FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Where is Select College Admissions located?  We are located in West Vancouver, B.C., Canada.  We offer all services related to the university application process for undergraduate admission. We like to meet our students face-to-face at least once if possible, but if distance is an issue, we are able to work with you remotely via online tools and other collaborative networks such as live video-conferencing (Zoom), phone or email, depending on your preference and the task at hand.

Do I have to apply in order to work with Select College Admissions?  We welcome the opportunity to work with students and families from varying academic, extracurricular, and cultural backgrounds. Due to the nature of our personalized service, we are able to take on a limited number of students.  We choose on a first-come, first-served basis.  We also take ‘fit’ into consideration.  It is, therefore, important to not delay your first consultation.

When is the optimal time for our first appointment?  Starting the U.S. university preparation process by grade 9 allows us to deeply understand and tailor our guidance to each student’s unique passions and aspirations, leading to a more compelling and well-rounded application. Early engagement enables students to explore and refine their interests through suggested activities, courses, and summer engagements, making strategic choices that align with their long-term goals. This not only enhances their college applications but also ensures they make the most of their high school experience, avoiding regrets over missed opportunities. Early preparation is key to fostering a strong, productive relationship that significantly improves a student’s admission prospects.

What is your fee structure like?  Many educational consultants offer either hourly payment options or packages that only buy you a certain number of hours with your coach. The package may sound like enough time, until you find yourself needing a little more help with that one dreaded essay or want some feedback on your résumé, at which point you’re forced to buy more hours or skimp on quality. At Select College Admissions, we want all your focus on your work, not on the clock or your wallet. There is a flat fee for the first session where we assess a student’s candidacy for university admission, see if we are a good fit to work together, and discuss options. Beyond that, we offer each family a customized package that suits their specific needs. You pay a single fee upfront, and we work with you as long as it takes to get your essays and applications right.

Is Select College Admissions an SAT or ACT prep organization? To meet the needs of our university-bound students, we cover all aspects of the admissions process.  We collaborate with a local test prep academy and with online providers in the U.S. to offer private lessons, classes and workshops for the SAT and ACT.  However, our true focus is to help students navigate through the entire university admissions process.  This includes helping students decide which standardized tests to take, what activities to explore, recommendations on summer program options, course selection assistance, identifying target universities, outlining strategies for success in application preparation, essay-writing tutorials and editing, consultation re teacher recommendations, and interview skills training. Our focus is on finding colleges and universities that will be a good fit for each student’s individual needs and goals.

To what extent do parents remain involved in the process? At Select College Admissions, the initial meeting always includes one or both parents. With younger students, some parents like to remain involved and we encourage that.  Older students tend to come in for more frequent meetings on their own.  However, parents are copied on every email to the student.  With the understanding that no one knows a student better than their parents, parental input is often encouraged and even solicited, especially when brainstorming for essay topics. In other words, you are welcome to be involved as much or as little as suits your family.

Do you work with my child’s school guidance counselors? Some school guidance counselors are more open to collaboration with independent consultants than others. We view the school as our partner and are always happy to collaborate with school guidance counselors, school staff, and teachers as much as necessary to meet our students’ needs.  Ideally, we do want to work together as a team towards the goal of success for each and every student.

What is the length of our first meeting with your staff and what shall we bring along?  Initial meetings are approximately ninety minutes in length but this can vary with the purpose of your visit.  To ensure a productive consultation, we ask that you bring along your students’ school marks, activities and awards list for grades 9 to the present, any test scores they might already have (PSAT, SAT, ACT), as well as any questionnaires we might have sent you.

How often do you need to meet with my child?  The number of meetings will depend on your child’s age, their needs, their goals, and the number of universities they apply to.  U.K. and Canadian university applications can be completed in relatively fewer sessions, while the U.S. application process is more time-consuming.  Students applying to U.S., Canadian, and U.K. universities at the same time, will inevitably require more appointments than those applying to one country only.  Whether it is the CommonApp, CommonApp Supplements, the University of California application, UCAS, or your Canadian applications, we are here to help you.

Do you provide help with the application itself? Students vary in how much help they need.  Some complete the application and bring it to us for review while others require step by step guidance.  We are here to provide comprehensive and quality direction and support with every aspect of the application process, especially with the process of brainstorming for and editing of essays.  The end result is often a successful application that highlights the students’ strengths and provides insight into his or her interests and future aspirations.

