We are proud to have helped thousands of students apply and be admitted at some of the best universities in the United States. Below we have presented some Case Studies of B/B+ students who worked with our consultants. The Case Studies provide information on these students and what we did to help.
Case Study No. 1
Client Profile: White female at private high school. 13 B’s. 3.7 (UW) 3.8 (W) GPA. 1320 SAT. Extracurriculars- National Vocalist in Jazz, Community volunteer, High School and Club Volleyball.
Changes made through consulting: This student came to Solomon in September of her Senior year. This student was undecided as to what she wanted to pursue in college. Recognizing her love and time spent traveling, engaging with, and getting to know those of diverse communities and being stronger within the humanities discipline this student was positioned in the undersubscribed major, Cultural Anthropology. She started a blog focused on her travels, her community work and her continued growth in learning about cultural anthropology.
Outcome: Accepted at Bucknell University, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Case Study No. 2
Client Profile: African male at a competitive boarding school. 11 B’s. 2 C’s. 3 AP’s- no AP exams taken. 1080 SAT. Extracurriculars-Board member in Africa Club and Veterans Club, Played Trumpet in Orchestra, Soccer and Basketball.
Changes made through consulting: This student came to Solomon in October of his Senior year. He had an interest in becoming a sports agent. Recognizing this student did not have the background in the sports field but had shown great interest in Philosophy and had taken a few classes in the subject. He was excited to be positioned in Philosophy as his undersubscribed major. This student concentrated on the role one’s culture plays in Philosophy and their perspective of life. He was thoughtful and deep in his essays.
Outcome: Accepted at Trinity College, Bucknell University, American University, Bard College, Gettysburg College, Muhlenberg College, St. Lawrence University
Case Study No. 3
Client Profile: Male at a competitive private high school. 3.5 (U/W), 33 ACT, no subject tests (pre-Covid), 1 AP test only: 3 on Env Sci, took only 1 AP in 11th, and 2 in 12th so not the most rigorous curriculum offered at school. Extracurricular engagement mostly at school level only: Concert Band, Bee Keeping Club VP, Volleyball, Math Club, and volunteered outside of school through church and city teen program.
Changes made through consulting: This student began working with Solomon late in the summer (mid-August) before his senior year and presented an interest in pre-med. Recognizing the student interest in an oversubscribed science field, especially at highly selective institutions and his academics were weak for his context, the consultant looked for a connection to a less popular science major within the student’s profile. Within his Solomon questionnaire, the student noted beekeeping as his primary hobby (other than the band) and his interest in environmental issues (though not demonstrated through extracurriculars otherwise). The consultant explored this interest with the student and recommended a focus on building out a positioning strategy around environmental science.
Solomon advised the student to leverage and expand his environmental interests through individual research including taking a relevant online course, devising a strong project he could lead for Bee Keeping Club that would make an impact, and leading environmental initiatives at school (or at church).
In presenting this strategy to the student, he was able to focus and move beyond a general interest in premed while supporting his interest in science. His essays uniquely illuminated his intellectual curiosity through personal and academic experiences.
Outcome: Accepted at University of Miami, Fordham University, Syracuse University, Florida State University, Drexel University
Case Study No. 4
Client Profile: A/B student at a moderately competitive high school. 1020 SAT (520 Reading and Writing, 500 Math). 3 AP courses all of which were taken in the senior year – US History, English Comp, US Government. His number of B’s increased in his junior year, particularly in high rigor and AP courses. Senior year math course was pre-calculus. Extracurricular profile was limited to DECA and a peer leadership program at his school. No leadership roles were present in any organization.
Consulting changes and direction: The client began working with Solomon in August of his senior year. He desired computer science or engineering, which would prove difficult because of his lack of math and science course rigor and relatively low math SAT score. The consultant looked for a connection in his personal interests and/or student organization's involvement with an undersubscribed major. In phone conversations, it was discovered that he participated in a walk with a local Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Thus, the consultant sought to craft him as a student majoring in public policy seeking to act as a problem solver of urgent societal issues, particularly in health care.
The consultant advised the student that it was critical to establish a link between volunteer activities and his career interest, so he was directed to seek an unpaid internship with the leukemia society that allowed him to help fundraise, interview local government officials and hospital administrators, and participate in public relations and marketing.
In addition to the extracurricular and intellectual vitality enhancement, the client was given a test prep schedule and activities in preparation for October SAT.
The strategy was to steer him to a college at which he could pursue public policy or might provide a clear path to a computer science program as an internal transfer. Through his essays, he established an interest in science and technology. It was important to the client to maintain a connection to computer science. To do that, he was advised to take independent online CS coursework and join a coding organization. By doing so, he was able to establish an interest in public policy while demonstrating his interest in science.
The student’s essays focused on the evolution from grieving grandson to volunteer and establishing a link between school organization participation, the unpaid internship, and learnings through his AP coursework.
Outcome: Accepted at Purdue University, Virginia Tech University, and James Madison University
Case Study No. 5
Client Profile: Male at a competitive public high school. 3.3 (U/W), 30 ACT, Biology 720. Not very rigorous course load: only a couple AP courses; 12 Bs on transcript. Extracurricular engagements were limited to research at this mother’s lab, a volunteer position at the Discovery Museum in his hometown, and short-term memberships in the Science Olympiad and a Business Club.
Changes made through consulting: This student began working with Solomon the summer after his junior year and presented an interest in finance and economics. The student had little to no experience in these fields, so we positioned him in environmental science because of his volunteer involvement at a local science museum and work as a research assistant at his mother’s lab.
We encouraged him to create a blog and research how economics and environmental science can work together to create positive change in the world. We spent two months working on his research and writing skills, which were fostered by his weekly blog posts. We also worked on his writing skills and positioned him as an Environmental Science and Economics double major at Brandeis, with an interest in their 5-year BA+MA program. We spent a lot of time on his essays, as we knew these were important to Brandeis, and they may help the school overlook his transcript. We focused on his role in his school as a mentor and mental health advocate. These were also connected to his interest in solving world problems with science and economics. The essays were the student’s best chance of presenting himself as an intellectual, and we tried to showcase him as a problem-solver and community leader.
Outcome: Accepted at Brandeis University with a scholarship
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