BETSY’S PHILOSOPHY

Crafting a competitive college application is a journey of self-discovery

To stand out in today’s competitive college admissions landscape, students must develop an authentic understanding of themselves and their goals. Betsy helps students to not only develop this self knowledge, but also clearly articulate their story to admissions readers. College admissions is about so much more than rankings, scores, and credentials.

The college search and application process can be a transformative experience in a student’s life, one of self-discovery and growth. This approach results in authentic, competitive college applications and informed decision-making leading to better outcomes.

Betsy’s Approach

Betsy’s process is comprehensive and highly personalized to each student and their family, because she intentionally maintains a limited caseload every year. She employs a realistic, knowledgeable framework grounded in professional expertise and network insights.

  • Betsy begins working with sophomores and juniors, providing them with a head start on planning for the key components of a successful college search and application process, including standardized testing, high school course selection, summer enrichment activities, college research and campus visits. She also leads students to develop a better sense of themselves and their goals.

  • Typically, Betsy’s process is as follows: 2-4 sessions during sophomore year, monthly sessions during junior year, and weekly sessions in both the summer before and the fall of senior year. Betsy’s support does not end after applications are submitted. She guides students through the final college selection, including wait list management, if necessary.

  • Betsy works with each student to facilitate a thoughtful, bespoke college search and application process

    1. Administer assessments to determine college profile/type/fit preferences.

    2. Evaluate high school transcript and support course selection.

    3. Advise on test prep strategy, including timing, test type and test optional consideration.

    4. Review activities and assist with development of resume where applicable.

    5. Teach research sources and techniques, prepare student for visits and interviews.

    6. Analyze admissibility to colleges to develop a balanced list.

    7. Create a comprehensive application strategy for early decision, early action and regular decision.

    8. Provide personalized coaching during the process for each essay, from brainstorming to polish.

    9. Guide student through individualized application development and submission.

    10. Support decision-making during acceptance option review, including wait list management strategy.

  • The right counselor for your child depends on many factors. Betsy’s approach is warm and guiding, helping a range of students find their path — one that excites them and empowers them to take this important step to college. She also takes seriously her responsibility to adhere to the highest ethical and professional standards. Parents should seek a counselor who is a member of a credentialing association, such as the Independent Educational Consultants Association, which has strict membership requirements.

“Betsy is very knowledgeable and thoughtful, and is an extraordinarily effective communicator. The initial conversations with my wife and I could not have been more clear and transparent, and made it very easy to pull the trigger once our daughter had selected the college prep professional she wanted to work with after interviewing several.

Betsy quickly established a wonderful rapport with our daughter. Betsy seemed very adept at helping our daughter think through the various considerations relevant in selecting the right college for her, and then working very closely with our daughter at each step along the way as she went through the process. Betsy proved to be a rich and readily available resource and guide - a critically important and trusted counselor who helped our daughter make a choice she’s very excited about.”

— CM

Student Acceptances

Adrian College

American University

Arizona State University

Assumption University

Babson College

Barnard College

Bates College

Bentley University

Boston College

Boston University

Bowdoin College

Brown University

Bryant University

Bucknell University

California Polytechnic Institute (Pomona)

California Polytechnic Institute (San Luis Obispo)

Carnegie Mellon University

Case Western Reserve University

Chapman University

Clemson University

Coastal Carolina University

Colby College

Colgate University

College of Charleston

College of the Holy Cross

College of Wooster

Colorado College

Connecticut College

Dartmouth College

Davidson College

Denison University

Drexel University

East Carolina University

Eckerd College

Elon University

Emmanuel College

Emory University

Evergreen State University

Fairfield University

Fordham University

Franklin Pierce College

Furman University

Gettysburg College

George Mason University

Georgetown University

George Washington University

Gonzaga University

Hamilton College

Harvey Mudd College

Haverford College

High Point University

Hobart and William Smith Colleges

Indiana University-Bloomington

Iowa State University

Ithaca College

James Madison University

Kenyon College

Lake Forest College

Lehigh University

Lewis and Clark College

Loyola Marymount University

Marist College

Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

McGill University

Merrimack College

Miami University (OH)

Middlebury College

Michigan State

New York University

North Carolina State University

Northeastern University

Northeastern University-London

Northwestern University

Occidental College

Ohio State University

Oregon State University

Pennsylvania State University

Pitzer College

Pomona College

Providence College

Quinnipiac University

Reed College

Regis College

Rochester Institute of Technology

Roger Williams University

Rollins College

Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology

Rutgers University

Sacred Heart University

St. Anselm University

St. Lawrence University

St. Michael’s College

San Diego State University

Santa Clara University

Sarah Lawrence College

Scripps College

Simmons University

Skidmore College

Stetson University

Stonehill College

Suffolk University

Syracuse University

Texas A&M University

Texas Christian University

Trinity College (CT)

Trinity University (TX)

Tulane University

Union College

University College Dublin

University of Arizona

University of Arkansas

University of California-Davis

University of California-Irvine

University of California-Riverside

University of California-San Diego

University of California-Santa Barbara

University of California-Santa Cruz

University of Connecticut

University of Colorado-Boulder

University of Colorado-Denver

University of Delaware

University of Denver

University of Kansas

University of Maine

University of Maryland

University of Massachusetts-Amherst

University of Miami (FL)

University of New England

University of New Hampshire

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

UNC-Wilmington

University of Pittsburgh

University of Rhode Island

University of Richmond

University of Rochester

University of St Andrews (Scotland)

University of St. Thomas

University of San Diego

University of Southern California

University of South Carolina

University of South Florida

University of Tampa

University of Tennessee

University of Texas-Austin

University of Toronto

University of Vermont

University of Virginia

University of Washington

University of Wisconsin

Villanova University

Virginia Tech

Wake Forest University

Wentworth Institute of Technology

Wesleyan University

West Chester University

Whitman College

Worcester Polytechnic Institute