Great Expectations is a tremendous asset in preparing for all the different standardized tests and also helping with the application process. The time spent with our tutor not only resulted in scores higher than we’d ever hoped for, but it was also an enjoyable experience. She knew how to manage a very stressful time and keep the pressure to a minimum. We highly recommend Great Expectations to any family.

– Donna B. (parent), Santa Monica

Our tutor really understood how to help my daughter prepare for the SAT. He was able to identify early on the specific areas where she needed to improve, and most importantly, what type of preparation she needed to do in order to make those gains. Thanks to a 510-point improvement, my daughter will be attending Stanford University in the fall. Thank you!

– Susan H. (parent), Santa Monica

I wasn’t treated just like any high school student; I was able to focus on my weaknesses and enhance my skills. My tutor was very knowledgeable about the intricacies of both the ACT and the SAT. Because of this, I was able to study more efficiently for each of them. With the help of my GE tutor, I scored a 34 on my ACT and was admitted to Amherst College (my top choice) Early Decision.

– Jenn K. (student), Pacific Palisades

My daughter was fairly independent in the college application process. That being said, we (and especially me, lol) needed somebody to bounce things off of. Jen Kaifesh came highly recommended to us, and she lived up to her excellent reputation. She has her finger on the pulse of the college application madness--and I found her to be resourceful as well as realistic. My daughter is an excellent student but really had no "hooks". She was admitted to several elite colleges and will be attending an Ivy League University this fall. I 100% recommend Jen and her amazing expertise!

– M.D. (parent), Pacific Palisades

It was truly amazing that my daughter got through all the applications, wrote all the essays, ended up feeling confident about the testing process, and even enjoyed the time spent with her counselor...and more or less stress free. GE College Prep, YOU ROCK!! You are a parents fantasy come true. I really can't thank you enough!

– Rae V. (parent), Los Angeles

I was a little hesitant at first to use a college prep company for my daughter. I had a bad (and expensive) experience with Revolution Prep earlier, and I was not a believer after that. When I realized that we needed a little help, I asked a few parents from her high school if they could recommend someone that would be able to give us more personal "one on one" time. Wow, I'm so thankful that Jennifer at GE College Prep was able to fill those shoes. I never thought that my mind could be changed. It turned out to be such a positive experience, and the best of all...(besides the fact that she got into every college she applied to except for 1 waitlisted status), my daughter got to be around someone so full of knowledge and positive energy.

– Rae V. (parent), Los Angeles

The value add for the money spent is far beyond expectations. I’m sure you have clients that spend a lot more money than we did, so we are so grateful for your valuable time and attention. You can count on me to be an enthusiastic advocate for Great Expectations to everyone I know getting ready for the college preparation process. Great Expectations’ guidance equipped Tim with the tools to highlight the best he had to offer in a genuine way. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

– Claudia L. (parent), Torrance

There are no words to say how much I appreciate your counseling with Tim during his college application process. Tim has been accepted to EVERY school to which he applied; including his top choice! Tim is a proud member of the Class of 2023 Wolverines! Your approach with Tim was tailor made. Lessons were structured and incredibly efficient. I’m amazed at how much you accomplished in a limited amount of time.

– Claudia L. (parent), Torrance

There are so many bizarre ins and outs of applying to college that stump, and subsequently freak out, 98 percent of high school seniors, but my counselor knew how to deal with them: whether it was a Common App glitch, questions that don’t make any sense, or scheduling (and preparing for) interviews, I was well-prepared. I received an acceptance from Stanford University, my top choice, and I am 100 percent positive that without GE, I would not have submitted a strong enough application to get in. Working with GE definitely puts any student in the best possible position when the time rolls around to start thinking about college.

– Benny D. (student), Pacific Palisades

I was referred to Great Expectations College Prep from a friend who initially said, ‘This company will preserve your relationship with your teen during a very stressful time and will make sure every "i" is dotted and every "t" is crossed when it comes to college applications.’ Her referral went beyond my highest expectations!

– Gina K. (parent), Pacific Palisades

Using Jen Kaifesh, the founder of Great Expectations, was the best decision ever! Jen helped my daughter through her college planning process--from deciding where to apply, to the application process, to making her final decision. Jen is the perfect mix of a writing coach/organizer/motivator/enforcer; she truly helped us stay focused during this extremely stressful time. Thanks to Jen, my daughter was admitted to 85% of the universities she applied to, including Princeton, Penn, Northwestern, Notre Dame and UCLA. Jen's guidance was truly priceless!

