Admission Consultant Recommendation - Hourly services

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does any ok e get the feeling the posters on this board give false info and discourage because they view every poster abs they’d kid as competition? Lol. These crazy pps aren’t really transparent: You are too late!! Don’t get test prep! Don’t get a counselor! Go TO! Lmaof!

Yes, and I suspect that some of them are here just to F with us, probably not even parents in the first place. It's a shame, it corrodes the trust of genuine posters. Its a farce.

You must be one of them because you are sowing distrust and suspicion on this board. Do you have a high schooler kid?

I just agreed with the person who suggested the thread was full of trolls. That doesn't make me one, sorry to disappoint you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I haven't found anyone inexpensive who knows all the colleges that well. Maybe they exist out there, but the really knowledgeable and helpful experts are definitely not working for $120/hr for three, one-off sessions.

I think the hive mind on here, or maybe CC, is better if you want inexpensive advice concerning admission to a "top college".

I'm newer to the field but very knowledgeable, and that's around what I'm charging. People with more years in the business may charge much more and be fully booked. But they might also be inclined to be out of touch and self-flattering (like one pp suggested), and they might be remembering the good old days when current reaches were safeties.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I haven't found anyone inexpensive who knows all the colleges that well. Maybe they exist out there, but the really knowledgeable and helpful experts are definitely not working for $120/hr for three, one-off sessions.

I think the hive mind on here, or maybe CC, is better if you want inexpensive advice concerning admission to a "top college".

Please, do not follow this poster's advice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
+1
Very few good ones work just hourly for only a few hours with one client---they want to provide the entire package, which IMO is worth it. We paid ~$3.5K for unlimited access to our counselor. Was worth every penny, and would have been worth more had we started in Freshman/soph year

OP here, thanks. Not averse to a package but not ready for that at this time. Do you mind sharing your counselor contact?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
+1
Very few good ones work just hourly for only a few hours with one client---they want to provide the entire package, which IMO is worth it. We paid ~$3.5K for unlimited access to our counselor. Was worth every penny, and would have been worth more had we started in Freshman/soph year

OP here, thanks. Not averse to a package but not ready for that at this time. Do you mind sharing your counselor contact?

Different poster (I posted above urging you not to follow another poster's advice.)

I have been involved in this field for several decades and am current, but I handle just a few students per admissions cycle. I do not want to publish my contact info, but would be willing to address any concerns that you feel comfortable sharing on this website.

What type of advice are you seeking ? School selection ? Career ? Essays ? Strategy ? Or are you seeking help with apps & financial aid--which are not my interest.

[Anonymous]

I do not think this forum is full of trolls, but it's full of biased people, OP. Most of them have not hired counselors, and therefore, do not think it's worth it. Just a few regret whatever decision they made.

I agree that it's hard to identify, then hire, a great counselor. Bear in mind that one that's good for the neighbor or friend might not be good for your kid. It's perfectly true that the more well-established counselors seek to mold kids' whole high school experience. It's not only a better financial choice for them, but it's also professionally more rewarding because they have more time to influence the outcome. Surely everyone can understand that! And since this area is very ambitious and wealthy, well then... it means the better known counselors won't have much space for the harried senior or even junior.

Best of luck, OP. I have friends who hired counselors. We did not: we did consider Prep Matters, but in the end only paid for tutoring and test prep and did the admission process ourselves. If you don't, be prepared to put in A LOT OF WORK. It's the rare 17 year old who can manage college apps by themselves, these days.

[Anonymous]

find someone good in chicago , etc. def not someone based out of nyc or SF. you'll pay 5k instead of 15k

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven't found anyone inexpensive who knows all the colleges that well. Maybe they exist out there, but the really knowledgeable and helpful experts are definitely not working for $120/hr for three, one-off sessions.

I think the hive mind on here, or maybe CC, is better if you want inexpensive advice concerning admission to a "top college".

There is a lack of genuine knowledge on here. In fact, the real knowledge, when it does exist, is kept close to everyone's chest for fear of raising the competition. Otherwise it's just opinion and conjecture and very few actual stats. There's a lot of BS.

We worked with a very expensive private college counselor who charges by the hour. A fraction of their advice was really very good. The rest of the time they made wild suggestions that were untenable or told long boring stories of their successes (student success) while simultaneously deriding and mocking those same students or their families. That didn't instill confidence in us to continue working with them.

So look for a new counselor. Also, know that you don't just blindly hire one. I did the process for our first kid myself (3.5UW/no AP/1200---so not aiming for T50 schools kid), so I was prepared to do it for 2nd as well. But decided to use a Counselor to assist. Best purchase ever---helped keep kid on track---helped them narrow down choices, and ultimately their Top 3 acceptances were places I would have only suggested 1 initially (hint: that's not where my kid is) so it was the counselor who enlightened us to where my kid eventually went and for my kid's TOP safety (true hidden gem). So helping create the best college list was a key reason to pay them. Then they help keep your kid on a schedule without you nagging them. worth every penny

We don't need any of the services you mention. And we didn't hire the counselor blind. We had a 2 hour meeting with them first off, which was impressive. It was when we got down to brass tacks that their deficits started to show.

