Best Admissions Counseling Rankings 2025
Welcome to your trusted partner in college admissions success.
Need help with college applications? Finding a great college counselor can be tricky, so our experts have compiled a list of the very best college admissions consultants.
These rankings are based on a range of factors and include the best college counseling services for every type of student, whether they’re aiming for the Ivy League, planning to join an NCAA team, or simply looking for the best fit for their interests.
Ranking Criteria
Success rate
The most important criteria we use to judge the consultants featured on our site is whether they have consistently helped students gain admission to top-tier universities, including Ivy League institutions, elite liberal arts colleges, and competitive state programs.
How it’s measured:
- Acceptance rates into top-choice colleges
- Client testimonials
Consultant experience
We also consider counselors’ backgrounds, including their years working in this field, certifications, and knowledge of college admissions trends.
How it’s measured:
- Number of years in college counseling
- Certifications
- Background in admissions offices at selective colleges or similar
- Breadth of experience (i.e. different types of schools, different programs)
Personalization
Another important point of comparison is how easy companies are to communicate with and how flexible their programs are.
How it’s measured:
- Response times to emails and messages
- Variety of ways in which you can communicate with them (email, phone, video chat, etc.)
- Options for personalization (add-ons like essay coaching, extracurricular advice, application supplements like art portfolios etc.)
- Group programs vs. individualized attention
- Reviews from past students
Value for Money
College admissions counseling is often expensive — so you should never have to worry if you’re getting your money’s worth. We look at the variety of services each company offers, how expensive they are, and how they compare to competitors.
How it’s measured:
- Range of services offered (i.e. interview prep, scholarship research, test prep, extracurricular strategy etc.)
- Specialty services (working with athletes, artists, pre-med applicants, etc.)
- Cost of services compared to industry averages
Client Satisfaction
All of the experience and options in the world don’t matter if students and parents don’t find a counselor helpful! Our final criteria is student and parent happiness — how happy were they with the services they received?
How it’s measured:
- Google/Yelp/etc ratings
- Client testimonials
- Referrals from school counselors, other education programs, etc.
Top 13 College Admissions Consultants
01
Services offered:
1-on-1 comprehensive admissions packages
Essay coaching and review
Price range:
$$-$$$ ($195-3589 for essay review, $6895+ for comprehensive admissions packages)
Location:
Virtual
PrepScholar
PrepScholar is best known for their test prep resources, but several years ago their article on developing a “spike” for college admissions went viral and helped showcase the company’s deep knowledge of college admission trends. Their advisors use proven strategies, like building a passion/talent “spike” rather than being well-rounded, creating an application that tells a powerful and cohesive story about yourself, and strengthening academics and test scores, to help students achieve admissions results. And the strategies do work: students who use their services are 6.1 times more likely to get accepted into Ivy League Schools and 7.8 times more likely to get accepted into Top 10 colleges than the national average.
PrepScholar offers a range of services for students in grades 9-12, including essay writing help, early mentoring, passion project development, and comprehensive admissions packages.
02
Services offered:
Private membership groups
Limited 1-on-1 comprehensive admissions consulting
Price range:
$ ($69-$79 per month for private community access)
Location:
Lancaster, PA. Most services are virtual with the option of in-person one-on-one counseling
Sara Harberson
Sara Harberson founded Application Nation, a college counseling community, in 2018. Before that she worked for more than a decade in admissions offices of various colleges, including the University of Pennsylvania, and at a college counseling office at an elite high school. She’s read hundreds of thousands of college applications and essays, and that wealth of experience gives her a unique perspective on college admissions.Her collection of counseling groups, Application Nation, are a series of private Facebook groups organized by graduation year (Class of 2027, Class of 2028, etc.). Membership is $69-$79 a month and includes a community of several hundred other parents, monthly video call seminars with Sara, guidance about various aspects of college admissions, and the ability to ask Sara direct questions in the group. Reviews are quite positive, especially from parents who came into the process not knowing much about college admissions.
03
Services offered:
1-on-1 comprehensive admissions packages
Academic and test prep tutoring
Price range:
$$$$-$$$$$
Location:
Multiple locations worldwide, with in-person and virtual counseling
H&C
H&C specializes in helping students develop extracurriculars that will help them stand out in college admissions. They go beyond simply advising what clubs or sports to play and help you develop extracurriculars that’ll create a compelling personal story that’ll appeal to colleges. H&C also has experience specifically with student athletes hoping to be recruited to play in college.They offer 12-month packages for students in grades 8-12 that are designed to help students follow their passions and translate them into compelling college application stories. This can include anything from mentoring on how to start a business, pursue activism, create a nonprofit, and find contests/summer programs/internships that are a good fit. They also have additional services such as tutoring and test prep, but their primary purpose is helping you develop strong extracurriculars that align with your college and career goals.
