Zenith Prep AcademyReviews of zenithprepacademy.com

In my experience, I have a laundry list of things that went wrong and wish we cancelled in advance. It was not clearly stated monthly meeting is only 30 minutes with counselor, told different things from different representatives, latest counselor was 13-min late for a 15-min follow-up meeting (f/up meetings only offered in senior year), counselor sometimes need to be made to stay on track (non-academic conversation within an already limited 30-min meeting), advice that I think was not most ideal when determining my child’s classes and suggestion of colleges (would have done things differently), and the big kicker, the counselor we worked with for a few years left the company a few days before Common Apps opened (!) and did not indicate us in advance (absolutely would have refunded at that point but unexpected news came 3.5 weeks too late), etc. My personal opinion, I wish we signed up elsewhere and it would been much cheaper. Didn’t work out for us!

When i first found zenith, I was afraid that no top universities would accept me. I had a 3.8 GPA and my test scores were uncompetitive. When i first scheduled a meeting with the zenith advisor, the price made me and my family withholding, however 1 year later we believe that was the best money we ever spent. With Linda’s guidance, i was able to get accepted to my dream college early action: University of Michigan. She was an amazing advisor: would always respond to my questions at random times of the day, edit my essays numerous times, and just offer and overall guidance. She made my essays significantly better, and boosted my hope.

I had an excellent experience working with Sam Deery at Zenith. He provided clear guidance throughout my university application process and gave valuable feedback that helped strengthen my essays while keeping them true to my own voice. I highly recommend him to anyone looking for expert guidance with their university applications.

Overall, Zenith provided phenomenal support on multiple levels; whether it was breaking down the college admissions process, ensuring all the necessary steps were taken, or developing a comprehensive profile to use on applications, they were an invaluable resource throughout the journey. In particular, Sam Deery-Schmitt served as an excellent mentor and guide through the admissions process thanks to his experience and understanding of who I was and what my profile should reflect. Partnering with Zenith was more than worth it; getting accepted into one of my top universities wasn't easy, but Zenith boosted my chances and made it happen.

My experience was great thanks to my counselor, Mr. Sam. However, I went through several counselors before finding him, which was quite frustrating. I had to keep switching until I found someone who truly understood me. Although Mr. Sam is excellent, the company needs to improve its counselor assignment process. For a counselor to be effective, they must understand their student. Mr. Sam is the right fit for me because he adapts to my needs and takes the time to get to know me as a person. Additionally, he has a background similar to my interests, which helps him relate to me even better.

Throughout my junior year as well as throughout the entire application process, Sam has been extremely supportive. Always ready to give me advice whenever I needed it, to answer all my queries, and to make sure that I am meeting all deadlines, Sam made the application process much easier for me.

My first impression of Zenith was shaped by how much time they invested in getting to know us before we signed the contract. They met with us multiple times, answered all of our questions, and never made us feel rushed. That gave us a great deal of confidence in the company. At the time, we still had many uncertainties about who our counselor would be and what our daughter's experience would be. We have been pleasantly surprised. One of the things we appreciate most is that we have worked with the same counselor for more than two years, and we hope that relationship continues throughout the entire four years we plan to use their services. Our counselor, Sam, has been consistently supportive, knowledgeable, and well prepared. He brings a great deal of experience to every meeting and provides thoughtful, practical advice tailored to our daughter's goals and interests. He has taken the time to understand her strengths and has helped her build a strong long-term plan. The guidance has been steady and proactive throughout the process. We always leave our meetings with clear action items and a better understanding of what comes next. The consistency and quality of the counseling have been the biggest reasons we are happy we chose Zenith.

I rarely write reviews, but I feel a responsibility to warn other parents before they make the same mistake we did. We paid Zenith significant money across multiple installments for what was marketed as expert, personalised college counseling for our son's applications to top universities. What we got was an embarrassment. Every single session was a glorified status update — generic, shallow, and completely interchangeable with a conversation you could have with someone who had never done this before. There was no strategy, no mentorship, no effort to understand our son as an individual, and no work whatsoever on building the narrative and positioning that a competitive application actually requires. We are not even at the essay stage — and the foundational strategic work that should have been done months ago simply never happened. When I raised concerns in August 2025, I was passed around and eventually told by their team to "trust the process" and continue. We made the mistake of listening. Nothing improved. Not a single thing. Here is where it gets worse. When I formally terminated the program in May 2026, rather than owning their failure and doing the right thing, Zenith's response was to suggest we should have left earlier — conveniently erasing the fact that their own team had talked us out of doing exactly that. That is not an oversight. That is dishonesty. And then there is the money. Despite terminating the service, they have shown no intention of refunding the second installment for services that were never meaningfully delivered. Worse, they appear intent on collecting the third installment for a program that no longer exists — for a family that has clearly and repeatedly communicated they are done. This is not an administrative oversight. This is a deliberate attempt to extract money they have not earned and are not entitled to. Zenith is not a college counseling service. It is a fee-collection machine that uses reassuring language to keep you paying while delivering nothing of substance. If you are a parent pinning your child's future on this program, please stop and reconsider. Your money, your time, and most importantly your child's opportunity deserve far better than this.