Good Advice Requires a Clear Perspective

our approach

Good advice requires a clear perspective

Imagine you’re a college admissions officer, leafing through literally thousands of applications, each with its own combination of GPAs, SATs, extracurriculars, personal essays. It’s numbing.

But imagine one student tells you a story. There are many components to the story - some are accomplishments, some show personality, some are reflected in other trusted voices - but what emerges is a picture of a person, a young life full of successes and hopes for more. Those are the applications that stand out.

Admissions directors at highly selective schools see so many candidates every year that it’s hard for them not to get fatigued. Yet, every time they open a new application, they’re looking for a reason to say “Yes!” They’re hoping they see someone they like, someone who will add to the richness of experiences on their campus.

They're looking for a match.

What we do is help students become that match by exploiting the structure and confines of the college application in ways other students don’t. We are experts in using the tools the application process provides to build a compelling narrative that brings personality and character to the surface of each submission.

It sounds like art, but there’s a science, too, in the flawless execution of an aspirational narrative.

the art

A focus on the overall

The single overarching service we provide for college applicants is the creation of an authentic narrative. We gather the elements of your academic story and arrange them in a way that’s focused and revealing. We help admissions officers recognize why their college is the best fit for the applicant’s dreams and needs. We use extracurriculars to highlight what a student will contribute to campus life.

We use every tool at our disposal to make sure your positive personal characteristics come through loud and clear - and that those characteristics explain why admissions officers should want you on their campus.

the science

personal strategies

Successful college admissions is not a cookie cutter process, so we don’t offer cookie cutter services. The first thing we’re going to do is listen to what success means to you. Are you seeking the most prestigious school possible? The most free money for college? A particular course of study that relatively few schools provide?

Once we understand your goals, we build an action plan, crafting a college list that can yield the best outcome and building a narrative that speaks to those specific schools. We’re not making magic. We’re using our knowledge, proprietary data and proven methodologies to target schools you want—and that want you.

the execution

Managing the process

An aspirational approach to narrative building sets students apart, but executing that presentation takes guidance and vision. The college admissions process is full of requirements and deadlines and detailed sets of instructions - hurdles that compound an already stressful time.

One of our roles is to clarify the process for you. We’ll act as project managers, making sure everything is on track at all times. We do this by keeping structured meeting times with each student, combining regular check-ins with milestone-based meetings to ensure students are completely engaged. We also use a central online portal for all communications, deadline management, essay revisions and important documents.

We’ve done this thousands of times - enough to know that attention to detail is what makes great narratives shine when it’s their time in the spotlight.

the parents

Supporting roles

We know you’ve dedicated countless hours of time and effort to getting your student to the end of their high school career. That’s why we welcome parents’ involvement in the process as much or as little as they’d like.

We think of ourselves as your partner - a trusted third party that can provide guidance in a way that children don’t always respond to from parents. We’ll be clear about ways we think parents can help their student - allowing them to step into the role of cheerleader and coach rather than disciplinarian. This is one of the last major projects you and your student will tackle together. It should be an enjoyable experience. Let us help make it one.

the big idea

See the forest

So many students approach college admissions seeing the trees but not the forest. Cappex Admissions Advising brings a perspective to the process. We bring strategies developed by data and insights earned through experience.

What we do, at the core of our service, is bring shape to your college application. We inform it with an idea. We enliven it with your student’s personality. We bring it to life in the minds of the admissions officers reading all those applications. We give them clear reasons to say, “Yes!”

If you’d like to find out what it’s like to work with us, schedule a consult and we’ll get started on your student’s narrative.

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