Graduate Admissions:
Stand out among the crowd
Life/Academic/Career Coaching - High School
graduate admissions
consulting
Including: Personal Statement Coaching
Your success in the graduate school applications process will largely depend on your personal statement, so the most important function for your statements is that they do you justice—that your essays present the admissions officers with an attractive and authentic portrayal of your best personal qualities, achievements and experiences.
Admissions officers are a tough audience, and their expectations are not the same expectations as those of English teachers or school counselors. Using our extensive admissions industry experience and our pragmatic, real-world approach to teaching writing, we will help you strategically select topics that will hold the attention of admissions officers; brainstorm for each prompt; edit for clarity and conciseness; and edit for voice and organization.
We are confident that by the end of this process, students will agree that our services were an invaluable investment for their college careers and writing skills.
10 Sessions
Unlimited SOS! calls
Edits and revisions on all personal statements
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Initial writing assessment
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Proofreading, comments, and revisions for all personal statements, plus short answer questions
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1. Intro SessionThis session is all about FUN—and fit. The Coach will ask the student simple, curious questions to get to know the student’s personality and ambitions. They will also determine the student’s readiness for the program.
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2. Wheel of Life, Well-Formed Outcomes, Action StepsThe student will learn how to create achievable goals called “well-formed outcomes”, along with its 4 must-have components: Positive, Precise, Portion Size, Point in Time. For more complex assignments and projects, the student will learn the technique of listing action steps. The Coach will also introduce the “Wheel of Life”, a tool that can help the student track their levels of satisfaction for the most important areas of their life.
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3. Using A PlannerPlanners are the most important, yet underutilized resource in a high school student’s tool box. Here, the student will learn the many different uses of a planner, as well as how to set up a planner so that it is helpful for both school and extracurricular activities.
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4. The Study Cycle & Learning/Thinking StylesEarn better grades with less effort! Did you know that different people have different learning and thinking styles—and that they consequently place more importance on some forms of information over others? Here, students will learn how to identify “What?”, “How?” and “Why?” people and use this knowledge to connect with difficult teachers. The student will also learn be introduced to the Study Cycle, an enlightening tool for understanding what happens to the brain when we learn, and how to make the things we learn stick.
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5. Motivation and VisionIn this session, the student will learn to view motivation in various ways: conditional vs. intrinsic, sake of self vs. sake of others, and Gretchen Rubin's "Four Tendencies." The Coach will also introduce the concept of vision and encourage the student to visualize successes in the immediate and long-term future.
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6. Efficient Note-Taking & ReadingMost high school students still have a number of years of school ahead of them, and digesting and recalling information are skills that will remain useful for a lifetime. For this session, the Coach will divulge multiple, proven techniques for more efficient note-taking and reading. These skills will be especially useful for standardized testing and college lectures.
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7. Systems & OrganizationHere, the student will identify problem areas in their systems for study, work and home. The Coach will guide the student into developing better systems so that routine tasks are simple, automatic and stress-free. The student will learn to incorporate “anchors”, or personal reminders, into their systems so that their lives are built upon less effortful habits. Coach will also introduce the concept of “decision lag”.
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8. Assumptions & Limiting BeliefsIn this session, the student will be encouraged to explore their negative assumptions in their relationships with others, and how turning these assumptions around can have positive effects on actions and outcomes. The student will also explore limiting beliefs in relation to their self, and the Coach will introduce techniques for overcoming these negative beliefs.
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9. Inner Critic vs. Future SelfWith the Coach’s guidance, the student will meet their Inner Critic, followed immediately by a meeting with their nurturing, wise Future Self. Both Inner Critic and Future Self are Life Coaching concepts designed to empower the student and build emotional resilience.
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10. Values & Making DecisionsAs the final session of our signature College Advantage Program: Year 1 for high school students, here the student and Coach will take the time to reflect upon the student’s core values in life. They will also explore how the student will be able to move forward in life and make decisions consistent with his or her values.
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11. Strong Interest Inventory AssessmentA cousin to the famous Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Offered on many college campuses, the Strong is an ideal tool for young people who need more direction in their choices of major or career.
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12. Activity Logging & Resume WritingMany college applications require prospective students to log their extracurriculars. Here, the Coach will work with the student to reconstruct a timeline of the student’s activities and construct a basic résumé for college.
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13. Powerful Relationships & Building EmpathyThe transition from high school to college is a meaningful one, and students should be able to formulate and honor powerful relationships. In this session, the student will examine key figures in their lives—past, present and future—and begin a discussion on empathy and the responsibility that they have to others.
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14. Extracurriculars, Internships, Job ShadowingFor this session, the Coach will guide the student in pursuing extracurricular opportunities, including internships, jobs or job shadowing. The student will practice networking with members of their community; composing professional correspondences (such as emails); and seeking mentors and experience in the outside world.
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15. Deep Interest Project (3 sessions)What are colleges looking for in applicants? That’s always the number one question! And although there really is no way around the black box that is college admissions, most schools would agree that they hope to see 1) initiative and 2) progression of interest. For 3 sessions, the Coach will work with the student to identify a specific area of interest and create some sort of personal project around it. In an era of consumerism, schools want to see students create something.
Working with you was such an amazing experience. I really enjoyed having someone throughout this whole process to offer me advice and guide me towards my goal of being admitted into a graduate program. I thought that you went the extra mile for me numerous times - helping me edit my personal statements was one of those moments. You were very professional throughout the coaching process.
One particular skill that I learned from you that stood out were the Well-Formed Outcomes (WFOs) - having since completed the coaching with you, I continue to refer back to our Google Doc and write out my plans with WFOs. I even worked them into how I have been studying for the MCAT. Additionally, the CV and resume help was incredibly helpful for applying to programs.
Overall, I feel that having you as a resource has definitely helped me get to where I wanted to be and I cannot thank you enough.
Ekaterina T - University of California, San Francisco
Graduate Admissions Coaching
I have known Eda for several years and already knew what an amazing and supportive person she is. Last year when I was starting my MBA applications Eda was a constant positive force and helped in more ways than I can count. During my GMAT preparation she helped raise my score by more than 40 points from my practice tests. My application essays were a complete mess, but Eda stepped in and helped me cut them down to a coherent, organized application. During the interview phase Eda took the time to work with me 1 on 1 to help me be more confident and more competitive throughout my on campus interview.
Eda was passionate, knowledgeable, and quite simply an amazing coach throughout the entire process. She is THE person to have in your corner when you are facing just about any challenge. I highly recommend Élan Advising for any and all education and career consulting services.
Laine T
Graduate Admissions Coaching
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