One of the most common mistakes students make when applying to college is failing to use the invaluable resources at their disposal, such as expert admissions consultants! Read on to learn more about the top college admissions consultants.
Enlisting the help of experts is an excellent idea when applying to colleges. But, a quick Google search can deter you from seeking help because of how many options there are! Just searching “admissions consultants” yields over 1,500,000 results!
To aid you in your search for the best admissions consultant that can get you into your top dream schools or assist you with specific parts of your application, this guide will go over the best college admissions consultants, the benefits of seeking expert help, and how to choose the perfect consultant for your goals!
To narrow down your search, we’ve reviewed the most popular admissions consultants and compiled a list of the top 15:
As the number one college admissions consultant, Quad Education is dedicated to helping students realize their full potential by getting into their dream schools. With a rigorous screening process, only about 2.5% of prospective experts meet Quad’s standards and are able to join the team.
With the most compelling academics, professional experiences, and extracurriculars, Quad Education is made up of a highly accomplished team that you’d be hard-pressed to find elsewhere.
With these experts, Quad Education has an impressive success rate of 96% They offer some of the most comprehensive admissions support, including:
In an effort to support as many students as possible, Quad offers a variety of free tools to students, parents, and professionals as well.
They hold diverse webinars to aid students in the application process, have free digestible guides on how to get into top schools that students can download, practice and pop quizzes, score calculators, and hundreds of blog posts to answer any student inquiries.
What’s more, this admissions consultant group is the only one to offer extensive college profile development assistance for students in middle school! They are also one of the few teams to provide students with a research program where they can work with scholars on a personalized research project to differentiate their applications.
Top Tier Admissions has a distinct code of ethics that it’s guided by: accountability, authenticity, transparency, confidentiality, and responsibility.
With these principles in mind, this consulting service offers academic and application counseling, test prep, and free resources, such as a blog, admit stats, grade calculators, and essay prompts.
The unique part of this program is its application boot camp that is designed to support students with limited free time or who need immediate assistance. This four-day boot camp allows students to work one-on-one with an admissions expert to complete their Common Application, prepare essays, and develop a good interview strategy.
PrepScholar is a popular admissions consulting service that offers three main services:
Within the complete admissions package, coaches help students create their top choice list, assist with time management and any essay components, and complete a thorough, holistic review of students’ entire applications.
These coaches also share insight on interview, waitlist, and rejection strategies to ensure you get your money’s worth.
Their website offers guides explaining what college admissions officers are looking for, how to craft the perfect essay, how to avoid a mediocre letter of recommendation, and how to make yourself stand out with extracurriculars.
Another one of the best college admissions consultants is Command Education. This consulting service offers advising services to students in grades 8-12. They offer flexible packages for students to accommodate their demanding school and extracurricular schedules and offer mentoring year-round.
They offer several guides and videos on every aspect of the application process and a blog with the most updated news on everything related to university students.
Command Education also offers private academic tutoring in the following subjects:
This service is located in New York City but offers virtual consulting as well.
Admissionado is a top-rate admissions consultant team that’s guiding principle is to locate student potential and stretch it to aid them in their college applications. These consultants also offer MBA and Master’s programs application aid.
The main services Admissionado offer mainly target seniors who are ready to begin the application process, although they offer some support to other high school students. They are best known for their essay analysis and review, in which they teach students how to write persuasively and how to tackle essay prompts.
They have a blog and some free guides to help students learn more about schools and the application process; however their more in-depth guides are available for purchase only. About 7% of applicants meet Admissionado’s expectations to become admissions coaches.
Prepory aims to simplify the college admissions process by offering personalized solutions. Students are provided with one-on-one guidance by counselors that can assist with their extracurricular profiles, college applications, personal statements, and course selection.
Prepory offers a free blog for parents and students to learn more about the university experience and various free guides and templates, including SAT study schedules to follow! Their services mainly revolve around supporting high school students in their application process, and ensuring they stand out.
The A-List is a comprehensive educational service that provides in-person and online tutoring, standardized test prep, admissions consulting, and distance learning assistance.
While this service offers admissions consulting assistance from preschool to high school, younger students can expect to mainly get help with school selection and placement. High school students are provided thorough support in the college admissions process to ensure they can tell their unique story in an eloquent and effective way!
This service also offers homeschooling to students of all ages. These teachers work with existing curriculums given to students or create personalized ones to meet the diverse needs of their students.
While C2 Education offers test prep support during the college application process, it is best known for its tutoring programs. They offer comprehensive K-12 tutoring across all subjects using personalized programs to meet each students’ unique academic and personal needs.
For students preparing to take AP exams, C2 Education provides targeted 50-hour and 80-hour programs, and several summer boot camps:
These boot camps aim to keep students' brains engaged and help them focus on test prep without also worrying about the demands of school work.
Preminente’s goal is to assist students in junior high or high school with their academics or college applications. While they mainly offer academic tutoring, extracurricular planning, and academic advising to students in kindergarten to grade eight, they offer more targeted service to high school students:
Students requiring less comprehensive assistance may also participate in a single, one-hour, consultation for college planning or general application review.
Solomon Admissions Consulting specializes in helping students in grades K-12 secure spots in private and boarding schools and also assists with college admissions.
