Tag: USA

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Jeff

Jeff

Colorado

The Doctor

University of Colorado

Client: JeffJeff was living in Colorado, working as a member of the Breckenridge Ski Patrol, when his parents asked if we could help provide him some career guidance. He was beginning to consider different career directions, and his parents hoped we could help him find the right path.
Jeff shared that he had graduated from college as a philosophy major with dreams of becoming a teacher or lawyer, but was starting to feel pulled toward medicine. As a first responder at Breckenridge, he had encountered all kinds of injuries. In one case, a patient even died despite the ski patrol’s best efforts. This tragedy had a profound effect on Jeff, and launched his interest in working in the medical field.

During the summer of 2013, Jeff started working for Vail Summit Orthopaedics as a clinical technician. There he gained access to some of the nation’s top sports medicine surgeons. He was enthralled by what happened after his ski patrol patients left his care. However, he was worried that he did not have a competitive background for medical school.

The Short List saw things differently. We believed Jeff could profile his experiences to his advantage. For example, we learned that Jeff had earned seven different medical or emergency prevention certifications. We helped him craft a resume that highlighted his professional credentials and included his community service work at Summit Community Care Center and as a surgical assistant on Community Surgery Day.

As Jeff gained confidence, we helped him research the top sports medicine programs and find the thread in his essays that showed how his varied experiences led him to a medical career. We helped Jeff craft his admissions interview responses and showed him how to follow up to reinforce his interest. Over the winter, Jeff received acceptances from several medical schools. His final choices came down to Columbia University and the University of Colorado. Jeff chose Colorado so he could stay in his beloved Rockies and pursue his education surrounded by some of the nation’s top sports medicine specialists.

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Jake

Jake

Ohio

The Ensign

US Naval Academy

Client: JakeWhen The Short List met Jake during his sophomore year, he had one school in mind: the United States Naval Academy. Jake’s parents clearly had their concerns. We discussed the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Jake listened but felt it was both a privilege and a duty to serve his country. He also knew the Academy was a long shot because all of the service academies look for tremendous leadership and top-tier academic achievement.

We encouraged Jake to take those requirements as a motivator, so he worked hard on his academics, studied for the SATs, and watched his GPA and SAT scores climb. He became a leader on his high school lacrosse team and attended camps to improve his skills.

Jake was appointed to Ohio’s Buckeye Boys State, a program that stresses leadership and honor. He also applied and was accepted to the U.S. House of Representatives Page Program. He says those two experiences changed his life forever.

It took nearly a year from start to finish, but Jake says his acceptance was worth the wait. Jake visited many schools during the process and several interested him, but he remained focused on the Naval Academy. He visited it several times and began to envision himself as an Ensign. The Academy has a complex application process that requires the applicant to receive a nomination from a U.S. Senator. Jake was able to secure that nomination, went through several grueling interviews, and then was asked to pass the physical.

It took nearly a year from start to finish, but Jake says his acceptance was worth the wait.

Recently his government teacher asked the class if they approved of the U.S. government. Many said “no.” She responded, “In a government run for the people and by the people, only you, the people, can change that.” Jake shares that belief, and one of his goals is to choose the best way to serve his country. Jake showed all of us that when a student has a plan and is willing to follow that plan, the results speak for themselves. We have no doubt that Jake will serve the United States proudly.

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Jackson

Jackson

Ohio

The Golfer

Williams

Client: Jackson We met Jackson and his family two years ago at one of our Columbus, Ohio, presentations. Jackson was an academically gifted student, had legacy at two highly ranked schools, and was a top-rated golfer. His family was unsure how to go about the search process: Should they go for a school strictly for academics? Was it smarter to take advantage of his legacy status? Or should he pursue his dream of playing golf in college?

This was not the first time we had experienced such a conflict, and we knew the real answer lay within Jackson. He just needed to find a way to uncover it. Jackson is very organized, decisive, and clear-thinking. While he was prepared for every session with The Short List, his process was more streamlined than some of our clients. He was determined not to waste time. Jackson wanted only to pursue those schools where he could truly envision being happy. He decided early on that any college he attended had to have top- notch academics and an opportunity to play golf.

