Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread has been wild to read. I am not in DC, but my kid attends a public high school in an affluent suburb on the west coast. Everyone I know has a college counselor. Yes, everyone. It's like orthodontics; yes, occasionally someone does not need it, but I think 80-90% of parents and kids could use some help and there's zero shame around using a college counselor. That said, it's a huge industry and there are many affordable options (unlike orthos).

Right? How much cool-aid they were drinking.

Some comments are comical. Like this one, they speculate "if the schools sense who is using private counselors and holding it against those applicants". Hell no, every kid in our school has one, and we have > 25% in at an ivy.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread has been wild to read. I am not in DC, but my kid attends a public high school in an affluent suburb on the west coast. Everyone I know has a college counselor. Yes, everyone. It's like orthodontics; yes, occasionally someone does not need it, but I think 80-90% of parents and kids could use some help and there's zero shame around using a college counselor. That said, it's a huge industry and there are many affordable options (unlike orthos).

Californians are gullible enough to keep electing idiots like Newsom & Kamala, so not surprising that they fall for the college consultant scam too.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread has been wild to read. I am not in DC, but my kid attends a public high school in an affluent suburb on the west coast. Everyone I know has a college counselor. Yes, everyone. It's like orthodontics; yes, occasionally someone does not need it, but I think 80-90% of parents and kids could use some help and there's zero shame around using a college counselor. That said, it's a huge industry and there are many affordable options (unlike orthos).

Californians are gullible enough to keep electing idiots like Newsom & Kamala, so not surprising that they fall for the college consultant scam too.

Anonymous wrote:This thread has been wild to read. I am not in DC, but my kid attends a public high school in an affluent suburb on the west coast. Everyone I know has a college counselor. Yes, everyone. It's like orthodontics; yes, occasionally someone does not need it, but I think 80-90% of parents and kids could use some help and there's zero shame around using a college counselor. That said, it's a huge industry and there are many affordable options (unlike orthos).

Anonymous wrote:This thread has been wild to read. I am not in DC, but my kid attends a public high school in an affluent suburb on the west coast. Everyone I know has a college counselor. Yes, everyone. It's like orthodontics; yes, occasionally someone does not need it, but I think 80-90% of parents and kids could use some help and there's zero shame around using a college counselor. That said, it's a huge industry and there are many affordable options (unlike orthos).

Anonymous wrote:Who on earth refers to other human beings as "dumb dumbs" because they aren't attorneys or bankers? This kind of DCUM person is so bizarre. You realize you are repugnant and embarrassing yourself, right? Or has that become an asset in MAGA world? Lots of Marjorie Taylor Greene energy on these boards.

These are the same posters who seem outraged that a black, brown, or international kid "took" their kid's spot at a selective school. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, and I'm sure admissions picks up on the entitled cruelty of apps from these sorts of families and rightly doesn't want that energy on their campus.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I noticed that my DD (Ivy admit) and her classmates who were admitted to top schools did not need, or use, private counselors/coaches. Obviously, these kids don't need the help, but it also makes me wonder if the schools sense who is using private counselors and holding it against those applicants.

Agree. No private counselor or class tutoring or any of that bs for us or any of the true top kids. Both parents work full time, all we did is take days off to make time for tours on the days the kids needed to take them based on their school and AP schedule. Both have extraordinary organizational skills and managed the deadlines, interviews, demonstrated interest for the likely schools, all that. Their school also helps as they edit essays in english class after the AP Lit or language exam in 11th: a similar model is used by most public and private schools in our area. The magnet and the privates each have at least one former T25 AO working in college advising.
Both at different ivies, unhooked. Both have very high GPAs and are invigorated by the ambitious culture at each. They have however met students at each who mention loads of tutoring in high school and/or cheating in high school, and cannot keep up with ivy rigor. It is the minority for sure but that group is present at ivies. It does not go well for them because they realize they are actual imposters among a group of majority more qualified individuals. There are some hooked kids from their high school who got into different elite/ivy and struggled academically and/or mental health in recent years. TO and all the hooks will be looked back upon as a large mistake in admissions. Ivy professors openly mention TO as a negative.

Anonymous wrote:I noticed that my DD (Ivy admit) and her classmates who were admitted to top schools did not need, or use, private counselors/coaches. Obviously, these kids don't need the help, but it also makes me wonder if the schools sense who is using private counselors and holding it against those applicants.

Anonymous wrote:I know this question has probably been asked many times before, but I wanted to reach out specifically to parents whose kids were admitted to a top 25 schools, either in the most recent admissions cycle or in the past few years.

Which college consultant (if any) did you use, and how was your experience?

Please, no snark , just hoping for genuine, firsthand recommendations or feedback from those who have real information to share.

Thanks in advance!

Anonymous wrote:I'm amused that no one on this thread has used a counselor and all their unhooked kids are at Ivies. OK. Well I'll go ahead and be the first to admit we used one. Independent, former Ivy AO. Having her set timelines was great, she seemed super knowledgeable about institutional prios at various schools, and she was very helpful with supplemental essays and common app activities. I did not love her feedback on the main essay, some of which we ignored. Anyway, DC got into a T15 ED so we didn't really get full results, and have no way of knowing whether he undershot - I didn't think DC had a real chance at any Ivy besides Cornell but admittedly, we'll never know. All in all would I say it was worth the cost ($8k)? Not quite but it was worth something,

Anonymous wrote:I noticed that my DD (Ivy admit) and her classmates who were admitted to top schools did not need, or use, private counselors/coaches. Obviously, these kids don't need the help, but it also makes me wonder if the schools sense who is using private counselors and holding it against those applicants.