College Counseling for Redwood City Families
From course planning to application strategy, we help Redwood City students build profiles that stand out and tell authentic stories.
College Counseling Services for Redwood City Students
College counseling from the team that calls Redwood City home. We understand this community: its diversity, its ambition, and the unique paths its students take.
College Application Strategy Where Most Families Start
School list building, timeline management, and positioning. We help students find the right fit, not just the highest-ranked name, whether that means a UC, a liberal arts college, or a competitive private university.
Personal Essay Coaching
Story discovery, drafting, and revision. We help students find what's genuinely distinctive about their experience, especially important for first-gen students whose stories deserve to be heard clearly.
Interview Preparation
Mock interviews for selective schools. Confidence building and authentic self-presentation, so students walk into any room ready to be themselves.
Course Planning & Profile Building
Strategic course selection, extracurricular positioning, and summer planning starting sophomore year. Aligned with local course offerings and what admissions officers look for.
Financial Aid & Scholarship Guidance
FAFSA, CSS Profile, and scholarship search strategy. We help families navigate the financial side with clarity. Understanding aid options is just as important as getting in.
UC & CSU Application Support
PIQ (Personal Insight Questions) coaching and UC-specific strategy for Redwood City students targeting the UC system. We know the nuances that make UC applications distinct from private-school apps.
We've helped Redwood City students build applications for UCs, private universities, CSUs, and selective liberal arts colleges. Our focus is always the right fit: the school where your student will thrive, not just the highest-ranked name on the list.
Common Questions from Redwood City Families
When should we start college counseling?
Ideally sophomore year, when course planning and extracurricular choices start to matter most. But we can help at any stage, even senior fall for application crunch. Many Redwood City families start early to get ahead of the timeline.
Is this just for students applying to elite universities?
No. We help students find the right fit, whether that's a UC, a CSU, a private university, or a community college transfer path. Good counseling means understanding where a student will thrive, not just where they can get in.
My student would be the first in our family to attend college. Can you help?
Absolutely. We specialize in making the college process clear and navigable for all families, regardless of background. First-generation students often have incredible stories to tell. They just need someone to help them see it and communicate it. We walk through every step together.
Do you help with essays?
Yes. It's one of our most popular services. We help students discover their story, draft, revise, and polish. For UC applications, we also coach PIQ (Personal Insight Questions) writing, which requires a different approach than Common App essays.
What does college counseling cost?
Engagements typically start at $100/hour. Some families want comprehensive support from sophomore year through senior spring, and others need focused help during application season. We discuss fit, goals, and timeline during the free consultation before making any recommendations.
Let's map out your student's college path
A candid conversation about where your student stands, what schools make sense, and the first steps to building an application that tells their real story.