CollegewiseReviews of collegewise.com

I had Lori Jones as my counselor, and she was absolutely wonderful. I started with her during the middle of my sophomore year. I would give her 10 stars if possible. She was incredibly supportive and helpful in guiding me during both my application process and the years leading up to it. She is such a compassionate and caring person, always giving me a clear direction when I was confused on which extracurriculars to participate in, which activities to spend the most of my time on, and figuring out which classes to take each year. She was an amazing counselor, and I couldn’t have asked for anyone better. I also wanted to acknowledge my wonderful editor, Nico Flint. I felt that she gave me insightful and strong feedback that turned my essays for both colleges and summer programs into truly competitive and authentic pieces. I am truly grateful to both Lori and Nico for their help. I will be attending MIT in the fall, and I don’t think I would have been accepted without their help. I rated the overall program as 4 stars due to some improvements that Collegewise can make, none of these related to Lori or Nico. I participated in some of the add-ons, including the Passion Project (I did not work with Lori on this). For me, I did not believe that this program was very helpful, as I ended up finding different and more meaningful extracurriculars to spend my time on. Additionally, I found the interface of Collegewise’s website to be confusing and non-user friendly at times. Due to these aspects, I rated the overall Collegewise program with 4 stars; however, I would give Lori and Nico as many stars as possible.

As a parent, I’m so grateful for the support Kate Strzelecki gave my daughter throughout the college admissions process. From our very first meeting, I had a great feeling with Kate’s warm, energetic, and encouraging style. She was especially supportive during the stressful period from late sophomore year through senior year, always keeping my daughter motivated and positive. I also really appreciated the detailed notes she shared after each session, which helped me stay informed and see the progress clearly. Kate was open to supporting applications to schools outside the U.S., which we valued a lot. With her guidance, my daughter discovered her passion for environmental and urban design and is now moving forward with confidence and a clear sense of direction. I would definitely recommend Collegewise and Kate to any family going through the college process. Thank you so much, Kate!!

Our son worked with Lindsey, and we had a great experience. She was always available to answer questions, and her experience working with students aiming from a pre-medical trajectory was truly insightful. Our son had a difficult time writing essays, and that is where her encouragement and honesty really helped him. By the time decisions rolled around, he gained acceptance into one of his dream schools with a great merit scholarship. Highly recommend!!

Working with Jared Rivers was one of the best decisions we made during my daughter’s college process. From the very beginning, he brought a level of insight and experience that immediately set him apart. Knowing he had spent years reading applications at places like Cornell, Brandeis, and Bates gave us a lot of confidence, but what really mattered was how clearly he understood how to position Laurel in a way that felt both authentic and compelling. He didn’t try to mold her into something she wasn’t, instead, he guided her on how to tell her story in a way that truly resonated with admissions readers. Jared has an incredible ability to connect with students. He quickly built trust with Laurel, striking that perfect balance of being supportive while also offering honest, thoughtful guidance. He has a calm, approachable style that makes you comfortable, but behind that is a very sharp understanding of what top schools are actually looking for. He helped Laurel focus on fit, where she would genuinely thrive, and that perspective shaped every step of the process in a meaningful way. His guidance was instrumental in my daughter's admission to Cornell, where she is now a graduating Senior. That experience became a strong foundation for everything that followed. With Jared’s help, Laurel built a clear and cohesive academic narrative that continued to open doors, including earning a St Andrews scholarship that will fully fund her MSc at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. She will also be attending Yale University for her MPH as a recipient of the rare Horstmann scholarship the following year, which is truly a dream come true. What stood out most about Jared is that he truly cares. He is thoughtful, responsive, and deeply invested in his students’ success, not just in getting in, but in finding the right path. We always felt like Laurel was in the best possible hands. We are incredibly grateful for his guidance and would recommend him without hesitation to any family navigating this process.

we were very pleased with the decision we made on using collegewise and working with Shruti who was an amazing counselor to our daughter and the whole family it made a big difference, it eased up so much of the stress and guided our daughter thoughtfully in selecting her colleges which she got accepted in most of them with a good scholarship, we will be using collegewise again for our second daughter

Lynne was an amazing counselor and always available! I had a great and successful college application experience with her & the rest of the Collegewise team's help.

Rebecca & Collegewise was transformational with our son. She worked with him through all 4 years of high school and believed in his journey. She took the stress off of us and allowed us to be his cheerleaders. The Collegewise platform kept him on track along the way. We ended with a great result - a college that’s he’s really happy with and a senior year full of great memories. ❤️

We have had such a positive experience with Collegewise over the years. They first helped our daughter get into her dream school (one that is very competitive) and we were so impressed from the start. A few years later, when it was time for our two sons (in 2022 and 2025), our previous counselor was not available anymore. But honestly, we could not have been luckier to work with Matt Doyle. Matt was amazing with both of our sons. He kept them organized, on track, and focused, but never stressed. That, to me, says everything. The whole process felt manageable, and even calm, which is not something you usually hear about college applications! He was also incredibly flexible with our family. We travel internationally during the summer, and Matt always worked around our schedule without missing a beat. Both of our sons got into their #1 college choices, and we truly feel Matt played a big role in that. We are so grateful. Five stars for Collegewise, and especially for Matt (only because we cannot give more!).