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One-on-One College Admissions
Essay Coaching

Applying to college is one of the most exciting yet anxious times in a person’s life. Of all the elements of a strong application, writing a unique and compelling personal statement can be particularly challenging. It’s not uncommon for even the most talented writers to find themselves struggling with their admissions essays. These essays ask students to write in-depth personal narratives, an intimidating prospect that requires a rhetorical style very different from most high school or college assignments. As admissions become increasingly competitive at every level, one needn’t wonder why more students are seeking the advice of an expert when it comes to crafting meaningful admissions essays.

Our admissions essay program gives students the benefit of a dedicated professional coach to guide him or her from brainstorming to final draft, with the goal of developing a truly outstanding essay. Because a student’s personal statement should highlight his or her singularity—the unique contributions that he or she would make to a school—our instructors guide each student toward a final essay that is not only well-organized and polished, but which effectively showcases his or her personality and individual voice.

Over the course of an admissions essay program, student and tutor brainstorm ideas for possible essay topics and winnow this list to the single best fit for the particular student and essay. Once a first draft is generated, student and tutor will collaborate on several revisions of this draft, polishing and refining it until both are satisfied with the final product. If appropriate, the tutor will then help the student tailor the essay to fit a range of application questions.

The essay is one of the few chances in the admissions process for a student to demonstrate creativity and writing skills. Whether you need assistance with a college essay or graduate school personal statement, our expert writing instructors can help ensure that your admissions essay communicates the unique ways in which you will contribute to the school community.

Our Admission Essay Coaches:
Our team of admission essay coaches includes the tutors below. Click on the instructor’s short profile to access his or her full profile:

Linda S., Ph.D
Linda S., Ph.D
Education

Harvard University, Ph.D in Clinical Psychology
Harvard University, MA in Clinical Psychology
Brandeis University, BA in Clinical Psychology (Honors)


Summary of Experience

Linda is a licensed psychologist and school counselor with over thirty years of experience in college counseling. She worked for sixteen years as chair of the Counseling Department at Newton North High School in Newton, MA, and is a former president of the New England Association for College Admission Counseling. She has taught at Harvard, Brandeis, and Boston University, and for fifteen years she served as a consultant to the College Board.
Ursula D., Ph.D.
Ursula D., Ph.D.
Education

Oxford University, PhD in Modern History
Harvard University, BA in History and Literature (Honors)
Phillips Academy, Andover


Summary of Experience

Ursula is a writer and historian who is currently a Visiting Postdoctoral Fellow in the History of Science Department at Harvard University. Her first book, on nineteenth-century physicist John Tyndall, was released in March 2011. She has also taught an undergraduate history course at Oxford and worked as a teacher and tutor at the Marymount School of New York for two years.
Anne S., M.F.A.
Anne S., M.F.A.
Education

George Mason University, MFA in Poetry
Yale University, BA in English and Psychology, summa cum laude


Summary of Experience

An Assistant Professor of English and Director of the Writing Center at Franklin Pierce University, Anne teaches courses in creative writing, composition, and literature. Her poetry collection, Undertow, won the 2007 Lexi Rudinitzky Poetry Prize, and her poems have been widely anthologized and published in literary journals.
Danielle M., M.F.A.
Danielle M., M.F.A.
Education

Emerson College, MFA in Writing, Literature, and Publishing
Georgetown University, BA in Psychology
Phillips Academy, Andover


Summary of Experience

Currently a member of the English faculty at Lawrence Academy, Danielle also works with the Academy's College Office, assisting students with the college-essay writing process. She has also taught at Andover's summer school, where she instructed students in the rigorous MS² program and edited the program's alumni magazine. Before becoming a teacher, Danielle worked as a writer and journalist for The Boston Phoenix.
Anindita S., M.F.A.
Anindita S., M.F.A.
Education

Vermont College of Fine Arts, MFA in Writing for Children & Young Adults
Boston University, MA in English, Creative Writing Program (Poetry)
MIT, SM in Media Arts and Science, Future of Learning Group
Wellesley College, BA in English and Computer Science (Honors)


Summary of Experience

A co-founder of TheWritingFaculty, Anindita has worked extensively with students in middle school through graduate school on academic writing and admission essays. She was a founding faculty member at a charter school in Cambridge, MA, where she taught middle school Humanities in a mixed-grade, inclusive classroom. She also taught undergraduate creative writing at Boston University.
Robin E., M.F.A.
Robin E., M.F.A.
Education

Columbia University, MFA in Writing
Princeton University, BA in English (Honors)


