College Essay & Application Consulting

Ivy Experience provides application essay consulting for students applying to any school.

We are your essential ally and coach throughout the entire college application process: helping applicants brainstorm essay ideas and stay on deadline throughout their revisions, and supporting families in preparing final drafts for submission to universities.

Throughout this stressful time, we are a mediator, ensuring that applicants take ownership over their own essays while welcoming and incorporating input from parents.

We are also a support system for families—providing guidance on navigating acceptances, deferrals, waitlists, and rejections.

Our Process

We have over a decade of experience helping students craft their admissions essays.

Step One (ideally winter of junior year)

Schedule a FREE initial consultation to discuss the college list, outline a game plan for working together on essays and applications, and answer any other relevant questions to ensure that we are the right fit.

Step Two (ideally spring of junior year)

Brainstorm essay ideas, discuss material for Why College essays from college visits, and, in some cases, start drafting!

Step Three (ideally summer before senior year)

We keep students on deadline for all drafts and applications, provide critical feedback on every essay draft, and ultimately support students in preparing their applications and final essay drafts for submission to universities. 

Step Four (ideally fall of senior year)

We motivate and encourage students to complete all of their essays and applications before the beginning of their senior year. Some applicants may work into the fall, as well.

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Our Focus

We do not just strengthen essays; we empower students to strengthen their relationship with writing as a whole. Customizing our coaching to each individual, we guide applicants through each stage of the brainstorming, revision, and proofreading process—helping them gain confidence in their abilities and grow as thinkers, writers, and future professionals. 

In working together to create the most impactful college application essays possible, we coach students through sharpening their critical thinking and analytical skills, building time management and organizational habits, deepening their self-reflection, and elevating their written and verbal communication methods—always ensuring that each applicant expresses their unique and authentic voice in every essay. All of this prepares students for the demands of college-level writing and also for writing in all future applications and endeavors.

Deadlines
Track deadlines to keep students organized throughout all essay drafts, so that everything is complete well before the application deadlines.

Communication
Communicate through emails, texts, calls, and video chats to provide constructive feedback on drafts—ensuring that everyone is on the same page.

Guidance
Provide guidance and feedback on applications, résumés, and admissions interviews.

Flexibility
Remain flexible as college lists evolve. Prices are a flat consulting fee based on the number of essays (not the number of schools), so there is no limit to drafts or time spent communicating while working together.

How Ivy Experience Helps

Parents call us about coaching their students on college application essays for a variety of reasons:

  • Goals of submitting the highest quality essays and applications that best package the student
  • Concerns that students will wait until right before the deadline
  • Too many arguments at home
  • Students not knowing what to write about

What our students and parents have to say

No one will argue that the college process is difficult and time consuming—but the team at Ivy Experience REALLY supported us through it. They created a timeline to complete all the essays, and every revision that I saw made me say "wow, they really helped tighten the message" and "wow, that essay seems so concise." After tens of essays, they maintained their attention and consistently turned out excellent advice. In the end, my son got in early decision to the school of his choice. I will be using Ivy Experience for my two other children in due time!

Morria P. - Parent

We used Ivy Experience with both of my children and it was wonderful. The tutoring service helped on the standard testing and brought both of their scores up. We also used Ivy Experience for the application and essay writing. We could not have gotten through this process without them. Karan and Eric were instrumental with working on the essays and setting reasonable and firm deadlines. They gave encouragement when needed but also gave constructive criticism which was crucial. I would highly recommend their service to any prospective junior/senior. Eric is very easy and great to work with, he is always available for questions or advice. His TED talk is very informative and definitely worth watching before any student starts the college journey.

Diane A. - Parent

Eric was great. He brought out the best in our daughter, encouraged her to both think different and work very hard. His level guidance and advice far exceeded our expectations and took the stress out of our daughter's application process. Cannot recommend him enough. Any child would highly benefit from his help.

Jim R. - Parent

Preparing for college standard admission tests and applications should not be a one size fits all program. Ivy Experience provided a flexible approach in preparing my daughter for all the myriad of tasks and points to be considered and addressed. Ivy Experience tailored their services to what my daughter needed and how she responded best.

Kathy T. - Parent

Ivy Experience was an enormous asset to my daughter in the college prep process. The process has changed dramatically since I applied to colleges, and their team’s knowledge and guidance was extremely valuable. They were able to keep her on schedule and gave her deadlines to get the necessary steps completed on time. The best part was the removal of arguments between me and my daughter. Their help resulted in a very high acceptance rate to selective colleges. I strongly encourage you to use Ivy Experience, and I suggest you do it very early in the process.

Michael S. - Parent

For more insights into how we work with students on college essays and applications, check out this TEDx Talk from our co-founder, Eric Karlan.

TEDx Temecula 2018

Eric Karlan
Co-Founder & President

Other Consulting Areas

Portfolio Consulting

Our portfolio development offering is designed to help students of all experience levels create the best possible college portfolio. Whether applying to the top art and design programs in the country or endeavoring to distinguish one’s application with a strong collection of creative supplemental materials, our Portfolio Consulting service helps students craft an unique and cohesive portfolio. No formal training or existing body of work is required to begin the process; simply an interest in cultivating a strong creative portfolio to set oneself apart from the competition.

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Interview Prep

Ivy Experience provides students with a comprehensive workbook that includes strategies for interview success, common interview questions, and materials and exercises to prepare for any admissions interview. This service also includes an hour-long session covering essential interview tips and a full mock interview, using a college from the student's list. After the session, students receive an evaluation and constructive comments for improvement.

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Graduate School Essays

While graduate programs differ from undergraduate programs in terms of career objectives, academic requirements, and admissions criteria, our process of working together is the same. We love working with applicants new to the process, and we also value the opportunity to work again with students we once supported through the journey from high school to college—recognizing their personal growth throughout their university experience and guiding them through their next steps to law school, medical school, or graduate programs in any field.

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The Vine

#College Essays and Applications

Start Planning.

We are ready to start brainstorming ideas and discussing the application process. Contact us today!

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