Overview: CollegeAdvisor.com Client Success Stories
Welcome to our Client Success Stories! Here at CollegeAdvisor, we have the privilege of working with amazing students every day. Our students are the reason we do what we do, and we’re so thankful to be part of their college application journey.
We started this series because we wanted to hear more from our students about their experience working with CollegeAdvisor. The college admissions process is undoubtedly challenging, and every student has their own unique path. In our Client Success Stories, you’ll get to read all about how our students leveraged the expertise of their advisers, and the entire CollegeAdvisor network, to ace their applications.
In this Success Story, we’ll learn how one CollegeAdvisor student earned her admittance to her dream school. We’ll see how her advisor helped her find her college fit, write stellar essays, and successfully submit her Early Decision application. Finally, we’ll share some of her own tips and advice for other students beginning their college application process.
Here at CollegeAdvisor, we believe in empowering students of all backgrounds with the tools necessary to get into their top schools, which is why it’s so rewarding to see the impact of our work highlighted in our Client Success Stories and our reviews. After reading this Client Success Story, we hope you feel motivated and inspired to make your college dreams a reality. With that – it’s time to meet Abby!
Getting to Know Abby
For this installment of our Client Success Story, we spoke to CollegeAdvisor student Abby Zekarias.
Abby grew up in Maryland, exploring the outdoors, spending time in nature, and even feeding her backyard squirrels. As a big nature and animal lover, environmental science was her favorite subject in school.
Growing up, she quickly recognized her passions–and that they differed from the rest of her family.
“I come from an Ethiopian family, so a lot of things that I was interested in, not a lot of my family was either…so I found myself trying to conform to what they wanted me to do. I know they wanted me to be a doctor.”
It can be challenging when your interests and passions don’t exactly line up with your parents’ expectations, especially when it’s time to start making decisions about college applications. However, Abby knew what she was interested in and knew she wanted to stay true to herself.
“[I] eventually came to my senses and I was like, I like animals. I’m gonna be a wildlife biologist. So I decided to go into that field.”
Although Abby was confident about what she wanted to study and the type of career she might go on to have, that didn’t make the college application process any less daunting.
What challenges did Abby face as a college applicant?
Every college applicant faces unique challenges. For some, it may be about choosing which schools to apply to, what kind of campus is right for them, and what programs they’re interested in. For others, especially first-generation college students whose parents don’t have prior experience applying to U.S. colleges, the entire college application process can be overwhelming.
In Abby’s case, her biggest challenge was feeling like she’d be going through the process alone.
“I’d definitely have to figure it out [by] myself…my brother, he got all the help from my parents, but [it wasn’t] that much help. So I don’t think I would have gotten any help either.”
So, where could Abby turn to for support? While some students have access to college application guidance through their high school, this is not the case for every student.
“The counselor at my school is very busy, and my teachers don’t really know much about the college process.”
However, Abby didn’t let these challenges deter her from setting her sights high. Instead, she was realistic about her goals and her ability to achieve them.
“I knew I needed extra help, but didn’t know who or where to go at the time.”
This is where CollegeAdvisor came into the picture.
How did Abby learn about CollegeAdvisor?
While some students actively seek out college advising, sometimes students aren’t thinking about getting help until the opportunity presents itself. This is the case of how Abby first learned about CollegeAdvisor.
“They reached out to me when I was a sophomore, so I wasn’t really thinking about college, but I knew I wanted to go to one of the top schools. I didn’t think I was going to get in on my own, honestly…so I’m really glad CollegeAdvisor actually reached out to me.”
Since students typically don’t apply to colleges until their senior year, sophomore year may seem way too early to start thinking about college. However, starting early is often the key to standing out.
When to start thinking about college applications
As you’ll see from Abby’s journey, it’s never too early to start thinking about college applications. More students are applying to colleges every year, so it makes sense that college admissions are only getting more competitive.
