<p>I'm a rising senior living abroad and looking to go to an American university. I was wondering whether or not I should use a consulting service to help me with my application. </p>
<p>Brief background: I'm planning on applying to top 20 universities in the U.S. I have good numbers but boring extracurriculars and mediocre recommendations. My family makes around $200,000 a year, so I don't just have random money to throw away but it won't be a huge financial burden either. </p>
<p>So..I contacted two consulting services to get an idea of the cost.</p>
<p>Service 1: Former Stanford admissions officer, experience with my school, outstanding record
- Price: $15,000 for 10 schools, $1,500 for one school</p>
<p>Service 2: No experience with my school, good record (but not as much as service 1)
- Price: $7,600 for 10 schools</p>
<p>Apparently they will help me with my college list, resume, and revision of essays. </p>
<p>Do you think going to either one of these services will be worth the money? Has anybody gone to a service like this before, and did it help?</p>
<p>For most of use, it’s not worth it . . . . but that’s primarily because most of us cannot afford it! We figure we can do just as well using the resources available on CC.</p>
<p>But, if you’re living abroad (which seems like it would hinder things . . . although perhaps not so much with the internet) and, more importantly, can afford it, then why not? Particularly with “boring extracurriculars and mediocre recommendations,” I think it could be a huge help. Yes, you could get tons of advice here on CC on how best to “package” yourself, but getting the personal, hands-on assistance of a private consultant would probably be significantly more effective. In the end, you get what you’re paying for.</p>
<p>A good consultant can make a huge difference . . . and it sounds like you’re someone who could really benefit from that extra help.</p>
<p>Lots of CC’ers will now start posting just to disagree with me and say that a private consultant isn’t necessary. Well, an expensive, high performance car isn’t “necessary” either, but if you can afford it, then why not? It sounds like you’ve done your research on the these two consultants . . . if you’re going to do it, go with the one that knows your school.</p>
<p>“Apparently they will help me with my college list, resume, and revision of essays”</p>
<p>For that kind of bucks, they’d better help you far more than that. Starting a thread on cc can help you pick out a very good college list, I doubt colleges even look at resumes, and you can get every friend and parent you know to help you with revisions.</p>
<p>I’m not saying that you shouldn’t get a counselor, if you don’t have the time to do the research and you have plenty of $$, no problem. I’m sure it can be very useful. But at 200K/yr, a $15K cost is a big hit to the income. It had better be worth it. And I wonder if the counselor is offering some sort of particular access or knowledge for that kind of fee. If you are mostly looking at top 20, well, there’s your list, don’t need much help with that. And why just top 20? What if you like #21 better, or #22? Or are you just thinking generically top 20 as a place to start?</p>
<p>I am also wondering about counselor #1 as opposed to #2. How does that counselor have a better record, how do you know? Could it also have something to do with the kids who pay the big bucks for her have better stats, etc, as opposed to her skill? 15K seems really high, but maybe someone on here can tell you the norm.</p>
<p>I say keep searching and find out what all your options are. Some, like myself, charge by the hour or by the essay rather than requiring a large upfront retainer. This allows you to see for yourself whether the counseling is helpful before you proceed to a larger payout. It also allows you to choose only those services you want.</p>
<p>View reports of a counselor’s record with a careful eye. Folks with successful practices can pick and choose their clients, which is fine in and of itself, but if they are largely working with superstar students, the positive outcomes don’t tell you very much. You need to know what it’s actually like working with that individual. The way to learn that is to judge it for yourself or get the opinions of former clients. A good counselor should be willing to put you in touch with satisfied customers.</p>
<p>There are also counselors out there that offer ala carte services. For example: they help you develop a college list. Assist in refining your essays or help you churn out ideas for great essays. Guide you through the entire college process and hep you “market” yourself towards different schools. I know of one whose fees are anywhere from 1500. to 4200, depanding on services rendered. Also my tip would be to ask around. Many friends, neighbors, older siblings of friends may have used services, they might be a great resource for you.</p>