As a professional educator to students at the cusp of their educational development, Dr. Rachel…read moreWinston's career opportunities offer my students a veritable Pandora's box of endless possibilities. Each career book is chock-full of challenges and opportunities available to students who wish to make full use of the gateway doors and pathways to success that Dr. Rachel Winston offers to students of all age groups and diverse backgrounds. I salute Dr. Winston for providing so many paths to a successful and profitable lifestyle. Thank you, Dr. Winston. Max Chacall Educator

As a teacher with over 40 years of experience, I have been extremely impressed with Dr. Winston's…read morepublications. Her work is meticulous and well-informed. Her publications provide an incredible amount of valuable information on how to succeed in a diverse number of career pathways. I have recommended her books to many students who found them to be excellent resources on topics that are often unfamiliar to the student and their family. From the medical admission process to the theater, her books offer important and useful content.

We live in the bay area in northern CA. My son has been with ModernBrain (remotely) for 3 years and…read moreis heading to high school after this summer. He learned so much from Modernbrain's dedicated and knowledgeable coaches. He also built a lasting friendship with his peers in Modernbrain who share the same passion with him. Our experience with ModernBrain is nothing but great. I would highly recommend it to anyone who might start exploring interst or would like to sharpen skills in specific speech/debate category. BTW, their tuition and tournament fee is very reasonable and transparent, not like some other instituitions in the bay area.

I was watching my 7 year old daughter do her ModernBrain speech and debate class for the 1st time…read moreand the coach asked her to argue the pro of reading versus watching a film. I immediately thought this was going to be hard for her because she definitely loves her movies. Instead what I found was a thoughtful argument for something that I knew would be hard for her. For example, she cited that through reading you can become a better writer, and have better comprehension because you see the same words and gain familiarity. In addition to better reasoning, she was also able to structure her argument better than I expected. She started her argument with a hook which is a question to draw the listener into her speech then she stated a couple of her main points before she began to get into the meat of her argument. I found the whole thing adorable but I'm sure it will also serve her well in all future academic endeavors. I know it'll be useful even for meetings in the business world if 7 year olds are allowed!

Strategic College Consulting is the absolute top of the game. After working with them, their…read moreguidance helped me earn admission to many schools, including Stanford, Caltech, Berkeley, Brown, and more. The thing that has stuck with me, though, is that they are not just knowledgeable but genuinely care about my journey, and I really felt that they wanted to help me reach my full potential. I cannot thank them enough and feel they are absolutely worth working with, given how much my life's trajectory has changed since working with them. Their feedback on my essays and app was absolutely invaluable, and their scientific methodological breakdown approach was reassuring. I personally worked with Dr. Brian Haig and have also spoken with Dr. Jeffrey Haig, and I highly recommend either of them if anyone else is looking for a college counselor! Thank you so much for everything!

Not impressed with Strategic College Services, as their use of the "Dr." title and references to…read moreprestigious schools felt misleading rather than reassuring. Given the high fees they charge, I expected a much higher level of expertise and personalized guidance, but the consulting they provided fell far short of those expectations, revealing a significant gap between their promises and the actual value delivered.

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 is a master of the UC transfer process. After my son had a disappointing first semester at…read moreSDSU, James mapped out a plan for him to enroll in City College and work toward a transfer. His mentorship and expert advice led to my son being accepted at nearly every top UC, including UCLA, UCSD, and UCI. He ultimately chose UC Berkeley, a result I didn't think was possible just a year ago. I highly recommend James to any family navigating the UC college system.

I usually don't post reviews, but am so inspired by the amazing staff at Collegewise that I feel…read morecompelled to share. Our daughter worked with Sandi last year to navigate the college application process and optimize her opportunities. From start to finish, Sandi and her team engaged with, motivated and partnered with our daughter, inspiring her to put her best foot forward and guiding her through the maze to find success. She's now through her first semester at her target school and loves it! I highly recommend Collegewise and believe the return is well worth the investment.

We are on our second round of Collegewise for our second daughter. Without a doubt, the cost is…read morewell worth it for us. For our first one, Collegewise was a diplomatic buffer between our daughter and us during her high school years. This can be a very emotional and tense time for many families. They kept her on track with crucial deadlines and talked us through endless Q&As. For our second one, Collegewise has been an incredibly responsive resource whenever we have a question...no matter how insignificant it may seem. They have a ton of resources but we never feel overwhelmed with information. We have complete access to their knowledge base and never feel rushed when we have a meet up. Collegewise basically hand holds us through the entire application process personalizing their guidance according to our daughter's situation. Most importantly, Collegewise encourages their students to be proactive and take ownership of their application process which ultimately grows them as individuals regardless of which college they choose to attend.

Ivy College Prep helped me get accepted to my dream school, USC! If you are looking for academic or…read morecollege counseling, I highly recommend Ivy College Prep as your number one choice. Not only does Ralph Becker prepare you for college applications, but he also continues to guide and mentor even after graduating college. Mr. Becker works extremely hard for the students, but you must also be willing to put in the hard work to get the results you want. Mr. Becker will help you write eloquently, but be prepared to write a lot! If you want help for college, contact Mr. Becker ASAP!

Ralph Becker is excellent!!! He helped my son get into his first choice university. Ralph provided…read morethe motivation and inspiration that my son needed. I did not have to nag my son as much as I expected and was so pleased with the outcome. Essentially, Ralph saved our relationship while helping us through the grueling college application process. I highly recommend Ivy College Prep. Money well spent.

We had a great experience working with Munira on both of my kids' applications. She's supportive,…read moreknowledgeable, and motivating. What stood out most was how genuinely she cared and how consistently she kept my children's best interests in mind. She put a clear structure to a very stressful process, helped the kids navigate all the tasks and requirements, and always followed through until everything was completed. I'm glad we had the chance to work with her--and both my kids are happy with the outcome.

She is one of the best and most caring counselors that one can have. I moved to USA three years ago…read morewithout any background of USA transfer and college system. She walked me through all the steps. Thanks to her guidance, I got admitted to my first choice UC which was UC Berkeley.

I highly recommend Justin and his team. Justin is professional, communicative, honest and…read moreunderstanding. He truly wants to help students put forth the best versions of themselves in the application process. Premier Prep is the ideal partner for navigating college admissions throughout the course of high school or simply if you need application help during senior year. I can't say enough good things about Justin and Premier Prep!

Though Premiere Prep is typically geared towards high school students preparing for college, I used…read morethis company for hourly consultations for my academic transition. I didn't know it when I met him, but Justin was a game changer for me. I never knew the value or importance of receiving professional academic/career guidance. I can honestly say that I would not be nearly close to where I am today without Justin's guidance or support. He has helped me in my professional development through editing my resumes, interviewing skills, and most importantly, he saw my potential and helped me realize it too. His advice is honest and compassionate (though not necessarily what I always wanted to hear) and he wholeheartedly invested his time in me. Justin helped me transition through one of the most difficult times in my life between undergrad and post-undergrad at UCI. These days, I am proud to say I am at my top choice graduate program in occupational therapy. Whether it is college counseling or personal development, you couldn't be in better hands with Justin or his team at Premiere Prep.