We helped Jackson research several schools, register with the NCAA Clearing House, design a golf resume, reach out to coaches, and start the recruiting dialog. He planned college visits to tour campuses, meet coaches, and attend admissions sessions. He narrowed his list down to just a few schools. We held a family meeting to discuss his application strategy, including concerns that he did not have enough schools on his list and might need to broaden his choices and accept that he might never play golf in college. Jackson listened but determined he wouldn’t change his list because it included only schools where he knew he would be happy, even if they ended up being his only option.

Jackson spent the fall continuing his dialogue with the coaches at each school, working on his essays, and keeping up with his schoolwork. All of the schools expressed interest in having him join their golf team. Jackson didn’t want to leave them in limbo, so he chose one school and applied Early Decision. In December, Jackson called to tell us he had been accepted to Williams College, the number one liberal arts college in the country. He said that the golf coach was as excited as he was to have Jackson join their nationally ranked team.

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Grant

Grant

Pennsylvania

The JD/MBA

Villanova

Client: Grant The Short List met Grant when he was a high school sophomore. Even then, it was apparent that Grant had many academic interests: business, history, liberal arts… Boston College allowed him to explore all of them. During college, Grant interned in financial services and law firms and spent his junior year studying in Rome, Italy. Wherever he worked, lived, or studied, Grant had a quest to learn and take in as much as possible.

Near the end of college, Grant decided to pursue either an MBA or a law degree. Together, we reviewed the requirements for both. Grant could see that it would take quite an effort and he wanted to do it right, so he decided to take a year off after graduation to research schools. Always one to challenge himself, Grant decided that he couldn’t decide between the two degrees and would instead pursue a joint JD/MBA.

Most joint programs require that you be accepted to one program before applying to the second. Grant focused on schools that had equally strong law and business programs, and The Short List helped him implement a strategy to increase his chances: We encouraged him to attend events and network with key personnel so they knew him before he applied. We also emphasized the importance of the entrance exams. Grant spent the summer traveling two hours each way, twice a week, to prepare to take the exams in the fall. He scored high on his LSAT, so he decided to apply to law schools first and worked to make his law school applications as strong as possible.
Grant received an offer from Villanova Law School and felt a great sense of relief, but knew he still had to be accepted to the business school to complete his dream. Villanova raises the level of commitment required by asking students to enter their first year of law school before applying to the joint program.

The Short List helped Grant make connections before he applied.

Grant decided to make that commitment and took on the burden of applying to the MBA program while also trying to adjust to law school and remain successful in his first-year classes. His efforts paid off, and he wrote to us: “I wanted to let you know that I was accepted into Villanova’s JD/MBA program! I found out the good news…and I am extremely excited.” He went on to add, “After finishing up law school courses this spring, I plan on beginning business school courses this summer. Not much of a summer break, but I want to begin business school courses before law school starts up again.”

We have no doubt that Grant will be successful however he chooses to use his degrees. Grant closed his note to us by saying “You’ve now helped me through the process of applying to college, law school, and business school…I still can’t really believe it all came true.”

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Greg

Greg

New York

The Natural Leader

Skidmore

Client: GregGreg attends a small private K-12 school in Buffalo. The Short List worked with Greg’s two older sisters and profiled Maddie when she started Harvard in 2011. Greg’s parents contacted The Short List early in Greg’s high school years to help him prepare for the college admissions process.
We recognized Greg’s leadership potential right away. He was a three-sport athlete who knew everyone in his grade, but he was frustrated his class was “made up of cliques and no one would step outside of their comfort zone.” We encouraged him to run for sophomore class vice president to help create the united school community he envisioned. Rather than taking the traditional fall class field trip, Greg requested sophomores stay on campus to participate in activities he designed to help them expand beyond their friend groups. Later in the year, they worked together on walk-a-thons and school fundraising events. He got them to agree to donate the $2,000 raised to the maintenance workers who worked tirelessly to keep the school running during one of Buffalo’s roughest winters.

We helped Greg continue to explore opportunities that would develop his natural abilities in bringing people together. He was elected Spirit Captain his junior year, led pep rallies, organized holiday celebrations, and motivated students to attend sporting events. The school had stopped including the younger classes in these events, but Greg decided to invite them again, going against the student government’s vote initially but winning them over as they began to see the entire school come together. Senior year, the student government designated Greg its “Member at Large,” the officer who most represents the students’ opinions. Greg organized weekly lunches with different groups of students to hear their concerns and ideas. He suggested revisions to the school charter to increase the student voice, recommended lockers be organized by class to create unity, and proposed student advisories change every year to help minimize the influence of cliques.

