Testimonials

My daughter is excited to attend UC Berkeley this Fall; I know this would not have happened without Maya’s incredible guidance.  We first met with Maya right before my daughter started high school, and Maya worked with us to map out her academics for each year of high school. She also guided my daughter’s extracurriculars and what she could do starting in 9th grade that aligned with her interests and passions. The other private college counselors I had spoken with did not want to meet with us until my daughter was a junior.  If I had waited, my daughter could have missed many opportunities. I also liked that Maya worked hourly so we could reach out to her when we needed guidance.  We ended up reaching out to Maya every year and meeting with her to check in on my daughter’s academics, extracurriculars, and summer plans.  My daughter was so fortunate to be able to also have Maya's guidance on her UC application which I know made all the difference. We were so impressed with Maya and her knowledge of the UC application process.  More importantly, Maya was so kind; I could see how much she cared about my daughter and what was best for her. Maya is genuinely remarkable!

-Clayton Valley Charter High School, Concord, California

Daughter committed to UC Berkeley for class of 2028

“My family worked with Maya over the past two years to help my son with his college applications. My son was only interested in UC schools, so Maya was the perfect college counselor for us. While she came highly recommended, I have to say she exceeded my expectations throughout the whole process! She was always prepared for meetings and provided lots of guidance on classes, leadership and other opportunities. Once the college application process started, she was always available to answer questions and worked with us to ensure my son's stories were clear and reflected his accomplishments, passion and hard work. I am delighted to share that my son will be going to UCLA in the fall. From my experience, the college app process is not just about working hard and checking boxes, but making sure that your application reflects it! Maya played a key role in helping my son stand out and ultimately get into his top UC! I can't thank Maya enough for her support and would highly recommend her!”

-Tamalpais High School, Mill Valley, California

Son admitted to UCLA, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC Santa Cruz, UC Riverside for class of 2027

“It’s hard to fully capture how positive our experience with Maya was. I’m beyond grateful that my son had the chance to work with her on his college applications. From the very first meeting, it was clear she would have a meaningful impact. With her guidance, Maya encouraged my son—in the best way—to dig deeper and reflect on the true meaning behind his experiences. He often stays on the surface, but she helped him uncover the heart of his story and craft a thoughtful, authentic application. She was involved every step of the way, especially with his UC PIQs and essays. He went through many drafts, and her detailed, encouraging feedback helped him express himself more clearly and confidently. She always knew how to guide him without ever taking away his voice. Her insight, attention to detail, and deep understanding of what the UC schools are looking for were incredibly valuable. This fall, my son will be heading to UC Santa Barbara—his dream school since childhood—and he truly believes he wouldn’t be there without Maya. Her support helped him highlight his strengths in a way that made his application stand out. On top of all that, Maya is kind, supportive, and brought a real sense of calm to a stressful process. We’re so grateful for her and couldn’t recommend her more—she’s truly the best. Next level!”

- Acalanes High School, Lafayette, CA

Son committed to UC Santa Barbara, class of 2029

“My rising senior and I learned more in 90 minutes with Maya than we'd learned in the last year of research into the college admissions process. We walked out of our meeting feeling like we had finally found someone able to cut through the crazy-making college admissions noise, and truly guide us. Aside from her professionalism and gracious disposition, she was extremely thorough, tailored the discussion to my daughter's particular record, interests and desires, and helped my daughter to focus on the most advantageous way to tell her story on a college application. Maya's depth of knowledge is really quite extraordinary, and my daughter left feeling much more positive about the increasingly complicated process of admissions. I can't say enough about how impressed we were, how valuable the time with Maya was, and how glad we are to have found her. We also have a rising sophomore who, based on his sister's experience, already wants to meet with Maya and get a head start on his college ambitions. We're so grateful for her expertise!”

-Saint Mary’s College High School, Berkeley, California

Daughter admitted to UC Berkeley, UC Santa Barbara, UC Davis and UC Santa Cruz for class of 2027

“The college application process has been overwhelming for our daughter and she was not sure how to put the best foot forward for the UC’s. We were so happy when we found Maya. We needed help with knowing the nuances of what matters to the different UCs and how to craft a single application for multiple universities that have different considerations. Maya reviewed several documents and details we provided prior to our 90-minute session and came prepared to address specific needs. We walked out with crystal clear clarity on how to approach the application and position the PIQs based on our daughter’s strengths and weaknesses on her transcript and resume. Talking to Maya calmed our daughter's nerves down. Many students have a few grades less low than ‘A’ and what matters is to put forward the authentic self including the learnings and outcomes in a manner that an application reviewer understands quickly. While our daughter is still working on her application, she is significantly more informed to shape her application for the UC’s and we have Maya to thank for that."

