University of California – Santa Cruz

I recently graduated honors student from the University of California, Berkeley with a bachelor's in Ethnic Studies, Legal Studies, and Chicanx/Latinx Studies. During my time at Cal, I was an advisor for Matriculate on campus where I guided high-achieving high school students to entry at top universities and colleges through essay workshopping and applicant consulting. Before College Advisor, I worked with another grassroots mentoring program HYPHEE by the Raices center directed towards Latinx students seeking to develop writing and personal aspects of their applications such as personal statements, resumes, supplement essays, and college interviews. I also worked as a writing tutor for the Student Learning Center or SLC at Berkeley, I aided non-native English speakers in writing essays, developing a thesis, and correcting and teaching basic grammar rules, citations, and argument structure. This experience exposed me to varying learning and working styles to elevate the performance of bright students with great potential. I have worked with students who major in the Arts and Humanities, Communications and Media Studies, Biology, Pre-Law/Political Science, and Gender and Sexuality Studies. My mission while advising is to make the student feel confident and comfortable throughout the college application process. I truly aim to bring any student to life on paper, while making the experience as enjoyable as possible for the student, the family, and eventually the admission officer who eventually receives the final product. Applying to college can be overwhelming, but maintaining a healthy mindset and figuring out an approach that works for you can make the experience as exciting as approaching this new chapter in life should be. I am currently working as a Legal Assistant at an Employment Law company based in San Fransisco and aspire to attend law school in the future. My love for education started in my home in Modesto, CA, as I helped my busy parents with taking care of my siblings as I balanced my pursuit of higher education and my extracurriculars. Outside of academics and career interests, I enjoy being outside, being around animals, reading, spending time with friends having interesting conversations, and making fun memories in the city.

I have a Bachelor of Science from the University of California, Berkeley. More specifically, my degree is from the College of Natural Resources. I majored in Conservation and Resource Studies with a concentration in Climate Science under the Environmental Science, Policy, and Management department. As an undergraduate student I was a Program Facilitator at the Lawrence Hall of Science and I interned for the National Science Foundation, performing climate science research in conjunction with meteorology and ecological anthropology faculty at Penn State. In addition to this, I worked part-time for a bay area nonprofit focused on the conservation of California's old growth forests. After graduating in 2021, I decided to go in a different direction than my field of study. I accepted a role as a corporate recruiter for the top data science and analytics recruitment firm in San Francisco. I quickly promoted to Senior Consultant, but confirmed my suspicion that corporate life was not aligned with my interests. As a result, I left this position and became an independent contractor. I find working with students in an advising capacity fulfilling, because I know the impact high-level support can have on a student's journey through the application process. I vividly remember how important acceptance into a fitting program felt when I was in that stage of life, so I have a lot of empathy for students who are currently applying to universities. I understand the path is not always straight forward or easy. I pride myself in my attention to detail and my wide range of knowledge. Over the past eight years I've developed a significant level of expertise in regard to recruitment trends and process, and I've developed unique insights from both personal and professional experience.

I hold my B.A. from University of California, Berkeley where I majored in Social Welfare and Asian American/Asian Diaspora Studies. I recently graduated with an M.B.A. in Design Strategy at California College of the Arts. After completing a yearlong service with Americorps, I worked at a local scholarship organization for three years offering college admissions advising to high school seniors through our partnership with the school district. I piloted curriculum to guide students through the college application process, and specialized in financial literacy and scholarship/financial aid application support. I developed a merit and equity based system to review scholarship applicants, and have reviewed thousands of scholarship applications to identify and select awardees.

As an Academic College Counselor at a middle/high school, I worked with students of all ages, from seniors going through the college admissions process to 8th graders learning about higher education for the first time. I am well versed in doing transcript reviews and understand the curricular requirements students must meet to be both eligible and competitive for college. I have also supported student in researching and applying for summer opportunities, extra-curricular activities, and internships to strengthen their skills and experience.

I am committed to supporting all students on their journey to discover and articulate the skills and gifts that will help them lead a successful and happy life. As a first-generation college graduate, I had to utilize resources outside of my home to access and navigate higher education, and will use those skills to give my students insight in this process. I believe in joy and authenticity, and will find opportunities to celebrate our successes through the challenging and serious process of applying for college. Lastly, I strive to empower students to embrace the process with bravery and a willingness to grow and stretch. I hope for students to be drivers of their own educational journey, and I can't wait to work in partnership with students, parents, and the community that supports you.

As a first-generation college graduate, I know the importance of how crucial it is to obtain help, especially throughout the college admissions process. In 2017, I graduated cum laude from UC Irvine with a double major in Psychology and Social Behavior and Education Sciences. During my time at UC Irvine, I worked as a Student Coordinator for UCI's Early Academic Outreach Program where I helped prepare students in underserved communities for admission to the University of California. After graduating, I completed my Master's in Educational Counseling with a School and Family Based Counseling concentration in 2019. During my time as a graduate student, I was also an Educational Consultant for a private college counseling firm where I worked with students at all academic levels ranging from community colleges to the most competitive universities. Concurrently, I also worked as a Career Coach for Santiago Canyon College advising students on career paths and dual enrollment. Since 2019, I have worked at one of the top STEM charter schools in Los Angeles as a school counselor. My background consists of working with low-income, minority students, and students with disabilities in the Los Angeles and Orange County regions. For the past 2 years, I have also worked for UC San Diego as an external admissions reader where I gained further insight into the realm of college admissions.

