Kids who grow in Chicago are exposed to culture like few others are. There are also a lot of top-notch high schools in the city and surrounding suburbs. That means there are also tons of students with competitive attributes and resumes, in addition to a lot of regional competition. 

Our method helps students from the Chicago-area differentiate themselves from everyone else in the applicant pool. We also seek to help them match with their perfect school and a place that’s the right fit for their personality. 

We’ve found that our clients from Chicago gravitate towards schools with a robust social environment, whether they’re in big cities or true college towns. Many enjoy big schools with sports, while others gravitate towards arts schools, unsurprising given the offerings they grew up with in the Windy City. We get to know our kids and their interests to help them build the perfect college list for them.

Chicago Admissions Counseling: Our Process 

Our process is customized for every student depending on where they are in high school and what their goals here. Here’s what you can expect: 

Building a Timeline: Below is a sample timeline for our 10th grade clients 

10th Grade: One of the key components to a successful college application is developing a particular academic area of expertise and connecting the dots between what your choice schools have to offer and your area of interest. We help our younger students hone in on their academic passions. Then, we help them identify extracurricular activities that fit in with their area of interest. We also help students build book list and identify summer courses and internships they would want to aim for. 

11th Grade: We help our students take on leadership positions within their extracurriculars and spend their summer doing impressive activities that are also enriching to them. We also help students determine what they do (and more importantly) don’t want in a university. Together, we’ll help our clients build college lists that are not only within reach, but are also a strong fit. We want our clients to get into top schools, but we also want them to be happy where they end up. We will also help our students get started on the Common App and supplemental essays. 

12th Grade: We support our clients in completing all applications, paying particular attention to supplemental essays, which we feel are a great way to stand out in a competitive applicant pool. We also help our students stay organized and focused throughout their final year in high school. (However, our goal for the kids we’ve been working with since early high school is that most of the work is done so they can relax). 

Expanding extracurriculars: We coach students on which activities they should explore. We recommend against just joining a bunch of clubs to join them. These activities should be focused and in line with your academic niche and most importantly, should be interesting to the student. We also support kids in filling their summers wisely, including nabbing great internships, conducting research, starting groups of their own, or working on projects that light them up. 

Essays: We work with every single piece of writing you’ll submit to colleges. We work with students to craft unique pieces of work and edit them until they’re perfect. 

Building a College List: We will pair you with a consultant from your region who can help you dive into your interests and build out a list of schools that matches your personality. We work with clients to ensure their list is appropriately balanced between reach, target, and safety schools.

Connecting with a Chicago-Based Consultant

If you are from the Chicago-area and you want to attend a top-tier school, you should consider working with a consultant. You’ll ultimately be competing against students from the Midwest. We can help you determine your unique brand that will stand out to admissions counselors.

To hear more, reach out to us here.