Why Use A Consultant

Educational Avenues

We believe that education is the cornerstone for building a successful life and future career. In today's world we are finding that it is becoming increasingly difficult to achieve one's life goals without the proper training and schooling to support one's chosen livelihood in a continuously competitive environment. Acceptance to and subsequent success at a college or university that meets a student’s needs have become the entry level requirements for many of the career positions that newly graduating college seniors will be seeking. We at Educational Avenues fully understand these needs and we provide families and students with customized services that help them to navigate the complex labyrinth leading to the selection of the right college or university. Let's look at some of these complexities:

· There are over 3500 college or universities from which to choose. We help families narrow the choice down to the six to eight schools that best fit the student while embracing the parents’ expectations.

· Next to the home mortgage, the funding of a child's college education may be the single biggest financial obligation the family may encounter. We help families understand ways to find a great college that fits the student's needs but is still affordable. We help families understand where they fit into the need-analysis formulas and where their children fit into the merit/preferential parameters of the colleges in which they are interested. Unbeknownst to parents, colleges are defining need as any amount of incentive to have students enroll. Therefore, families must know their budget and their own realistic definition of need in order to better plan for payment of four years of college. This information helps families better understand and compare the financial aid awards that various colleges will offer the student upon acceptance. Educational Avenues will help with evaluating the price and value of the education for the student.

· The ability to be accepted at one's school of choice is becoming more and more difficult as colleges are raising the admission bar. The student can have excellent grades, have many significant outside interests as well as meaningfully contribute to the community and still not find acceptance at their first choice school! We have an in-depth understanding of what the selective and other less selective schools are looking for, and help students identify their gifts and present themselves in an honest yet unique way. We assist students gain introspection into their personality strengths. We assist students in understanding what type of school preparation they have received, what subjects they really enjoy and how well they have done; we help them understand where they fit in academically vis-à-vis specific colleges they may be interested in, and we motivate them to make the most out of available opportunities in high school and college. Through the Educational Avenues Process™ they become more focused and experience personal and emotional growth. We help students select their colleges based on well-thought out variables that are important to them.

· Statistically, over 30% of first year students do not make it to the next year. One of the major reasons for this situation is that the original school was not the best choice for the student and the student was not able to find ways of connecting with the school. At Educational Avenues we help minimize this risk through the use of extensive personality and career preference testing and assessment. We carefully steer our students to choices that honor their preferences which we see as strengths.

· Students with learning disabilities often need accommodation in order to successfully handle the rigors of college level academics. We have significant first hand experience working with students with learning differences including dyslexia, ADD and ADHD. We help the student understand their cognitive functioning and we help families to become aware of the choices and opportunities by presenting and recommending schools and college lists with compatible and supportive learning environments.

· Standardized testing and in particular writing scores are becoming key factors that determine college acceptance. The college application itself becomes a chart full of data. The only place where the student can advocate for him/herself is the college essay. We believe that every student has one or several good stories from their own experience to tell. At Educational Avenues , students come up with their own ideas, stories, insights and write until they have expressed their thoughts to the best of their ability. It may be the first time that a teenager looks at him/herself realistically and describes who he/she is.

Our experience with hundreds of students makes us confident that the Educational Avenues program works and works well. Our knowledge of schools and colleges is always fresh as we spend 25% of our time visiting them. We have visited over 400 colleges and universities and met with deans of admissions and faculty members, in order to understand the mission, the level of academic rigor and social culture of each college, all in order to understand what type of student will fit in well on a certain campus. We do this to ensure that our families are receiving the best professional advice. Our school and college lists are customized for their own unique situation. Educational Avenues is included in the membership of the IECA (Independent Educational Consultants Association) which is a blue-ribbon seal of approval awarded to experienced educational consultants. We abide by a strict code of ethics. We attend workshops and courses taught by authorities in various fields of education, in order to continue to be at the leading edge of educational practices. We do this in order to meet unique family needs.

We work with families in person or by telephone and email throughout the US.
Contact us at your earliest to schedule a phone or in-person appointment.

Why You Should Consider Us