University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Hi! My name is Nannette Beckley, and I’m super excited to work with you! I recently graduated from Princeton University in May of 2023 with a B.A. in the School of Public and International Affairs and earned a certificate (minor) in Global Health & Health Policy. As a student, I participated in several organizations, including Matriculate, a college access program. Through my work as an Advising Fellow for Matriculate, I gained several years of experience advising high-achieving, lower-income students on the college application and financial aid process. I am also a member of the AP Alumni Council through the College Board. I enjoy helping students form their college lists and reviewing students’ essays. Outside of CollegeAdvisor, I serve as a Research Associate at NORC at the University of Chicago in their health-adjacent departments.

I look forward to guiding you through the long, complicated, but fulfilling college admissions process!

I have more than 18 years of experience working in higher education, from scholarships administration, undergraduate teaching and advising, curriculum development, academic research, leadership development and training to program management. My work as an administrator, scholar, mentor, and teacher is grounded on my commitment to justice, diversity, and serving underrepresented communities in education. Currently, I oversee a student success programming at UC Berkeley supporting about 200 scholars each year. I focus on removing barriers in higher education to make education accessible and on creating programming that fosters our scholars' personal, academic, and professional growth. I hold an undergraduate degree from UC Berkeley in English and Political Science as well as a doctoral degree in Literature from UC Santa Cruz with an emphasis on Asian American Studies, Critical Theory, Postcolonial Studies, Critical Race and Ethnic Studies, and Cultural Studies. I mentor many students and have helped them get accepted to top colleges, both public and private universities such as Harvard, Cornell, Brown, UC Berkeley, Georgia Tech, University of Michigan Ann Arbor, UW, University of Virginia, University of Florida, Purdue, UCLA, UCSD, UCI, UC Davis, UCR, UC Santa Cruz, Rutgers, UIUC, Baylor, Spelman, and many more. I love working with students, especially in helping them realize their own potential and guiding them though their academic and personal growth. I cannot wait to meet with you and help you shine in your essays!

I have ~5 years of experience in the aerospace/defense industry and so far, it has been a blast! I earned my bachelor's in aerospace engineering from The University of Texas at Austin and over the course of my 4 years, earned over $20,000 in scholarships. Currently, I am working as a contracted systems engineer and systems architect. As a leader in the satellite industry, I work heavily with technical requirements, CONOPS (Concept of Operations) diagrams, and Model Based Systems Engineering. I also have additional work-related certifications from MIT. My expertise includes applying for engineering school, applying for scholarships, support in figuring out which engineering discipline to apply for, and applying for engineering jobs and negotiation skills.

Fun Facts: 1) I have mentored over 50 students (most of them pre-college or 1st year in college)! 2) I have been featured on several BuzzFeed videos for the work I do. 3) I speak French and German and love traveling!

I graduated with a B.A. with majors in Political Science and Psychology and a minor in Spanish from Northwestern University. During my time at Northwestern, I was an orientation leader for incoming Freshmen each year in a Peer Adviser position. This meant assisting groups of 12-16 students in their transition from high school academics, activities and goals to their college level counterparts. I was also heavily involved in Northwestern's Undergraduate Mock Trial team - a program that has placed top 10 at the Nationals competition the last three years. Moreover, I held several jobs while in school spanning from research positions to local nonprofit work to work study and part-time positions on and off campus. As someone who attended Northwestern with a low-income background, I am passionate about working with students who are navigating financial accessibility in their college decisions or who are seeking advice on how to budget and balance a job while in school. Additionally, as someone intending on attending law school in the next two years, I am happy and eager to assist any students who have questions about the pre-law track or legal based clubs and activities offered at the collegiate level. I believe that authenticity, optimism and individual focus are my strengths when working with students. I wish to help students by truly understanding who they are, what they wish to do and their underlying motivations. I always seek to be honest in my advice and experiences and will happily share the most rewarding parts of the the college admissions process I underwent and the lessons I carried coming out of the challenges.

Described by coworkers and former students as an engineer-meets-social-worker, Professor Berent works full-time as a professor at Northwestern University, and part-time with CollegeAdvisor.com to provide insight to not only what gets students accepted into college, but what makes them successful once there.

Why work with Professor Berent?
• Knows the full engineering experience. Zack has been an undergraduate student, graduate student, academic and career advisor, researcher, teaching fellow, and now professor at top engineering schools, so he can speak to all aspects of engineering. Whatever career in engineering you are seeking, he likely has experience!
• What makes a successful engineer? As a professor, Zack works daily with first-year engineering students. He has advised them from high school through undergraduate experiences, internships, first full-time job, and even MS/PhD graduation. CollegeAdvisor.com works to help you get into top schools; further, Zack knows what will make you successful once there.
• Engineering admissions. When Zack worked at an engineering-focused medical school he defined the admissions criteria for engineering. This work has given him great insight into not just the what, but the why behind admissions decisions.
• Engineering excellence. Zack has been awarded with multiple teaching fellowships to enhance engineering education. He has been awarded over a dozen times as a top instructor on campus. He has not only exceeded in teaching and advising, but in research as well. He has publications in top engineering journals like Acta Biomaterialia, and been received national-level grants, so his wordcraft will help with your essays succeed.

Whether you're just starting to explore engineering or finalizing your application, he has worked with thousands of engineering students, and he is eager to help you too.