<p>I would definetly recommend it.
I'm a junior and my parents have hired a consultant.
I got mine freshman year and he has been advising me ever since. We got one pretty cheap. 600 for four years of high school and check ins during college. His fees have now raised to over 1000.
They seem to be getting pretty popular.
They are definetly better than school college counselors. School counselors are more hesitant on giving you advice because they don't want parents calling and complaining that their son or daughter didn't get into a school they thought he/she would.
My counselor told me to that BC was a reach, but when I went to my consultant, he told me that BC should be put in as a safety college.</p>
<p>Oh, and they definetly help with paying for colleges. My consultant takes care of all financial aid and scholarship information.</p>
<p>imo if you are debating whether to get a consultant or not your child is in a pretty good situation. Shes lucky to have a parent so involved. For me i did all my college apps and choosing on my own i just asked my mom for her credit card and i preferred it that way. I felt more independent and it taught me some character(well i hope we'll see).
But getting a consultant can mostly help it just comes down to can you afford it and will your child be committed to working with the consultant or will they just put up with them.
So if you have the money, ask your daughter if she wants the help it would be a good place to start.</p>
<p>I'm not saying that she would be the weakest link at her college, but a college will not determine your child's future. Her success or failure depends on her attitude and personality and work ethic, and various other personal factors - and not entirely on her college. There will not be a huge difference between Harvard and University of Chicago, or whatever. Sure, there's a difference between Harvard and, say, the University of Arizona, but in such a case, a college counselor is not going to help a huge deal.</p>
<p>I understand that you want the best for your daughter, but in my opinion (which you by no means have to listen to) the best thing for her would be to allow her to independently apply to colleges and be entirely herself. Not only will it be a learning experience for her, but she'll be better for it.</p>
<p>I'd be a very good admissions consultant, but too bad that requires experience working in an admissions' office.</p>
<p>Brysia, have you had the meeting yet?</p>
<p>Broetchen, the meeting went well. We have time to wait and see how grades and SAT scores develop. If my daughter has the stats than I would hire him otherwise I might just consult him a couple of times on hourly basis.</p>
<p>Thanks for the update, brysia. I am glad to hear that you felt that things went well. If you decide to proceed, either by hiring him or having him consult with you, please do fill us in. I completely understand that there are things that you may not be comfortable sharing, but whatever you do feel like relaying would be greatly appreciated. I would be most interested in hearing what specifically such a consultant would bring to the table that one wouldn't get from indepedent research. All the very best to you and your daughter in this process.</p>