We are extremely grateful for the support this college counseling company provided our family…read morethroughout my daughter's high school. The process of preparing for college applications was overwhelming, but the guidance we received made all the difference. Felicia, who worked directly with my daughter, was outstanding, supportive, knowledgeable, and always encouraging. She helped keep everything organized and made sure my daughter felt confident every step of the way. She was always there for my daughter when she needed her. Justin, the owner, has clearly built a wonderful program that truly supports students and families. We're thrilled that my daughter was accepted into the university she had been hoping for, and we're very thankful for their role in helping make that happen. Very Highly recommend.

My student sat for practice tests in AP Chem and AP Calc AB with Premier Prep. Justin was friendly,…read morehelpful, and very responsive.

100 percent absolutely recommend Dr. Ballan!!!! Dr. Ballan has been the best therapist I've ever…read morehad!!! He's very knowledgeable and has a great way of explaining things and approaches new ideas and skills to apply in a very meaningful manner. Other therapist are there just for the paycheck, but not Dr. Ballan. He shows genuine personal interest who cries with you and celebrates your wins. I highly recommend Dr. Ballan.

I highly recommend Ballan counseling. I have been with him since 2021. He has helped me navigate…read moresuch challenging/overwhelming experiences in my life including family separation/conflict, symptoms of depression, and loss of identity/confidence. Fast forward to years later, I have seen so much growth within myself. My current needs look different, but Ballan counseling has remained consistent. He tailors his services to be EXACTLY what I need in the moment. I am so grateful!

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!!

"Outstanding tutor!…read more  We have had outstanding results with Clement helping prepare our daughter for the SAT. His professionalism and subject knowledge is phenomenal. We have had a very positive experience and we highly recommend Clement to anyone.                  ~Frank and Jennifer Hernandez"

I have worked specifically with Ashley Snow, and I could not be happier with the recommendation…read more She has helped me with not only writing my essays but finding colleges that fit my criteria and make me excited about my educational future. She gets me and we work together seamlessly. She is the absolute best!!!!!!

My son dreamed of NYU Tisch Film and we knew we needed help in the applicaton process. Jen at Great…read moreExpectations recommended the perfect fit. Sajel Oelerich made the college application process so seamless and SO much easier. From the moment my son first spoke with her, he knew that Sajel was the key to getting into his dream school. Her patience, advice, demeanor and enthusiasm were beyond incredible. She gently pushed him and helped him to see how much more he could bring to his applications. He looked forward to his sessions and after each one he came out more energized, more excited and SO much less stressed out. He got into his dream school! Thank you so much Sajel and thank you Great Expectations! -Deb S.

We had a terrible experience with this group. I would have told the owner director had she ever…read morechecked in during the process. We did not even use all of the hours.

Mr. Kumar is not only knowledgeable, proficient, and efficient, but he is also very kind,…read morecompassionate and empathetic during the whole process. He has made a world of a difference for our family. His efforts are more than appreciated and we can not recommend him enough! Thank you!

Our nephew used Mr. Aditya Ahuja from Kumar Education for college counseling and for college…read moreapplications. We really didn't understand the whole process and wanted someone to hold our hand through the whole thing - so we could essentially close our eyes and skip this whole nightmare of applications and essays. Accepted to Stanford and MIT - we are happy. Thank you.

PSA has helped my child to learn how to write proper essays. They provided many materials to guide…read morehim through his writing journey. They also taught him about the dead words in the essays. Over the 18 weeks Oxford Prep course, his writing skills improved significantly. They also provided work materials on Mathematics and English literature to help him prepared for the Oxford Academy entrance exam. Thanks to PSA, my child got accepted into Oxford Academy.

I spent a great deal of time researching tutoring academies for Oxford and Whitney prep. The lady…read morewho was at the information session wasn't very clear and knowledgeable about the program offered. She wasnt clear about the program structure and changed her information at the last minute. I don't view this as respectful customer service and it creates a large inconvenience

We are a very busy family. Julianna Kirby was amazing because she worked so well with our daughter…read moreand that took so much of the burden of college applications and decisions off of us. We are SO thankful to her for part in our daughter's acceptance into so many of her top schools, and her ultimate commitment to Berkeley! Go Bears! We HIGHLY recommend Julianna Kirby at Star College Consulting!

Julianna, Has help us with both of our sons. Gregory is going to Boise State and Steven is playing…read moreBaseball for Golden West in Huntington Beach. She has helped in all phases from giving options to different schools, showing cost, helping with applications, help picking classes, and even following up to present day with both Gregory & Steven to make sure they are taking the right classes to help them reach their goals. I highly recommend her, she is worth every penny and more.