Below are some of our most common questions. If we don’t answer your question below, feel free to reach out.

Why should I hire ThriveAdmission?

  • Personalized & constant guidance
  • A unique ability to get to the essence of students & then maximize their potential
  • Stress relief
  • Family harmony
  • Peace of mind
  • Help differentiating college myth from reality
  • An infusion of fun into an otherwise daunting process
  • Getting into college is wildly different than it was 25 years ago

How is ThriveAdmission different from other independent educational consultancies?

You will work directly with our Founder, Katie Thatcher. She’s an expert in helping students meet their school admission goals. Katie also has the benefit of hiring post-college graduates for 15 years so she knows the value of a specific college education and how it will serve a student. She will always respond to you promptly with consistent and personalized service. Families can engage us at any point during a student’s high school career. Our consulting services extend to both students and their parents. Rather than use a separate expert for essay writing, college choice advising, and application tracking, ThriveAdmission can be your college concierge for all of these services to streamline a time-consuming and complicated process. We take a holistic approach to college and graduate school admissions and work to ensure our students are able to flourish in school.

Why can’t parents do this themselves?

Many parents try to go it alone, but what inevitably happens is that it’s tough to balance college admissions with work, social engagements, fitness, and keeping your family fed & clothed. It’s a daunting task to take on learning the fine points of college admissions while nagging your child so they don’t miss application deadlines. By having ThriveAdmission at your side, you’re able to rely on our expertise and also make the process fun. Students often feels more motivated with an outside party and are less stressed. We like to drive results that parents didn’t think were possible.

Why is getting into college so much harder than 25 years ago?

  • The introduction of the Common Application, Coalition Application, and Universal College Application made it easy for students to apply to double or triple the number of schools than before electronic applications.
  • Colleges actively and indiscriminately market to students, which increases their applicant pool and drives down their selectivity percentage (making them more selective).
  • Many colleges are admitting more international students who can pay full price, leaving fewer spots for U.S. applicants.
  • There are just more students out there. In 2013, there were 2.5 million high school graduates. In 2017, according to the federal Department of Education, there were 3.6 million graduates.
  • More students are applying to college. 30 years ago, only half of high school graduates were applying to college. Today, almost two-thirds of all high school graduates are applying to college.

When should a student start working with ThriveAdmission?

8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, or 12th grade. During the earlier years, we would only meet quarterly. Junior and senior years the meetings ramp up to daily or weekly during high season. We believe it’s important to start early in the process. We help guide students to a position of self discovery and distinguished excellence by the time applications are submitted.

How often will I meet with ThriveAdmission?

We will work with you to create a unique plan that fits your college admission experience and schedule. We will be texting, calling, emailing, using Zoom, and employing our college-planning platform to make connecting easy.

Do you only work with top students?

No, we work with all types of students. Regardless of your grades and ambitions, we help you create an application that makes you stand out.

What extra-curricular activities do you recommend?

Not surprisingly, every student is unique. Activities are something we cover during individual meetings. We help students find the right activities that bring out their passions, while discouraging students from overloading on meaningless activities merely for the sake of a college application.

Do you offer test prep or academic tutoring?

No, but we can offer strategic guidance on these topics.

How do you build a student’s college list?

We don’t use an algorithm, but rather pull from conversations with a student and two decades of knowledge of colleges to determine best-fit schools. We also utilize an assessment that pulls from a student’s interests and aptitudes to suggest potential careers and majors.

How long will you work with us?

If you purchase our Comprehensive College Planning Package, we will be with you for years. We will work with you to submit your applications, make your ultimate decision on which school to attend, and are then available for career counseling and coaching at any point in the future (your package includes career advice with no expiration date).

How many students do you work with at one time?

ThriveAdmission takes on a limited number of students each year to ensure the best possible service. We are confident you will get timely, thoughtful, and personalized service.

Where do meetings take place?

All meetings occur via Zoom.

Do you offer refunds?

Yes. We want you to be completely satisfied with our services. We have a 30-day full refund period for all of our programs. If you decide to go another route after you’ve used over half of your package, refunds would be pro rata based upon an hourly rate of $180 per hour.

What’s the next step?

We provide a free 30-minute consultation to answer any questions you might have. Click here to set up an appointment.