Do you work with international students? Select College Admissions’ international students have come from the US, the Virgin Islands, China, Hong Kong, Columbia, Brazil, Switzerland, Bulgaria, India, Iran, the UK and elsewhere – including a number of United World Colleges across the world.  We connect via live online tools and collaborative networks. Our overseas students particularly enjoy the one-on-one customized support we offer. They have been admitted to some top US and Canadian universities.

What is the Select Custom College Planning Portal? Our portal is an easy and user-friendly tool for students to manage the university application process, to interact with their consultant, to keep track of their university ‘to do’ list, to schedule appointments with their consultant, to access links for researching targeted universities, and to receive reminders about standardized tests, appointments, assignments and all other upcoming deadlines.

How does one navigate the path to university? What is the best match for my student? The questions don’t end here, and the answers can be overwhelming.  Select College Admissions is here to help! Going off to university is one of the most memorable and exciting events of one’s lifetime, and the journey should be exciting as well.  We, therefore, offer specialized, comprehensive, and very personal services by partnering with our students one-on-one to determine their unique talents, academic interests and life goals in order to help them connect the dots while presenting a genuine and reflective application to universities, optimizing their success.

What high schools do your students attend? We work with students at many different schools across the lower mainland as well as internationally.

Our 2024, 2025 and 2026 graduating classes hail from the following schools:

  • American School Foundation, Mexico
  • Blessed Trinity Catholic Secondary School, Ontario
  • Collingwood School
  • Crofton House School
  • Dollar Academy, Scotland
  • Eton College, UK
  • Gulliver Prep, FL, USA
  • The Episcopal School of Dallas, TX
  • Lexington High School, MA, USA
  • Lord Byng Secondary School
  • Mulgrave School
  • Northfield Mount Hermon School, MA, USA
  • Parish Episcopal School, TX
  • Prince of Wales Secondary School
  • R.E. Mountain Secondary School
  • Rockridge Secondary School
  • Sentinel Secondary School
  • St. George’s School
  • St. John’s School
  • Shanghai American School, China
  • Sir Winston Churchill Secondary School
  • Southpointe Academy
  • West Point Grey Academy
  • York House School

Our 2023 graduating class hailed from the following schools:

  • Brentwood College School
  • Collingwood School
  • Crofton House School
  • Dollar Academy, Scotland
  • Handsworth Secondary School
  • Heritage Woods Secondary School
  • Mulgrave School
  • Sentinel Secondary School
  • St. George’s School
  • West Vancouver Secondary School
  • West Point Grey Academy
  • York House School

Our 2022 graduating class hailed from the following schools:

  • Burnaby Mountain Secondary School
  • Burnaby North Secondary School
  • Collingwood School
  • Community School of Naples, Florida
  • Crofton House School
  • Dollar Academy, Scotland
  • Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary School
  • Linfield Christian School, CA, USA
  • Mulgrave School
  • Phillips Academy Andover, USA
  • Sentinel Secondary School
  • St. John’s School
  • St. George’s School
  • Steveston-London Secondary School
  • University Hill Secondary School
  • United World College in New Mexico, USA
  • Vancouver College
  • West Point Grey Academy
  • W.J. Mouat Secondary School

Our 2021 graduating class hailed from the following schools:

  • Collingwood School
  • Crofton House School
  • McMath Secondary School
  • Mulgrave School
  • Shawnigan Lake School
  • St. George’s School
  • Vancouver College
  • West Vancouver Secondary School
  • York House School
  • Albuquerque Academy, New Mexico, USA
  • United World College in Costa Rica

For the 2020 graduating class, our students attended:

  • Collingwood School
  • Crofton House School
  • Burnaby North Secondary School
  • Meadowridge School
  • Mulgrave School
  • Port Moody Secondary School
  • Semiahmoo Secondary School
  • Shawnigan Lake School
  • St. George’s School
  • St. John’s School
  • Sentinel Secondary School
  • Sir Winston Churchill Secondary School
  • West Vancouver Secondary School
  • Yale Secondary School
  • York House School
  • Saratoga High School, CA, USA
  • The British School in the United Arab Emirates

For the 2019 graduating class, our students attended:

  • Alpha Secondary School, Burnaby
  • Bodwell High School
  • Collingwood School
  • Crofton House School
  • Burnaby Mountain Secondary School
  • Handsworth Secondary School
  • Mulgrave School
  • Richmond Secondary School
  • St. Michaels University School
  • St. George’s School
  • Sentinel Secondary School
  • University Hill Secondary School
  • Vancouver Christian School
  • West Point Grey Academy
  • West Vancouver Secondary School
  • York House School
  • The American School in London, England
  • Hopkins School, New Haven, CT, USA
  • Webber Academy, Calgary, AB, Canada