College
Admissions
Counseling
The college admissions process can be intimidating. To give families clarity and confidence as they navigate the admissions maze, College Essay Mentor is partnering with Stacy Hernandez, a former admissions officer at Johns Hopkins University and a managing partner of TheBestU College Admissions Advising.
The service is tailored to students and parents who want the insights, advice and resources that will demystify the application process and increase any applicant's odds of success.
Meet Stacy
I worked in undergraduate admissions at Johns Hopkins University and Northeastern University from 1999 to 2011. I read thousands of college applications, made admissions decisions, managed a variety of recruitment territories, oversaw the recruitment process and the tour guide program, and developed recruitment programming for underrepresented, multicultural students.
I switched sides of the desk and served as the Director of College Counseling at Dawson School in Lafayette, CO, from 2011 to 2015. In 2015, I co-founded The Best U and transitioned into working with families independently to support their college admissions process.
As a college counselor, my goal is to help students determine the best path forward in order to make the college admission process less stressful and more accessible. I meet students where they are at and provide them with the guidance and information they need to have a successful college admissions process.
The Counseling Package
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Assessment: Admissions Profile Review
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Offline review of your high school transcript, resume, or activities list, and all other materials for your college applications.
Video: How Colleges Make Admissions Decisions
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An insider’s explanation of how admissions officers evaluate a college application.
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Insights into the factors that influence admissions decisions.
MEETING #1: Develop Your Admissions Plan
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Learn about your target colleges.
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Discuss your academic interests and potential majors.
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Discussion of college fit.
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Other topics: testing, summer plans, 12th-grade classes, activities, and personal experiences.
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A list of tasks to complete.
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One hour.
Email: College List Recommendations
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Offline work on your customized, well-balanced, college list.
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You receive a written list to review and refine during Meeting #2.
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Add access to the Library to this email.
Resource: Custom College Plan Portal
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Access to a college list research platform.
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Resource: College Admissions Library
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Access to a comprehensive, online library that includes resources for interview preparation, application walk-throughs, activities lists, and college major exploration.
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An In-Depth College Affordability Course with tools and resources to help manage your scholarship process, financial aid, cost of college, etc.
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Live webinars on college admissions topics.
MEETING #2: College List And Application Strategy
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Collaborate on crafting a well-rounded college list.
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Discuss your positioning as an applicant
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Suggestions for material to use in your essays.
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A list of tasks to complete.
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One hour.
Email: Customized College Admissions Roadmap
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Final college list.
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A step-by-step guide for your college admissions process.
MEETING #3: Finalize The Early Admissions Plan
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Review progress on applications.
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Make decisions on early applications.
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Half-hour.
MEETING #4: Finalize Regular Decision Applications
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Review early admissions results.
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Final planning for regular decision applications.
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Half-hour.
