Who we are and where we come from

Most consulting firms fall into one of two categories. Some are founded by former admissions officers who bring genuine inside knowledge of how the process works. Others are founded by students who got into elite schools and want to share what worked for them. We understand both approaches well, because we are a team of Harvard graduates with our own stories: first generation college students, a team member who navigated housing instability, or another who came up as a musical prodigy. We did not all take the same path to get there, and that range of experience shapes how we think about every student we work with.

What differentiates us

College admissions is not static; the rubrics update every year. What earned a 2 in extracurricular rating three cycles ago may be scored differently today. Former admissions officers are working from the process as it was, and students sharing their own story are offering just one data point. That is not to say their perspectives are not valuable, but neither has what we have: the actual scoring records, reader notes, and committee commentary from the most recent cycle, written by the officers who are reading applications right now.

Trends, not snapshots

Because we have been doing this for so long, we have compiled admitted data spanning students across the top institutions, cycle over cycle. What has shifted, what has held constant, and what trends are emerging matter just as much as what is true right now. A single admissions record tells you what happened once; years of files tell you why. We help students build compelling stories. We use data to make sure those stories land.

Why we have this data and others do not

Admitted students everywhere can gain access to their admission files, but what is rare is that our students trust us enough to share them long after their engagement with us ends. This is because of the foundation we have built together alongside them for the last four to five years. That relationship is not something other firms can replicate overnight; it is not tied to prestige or network or platform. It is earned, slowly and meticulously, one student at a time.

Reader notes

The exact language admissions officers use when rating essays, activities, and personal qualities. We know what a 1 sounds like in writing, and what a 3 sounds like.

Scoring records

Actual scores across the six rating categories, academics, extracurriculars, personal, recommendations, athletics, interview, for admitted students. Real calibration, not theory.

Updated annually

Admitted students from our previous cohorts share their files with us every cycle because of the trust we have built over years of working together, and because they want to give back to the families coming after them. This is not archival research. It is live data from the most recent cycle, updated every year.