Testimonials

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What Students and parents are saying:

I did not know much about the process in the US, the system is a bit different from other countries I lived, despite working in the academic field. Diane helped my son navigate the college admissions process since the beginning, starting early with the process and comprehension of the system. Working close with my son to answer our doubts and preparing for a good senior high year that could reflect on his college application. He became more confident of the career he chose and also more proactive, looking for jobs and internships in his interest field during senior year. All these opportunities reflected on his preparation for college. The help of an experienced professional together with the student's commitment make this stage a challenge without last minute unforeseen events. And it guarantees greater confidence in the application process, especially if it is your first experience in the US system. If do not feel confident or your child to run throughout this process by yourselves, specially if your child is still undecided about which carries to pursue look for a professional advice. Working together with a consultant will clarify the journey.

My child is looking at some really tough schools and while her grades are very good, we know that grades are not everything when it comes to college admissions. We needed someone to help her get noticed. I think the most daunting part is probably the multitude of essays that were needed for the schools my child was looking at and how the content should be formulated. Building a balanced college list was another issue we were having because our child was so focused on specific schools that it was hard to get her to look at other possibilities. Diane seemed to be familiar with the requirements of the schools that she picked to apply to and were able to help her do what was necessary to get her applications submitted. Diane probably spared us from numerous fights and meltdowns during this entire process. I feel like she listened to Diane and took her advice to heart. The essays she came up with were creative and well written. I was very impressed as I was reading them before her applications were submitted. I am very grateful that we stumbled across Diane's services while we searched for a consultant to help us with this process. We know our child enough that we probably would not have gotten this far in the process had we not hired Diane to help her. She is quite stubborn and would have had several meltdowns and not put in the full effort she needed into the essays. Diane kept her focused and on track.

Before working with Diane, I felt intimidated and overwhelmed. I didn't know where or how to start. So different from when I applied (many, many) years ago. First, Diane created a plan and organization. We didn't have to eat the elephant all at once so to speak. Made it plain and manageable. Also, gave my son an expert to help guide him. Not his Mom telling him one more thing to do. It gave the process the weight it deserved. He had appointments, meetings and tasks and deadlines. Not just a post it note or text from me to do something. It calmed my nerves which impacted how we communicated and made it a journey for both of us that is memorable and successful. If you are on the fence, it is definitely worth the money and peace of mind. Brings calm to a busy time in your family's life. We hire experts in so many other areas of our lives, this is just as important investment for your family.

We felt we had a good understanding of the college admission process but knew Diane would be able to direct and motivate our daughter in ways that we could not 🙂 Diane did a fabulous job of keeping her (and us) on track with deadlines which made the process more doable during a very busy summer and start of senior year. My takeaways from this experience are: Incredibly organized, tasks well described, deadline documented, easy to work with, pushed our daughter when needed. If you are on the fence about your child working with Diane, do it! The best decision for our family and daughter!

Before working with Diane I felt overwhelmed & confused. The most confusing part is I guess knowing when to apply, how to apply, whether to send test scores, how to choose which college my son would like best - basically ALL of it! Diane helped him so much! He had a concrete timeline with actual deadlines that helped him complete his work. He took several interest surveys that helped him figure out what colleges he was even interested in. Diane also made sure he followed through with the application and college selection process and made it so I didn’t have to “nag” him. It was awesome! My favorite part about him working with Diane, Wow! How can I pick just one? I think the confidence my son got from working with her was the best part! He learned about himself and learned to embrace his strengths and look at his weaknesses as things to improve on. I loved watching him grow and thrive during the college application process instead of be filled with anxiety! It’s better to hire someone to help your child that is a professional college counselor than it is to try to teach yourself as the parent how to be a college counselor in the 7 months you are going through the process! If you are on the fence I would tell them to do it 1000%. I would tell you that hiring someone to help your child choose and apply to college is the best idea because it allows you as a parent to keep being a supportive parent and allows Diane to be able to help them in her area of expertise - higher education! If you hire Diane she will help so much - organization, deadlines, ideas & schools to consider.

