Stress Less College Apps

Stress Less College Apps A Wellness Approach to College Applications and Beyond WHO AM I? I was born and raised in the East Bay and I live with my wife and toddler in East Oakland.

My name is Harley Poston and I'm so excited to help you or your child with college applications and beyond. I've dedicated my career to the education of young people, and I'm ready to focus on your child's transition to higher education. COLLEGE APP SUPPORT EXPERIENCE
In my six years teaching high school seniors, I provided students with one-on-one in-class support on their college search, selection, applications, financial aid, and final decisions. I've had hundreds of conversations with high school seniors about their futures, hopes, anxieties, and challenges in higher education. I have sat down with students to literally click through their entire college applications. I have edited more personal statements than I can count. These conversations were some of the most rewarding teaching experiences I had, and now I've chosen a career dedicated to those moments. College applications were also my seniors' top source of stress throughout their fall semester. As a teacher, I saw firsthand how the stress of these applications weighed on students' academic performance, athletics, mental health, and general wellness. I learned to speak with students about their applications in a way that prioritized their well-being. They did not need to be reminded about the importance of higher education and the difficulties that await them. They needed to know that everything was going to be okay. Only then would they find value in any advice I had to offer. This is the approach I use to guide my students today. TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Social science teacher at Skyline High in Oakland, CA (6 years)
Student Teacher at Del Mar High in San José, CA (1 year)
Classroom assistant in Yolo County schools (2 years)
Martial arts instructor in Fremont, CA (6 years)

05/19/2026

More nuance! When I’m working with students, I still might steer them away from those topics people say to avoid in the personal statement. I can usually tell pretty quickly if a student is leaning towards a “cliche topic” because they have something interesting to say about it or because the topic lends themselves to familiar and uninteresting storytelling.

Want me to help you with your personal statement? Send me a message and I’ll get you started.

05/17/2026

My trip to Mexico wouldn’t be complete without a tribute to its finest university, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM).

One of the coolest campuses on earth. A literal World Heritage site. 500 years of history.

I know that most non-Mexican students will have more obvious choices, but this definitely a campus you should explore when you study abroad.

05/17/2026

Whether from this past cycle or years ago.

Share some hope with the class of 2027 please!

05/06/2026

You’re not behind, but you can get ahead.

My Complete Guide to the UC Application walks you through dozens of tips just like these taken from my experience helping regular students get into every UC.

15+ successful PIQ’s and detailed strategies for how to approach each one.

Don’t let your competition buy your seat. Get the advice that others pay thousands for.

Comment “UC” to learn more about what’s inside my guide.

Ancient memes. Modern advice. Comment “UC” and I’ll send you a link to purchase the best single volume guide to the UC a...
05/05/2026

Ancient memes. Modern advice.

Comment “UC” and I’ll send you a link to purchase the best single volume guide to the UC application.

05/03/2026

There are recent admits and college students sharing useful content. They tend to focus on *their own stories.* They share problems in their own application to assure younger students with the same problems. They share resources they found useful.

They don’t offer sweeping, judgmental hot takes, AI-generated summer program lists, or warnings about what you MUST do lest you get rejected everywhere.

There’s a thousand videos in this toxic genre I could address. I tend not to dog on teenagers and early-20s creators trying their hand at social media. But this was so egregious that it deserved a response.

04/30/2026

Now there are certainly limits to how much you can work to make a college the right fit. There can be cultural and institutional problems you find insurmountable, but hopefully you filtered those colleges out of your list.

But much of the uncertainty about college is a mystery you need to embrace. That’s just growing up.

04/30/2026

Thank you to the team at for a lovely tour. I learned a lot! Rice is a top notch school that deserves your consideration, particularly in STEM but not exclusively by any stretch.

What questions do you have about Rice? Is it on your list?

04/28/2026

IT’S FINALLY HERE. Like, save, follow, and comment “UC” for the link.

I’ve been working on this guide for MONTHS.

Most free college admissions guides are useless. Either you forget you even downloaded them, thy regurgitate info everyone knows, or they’re just AI slop.

I researched and wrote this guide to put all my expertise and experience with UC admissions in one place.

And I want you to have it.

Start your UC apps off right. And don’t forget to ask me your questions.

04/27/2026

The longer you wait to get support, the more stressful this gets.

Comment “Discord” to start your free trial.

I don’t want you joining my Discord in November when deadlines are around the corner.

I want you joining today to get the help you need to start this process right.

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Oakland, CA

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