[Anonymous]

the very good advice I got early on was: your kid is not that special.

+ look at the college placement from your high school from the last three years.

+ remove the schools that aren't a good fit/too high/too low. So for us that was the military academies, the super stem schools, the lows. The "highs" are a little harder to lop off .. isn't my kid a high too? So okay, keep the highs.

+ there's your draft list of 30-50 colleges. then run the NPC and knock a few more out.

+ then visit big small rural city big small schools. knock out the kind of school doesn't fit for your kid. down to 20.

+ Now it's junior year late spring and your kid has to research these 20 schools. You have your grades now and test scores. some of the "highs" no longer realistic. narrow it down to 12.

+ higher an essay coach to help but nothing else.

This advice works if your kid goes to a solid high school where kids go to good schools. If your kid will be the first to ever consider Princeton from Iowa City High, you'll need more help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
+1
Very few good ones work just hourly for only a few hours with one client---they want to provide the entire package, which IMO is worth it. We paid ~$3.5K for unlimited access to our counselor. Was worth every penny, and would have been worth more had we started in Freshman/soph year

OP here, thanks. Not averse to a package but not ready for that at this time. Do you mind sharing your counselor contact?

Different poster (I posted above urging you not to follow another poster's advice.)

I have been involved in this field for several decades and am current, but I handle just a few students per admissions cycle. I do not want to publish my contact info, but would be willing to address any concerns that you feel comfortable sharing on this website.

What type of advice are you seeking ? School selection ? Career ? Essays ? Strategy ? Or are you seeking help with apps & financial aid--which are not my interest.

If it is a disciplinary issue, then you should consider engaging an experienced counselor.

Not all college consultants do all things related to the college application process. This is one reason to be able to articulate what you need & expect from any college advisor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven't found anyone inexpensive who knows all the colleges that well. Maybe they exist out there, but the really knowledgeable and helpful experts are definitely not working for $120/hr for three, one-off sessions.

I think the hive mind on here, or maybe CC, is better if you want inexpensive advice concerning admission to a "top college".

Good ones charge $1,000 - $1,400/Hr.

Mine didn’t

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven't found anyone inexpensive who knows all the colleges that well. Maybe they exist out there, but the really knowledgeable and helpful experts are definitely not working for $120/hr for three, one-off sessions.

I think the hive mind on here, or maybe CC, is better if you want inexpensive advice concerning admission to a "top college".

Good ones charge $1,000 - $1,400/Hr.

Mine didn’t

yeah I think they pulled that number out of their backside.
famous ones charge a fraction of that/ hr.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:the very good advice I got early on was: your kid is not that special.

+ look at the college placement from your high school from the last three years.

+ remove the schools that aren't a good fit/too high/too low. So for us that was the military academies, the super stem schools, the lows. The "highs" are a little harder to lop off .. isn't my kid a high too? So okay, keep the highs.

+ there's your draft list of 30-50 colleges. then run the NPC and knock a few more out.

+ then visit big small rural city big small schools. knock out the kind of school doesn't fit for your kid. down to 20.

+ Now it's junior year late spring and your kid has to research these 20 schools. You have your grades now and test scores. some of the "highs" no longer realistic. narrow it down to 12.

+ higher an essay coach to help but nothing else.

This advice works if your kid goes to a solid high school where kids go to good schools. If your kid will be the first to ever consider Princeton from Iowa City High, you'll need more help.

This is all such good advice. But I want to echo the bolded. I can’t emphasize this enough. I find that certain schools just DON’T accept people from my kid’s high school. My kid’s school publishes a ton of very detailed matriculation data so it makes it easy to mine it for insights.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven't found anyone inexpensive who knows all the colleges that well. Maybe they exist out there, but the really knowledgeable and helpful experts are definitely not working for $120/hr for three, one-off sessions.

I think the hive mind on here, or maybe CC, is better if you want inexpensive advice concerning admission to a "top college".

Good ones charge $1,000 - $1,400/Hr.

Mine didn’t

yeah I think they pulled that number out of their backside.
famous ones charge a fraction of that/ hr.

Those are incompetent wannabes.

[Anonymous]

I totally agree that there's a 99% likelihood that your kid will go to a college that someone from their high school (class of 20-23) went to. People go to high schools with people like themselves, with similar social class and interests. So start with that list.

I see that break down once in a while when there's an UMC family with a mediocre student who wants something "different" than where mediocre students usually go .. so they end up with something a little different for this area like Puget Sound or U of Utah or an overseas school.