With so many qualified applicants to compete with, many students are looking for ways to get a competitive edge. While the process definitely ramps up towards the end of junior year leading into senior year, there are ways students can start early to set themselves up for success when it comes time to actually submit their applications. In particular, this is the time when high school students can begin building their extracurriculars and signing up for honors and AP classes.
Like Abby, you can start working with CollegeAdvisor early on in your high school career. Next, we’ll introduce you to Abby’s advisor and hear what Abby had to say about working with her.
Working with an advisor
Here at CollegeAdvisor, we start by learning about our students’ particular goals and challenges so we can match them with an advisor that best suits their needs. For Abby, this was Amber Bisnauth.
When we first met Abby, she was interested in attending Stanford. As a Stanford alumna and former admissions officer, we knew Amber could use her experience and knowledge to help Abby successfully navigate the admissions process.
Since we started working with Abby in her sophomore year, Abby and Amber’s relationship gradually developed over time.
“In the beginning it was about once a month…but once it started getting to [the] end of junior year, beginning of senior year, we started meeting every two weeks, even sometimes multiple times a week, just to get all the logistics and important stuff out…so it was more frequent nearing the end of my journey.”
The college application process is very personal. It requires a lot of self-reflection, and you may find it uncomfortable to talk about yourself and your goals with a total stranger. This is another reason why it’s great to connect with a college advisor early on in your high school career–it gives you plenty of time to get to know one another.
“In the beginning she was very friendly…I was really nervous, honestly, but she was very warm and welcoming. She wanted to know a lot about me, which was nice because I didn’t know how that was gonna work. But she asked a lot of questions about me, and it was nice being able to talk to her about my accomplishments.”
Before jumping straight into the nitty-gritty of college applications, Amber took the time to get to know Abby. In doing so, she was then able to give Abby the personalized attention and guidance she needed to thrive.
“We got more comfortable with each other, and it basically became, I wouldn’t say a friendship, but like a close companionship.”
When we asked Abby what it was like working with her assigned advisor, she put it simply: “Amazing.”
“I was so blessed, extremely blessed…She didn’t have the same passions as me, but everything else was amazing. She was a godsend for sure…I loved Amber.”
Now, let’s talk a little more in detail about how Abby’s advisor helped her overcome challenges and successfully apply to her dream school.
How Abby’s advisor helped her find success
When we talked about Abby’s challenges, one of the biggest hurdles was feeling like she had to go through this process alone. In Amber, Abby now had a dedicated mentor whose role was clear: answer any and all of Abby’s questions.
“I think the biggest thing for me that CollegeAdvisor help[ed] me with is probably having someone to just be able to spew all my questions to. Just knowing that I had someone to go to that was an expert in this kind of stuff was like a huge relief.”
We also asked Abby what her favorite part of the advising process was.
“The offline assistance was very helpful too. Even if we weren’t meeting, I could hit up Ms. Amber and she’d be on deck, ready to help me.”
Throughout the process, Abby was able to find the support she needed, even outside of her and Amber’s scheduled meetings. Additionally, Amber was able to direct Abby towards helpful resources.
“I did use the website to read some articles they had, but this was mostly before I got into the actual college-applying process…I did have some websites given to me by Amber for scholarships and SAT prep, which really did help me throughout the process.”
Combined with Amber’s personal advice and recommendations, Abby was also able to leverage additional resources to help her through various aspects of the college application process.
Finding your college fit
As you may recall, Abby had initially told us she was interested in applying to Stanford. However, while many students come to us with a list of top schools, those priorities can change during the advising process.
While Stanford was originally Abby’s top choice, she ended up setting her sights on another school: Cornell.
“I had a friend that I worked with in a lab that I interned over the summer and she got into Cornell….My friend getting into Cornell definitely was that push, that maybe I would want to have a friend starting out somewhere.”
After exploring both campuses virtually, Abby felt Cornell’s campus was a better fit for her.
“The main reason was I didn’t really like the campus of Stanford. It was too involved in the city and whatnot. I liked how the campus at Cornell was very, you know, open and very nature-like.”