Greg wanted to find a college that would similarly encourage his leadership. One of the first schools he visited was Skidmore College, where his sister Caroline is now a sophomore. Despite other schools we recommended, he kept returning to Skidmore in our conversations.

We helped him put together an Early Decision application that highlighted his many contributions, and his effort was rewarded with an acceptance letter six weeks later. We have no doubt Greg will flourish as a leader at Skidmore, particularly when the school’s tagline is “Creative Thought Matters.”

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Grace

Grace

New York

The JD/MBA

Villanova

Client: GraceGrace is an appropriate name for this talented dancer. She comes from a family of entertainers and has danced, modeled, acted, and mentored other young performers most of her life. When it came to helping her pick a college, The Short List knew it would have to be a special place. Grace wasn’t certain she wanted a career in dance but did want a strong dance program. She also talked about other interests and her desire to run a business someday. Knowing a conservatory wouldn’t meet her needs, we started with a long list of schools ranging from large universities with multiple academic choices to small schools with more focused liberal arts programs. Grace knew she might want to dance outside of school, so we suggested she focus on schools in big cities.

Grace visited schools in other cities but always found herself missing New York. We could see her enthusiasm for schools closer to home, so we helped her focus her energies on New York City. The Short List suggested Grace visit Barnard College, a small women’s college that is part of Columbia University. The more she researched the school, the more her interest was piqued by Barnard’s liberal arts education, ability to empower women, and affiliation with the famed Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Grace also loved that students could enroll in classes at Columbia University and participate in activities on both campuses.

The Short List could see her enthusiasm for schools closer to home, so we helped her focus her energies on New York City.

The Short List discovered that Barnard was hosting a selective preview day to which students had to apply with an essay describing why the visit was right for them. Grace worked as hard on this application as she did on her college applications and was invited to the special two-day event. She met similar-minded women from all over the world and began to see that Barnard was a place where she could become a well-trained dancer and receive a broader, top-notch education.
Performing artists, like athletes, pursue a college on two tracks. Grace had the regular applications to complete, but also the auditions to attend. Early in her senior year, she decided to apply to Barnard Early Decision. She continued to attend auditions and work on applications for other schools, but waited eagerly for news from Barnard. Finally, word arrived that Barnard was excited to have her join their dance program.

For Grace, Barnard offered the best of all worlds. Her call to let us know of her acceptance attested to her excitement at enrolling at Barnard this fall.

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Connor

Connor

Ohio

The Golfer

Emory

Connor

Connor began his college journey with The Short List focused on academics. A senior from Ohio, he had excelled as a student and was also captain of the golf team two years in a row. He was passionate about golf, but academics was the driving force behind his college list. Connor’s busy schedule with golf had not left much time for college visits, so he had only taken a few campus tours. The Short List helped Connor realize that looking at college websites was fine, but nothing would beat seeing the campus in person.

Connor planned to pursue engineering or pre-med in college. The Short List suggested he consider a few schools he had not previously, one of which was Emory University in Atlanta. We believed the 3-2 engineering program Emory offers in conjunction with Georgia Tech, as well as Emory’s strong pre-med program, would each be an equally great fit for Connor.

During the fall of his senior year, The Short List helped Connor prepare for a weekend visit to the school and encouraged him to reach out to the golf coach prior to arriving on campus. Connor knew of Emory’s competitive golf program and grew increasingly excited about the prospect of playing for the team. He reached out to the coach and was able to spend time with the coach and members of the team during his visit.

The Short List worked quickly to help Connor produce a quality application in order to meet the Early Decision deadline. Following what he called a very successful trip, Connor moved Emory to the top of his list. We helped Connor continue building a relationship with the coach, and it was through this communication that the Emory golf coach encouraged Connor to apply Early Decision. Connor realized Emory offered an opportunity for a great academic school, but also one where he could play golf, so he jumped at the opportunity.

The Short List worked quickly to help Connor produce a quality application in order to meet the Early Decision deadline.

