Abigail Hillman: Academics & Applications

Some colleges (especially those with rolling admissions) post their prompts early, and many schools stick to the same questions year to year. Start drafting now using last year’s prompts as a guide. Just remember: you decide what story you want to tell—don’t let the questions lead the way. Shape your responses to highlight who you are and what matters most to you. You’ve got this! 💪✨

Our mission is to develop interesting, inquisitive, and passionate young people who have the skills and desire to make an impact.

We believe that approaching students holistically and defining success individually builds confidence and character.

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Will Braithewaite: TEST PREP INSTRUCTOR & ACADEMIC INSTRUCTOR (HOMEWORK, WRITING, MATH)

Will grew up in Radnor, Pennsylvania and graduated from Vanderbilt University Magna Cum Laude with a major in History and a minor in English. After scoring a 1580 on the SAT, Will has been working as an SAT and ACT test prep tutor for five years, most recently with Varsity Tutors. He also specializes in tutoring English, calculus, trigonometry, history, and French. Will loves connecting with students and catering to their specific learning styles. He has a natural instinct for understanding what makes them tick and students love him. In his spare time, Will enjoys sailing, playing the guitar, and performing improv comedy!

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I’m excited to share that we are expanding our student development services to include college launch & support. Students head to college at a wide range of developmental stages. Some need help with the basics like waking up, getting to class on time, managing laundry, or setting aside time to do class work. Others need support clarifying a career path or landing an internship. No two paths look the same, but everyone benefits from personalized guidance.

The interview I recently read with Rutger Bregman brought to mind our mission statement: to develop interesting, inquisitive, and passionate young people who have the skills and desire to make an impact.

Bregman is the author of Moral Ambition, a best-selling book that challenges traditional definitions of career success. Bregman encourages readers to channel their skills and energy into tackling urgent global problems. One of the questions I’ve started asking students in our first session is, What problem in the world would you like to solve?

Bregman shared that results of the American Freshman Survey, which annually polls incoming college students on their life goals, have undergone a significant shift. Today, nearly 90% of students identified making money as being essential or very important. In the 1960s, that number was 50%. The numbers flipped when students ranked the importance of developing a meaningful philosophy of life.

A mentor’s role isn’t to define success for the mentee, but to challenge passivity and inertia by asking thoughtful questions that require thinking beyond the obvious, so they can look back and know their choices were intentional and deeply considered.

As always, you can book a free consultation! We’re here to help!

Abigail and the Team

https://www.abigailhillman.com/

Emme Pike: ATHLETIC RECRUITING ADVISOR

Emme is eager to use her own lived experience as a D3 NESCAC athlete and current coach to guide fellow athletes in the recruitment process. In high school, Emme played field hockey and soccer, rowed crew, and swam. As a four year Varsity Swim and Dive team member and Captain at Bates College, Emme garnered consistent recognition as an NESCAC Winter All-Academic, earning the prestigious Senior Scholar Award, and securing points for the college at the NESCAC Championship level.

Emme is currently at Wesleyan University pursuing a master’s degree in Education and Human Development while serving as the Men’s and Women’s Assistant Swim and Dive Coach. Emme spearheads much of the recruiting for the team, speaking directly with prospective athletes and advising them on the process. Her passions extend beyond the field of play; she is deeply committed to advocating for athlete mental health initiatives and advancing opportunities for women in athletics. Emme is dedicated to empowering fellow athletes and guiding them towards continuing their athletic careers at the next level.

Katryna Nields helps students develop a balanced list of colleges. She is a natural communicator and factoid collector (in high school she could name every senator in the Virginia State Senate, every country in the world, and every Adirondack 46R). She spent the 90s as a touring musician playing concerts and workshops at colleges all over the country with her band The Nields. She has worked at the Loomis Chaffee School, Academy of Charlemont, and the Bement School. After stewarding her children through the college admissions process, Katryna became an informal guide to dozens of friends (and sisters) and realized she has a preternatural ability to match kids with their perfect fit. Katryna is currently getting her IECA certification.

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Now’s the time to tackle the activities section, personal essay, and potentially the optional sections like Challenges & Circumstances, School Change, School Progression, and Additional Info. BE STRATEGIC about what goes where. You and your counselor should map out what parts of your story you want to save for the supplements. The ideal way to approach the Common App is to cluster the sessions in one intensive week. Having this draft complete (yes, you will revise) lessens stress sets you up for success when the supplements come out in July and August! Let’s go! 💪

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SAT/ACT Assessment and Prep:
Even though many schools are still test optional, a strong test score is an unequivocal positive. A quick assessment can determine if it makes sense to focus on one test or the other.

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Now that seniors have made their final decisions, we are looking through the stats for the Class of 2025 so we can better serve the Class of 2026. Here are some take-aways!

College Match is worth it.
92% of our students got into one of their top two schools! Of that, 62% were accepted to their first-choice school, 30% to their second choice. It’s soooo much fun seeing all the excitement, relief, and optimism from this cohort!

Applying Early Decision (ED) makes a difference!
Our results confirm that Early Decision remains the best strategy. We make sure our students have done thorough research and are ready to commit.

Applying Early Action (EA) can relieve a lot of stress.
90% of our students who applied EA received an acceptance! Not every school offers EA — and EA applications don’t always confer an advantage — but students usually find out by December if they’re accepted. An early offer of admission gives them a boost of confidence and means they can cross off schools lower on their list— less work in the Regular Decision round!

Everyone’s applying to the same cohort of schools. When a school gets 80,000 applications for 6,000 spots, it’s not about how deserving you are — it’s about the math. There just isn’t enough room. It’s like trying to fly standby on a plane with 20 open seats and 400 people hoping to get on.
So what do we do?

We diversify our lists.�We prioritize fit over name recognition.�We open our minds and visit some schools we haven’t heard of.
�We get real about what matters: a great education, at a place where you can thrive, without crushing debt.

A few years ago, there were several schools now on the “top 25 list” that our students had never heard of. Now these schools are on “the list!”

Four Reasons to Skip the College Essay Bootcamp

1.The college essay is part of a holistic application, and treating it as stand-alone is a mistake.

2.It’s hard to get a personalized piece of writing in a group setting.

3.Even for students who just want to get the essay done, bootcamps often fall short — students are expected to draft on their own, and many hit a wall early in the process.

4.Essays are not about grinding it out; they’re about discovery, introspection, and thoughtfulness.