Summary of Experience

Robin is an adjunct professor of sitcom writing at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. She has written for several television shows, including Clued In and What About Joan, and periodicals ranging from The New York Times to Glamour. Her children's books include three Junior Editions of The Worst Case Scenario Survival Handbook, the eight-book series The Groovy Girls, and the Young Adult novel God Is In The Pancakes.
Katrina G.-S., M.A.
Katrina G.-S., M.A.
Education

Boston University, MA, Earhart Fellow in Journalism & Sociology
Boston College, BA in Theater Arts


Summary of Experience

Katrina’s travel essays have been published by NPR, National Geographic, The Christian Science Monitor, and CNN-go, among others. Her children’s book, Ma, The Search for Silence, is forthcoming from Little, Brown, and Company in 2013. She taught writing at the prestigious Kikokushijo Academy in Tokyo, where she was also a TV Journalist and Producer for NHK- World, and for Atraves in Nicaragua.
Marisa H., M.F.A.
Marisa H., M.F.A.
Education

University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop, MFA in Fiction Writing
Fulbright Fellow in Creative Writing to India
University of California, Berkeley, BA in English and Interdisciplinary Studies Field, Phi Beta Kappa


Summary of Experience

As a teacher, tutor, and workshop leader, Marisa's students have ranged from struggling writers to M.F.A. candidates. She has taught at universities including Stanford and U.C. Berkeley in composition, nonfiction, poetry, and fiction. Her memoir Loyal to the Sky (2007) won the Nautilus Gold Award for World-Changing Books. In 2010, she received a Fulbright fellowship in Creative Writing.
Hannah G., M.F.A.
Hannah G., M.F.A.
Education

University of Houston, M.F.A in Creative Writing/Poetry
University of Aix-Marseilles III
University of Tennessee, B.A in French and Humanities (International Studies)


Summary of Experience

Hannah currently teaches English at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside to traditional and non-traditional students. Her courses comprise literature, composition, and creative writing. Hannah is the poetry editor for CATCH UP, a nationally distributed journal of literature and graphic art. Her first collection of poetry, Your Invitation to a Modest Breakfast, will be published this fall.
Ian C., M.A.R.
Ian C., M.A.R.
Education

Boston College, PhD in Philosophy (Expected)
Yale University, MAR in Philosophy of Religion, magna cum laude
Oxford University, Visiting Student in Political Philosophy
Gordon College, BA in Political Studies, summa cum laude 


Summary of Experience

Ian began to tutor while a graduate student at Yale, initially focusing on test preparation and then expanding to academic writing and admission essays. His own writing spans scholarly, journalistic, and professional fields. Ian writes about art and culture for several national publications, including The Wall Street Journal, where he was also a Bartley Fellow.
Amy A., M.A.T.
Amy A., M.A.T.
Education

Boston University, M.A.T. in English Education
Boston University, M.A. in Creative Writing/Playwriting
State University of New York at Albany, B.A. in English, Summa Cum Laude


Summary of Experience

Amy has taught in both traditional and alternative classroom environments and tailors her approach to fit each student's learning style. A playwright who has had her work produced at the Boston Playwrights Theater, Amy tutors students in academic writing, admission essays, and playwriting.
Cara K., M.Ed.
Cara K., M.Ed.
Education

Lesley University, MEd
Northwestern University, BSJ, Medill School of Journalism


Summary of Experience

A private tutor and teacher, Cara combines concrete feedback with encouragement to help students become concise, clear, and effective writers. With a background in journalism and experience in communications, she tutors students in journalism and professional writing in addition to academic writing and admission essays.
Katie B., M.F.A.
Katie B., M.F.A.
Education

Vermont College of Fine Arts, MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults
Tufts University, MA in Teaching
Brown University, BA in Education Studies, magna cum laude
Phillips Academy, Andover


Summary of Experience

Katie has extensive experience as both a writer and educator. She taught high school English for several years and was a founding faculty member of a charter school. As Features Editor of the internationally distributed Teen Voices magazine, she worked with teen writers and their mentors. An award-winning novelist, Katie is also a communications expert in the nonprofit and educational sectors.
Sally R., M.Ed.
Sally R., M.Ed.
Education

University of Vermont, MEd in Curriculum and Instruction
St. Michael’s College, Graduate Certificate to Teach English as a Second Language
Illinois State University, BA in Russian Studies; Minor in Political Science


Summary of Experience

Sally has taught English and Social Science to ninth through twelfth grade students for ten years in courses ranging from American Literature to Sociology. Outside of the classroom, she has tutored students in middle school through adulthood with a special focus on admission essays.

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