Before working with Diane I felt, apprehensive, especially about working with my son on his essays. The most daunting part was dealing with the Common App and the process of narrowing down choices. Diane essentially did everything in terms of organizing the work schedule, helping my son meet his deadlines, and coaching him in several key areas, including his essay writing. She is also extremely effective at ACT prep; his scores increased substantially after working with her. (FYI: He worked with a different ACT prep coach and did not do nearly as well on areas like math and science, which are otherwise his strong suits). All the tension and stress of preparing the applications was offloaded to someone else, who is a professional and gets paid for the work. Diane's personality was also a great fit for my son, who can be difficult with people sometimes. She seems to know how to handle him without any help from us, which is impressive! I would strongly recommend working with a college counselor, especially one who knows the specific admissions ecosystems your child is working within. Diane knows what she is doing, and she will take on all the stress for you. She's clear and realistic too about prospects. We were also extremely impressed by her research - not only did she identify a number of programs with our specific needs and interests, she also found a summer internship program for our son which was truly perfect for him. The internship was a great experience for our son and we owe it all to Diane for finding it for us!

Diane listened to what our son wanted in a school. She was an objective guide and soundboard for him. Most importantly, she provided a framework for him to reach his goals with firm deadlines assuring he would succeed. Taking us out of the role of taskmaster in this process has helped us enjoy this final stage of high school and be cheerleaders and supporters. Our relationship with our son is so much better. Diane was worth every penny. We could not be more thankful. If you are on the fence, just do it. Teens learn many ways but in this process and experienced third party is just invaluable.

Before we started on this journey I knew the process was very different than what I had experienced as a student. But I did not know the specific ways things had changed. It was all very murky and a little intimidating. The types of admission and numerous deadlines, the various required online platforms, test score options and requirements. Not to mention colleges seem to be much more competitive and selective than they used to be. Good students are not guaranteed to find a spot at every school. Diane's process was organized, timely, and detailed. She met with us when necessary but kept us informed via emails and spreadsheets in the interim. And she has always been available to answer our questions. Diane did the hard part of keeping my son on task and I was able to add emotional support and make suggestions without the battle. There is a school for everyone! And the process does not have to be super stressful if you don’t leave everything to the last minute. That the cost of Matrix College Consulting was well worth avoiding the relationship stress we and our son would have experienced if we were leading the process.

Before finding Diane, I was extremely overwhelmed and anxious. The most daunting prospect was completing the essay and/or supplemental essays. Also, keeping straight the requirements for all the high schools. I didn’t want my son to just apply haphazardly, but have the foresight to know which universities would be the best fit culturally, academically, geographically, and financially. I wasn’t confident he could do all that on his own and I didn’t have the time. I enjoyed the direct contact and communication with my son. Within two sessions, he came downstairs confident about his progress and his direction. “I just got so much done” he said as brushed off his shoulder. He seemed excited about the process, rather than anxious like he was weeks before. The clarity and knowledge he gained so quickly was key to driving his motivation. The best part was the instant relief I felt when I saw him happy and organized. There is no price to put on your child’s self-confidence and healthy mindset. My takeaways were to start earlier in the process to build the confidence early on and work towards goals gradually along the way. I believe knowing what’s ahead is key and getting organized is paramount. As a single parent with four kids, it came down to money. It was a lot of money for our family. However, I consider this an investment into my child. What better way to spend money than to have him motivated, happy, and mentally prepared for his next. It is clear Diane has the passion to invest in each student and Dominic always felt he was her only student. That’s more than I can say for his coaches in sports. And, he has a short attention span when it comes to me helping and telling him what to do.