04
Services offered:
1-on-1 comprehensive admissions packages
Essay coaching and review
On-demand video courses
Price range:
Not listed
Location:
Virtual
College Essay Guy
College Essay Guy is a bit of a misnomer: they do a lot more than edit essays, and they have multiple advisors, not just one guy. They’re best known for essay editing services, but they also offer comprehensive college admissions packages. Their advisors have an average of 15 years of experience in helping students with everything from extracurricular planning to course selection to financial aid strategy and more.Past clients refer to the advisors as calming, optimistic, and enjoyable to talk to. If you don’t want to work directly with an advisor, you can also purchase on-demand video courses on topics that include “how to write an outstanding personal statement” and “applying to highly selective colleges.” One area that sets College Essay Guy apart is its financial aid options for low-income, high-achieving students.
05
Services offered:
Extracurricular Guidance
Essay coaching and review
1-on-1 counseling
College Admissions Video Course
Price range:
$-$$$$ ($17/month for extracurricular guidance program, $167-$494 for essay editing, up to $15,000 for 1-on-1 counseling)
Location:
Virtual
Next Gen Admit
Dyllen Nellis, the creator of Next Gen Admit, doesn’t have the decades of experience some other counselors do: she only applied to college herself in 2018! However, her website states that she spent hundreds of hours learning the ins-and-outs of college admissions, was accepted into every college she applied to, and ended up attending Stanford University. Since its inception, her college counseling company Next Gen Admit has worked with over 2,000 students around the world and edited over 5,000 essays.Next Gen Admit, offers a variety of services, including a $400 college admissions video course, a $17/month extracurricular guidance program, and all inclusive 1-on-1 counseling with Dyllen for $10,000-$15,000. However, the company is most well-known for its essay editing services. They have a variety of packages ranging from $167 to $494 depending on how many essays you need edited, their length, and when you need them edited.
06
Services offered:
1-on-1 comprehensive admissions packages
Price range:
$$$$$ ($22,000+)
Location:
Virtual
Shemmassian Academic Consulting
Shemmassian Academic Consulting specializes in comprehensive college counseling packages that answer any question you may have and guide you through every step of the college application process. While many college admissions consultants have all-in-one packages, they generally have limits — you can only have so many video calls with your advisor or drafts of your personal statements. Shemmassian’s packages, though, offer unlimited strategic advising time and unlimited edits to your personal statements and activities sections.Higher-priced packages also include bonuses such as interview coaching, waitlist letter preparation, and appeal letter preparation. All of this help doesn’t come cheap, though. Packages begin at $22,000.
07
Services offered:
1-on-1 comprehensive admissions consulting
Price range:
$-$$$$
Location:
Davie, FL (in-person and virtual counseling)
Prepory
Like many of the other consulting companies on this list, Prepory offers comprehensive admissions consulting packages with a variety of services such as essay feedback, extracurricular guidance, test prep, college list creation, and application review. What sets them apart, however, is their extensive experience working with transfer students.Many companies will treat transfer students very similarly to first-year college applicants, but colleges look for quite different things in a transfer student’s application. Prepory understands that and works with students to develop a strong transfer application by creating a compelling narrative for why they want to transfer, developing a list of the best schools to apply to, highlighting your academic strengths, and reviewing personal statements. After you’re accepted, they’ll also work with you to make the transfer process smoother and understand how your current college credits will transfer to your new school. Students they’ve worked with have been successfully admitted as transfer students to schools such as Stanford, Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth, UT Austin, and NYU.
08
Services offered:
1-on-1 comprehensive admissions packages
Price range:
$$$$-$$$$$ ($9,795-$42,295 for a comprehensive admissions package)
Location:
Brookline, MA (in-person and virtual counseling)
Spark Admissions
Spark Admissions states that students who use them are 6 times as likely to be admitted to many of the top 50 schools, compared to national averages. Their team works with students in grades 8-12 and offers comprehensive college counseling packages that include many features such as college application guidance, test prep, extracurricular guidance, study help, planning summer activities, interview prep, and essay guidance review. Your counselor will develop a personalized plan tailored to you and your college goals.If you have special circumstances, they also have experience working with transfer students, BS/MD program applicants, athletic recruiting, and art, film, and music school applicants. However, Spark Admissions charges $550-$650+ per hour of counseling, with packages ranging from 15 to 75 hours, which adds up quickly.