In the end, both Abby’s advisor and her brother were there to support her as she made her decision.
“Miss Amber, she went to Stanford, and my brother also went there, and they both told me it’s not something they would see me in because of all the stuff that I talked about and the things that I value…which was the breaking point. I didn’t really want to commit to that school.”
Once Abby had decided Cornell was the right fit for her, it was time to start looking toward admissions deadlines.
Applying Early Decision
With her heart set on Cornell, Abby decided to apply Early Decision. Most schools have an early deadline, either Early Action or Early Decision, that students can apply to. For Cornell, Early Decision applications are due November 1, two months before the Regular Decision deadline.
However, since Abby had started the college advising process early and knew she wanted to commit to Cornell, she was prepared to submit an early application. And, her advisor was more than capable of guiding her through the process.
“Even though it wasn’t the school that she was an expert at, she still got me through all the questions that I had.”
From applying for financial aid to getting letters of recommendation, there are countless steps in the college application process to keep track of. Next, we’ll talk about what Abby found most challenging about the application process.
Writing college essays
When asked about what she struggled with the most, Abby said:
“I think the most challenging part would probably be the essay writing.”
One of the many benefits of working with CollegeAdvisor is the opportunity to really hone your essay writing skills.
“Miss Amber was always there to help me edit, and not only the grammar…She really help[ed] me portray what I actually wanted to say, but in a grammatically correct way and also a way that she thought that the college advisors, I mean the college admissions officers would, you know, be able to take in.”
By helping her find her college fit, meet the early application deadline, and craft some amazing application essays, Abby’s advisor was able to help her successfully apply to her dream school.
Abby’s admissions results and the road ahead
Now, let’s take a look at Abby’s admissions decisions.
“I did early decision for Cornell… I had to apply to [in] November. So I only applied to two other schools before I got my acceptance to Cornell, which were Hobart and William Smith and Colorado State. And I got accepted to both of those two.”
We were so excited to hear Abby had been accepted to not one but three fantastic schools! On top of her early acceptance to Cornell, Abby also received full financial aid, providing her with the resources she needed to pursue her major.
What will Abby major in?
It likely comes as no surprise, but Abby is going to pursue her passions at Cornell.
“I appl[ied] for Biological Sciences, but I believe I’m going to switch to Animal Sciences.”
If we’ve learned anything from Abby’s journey, it’s that following your gut and being honest with yourself will always land you in the right place.
Abby’s advice to future applicants
Finally, we asked Abby what piece of advice she’d give to her peers going through the college admissions process.
“I’d say take it slow and don’t be overwhelmed at first…I know at times I would be overwhelmed and I’d not know where to start and that would kind of block my head from making any progress in the first place. So I’d say step back and make sure you have all the resources that can actually help you go through this process, because you don’t have to do it alone.”
Why CollegeAdvisor?
Choosing a college counselor is an important decision. Just like each student has colleges that are the best fit for them, you may be looking for certain qualities in a college counselor.
So, why should you work with CollegeAdvisor? Well, take it from Abby:
“It was really helpful for me, especially as I said not having to do it alone. And I think it was a big weight off my shoulders, especially on top of schoolwork, doing the college admissions process. I know a bunch of my friends had to do it alone, and it was a struggle for them. So I definitely think that the whole support system was very, very helpful for me.”
If you think you might benefit from having a support system like Abby, we’d love to connect you with our CollegeAdvisor advising team. We have hundreds of admissions experts available to help you through the entire admissions process, from start to finish.
To learn more about why families choose CollegeAdvisor, check out some more of our Success Stories and reviews! We’re so thankful our parents and students have taken the time to let us know what CollegeAdvisor has meant to them. And, if you have any questions at all, please don’t hesitate to reach out!
This article was written by Stefanie Tedards. Client Success Story was based on an interview with Abby Zekarias. Abby worked with us to get help with her college applications. If you are also looking for assistance with your college applications and are interested in working with a CollegeAdvisor.com Admissions Expert, register with CollegeAdvisor.com today.