“The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.”
William Arthur Ward
CONSULTING SERVICES
I am 100% committed to the success of each student and I am flexible regarding the format of our work together.
I offer hourly services, as well as Basic and Comprehensive Packages, to suit the individual needs of each student. Please request a no fee consultation, during which we assess our mutual fit, as well as determine which services would benefit you and your child the most. I look forward to working with you!
Note: I believe that every student deserves a chance. The students who are very motivated and deeply desire to learn, but do not have the necessary funds to get professional help from the best consultants, also deserve the opportunity to work with such consultants. Therefore, if my packages do not fit your budget, please write me at ssp2123@columbia.edu or request a meeting via the website so that we can discuss this further and find the best way that I can be of help.
Every student who signs up for a package with me ensures that I provide at least 5 hours of low to no cost College Application Consulting to students from a low income background.
Scroll Below to read my Detailed LIST OF NECESSARY ELEMENTS FOR A SUCCESSFUL COLLEGE APPLICATION. I provide expert guidance with all elements in that list.
If you are interested in GRADUATE APPLICATION HELP, click HERE.
My services
As an international student, I did not receive any help with my own application; therefore, I resolved to become for other students the Guide that I never had. My Calling as a consultant is to help students express their authentic voice and uniqueness and optimize their college application.
how i guide you to create
a superior college application
a superior college application
Psychological support
- I help with calming student anxiety down; reduce the psychological pressure from taking exams and submitting their applications; i help them with the feeling of overwhelm.
- I instil in students the feeling that everything is going to be OK. Students feel in SAFE HANDS: this feeling of being nurtured and secure is priceless in the competitive application process
List of Necessary Elements for a successful College Application
SAT: 1530+ for Ivy League and Top 15 universities and/or for scholarship consideration
GPA (weighted): [please consult academic advisor for predicted grade]
Class Rank: [please consult academic advisor for predicted class rank]
Major: Undecided (Political Science/International Relations)
Minor: possibilities not decided
Letters of Recommendations: 2-3 from teachers, 1 from school counselor [they must ideally put the student in top 5/top 10 of class on most or all rating questions submitted together with the recommendation.] I provide guidance how to approach the teachers who will write the letters of recommendations, including a Brag Sheet that summarizes to the teachers what needs to be included in the recommendation, how it needs to be structured, and what the admissions officers are looking for.
Note: During the school year, focus on fostering good relationships with a few teachers who can potentially write a Letter of Recommendation. If you want to ask a teacher who is no longer teaching at your school to write a Letter of Recommendation, make sure you connect with them in advance and update them on your development.
A Carefully Crafted List of Colleges: 16-20 schools.
2.1. The list must contain Safe, Target, and Reach schools.
2.2. The schools must be careful choses so that they have a Department, Major, Faculty, and courses that align with the student’s intellectual and research interests and so that these schools are looking exactly for a similar student profile.
2.3. Pay attention to factors such as the school profile, language programs, research orientation and internship opportunities; geographic location; alumni network and future job outlook. Minor Field options must be considered here as well.
Strategic Positioning: Strategic positioning means highlightinga student’s unique qualities, achievements, and experiences in a way that calls attention to their strengths and makes them stand out from other applicants. It is good if the student shows passion for vastly different fields, for example, Computer Science and Psychology. Is the student is applying for a very popular field, such as Biology or Engineering, it would be great to showcase and interest in Humanities or Art as well, in order to stand out from the other candidates. Alternatively, displaying passion for two STEM disciplines or two Social Sciences is also a good strategic positioning move. Other beneficial factors: Interest in interdisciplinary research, a strong Art Portfolio, a personal website that lists the student’s diverse projects, academic and literary publications.
List of Activities/ Honors/ Resume.
College Interviews.
Personal Statement.
Supplemental Essays.
Publications/ Research.
Publish academic research in a reputable journal or present research at a reputable conference.
Conduct research without publishing it; format it properly according to academic standards and put it on your website. The research must correspond to the research interests of the faculty of your Top choice school(s). Ideally, you must use books or other materials created by that faculty.
Publish academic research or creative writing. Below is a partial List of publications.
Creative writing:
The Adroit Journal: adroitjournal.org/adroit-prizes/
The Alexandria Quarterly: https://www.alexandriaquarterlymag.com/
Academic Research:
Journal of Emerging Inverstigators: https://emerginginvestigators.org/
International Journal of High School Research: https://ijhsr.terrajournals.org/
National High School Journal of Science: https://nhsjs.com/?mainpage
Young Scientist Journal (of Vanderbuilt University): https://www.vanderbilt.edu/cseo/services/journals/young-scientist-journal/
Interdisciplinary research:
Stanford Intersect: https://ojs.stanford.edu/ojs/index.php/intersect
History:
The concord Review: https://www.tcr.org/
Carefully filling out the Common App. It it advisable to have someone go over every detail in the Common App and each university section to make sure that everything is filled out correctly and optimized.
GRADUATE ADMISSIONS/STUDENTS
Graduate Admissions to Master’s and PhD Programs
Help with your Dissertation
Help with your Academic Research
Help with your Master’s thesis
TRANSFER STUDENTS
The flexibility of the US undergraduate educational system allows students the wonderful opportunity to change colleges, typically after the First or Second year of study. The decision to transfer, however, should not be taken lightly.
It is advisable to give yourself ample time and chances to adapt to your first university. Meet with student groups that share your interests; talk to people in your dorm; take walks in the neighboring area; participate in as many activities that you are interested in; apply yourself to your classes. If you had a fight with a roommate in the first month of your stay there or if you didn’t like one class or had a bad grade– there are likely insufficient reasons to transfer. If, however, you feel strongly over a period of time that the university is not the right fit for you then, by all means, you should consider transferring.
I will help you find the best fit for your potential and personality to shine. University education has to be meaningful and is a time to forge life-long friendships and to put the solid foundations to the rest of your career.
Together, we:
analyze the challenges that you have in your current school and what other institution might provide a much better fit for your individual needs.
carefully go over your initial admission applications in order to identify what caused your admission into an unsuitable school, and correct whatever flaws your application has
Carefully consider your course of action: from the courses that you are taking at your present school to getting high-quality Professor Recommendations
Craft persuasive essays, which in style and content have to be quite different from your college admissions essays
The college application is holistic. It does not depend on any one aspect but on the impression that you create as a person through the whole package.
I help you present yourself in the most persuasive way by highlighting your uniqueness, special gifts, interests, and strong points.Your application essays need to be genuine and authentic, and your application must reflect your strongest passions; at the same time, strategically positioning yourself/ marketing yourself in a way also presents a vital aspect of your application.
Whether you are a STEM candidate, a CS major wannabe, an Art or Literature person, I will guide you to create the most compelling application as well as choose the universities that are best suited to your talents and personality.As a former international student, both at Stanford University in California and Oxford University in the UK, I deeply understand the concerns and challenges for international students aspiring to study in the USA.
It is important to express yourself and your passions in a way that many international students are not used to. I have worked with many Russian and Asian students who initially had a really hard time opening up and writing in a more emotional, intimate way. Eventually, those students submitted winning applications that paved their way to Ivy League and their dream universities.