Update April 2023: “Before meeting Maya, my daughter felt the doors closed on her for a UC school with the C’s on her transcript. After working with Maya, my daughter had so much hope and was thrilled to be accepted to UC San Diego, UC Irvine and UC Davis for the class of 2027!”

-Monte Vista High School, Danville, California

“Maya’s ability to provide laser-like focus and guidance regarding the specifics of the UC apps was particularly valuable. Her clear and concise feedback was so helpful to my son filling out his UC application and resulted in him being accepted to UCLA, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC San Diego and UCSC all for engineering.””

— Acalanes High School, Lafayette, California

Son committed to UCLA for the class of 2026

“My daughter was applying from out of state, so when we visited several UC campuses, we made a point of visiting Maya for her in-person consultation. It was really helpful because she showed us specific examples of how our daughter could make her various activities stand out on the UC application. Maya shared her power point presentation on a big monitor which was tailored to specifically what we wanted to learn. Maya's knowledge of the process and direct and honest method was so effective with my daughter. And her follow through with her, answering questions and reviewing essays and lists, was beyond our expectations. Our daughter was accepted into UCSB, her number one choice. She’s an excellent, promising student, but I feel that Maya’s guidance really made sure that her application was as effective as it could be. We’re so glad we made Maya part of our first college tour to the UC schools. I highly recommend working with her.”

-Irvington High School, New Jersey

Daughter committed to UC Santa Barbara for the class of 2027

“Maya is the rare individual that wants the best for all kids in their pursuit of higher education regardless of personal gain. She shares a wealth of great information for kids applying to college. Hiring her to work personally with my child to put his best foot forward was one of the best decisions we made with regard to the entire process. Her experience and excellent, positive way with teenagers made me confident that we were not missing anything with regard to our child presenting themselves and their accomplishments. Her assistance was invaluable to our son’s success in his college application process. Without hesitation, we have again hired Maya to assist our youngest son in the process and we were thrilled when he was accepted to UC Berkeley! I can’t recommend her highly enough.”

-Las Lomas HIgh School, Walnut Creek, California

Son committed to UC Berkeley for class of 2027

“My son and I had the fantastic opportunity to work with Maya on his UC application. We were blown away by her knowledge. Her insight into the process is remarkable. What I thought were great essays and short answer questions became elevated to superior after working with Maya. One of the many qualities I loved about Maya's approach as she worked with my son was watching her personal interaction to help him and how she made him feel comfortable and confident. She guided him on how he could apply the same approach to other college applications. Her calm demeanor relieved my child's stress so he could focus better, allowing my son complete a very powerful UC application that highlighted his strengths and everything that makes him unique. Maya's knowledge, calm and inviting personality, and dedication to my child made the entire application process very smooth. I highly recommend Maya to anyone interested in applying to the UC schools.”

-Sacred Heart, Atherton, California

Son committed to UC Santa Barbara for class of 2027

“Maya is amazing! She is extremely knowledgeable about the UC application process and gave my daughter valuable insight into how to make the most of her qualifications and experiences. She guided her without being overbearing, and helped her to really show her true self through her essays. Maya’s advice was invaluable in helping to make my daughter’s application shine, and she ended up getting into her dream school, UC Berkeley.”

-Acalanes High School, Lafayette, California

Daughter committed to UC Berkeley for class of 2026

“My son had just started his freshman year and both my son and I were feeling overwhelmed with all the information being thrown at us without any context or explanation. We are so happy we were able to meet with Maya when we did. She gave is a great amount of information, fully explained everything and strategically set my son up to make some great choices to really help him stand out in his college applications. Both my son and I left our session feeling so confident and just happy with the insight we had just gained. Really enjoyed talking with and hearing all the great information Maya shared with us. I’ve recommended her to all of our friends and look forward to more guidance from Maya as my son progresses in his high school career.”

— Piedmont High School, Piedmont, California

“We were lucky enough to first meet with Maya years ago when when our daughter was in 9th grade (she's now a rising Senior). Since then Maya has helped illuminate how the undergraduate college admissions process works as well as provide guidance about choosing courses and activities that align with our daughter's interests (invaluable advice!). More recently, Maya has explained the different college applications, guidance on how to showcase extracurricular activities, advice on personal insight questions and more. It has been particularly helpful working with Maya since the beginning of High School because some decisions can be made early on that can really help strengthen a student's college application years later. Maya not only offers invaluable advice, she's also a kind and warm person who has helped take a lot of the stress out of the college application process. We have really enjoyed working with Maya and highly recommend her!”

— Tamalpais High School, Mill Valley, California

Daughter committed to UC Berkeley for class of 2027