Get in touch: 619-859-6550
Get in touch: 619-859-6550
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Julia has earned a Bachelor's degree from Brown University. Julia loves helping students feel more comfortable and confident throughout the college application process. She remembers how daunting and stressful this time was for her as a student, so she is eager to give other students the tools to navigate this process successfully. Julia believes every student has a unique story to tell, so she loves helping students find their voice and explain their passions through their applications. She finds it very exciting when a student gets into their dream school, and all their hard work pays off.
Julia encourages Quad applicants to take the time to think about what they want from a college; just because a college is number one on a prestigious list doesn't mean it is the right fit for them. It takes a lot of research and reflection to determine which school is a great fit for you and your goals.
As a coach, Julia prides herself on being friendly and approachable, and through thoughtful discussions, she helps students clarify their goals. Her empathetic nature and involvement in conversations with students help them feel comfortable being open about their experiences, concerns, and questions. After getting to know a student, Julia helps them draw connections between their experiences and passions and turn those connections into thoughtful and impactful essays. She helps students engage more deeply with their experiences and tap into their emotions so they can tell an authentic and reflective story through their personal statements.
One of Julia's greatest strengths as a coach is helping students overcome writer's block to draft essays that they are proud of. She also excels at breaking the application process into manageable steps and communicating instructions at every stage.
Applicants that Julia has recently coached have gotten accepted into several top-tier schools, including Brown University, Dartmouth College, and NYU.
In her spare time, Julia loves to go on hiking and camping trips (her favorite spot is Acadia National Park in Maine.) She also loves to bake and is always trying out new recipes. She plays tennis several times a week in central park and enjoys acting, improv classes, and theater around NYC.
Julia's Pro Tip?
You have to be truthful and authentic. Admissions officers can tell when you are selling them things you think they want to hear. It is much more interesting to come across an applicant authentically representing themselves.
April has a Bachelor's degree in Film and Media Studies from Yale University and a Master's degree in Film Directing from Brooklyn College. Professionally, April has experience as a playwright, phylogenetic researcher, video artist, documentary filmmaker, and teacher.
April believes that a great coach is both a role model for and an ardent supporter of their students, a north star of both focus and big-picture thinking during a demanding period in students' lives. April is passionate about using her narrative insight as a filmmaker to help college applicants find and communicate their sense of purpose in the world to specific audiences: in this case, the college of their dreams. April has coached hundreds of students over the past five years, and her passion is to guide them toward educational experiences that will be challenging, formative, and a good fit for their life purposes. College is no exception!
April's greatest strength as a coach is helping students identify and compellingly represent their strengths through essay writing and the interview process. She begins with the big picture of the whole student - their strengths and what they have to give to the college community and the world - and structure the application prep process from there, bringing focus and clarity to the small, important details that go into a successful application.
When April isn't coaching, she loves to cook, discover new and old music, play and write songs on the guitar, go hiking, and research how movies are made.
Isabel is a graduate of Wesleyan University and the University of Chicago. She has extensive experience guiding college aspirants through the process. Isabel understands that the college application process can be discouraging, and parents and students can feel lost in such a crowded applicant field. She strives to help push past those anxieties and keep the process in perspective. Isabel enjoys realizing all students’ unique qualities and talents and seeing them rise to their full potential, wherever that may lead them!
As a coach, Isabel aims to get to know a candidate personally to help them determine their strengths. She loves drawing out candidates’ self-knowledge and encouraging them to be themselves. As a highly organized individual, Isabel enjoys helping families plan the application process to ensure all the components are manageable. Isabel is also proactive about communication at every step of the process. She ensures that parents and students are on the same page, fostering a mutually supportive and secure working relationship.
Isabel’s favorite part of the application process is the personal essay, where applicants can highlight not only what they’ve accomplished but who they really are. Isabel’s priority is to make this process rewarding, challenging, and hopefully fun. In the competitive college admissions process, it can be easy to lose sight of every individual’s uniqueness and inherent worth. Working on the essays with Quad applicants is a great way to stay grounded while keeping long-term goals in mind.
Applicants Isabel has recently coached have gotten accepted at many top universities, including Brown University, NYU, and Cornell University.
When Isabel isn’t coaching, you can find her reading, watching movies, and going out with friends. She also has a variety of hobbies, including paper crafts, embroidery, and “snail mail.” She plays the guitar and loves live music and art. Recently, Isabel has been spending time walking and biking along Chicago’s beautiful lakefront with her partner.
While we help students learn and retain knowledge to navigate ISEE content with ease, our assistance doesn’t stop there. We also teach valuable test-taking strategies, such as time management, the process of elimination, and more, to ensure students can confidently walk into test day.
We welcome parent involvement and always strive to keep students, families, and tutors in the loop with our detailed progress tracker. The tracker allows families to check student progress, tutor comments, and next steps at any time.
Our matching process ensures students are paired with their best-fit ISEE tutor based on student/family preferences, goals, and needs. We glean much of this information from our initial call and the intake form you provide us with.
Students can be registered for the ISEE using the ERB website.
Using stanines, scoring a 1-3 is typically considered “below average,” 4-6 is “average,” and 7-8 are “above average.” However, remember that your stanine scores are relative and based on the scores of all other test-takers! Since there are many students applying to all types of private schools, it can be difficult to pinpoint what makes an ISEE score “good” – it depends on your aspirations, school choices, and profile strength.
The ISEE is run by the Education Record Bureau (ERB). You can learn more about the ISEE here.
You can equate stanines to percentile rankings in the following ways:
Excluding the five-paragraph essay prompt, the Lower Level ISEE has four timed sections:
The format of the Upper Level ISEE is similar to the Lower Level. Excluding the essay prompt section, the four timed sections are:
The best plan for your child depends on what you’re looking for from our programs. If you’re unsure which program works best for your child, our expert team is ready to guide you – set up a call with us today to learn more!
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