Freshman, sophomore, and junior students are provided mentorship on which academic and extracurriculars to pursue, and senior students are given comprehensive help with the following:
Solomon also helps transfer applicants position themselves in the best light possible to be accepted into their desired school.
The Princeton Review is a well-known college admissions consulting service that provides assistance to high school students, graduates, and professionals. They offer tutoring services to students of all grades and offer application assistance to high school and graduate students in particular.
The most common service students seek from the Princeton Review is their standardized test prep. They feature several prep programs, but each one must be completed within a certain timeframe. While live classes take place on set weekdays, there are weekend-only options for students with scheduling conflicts.
PrepExpert is another admissions consulting service that is best known for its test prep, particularly its all access passes for students in grade 8-12 on test courses, tutoring, and coaching.
PrepExpert caters to students of varying budgets. For instance, they offer shorter, inexpensive courses that last around six weeks for students on a time crunch and more comprehensive programs that give students all-inclusive access to their services for several years.
These latter programs can cost between $56,000 to $160,000 per year, depending on your grade.
Ivy Coach was created in 1992 and has offered students premier college consultancy ever since. They offer counseling for highschool students, graduate students, and free college counseling for veterans.
With a commitment to never sugar coat, this service gives students realistic assistance. If they don’t believe a student will get into Harvard, they’ll say it!
In what they call the PreMortem, or first step of the consulting process, they spend an hour assessing high school students’ college applications, correcting mistakes, and composing an appropriate list of colleges for them to apply to.
Ivy Coach also maintains a free blog that discusses additional information on the application process.
College Zoom is another one of the best college admissions consultants. It offers similar packages as the other services mentioned on this list, including assistance with college planning and every part of the application process.
A main difference with this service is it does not provide a free consultation. Students must pay a fee of $250 to $850 for an initial consultation, depending on their grade and the package they’re interested in.
As the name suggests, Varsity Tutors is primarily a tutoring service. They offer academic support to students in elementary school, high school and college, as well as adults, and those with learning difficulties.
They also focus on tutoring services for exams such as high school and college entrance exams (e.g., the SAT, ACT, and PSAT), graduate school entrance exams, and licensing exams for professionals.
Varsity Tutors do not offer other admission assistance, but considering standardized test scores are an integral part of the application process, they are still considered a top admissions assistance service.
After reviewing the best college consulting services, you may still have doubts about whether you should invest your time and money into one. Considering the majority of these services cost several thousands, your hesitations are warranted!
However, it should put you at ease to know that the best admissions consulting services typically have over a 95% success rate, meaning the vast majority of students that use them are able to get into their dream schools or achieve their desired scores!
In case you’re still unsure, consider the following reasons to use a college consulting service:
Oftentimes, as students practice for their SAT or ACT, they hit a wall. They have a target score in mind but are just unable to meet it. No matter how many times they go over their test prep books or how many hours they dedicate to their studies, there’s a pesky score they can never pass.
Admissions consultants know the exact strategies to overcome this! They’ve worked with diverse students and have experience solving even the most difficult test issues!
Your college applications will define the trajectory of your career. The school you get into and the program you complete can affect the types of careers you’re offered post-graduation or the types of graduate programs you get into.
Since so much rides on your applications, knowing there is an expert on your side that will ensure you submit the very best applications possible can reduce your stress and make the experience more enjoyable!
You can look forward to hearing back from colleges and feel some peace of mind knowing you enlisted the help of an expert!
The college admissions process has steadily become more selective over the last few years. As more applicants apply to top-rated programs, students are up against fiercer competition which can make it difficult to stand out.
Admissions consultants know how to make your application a cut above the rest despite this! Whether it be a compelling personal statement, excellent test scores, an impressive resume, or all of the above, they’ll guide you on how to submit winning applications!
The main questions to consider as you go through the best college admissions services to choose your top contender are: “do they fit within my budget?” and “do they offer me the exact resources I need to succeed?”
In terms of the latter question, here are some factors to take into account when deciding which service to use:
The best way to gauge an admissions consultant service’s dedication to student success is the free tools they offer. If an admissions consultant offers limited free resources, you can expect student success to be one of their priorities, but not the top one!
You’ll want to choose a college admissions service that is highly selective in the experts they employ, to ensure you’re receiving the very best support. Research how many applicants they select and the criteria they use!
Each admissions consultant will offer a unique service. Think about your goals and decide which service will aid you the most.
For instance, if you’re the parent of a middle schooler and would like to begin developing an impressive portfolio, look for a company that provides comprehensive support to students in grades 6-11.
You should be able to build a custom counseling plan with your coach, one that takes your other commitments into consideration and gives you flexibility. Some services impose time periods for you to complete your counselling, which can make the process more stressful than it needs to be!
Unfortunately, there are several fake admissions consulting services out there. Any reputable and successful admissions consultant company will have testimonials that you can read through to decipher the efficacy of their services. Go through these reviews, ensure they are legitimate, and consider how many there are.
You should be wary of services that have few reviews or reviews that repeat the same information, as these are either novice or fake services.
If you’re on the fence about seeking the help of a college admissions consultant, it may help to know that the majority of these experts enter this field because of a genuine passion to help students succeed!
These dedicated experts will provide you with personalized support and work just as hard as you to ensure your academic and professional goals are met! Consider your goals, budget, and the overall rankings of these college admissions services to pick the perfect coach to get you into your dream college!