During the weeks Connor waited to hear back from Emory, The Short List continued working with him on other applications, but it turned out he would not need them. Connor was accepted Early Decision to Emory University and will join the golf team next fall. The Short List is proud to have helped Connor realize his dream of attending a strong academic university as a scholar-athlete.

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Genesis

Genesis

New York

The Pianist

Bryn Mawr College

Genesis

Genesis attends a public high school in New York City made famous by the TV movie From Homeless to Harvard. Her school does not have a college counseling office, so The Short List has been providing pro-bono services to her school for all of our 15 years. Each year, we help students research schools; take them on college tours; and provide help with test prep, applications, and filing for financial aid. Most of the students are children of low-income, immigrant single parents and will be the first in their family to attend college. Their families never ask where their child will go to college, but rather how they will ever be able to afford college. Genesis’ situation was no exception. Genesis will graduate at the top of her class. She is one of the most determined students we have come across, a personality trait that apparently was born in her. Genesis grew up loving church music. She begged her mother to buy a piano but was always told there was no money in the family budget. Imagine Genesis’ surprise when she opened her Christmas gift one year and discovered a keyboard. She learned how to play by watching YouTube artists until she finally felt confident enough to approach her church’s music director, who saw her potential and invited her to practice with the church band. Genesis worked hard to learn the music by ear. The church wanted to support her efforts and one day showed up at her home with a piano. Genesis now plays twice a week for her 1,400-member congregation.

The Short List took Genesis to visit 10 suburban schools. Genesis also took a local college psychology course during her junior year of high school, and she began to understand how music could be used in therapy. She wanted to find a school that would give her the chance to continue studying psychology but also to learn how to read and study music. Ultimately, she wanted to find a way to combine the two interests. Having grown up in New York, Genesis also wanted to experience life outside the big city but stay close enough that she could easily travel home to visit family.

The Short List took Genesis to visit 10 suburban schools.

We saw her incredible potential and pushed her to reach for the stars. She had fallen in love with Bryn Mawr College, one of the sister schools to the Ivy League. She loved the empowering all-women environment, the emphasis on the social sciences and arts, and partnership with other nearby elite colleges. She gambled and applied Early Decision. Six weeks later, Genesis sent a simple text: “OMG, I got in!” Bryn Mawr too saw her great potential by offering her a scholarship. It is not difficult to understand the burden the scholarship lifted and the opportunity that Genesis now has in front of her.

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Alex

Alex

Florida

The Best Buddy

Duke

Client: Alex

When Alex first came to The Short List in his junior year, we knew that he was an exceptional student. He was second in his class, had already taken seven AP courses, and was a member of three honor societies. We were amazed to learn how many activities Alex was also involved with: varsity and club soccer, student government, community service, and a few clubs at school. It quickly became clear Alex’s challenge was going to be time management.

Additionally, we knew that Alex had ambition but had yet to discover his true passion. As we got to know Alex, we learned he had a growing enthusiasm for his work with the Best Buddies Club at his school. Alex had developed a close relationship with his “buddy.” As we worked with Alex, he began to recognize he had a strong passion for working with students with intellectual disabilities and was determined to help other students experience a friendship similar to the one he and his buddy shared. He became president of the club in his senior year and grew the membership from five students to 150 active members. Ultimately, Alex’s work with Best Buddies gave him a strong curiosity about brain development, and he became interested in pursuing neuroscience.

Alex decided to apply Early Decision to Duke University, and The Short List worked with him to prepare his application.

Attending a public school in the Tampa area, Alex did not have many opportunities to attend college information sessions and had not yet visited any campuses. The Short List helped Alex begin to develop a college list and identify college presentations in his area that he could attend. We also knew it was important for Alex to visit some college campuses. Given the demands of his schoolwork, many activities, and two summer jobs, this was not an easy task.

Alex visited several schools in North Carolina at the start of his senior year and immediately fell in love with Duke. When stepping on campus, he felt he had “found his people.” More than that, Alex was taken with the strong science offerings at Duke and the opportunities to do research. Alex decided to apply Early Decision to Duke University, and The Short List worked with him to prepare his application. We realized that while he had great breadth of experience, it was important that he demonstrate the depth of his commitment to his activities as well. We worked with him to develop strong essays that conveyed his passion and involvement, and we went through extensive interview preparation.

Alex was accepted Early Decision to Duke University and will be matriculating this fall.