have without MTP's help. Thanks to Adam's insight about the "Old" SAT, we also have a chance to re-take the test if needed. Working with Marin Test Prep has increased self confidence and decreased stress and anxiety about the test. By the time the results of our high school PSAT are available, we will have taken a practice SAT, practice ACT and 1 (or two if needed) SAT tests (w/in 3 mos) Marin test Prep offers some great advantages for students: The tips and tricks that always boost scores Understanding of the test "flows"; if you understand the test design you will score higher An evaluation of test preferences (SAT vs. ACT) with customized prep process and an Individualized 1:1 test prep support (which was an important aspect in our case) It sounds like the other reviewer might have wanted a group session, and had challenges getting the test takers committed and aligned with the process. In order to optimize your benefit from such a partner, the prospective test taker needs to embrace the process. In our case, the partnership has significantly reduced stress and anxiety, increased self confidence and will result in a higher test score. All in all, this was a great investment to prepare for the SAT and one which offered scholarly insights that will be leveraged in the future.