PRAISE

FROM MY STUDENT CLIENTS + THEIR FAMILIES

I highly recommend Stacy for smart, talented, self-motivated students. She can match their intellect and be a real mentor as they move to the next phase of their education.

Stacy was invaluable in our daughter’s college search process. She is so much more than an essay tutor, she is a true partner and coach. Our daughter was applying to design/art programs and although she is an excellent student she lacked confidence in her writing ability and wanted help with her essays. The essay process simply served as a starting point for Stacy to push our daughter to understand herself as an artist, expand out of her comfort zone and create work for her portfolio that truly communicated her talent and passion. Stacy was incredibly generous with her time, even sending reading/listening material (and then offering guidance) on making choices when our daughter got accepted to both of her desired schools.

I highly recommend Stacy for smart, talented, self-motivated students. She can match their intellect and be a real mentor as they move to the next phase of their education.

— Ruth B.

"I really can't thank you enough for all the time and energy you put into helping me make my applications as good as they could be. I appreciate that you never let me "get away with" a mediocre essay-- thank you for pushing me to keep digging deeper. Also, thank you for reading and thoroughly editing my work on weekends, and getting back to me on such short turnarounds. Your flexibility allowed me to feel comfortable with each and every one of my essays, as I was able to get in all the edits and revisions needed. I ended up getting into my top-choice highly-selective school!"

— Zack K.

"I came to Stacy after completing a college essay writing program with my old college counselor. At the end of the program, however, I realized that my essays reflected more of the college counselor’s work than my own. Needless to say, my essays needed a lot of work. Unfortunately, I had no idea how to write about myself without sounding like I was bragging, or without sounding boring. When I began working with Stacy, however, she completely changed how I looked at the essay writing process. I met her in San Francisco once she had read my essays, and we talked for over an hour about myself, and the underlying messages of my essays that even I had failed to notice. 

One of the largest differences between Stacy and other college counselors I have worked with/met is that Stacy is incredibly relaxed, and helps relieve a lot of the stress of writing college essays. She has a unique ability to understand other people, and helped me put into concrete and usable sentences what I could only explain in jumbled memories and incomplete ideas. My personal statement jumped from topic to topic, and I had no idea how to tie it all together, but I worked with Stacy to make it flow seamlessly.

The results of working with Stacy were beyond what I could have asked for. Not only did she help me write several in-depth, interesting college essays, but she helped me in college interviews. I now could tell the admissions officers in a concise, professional way who I am, and the stories behind my many interests. 

One of the many things that I appreciated about working with Stacy was her availability. If I had questions, or had an epiphany about what to write, she was always ready with a thoughtful email response or phone call. She was willing to read countless drafts and free writes, and always got back to me quickly with brilliant suggestions.

I have already recommended Stacy to all of my friends, and I recommend her to anybody who is reading this. If you are at all stuck with your essays, or you simply want to blow any admissions officer away, work with Stacy. And if you are still not convinced, two of my college acceptance letters quoted my personal statement essay!"

— Nicole F.

I was applying to schools for fashion design, which had been my plan for a very long time, so I didn't need the same kind of help that most of my classmates did. At first, I was mostly just looking for help with writing my essays, as I'd had trouble with my writing in the past. 

But the results from our work together went beyond what I could have imagined. Aside from being accepted to the two schools I applied to, I learned so much about myself and my creative process. A part of the application for one of the schools was to do a creative project about a theme of our choosing then write an essay that corresponds to it. Stacy and I spent a long time digging deep into the topic I chose, going through layers and layers until I created an art piece that was so much more meaningful to me than anything I had done before. And even though I didn't end up choosing the school that I spent the most of my time on, I am so thankful that I did spend the time. My work with Stacy gave me the tools I needed that I think could ultimately make me a better artist. 

