Lives Under Construction

Educational and College Counseling for the Intelligent, Curious and Adventurous

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Is Lives Under Construction right for me?

Comments from Parents

"I participated in the "Mentoring Your Teenager" seminar last summer. You are very knowledgeable and experienced. You know how to help parents to see what their kid's passion is. You also help parents like to me to see the big picture of my kids' next phase. This helped me to put all "the puzzles" together. I'm still benefiting from your seminar, thank you!" -- Jennifer Fan

"I can't thank you enough for the guidance you are giving me as my kids make their way through high school towards the next phase of their lives. I am amazed at how you make the seemingly complex decisions leading up to what happens after high school almost simple and even fun. Before, I often found myself dreading the task of helping my kids find their way to college and beyond. Your advice, optimism, and planning have helped me develop a list of schools to meet my children's academic and athletic goals. I also find it easier to talk with them about how the decisions they make now can affect the college admissions process. I now find myself enjoying helping my kids get on the path to life after high school. Thank you for sharing your insights and wisdom over the past two years. Keep it coming!!" -- Donna Rye

"Thank you again for all of your help in supporting and guiding Nate on his journey to UVA. Having your guidance in navigating the college application process and even knowing what schools Nate should apply to, really took a load off of our shoulders. Your straightforward advice in picking the schools that would be a good fit for Nate, advising us on what they (the colleges) looked for in prospective students, and showing us how to help motivate and advise Nate, helped clear up what appeared to be a complete muddle to us in the beginning. Nate is extremely happy at UVA, and UVA seems to be the perfect fit for him, which of course delights him as well as his parents!" -- Dave and Terre Simpson, Clifton, VA

You help people make the most of what they have inside of themselves, and for that I'll be forever grateful.

- AJ Swoboda

Comments from Students

"Nancy made a huge difference in my application to MIT. She asked me a lot of questions and helped guide me so that the application really reflected my experience and my aspirations. She has a way of figuring out what is unique about you and making sure you are communicating that. I also learned a lot from her about what to expect at MIT and she was right about all of it. It is an amazing place and she really helped me get here." -- Alex Blickenstaff

"You helped me an incredible amount with college essay construction -- developing ideas for all of my responses, editing large essays, trimming down small personal statements. Your willingness to help made me feel comfortable to come back to you again and again with questions. And the way you asked questions about my own essays stretched my mind in ways that positively impacted what I writing. I distinctly remember sitting down together at a Starbucks in Oakton -- must of been the fourth time in a span of about a month that I had met with you -- while you kept asking me deep questions about a prompt for a Princeton essay. After roughly 5 minutes of brainstorming, I produced a dynamite idea for one of the essays. Still to this day, I am certain that essay greatly influenced Princeton's decision to accept me. You help people make the most of what they have inside of themselves, and for that I'll be forever grateful." -- AJ Swoboda

"You were an invaluable resource when applying to PhD programs. You were able to leverage your expertise in the graduate admissions process as well as your experiences as a scientist to help shape my essay and refine my C.V. Additionally (and most importantly), your positive attitude helped build my confidence and pushed me to apply. I could not give a higher recommendation." -- Nate Paczan

"I just wanted to give you an update on my plans for next year and to thank you again for all your wonderful help and advice. I ended up getting accepted straight out to University of Washington and getting interviews at Caltech and UCSF. Fortunately it looks like UCSF is the best fit for me (great synthetic biology research, close ties to emerging biotech industry and a vibe that I really liked). Thanks again for your help! Your input was invaluable in helping me get into a great program that I really like." -- Jonathan Glidden

"You helped me so much with my college application struggles, especially the essays, and gave me the confidence to go for Claremont McKenna College when I didn't think I'd ever get in. Without your advice and encouragement I doubt that I would have applied to CMC, let alone get accepted. I may have had a rough start in college but now it couldn't be better. I have opportunities and newfound strengths that I may not have had if not for CMC, such as spending the next year in Japan! Anyway, I am where I am because of you, so thanks again for your help." -- Megan Levonian

"Applying to a PhD program is a daunting task, especially since so little information on acceptance criteria is provided to the applicants. You have such a great knowledge of what universities are looking for, how to present yourself, and how to convince the top schools that you're the best candidate. I wrote a few drafts of a personal statement before you started helping me and when I compared them to the final copy the difference was obvious. Not only did you help me with my writing style, but you knew how to maximize all of my strengths and how to present my weaknesses in a positive way. I had so many questions for you not only about my personal statement, but about grad school in general and you were always very receptive and insightful, thank you!" -- Greg Maier