The college admission process is hard and overwhelming. And this hasn’t changed from when I was a high school student applying to colleges 20 years ago to being a college counselor for over 15 years. The truth is that students and their families need as much support to successfully navigate through the system to make the process easier and less stressful. My experience in high school was what drew me into college advising. I graduated from UCLA with my B.A. in Psychology. As a new college graduate, I knew I wanted to help students transition to college more smoothly than I did after I graduated as salutatorian of my high school class. Although I had migrated to the U.S. in the 5th grade, I was clueless about the college admission process in high school. My parents as immigrants spoke highly of education being the pathway to freedom but were also unfamiliar with the college process in the U.S. It wasn’t until the 11th grade when I overheard my classmates talking about applying to their ideal colleges and taking the SAT and ACT exams that I found out that you had to apply to college before you could be accepted. This led to visiting my college counselor for the first time and spending sleepless nights studying for the SAT, writing personal statements and essays for scholarships like the Gates Millennium Scholarship. I ended up applying to UC Berkeley, UCLA, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, UC Santa Cruz, UC Irvine, Cal State Northridge, and Cal State Los Angeles and got accepted to all of them to my surprise. I also got the Gates Millennium Scholarship! I have worked with students who have received admissions to the UCs, USC, LMU, Boston University, Stanford, Chapman University, American University, Pomona College majoring in the Arts and Humanities, Business, Finance, Public Health, Biology, Chemistry, Pre-Med, Computer Science, and Engineering, to name a few. I am passionate about supporting students through the college admission process and helping them to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Besides having academic rigor, I love helping students identify their strengths and illuminate the uniqueness of who they are and their story.

I have more than 18 years of experience working in higher education, from scholarships administration, undergraduate teaching and advising, curriculum development, academic research, leadership development and training to program management. My work as an administrator, scholar, mentor, and teacher is grounded on my commitment to justice, diversity, and serving underrepresented communities in education. Currently, I oversee a student success programming at UC Berkeley supporting about 200 scholars each year. I focus on removing barriers in higher education to make education accessible and on creating programming that fosters our scholars' personal, academic, and professional growth. I hold an undergraduate degree from UC Berkeley in English and Political Science as well as a doctoral degree in Literature from UC Santa Cruz with an emphasis on Asian American Studies, Critical Theory, Postcolonial Studies, Critical Race and Ethnic Studies, and Cultural Studies. I mentor many students and have helped them get accepted to top colleges, both public and private universities such as Harvard, Cornell, Brown, UC Berkeley, Georgia Tech, University of Michigan Ann Arbor, UW, University of Virginia, University of Florida, Purdue, UCLA, UCSD, UCI, UC Davis, UCR, UC Santa Cruz, Rutgers, UIUC, Baylor, Spelman, and many more. I love working with students, especially in helping them realize their own potential and guiding them though their academic and personal growth. I cannot wait to meet with you and help you shine in your essays!

I have dedicated 15 years of providing outreach, opportunity, and access to students who find their why during the confusing college application process. I was once an unsure high school student, yet I knew that college was one of my many goals. I attended University of California, Davis, where I earned my Bachelor of Science in Community and Regional Development. During my time at UC Davis, I worked with high schools in Sacramento as a College Advisor for the University of California. Once I matriculated, I continued my work as a College Advisor. After 2 years in outreach, I moved to Miami and taught English for 2 years. I decided to return to my hometown of San Francisco and led a Junior Seminar class, while also serving as the school’s College Counselor. I left the classroom and took the opportunity to work with the University of California San Francisco’s Center for Science, Education & Outreach. I directed internships for high school students in the San Francisco Bay Area to conduct research under the faculty in the fields of Medicine, Physical Therapy, Nursing, and Dentistry. I had the dual role of working with high schools in the San Francisco Bay Area, as the Lead Outreach Coordinator and University of California representative. I earned my Masters of Arts in Organization and Leadership from the University of San Francisco and I am currently the founding Director of San Francisco State’s Latinx Student Center. My passion is to guide students as they find their voice, their why, and their confidence in this process. The students I have worked with have been awarded various scholarships, fellowships, and admissions to prestigious Universities. However, what makes me most proud is knowing that students remember that they have a guide through this process.

Hello! My name is Bailey (she/her) and I have over 7 years of experience in both undergraduate and graduate level admissions. I have worked in admissions offices at schools within Claremont Colleges, the University of Washington and the University of Southern California. I have served as an admissions interviewer and on the admissions committee for undergraduate, law and health professions programs. I received a BA in both Business and Visual and Media Studies at the University of Redlands. I have had the opportunity to work with numerous high school students in their college search and application process.