What I most appreciate about our working together was that while she pushed me to think/talk/write about things I might not have on my own, it was still me coming up with those things. Stacy really understood what was important to me about the whole process and instead of pushing anyone else's agenda, she helped me to get there. I would absolutely recommend Stacy to others, especially to people who are motivated, but not entirely sure how to go about achieving what they want, because that was the case for me, and it not only helped me through the college application process, but also taught me lessons I will continue to draw from. 

- Nina P. 

"Stacy made the college essay writing process fun, engaging and challenging. She helped our daughter find her voice and tell her stories authentically.

Stacy uses a unique and accessible writing process that encouraged our daughter to dig deeply into her past life experiences, understand why she made certain choices and how those experiences impacted her, and then bring those stories and their meaning to her to life for the reader. Her writing jumped off the page and flowed seamlessly, and in such a way that held the reader's attention. It had twists and turns and surprises, but was always true to who our daughter is as a person and also gave some insight into what kind of person she might become.

Stacy helped our daughter to "own" the writing process and to actually enjoy it. We have no doubt that the high quality of our daughter's college essays contributed to her success in gaining admission to her first choice school. I would recommend Stacy to anyone without hesitation."

— Debbie F.

"I highly recommend Stacy as a personal statement tutor. Through conversations and writing exercises, she helped me connect to what I really cared about. She helped me find the story I honestly wanted to share. With Stacy’s coaching, the personal statement writing process transformed from a chore to an exciting opportunity for self-reflection and expression. I’m proud of the work I created. I just finished an amazing first year of college, and I’m glad I took the time to find such a caring and thoughtful writing coach. Thank you!"

— Rachel S.

"My son needed a writing coach to help him through the essay process which required at least 2 or 3 essays for each college due to the demanding programs he was applying to. My son not only needed someone who could help him accurately structure his essays, he needed someone to inspire him to think on a deep level who he is, what sparks his interests, how he got to where he is today and what he wants on an academic level. Those topics are difficult for anyone to approach, let alone a high school student.

Stacy easily engaged my son by asking him thoughtful, poignant questions that prompted him to stretch beyond his comfort zone to a deeper level of thinking. It was quite amazing for me to witness the entire process that Stacy and my son participated in. I watched the two of them quickly become a team as Stacy, with her keen sense of humor and excellent communication skills, earned my son's trust while challenging him to push beyond his mark. My son suddenly became much more engaged, interested, and confident in the essays he was writing. This resulted in him producing some amazing essays.

Stacy was not only my son's writing coach, she helped him prepare for his interviews with the technical theater programs in various dramatic art departments. Stacy conducted mock interviews with my son and by the time he stepped into the interview rooms, he was well-prepared.

My daughter applied to colleges four years ago, so this was my second go-around with the college application process. Having interviewed and watched my daughter work with other college application coaches, as well as having compared notes with other parents over the years, I can unequivocally say that Stacy is the most talented coach I have ever experienced. I recommend Stacy to students as well as parents who need guidance and support during the college application process."

— Beth Zeitman, Berkeley High School Mom

"As a first-year student at my top-choice school in New York City, I can say for certain that my work with Stacy was invaluable. She guided me so I could write the kind of essays that secured the merit aid I needed to go to my dream school. What I didn’t expect, however, from our work together, was to take with me a set of communication skills that that has improved the clarity and effectiveness of everything I write and say. Stacy’s commitment to clarity and honesty rubs off on you. Plus, she's just lovely to work with."

— Sam S.

"I appreciated working with Stacy because she is patient and attentive. I was able to converse with her about my thoughts as she helped me build on my ideas and showed me different paths I could take. I would recommend her to any student who is having a hard time fully developing his or her concept and ideas.

Now that the college admissions process is over, I’m unbelievably relieved that Stacy was helping me out. I don’t know how I could have done it without her. I applied to various competitive programs and am attending one of my top choice schools. I’m very excited for next fall and confident that my essays were a huge part of my college acceptance."

— Ethan Z.