Before we started working with Diane, I was overwhelmed, worried that we would miss a step or deadline. I was also concerned about the essay and making sure it was done on time and to the best quality that my child was capable of. Having weekly actions and step by step process was very helpful. Knowing that my student had someone knowledgeable in this area guiding him through the process. I am very happy that we had Diane guiding us through this process. Every student is different but know that she is able to tailor to students needs. Not every student will need support through each step, but Diane seems to be able to tailor the support to the needs which is very helpful. It was very beneficial to have someone else work with my son on the deliverables to keep him on track.

We initially contacted Diane because I felt overwhelmed with the college choices and wanted peace at home, not arguing over essays and deadlines. Diane helped us create “right fit” choices to apply to. Diane was calm, cool and collected while we feared the unknown. Diane was able to make this a great experience. We could not have done this without her!

I am so grateful for the timeline Diane set for my son that he was able to complete most of the major steps of finding schools he wanted to apply to, writing his essay and completing the common application prior to the school year getting underway. Working with Diane instilled an ownership in the college search and application process within my son which helped him mature and get invested in the experience. It took the pressure off of me and he really improved in his responsibility toward meeting deadlines, scheduling and keeping meetings with Diane independently which will help him as a college student. I love the expectations that she set for her students and both of my sons rose to the level of expectation and took ownership of their role in the college search and application process. It was an excellent experience. Diane's professionalism, organizational structure and time she took to get to know my son and help him understand what he wanted out of a college was so greatly appreciated. I would say the pressure that it takes off the parents is enormous and makes the college search process much more enjoyable and gives the ownership to the child with close guidance from Diane which helps the child prepare for college and be invested in the process which will help them not only find a good fit school but also prepare them for independence as they go off to college.

I absolutely loved working with Diane! She really helped me achieve my goals on the ACT, especially in math, my weakest section. My math score increased by five points after working with her! Diane's guidance and help throughout the entirety of the testing process allowed me to attain my highest potential. I truly could not have improved as much as I did without the personal academic training I received under her.

I felt uniformed about today's process and how to best prepare my sons. The most daunting was the college selection process to narrow down a university that would align with their interests. Additionally, the timelines and preparations ahead of the application submissions. The initial orientation discussion as well as appropriately timed communications on status and next steps allowed me to feel informed and aligned with the process between Diane and the boys. I enjoyed the opportunity for the boys to research and learn about different schools. This allowed them the freedom to seek out and select schools of interest. Additionally, it allowed a knowledgeable professional to both speak into the boys, keep them on schedule and ultimately have everything complete when it came time to submit applications. Engaging with a knowledgeable and experienced professional allowed for the boys to experience the selection process in an independent manner. They were responsible and accountable in a fun and active manner. Leveraging the skills and support of others and not the parents was a strong win. We viewed this as an early step toward an investment in the college experience. I would highly recommend the Matrix process. It was extremely beneficial for both the students and parents.

Diane helped us make a very balanced list of schools to apply to. It seemed high achieving kids that traditionally wouldn't have any issues getting into high academic schools were getting denials. Working with her took a lot of the worry away, we definitely felt more confident that it would work out. Working with Diane is worth it.

The class was an awesome opportunity to learn more about the college application process and it left me a lot more confident in how I’m going to move forward.

Diane's guidance regarding essays and checking applications was incredibly valuable. The essay/application feedback was critical and incredibly helpful. Our daughter appreciated having Diane as a sounding board and advocate. This was a challenging process and our daughter valued Diane's help and support.

I came into this workshop being barely prepared for college and came out so much more confident in how to apply and write my essay. Very productive in the time spent and I learned so much about what colleges want to see in my application. Would definitely recommend!

Diane with Matrix College Consulting is amazing! The program itself is fantastic as it can be tailored to your child’s needs. But, beyond that, Diane values your child and will help your child traverse the apprehension and anxiety associated with the college application and testing process. She makes topics relatable and instills confidence in your child. I can’t say enough about my daughter’s experience with Matrix College Consulting!

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