Empowering All Youth To College Success

Navigating college admissions is challenging and can be especially challenging for traditionally underrepresented students. We offer targeted support for neurodiverse, queer, immigrant, and noncitizen youth understand the distinct hurdles they face and how to overcome them.

Making application decisions is daunting without a developed understanding of what admissions officers and scholarship panels are seeking. This means underrepresented students often miss out on opportunities to explore and define their future. We can ease that stress with tailored advice and guidance.

Why Coaching?

Personalized coaching makes the process smoother and more manageable. Starting early in high school, we guide families through the admissions path, revealing what colleges seek, and how scholarships are awarded. This knowledge reduces decision fatigue and the stress of tackling a thousand different after-school programs in the hopes that something sticks.

We take the guesswork out of the equation. We step in to help you make the most of the time you have, working directly with your student to keep the process stress-free. No more bickering over deadlines—just clear, supportive guidance, to help your student chart a path toward a promising career.

For diverse and underserved students, college admissions can present unique challenges. From navigating accommodations to managing anxiety, there are several reasons why families might choose to work with a college admissions coach.

Stress Less with Specialized Support

Our tailored sessions focus on your student's unique needs, proactively avoiding obstacles and strategically maximizing applications. We're dedicated to student success and well-being, helping them achieve their personal and academic goals throughout the college admissions process and beyond.

For neurodiverse and marginalized youth, the college admissions and financial aid processes can be complex and overwhelming. With both a single mom of an ADHD kid and a queer & neurodiverse college grad on your team, we can help to demystify the process and break it down into manageable steps that work with your unique circumstances, providing support every step of the way.

Navigate Complexity

Discover Strengths, Maximize Opportunities

We identify student strengths and give guidance on how to highlight extracurricular activities, leadership experiences, and community involvement that showcase their unique talents. With awareness of how diversity issues affect our clients, we pride ourselves on being supportive advocates and allies.

Before I started working in college and career counseling, I had careers in healthcare, corporate marketing, writing and editing, insurance and finance, deed and title searching, and retail. I used to think there was something wrong with me because I couldn’t find the one thing I wanted to be when I grew up.

Having multiple careers and going back to college to further learning are the new norm. A few years ago, I left the corporate world looking for work that wouldn’t leave me living for Fridays and dreading Mondays. I’ve worked with hundreds of students and my greatest satisfaction comes from witnessing my students’ growth, development, and success. I am passionate about guiding them to their post high-school lives that align with their aspirations. My goals are to serve and prepare young individuals as they embark on their journeys to thrive in the world.

Personally, I am the very proud mom of a fully-launched, college-grad daughter who is an elementary special education teacher. My two favorite things to do in life are traveling and trying new restaurants and recipes. I have a particular weakness for cookbooks that share the culture and stories behind the recipes.

Peggy Shay

The College Admissions Process Should Start With

Self-Discovery and End With Confidence.

Peggy has been so supportive of me and kept me calm when I was freaking out. Every time we talked, I felt motivated to keep trying. Peggy was one of the only ones to believe in me when everyone else was telling me I needed to retake the SAT. She knew my time was better spent elsewhere and supported my gut-feeling that my score was as good as it needed to be.

She really focuses on how to showcase you as a person, not just your grades and scores.

-Kayleigh, Vanderbilt University

Peggy helped me navigate the college application process with ease. She truly cares about students' success and well-being.

-Marina, University of Washington Presidential Scholar

Student Comments

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