by Brett E. Kennedy, Managing Director
The answer to the question above is simple. It depends. What an Independent Educational Consultant does depends on what the student needs and in what areas the family is seeking support.
I have assisted students edit the essays that are required by many colleges. The essays serve both to help the college get to know the student better and for the student to demonstrate some facility with crafting the written word. Did I write the essays for the student? Not at all. Admissions readers can spot an essay written by a college counselor a mile away. Instead, I helped with the planning on the topics to be addressed, gave feedback on a first draft and suggested a few small changes. The decision about what to write and whether to accept my changes were up to the student. As an editor, I never want to change that critically important student voice.
I have helped students from the start of the process determine what colleges to visit. I have help students determine where to submit their applications thinking there not just about where they wanted to go but also thinking strategically about where you have a likely chance at being admitted, where admission would be a toss up and where admission is very much a reach. Finally, I have helped take a student dream and make that dream into a step by step workable plan.
I suppose what I do is a great deal of listening. From what I learn about a student and the family, I then work and research to determine what is practical and what is not. Through an honest exchange, we come to find a mutually agreeable plan that is actionable. I suppose my role is to give my students the best options possible within the constraints that we have.