09
Services offered:
1-on-1 comprehensive admissions consulting
Price range:
$$$$-$$$$$
Location:
New York City (in-person and virtual counseling)
Solomon Admissions Consulting
Solomon Admissions is a long-running admissions counseling company with a team of over 150 admissions consultants. They offer comprehensive college admissions packages that can include extracurricular mentorship, application review, essay review, course selection, and tutoring, among other services. Unlike many competitors which only offer services to current high school students, Solomon Admissions counsels students as early as 6th grade, helping them prepare for high school in terms of both academic and extracurriculars. Many of their consultants previously worked in college admissions offices and know what schools are looking for.For students in all grades, be aware that their advice often involves having students switch their desired major from “oversubscribed” majors like business and pre-med majors to less common majors and take on extracurriculars that relate to that new major. Some students may not mind this, but it can feel inauthentic.
10
Services offered:
Academic tutoring
Test prep
College admissions consulting
Price range:
$155-$395+ per hour of tutoring
Location:
Virtual
Cambridge Coaching
Cambridge Coaching focuses primarily on tutoring services and how students can improve grades and/or test scores to help them get into their dream school. They offer tutors in all academic subjects, as well as standardized tests like the SAT, ACT, and AP exams. Their college admissions coaches work with students one-on-one to guide them through the application process and make sure they get the support they need.Each of Cambridge Coaching’s tutors have scored in the 99th percentile of any exam they’re tutoring, and many are PhD candidates at top universities. Tutoring prices vary depending on the subject being tutored and the expertise of the tutor, but they generally range from $155-$395+ per hour, with discounts for purchasing certain amounts of hours at once.
11
Services offered:
1-on-1 comprehensive admissions consulting
Extracurricular planning and assessment
Application review
Course selection
Price range:
$$$-$$$$$
Location:
Wellesley Hills, MA (in-person and virtual services)
Popp & Associates
Popp & Associates has college counseling services for any high school student, with services including academic profile and extracurricular assessment, recommendations for courses and extracurriculars, standardized testing strategy (although they don’t offer test prep), and assistance with the college application process. You can purchase an all-in-one package or, if you want more limited services, you can pay for a certain number of hours of consultation.Popp & Associates also specializes in student athletes. If your child wants to pursue college athletics, Popp & Associates offers a variety of services in their Athletic Consulting Package, including an evaluation of candidacy for athletic scholarships, assistance in attracting college recruiters, NCAA recruitment procedures, recommendations for athletic camps, and creation of athletic resumes. Note that the Athletic Consulting Package can only be purchased in addition to a college counseling package. The price for these isn’t available online, but expect it to be $10,000+ for a comprehensive package.
12
Services offered:
College match
Scholarship match
Essay brainstorming and review
Price range:
Free!
Location:
Virtual
Kollegio
Kollegio is a newer option for college admissions counseling, and it’s powered entirely by AI. Not having any in-person counselors limits the services Kollegio is able to provide, but it also allows it to be completely free to use. Most students use Kollegio for its college essay services. Kollegio will help you brainstorm ideas if you need help getting started on your essays, and, if you upload what you’ve already written, it’ll provide personalized feedback and recommendations to improve your essay.Reviews are generally positive, although it’s important to keep in mind that this free AI won’t offer the depth of knowledge and personalization a human counselor would. The website doesn’t state how the AI was developed or what sources it draws from, so the expertise behind it is unclear. Kollegio also offers recommendations for the best-fit colleges and scholarships for you, but there are already a lot of similar services that are also free and have been around for a while, so they don’t particularly stand apart there.
13
Services offered:
1-on-1 comprehensive admissions consulting
Price range:
$-$$$$ ($17/month for extracurricular guidance program, $167-$494 for essay editing, up to $15,000 for 1-on-1 counseling)
Location:
Virtual
The Princeton Review
The Princeton Review is most famous for its test prep resources, but it also offers college counseling services to high school students. Princeton Review has a lot of different package options so you can choose to only purchase essay support, only purchase counseling on creating a college list, only purchase access to video resources, etc. to meet your needs. The variety of packages makes this resource accessible at numerous price points and allows clients to focus on only what they need.Services range from $299 for a one-hour college strategy session for freshmen, to a $3,499 package for juniors that includes seven virtual meetings with a college counselor, a personalized college list, essay editing, application review, and unlimited messaging with your counselor. There’s also a $14,999 all-inclusive package with monthly/bi-weekly meetings during junior and senior year. Unfortunately, some resources, such as a $99 essay review by AI or a $1,099 package of videos don’t offer a lot of value when you can find similar resources online for free.