– Nancy B. (parent), Valencia

Wow! What an amazing company. My college application process could not have been more efficiently organized, thanks to the help from Great Expectations College Prep. I began in the beginning of summer and my applications were ready to submit way before they were due. I believe the fine tuning of my essays helped me get into my top schools, USC and Berkeley.

– Hannah W. (student), Santa Barbara

I can honestly say that my experiences with each of my tutors was nothing short of spectacular. They are not only wonderful tutors, they are all committed, understanding, friendly people. During my last-minute, panicked cram sessions that would occasionally run as late as 1:00am, my tutors did whatever it took to keep my attention and keep my work rate up (sometimes that meant feeding me chocolate periodically). I would recommend Great Expectations to absolutely anyone because I am confident that their tutors are capable of helping any student through whatever academic challenges may arise.

– Justine L. (student), Los Angeles

Through hard work and the inspiration from my tireless tutors, my test scores rose tremendously and my essays became clear, cogent, and representative of me as an individual. Without GE College Prep, I truly believe I wouldn't have been able to get into my dream school, the University of Michigan! I highly recommend looking into GE College Prep because of their amazing team of professionals and years of experience.

– Katharine C. (student), Beverly Hills

We are extremely satisfied and grateful Great Expectations customers. We have used its services for several years, including to advise and assist our son with applications to high school and college. Great Expectations provided invaluable assistance with test preparation, essays, the common application, UC applications and other application hurdles. Throughout the otherwise daunting process, founder Jen Kaifesh and other tutors at Great Expectations have been consistently well-informed, thoughtful, patient and tactful. They helped keep our son organized and energized, and let us maintain family harmony by allowing his parents to step out of the college application process, knowing it was being well-handled. Thanks to Great Expectations our son ultimately had his choice of several excellent colleges!

– Gerry G. (parent), Malibu

We used multiple people from this company for SAT prep, college planning and essay writing. Each person was so professional, knowledgeable, punctual, friendly, etc... My son related to every person and best of all, they got results -- his SAT score went up 250 points and he got into a dream college. It is so nice to be able to have someone that you and your child both trust help you navigate through the very stressful college application process.

– Jenifer B. (parent), Santa Monica

We are very pleased with my daughter's results. Whitney helped my daughter with her USC application and she had great tips on how to improve it. Chelese was my daughter's main counselor and she was a tremendous help to my daughter during the college application process. Among other things she helped her choose which schools to apply to. Chelese was always available to my daughter and we can't thank her enough. As it came down to the wire, she was even reachable while she was out of town. Her dedication, patience, and availability shows that she truly cares for each of her students. Great Expectations is a great company and well worth it! Among many others, my daughter was accepted to Cornell, USC, and Carnegie Mellon!

– Karla P. (parent), Chino Hills

I can't imagine going through the college application process without Great Expectations! The first session my tutor and I sat down and created a spreadsheet that detailed every test score, essay topic, deadline, and other requirements for each school. That spreadsheet was my lifeline for the next few months, and needless to say, I never missed a single deadline. My high school college counselors encouraged me to only keep my sights on "target schools," namely schools where I was well within the range of test scores and grades. Great Expectations, on the other hand, encouraged me to reach past those target schools, and as a result, I was accepted to almost every school I applied to -- even if I wasn't quite in their "range."

– Nadine C. (student), Los Angeles

I'm so thankful I had Jen Kaifesh and Great Expectations to depend on to provide my two sons with good subject test, ACT and SAT tutors and college application essay writing counselors over the past three years. It was very convenient to only have to call one place for all our college prep assistance. When I had a specific question about something in the application process, Jen always offered me quick and useful advice. And, when I had a concern with a tutor one time, Jen jumped right in and immediately addressed the problem herself. Jen and her crew kept our family sane during this stressful process AND both my boys got into great universities. So, in sum, Great Expectations is the perfect size- small enough to offer personal service but big enough to offer a wide array of qualified tutors/counselors. Thank you so much Jen and Great Expectations.

– Cameron B. (parent), Sherman Oaks

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Congratulations to our graduates!

We are so proud and excited to share the schools to which our students have been recently accepted:

American International College
American Musical & Dramatic Academy
American University
Amherst College
Arizona State University
Arts University Bournemouth
Babson College
Bard College
Barnard College
Bates College
Bath Spa University
Belmont University
Bennington College
Bentley University
Binghamton University
Boise State University
Boston College
Boston University
Bowdoin College
Bradley University
Brandeis University
Brown University
Bryn Mawr College
Bucknell University
California Institute of the Arts
California Lutheran University
Cal Poly University-Pomona
Cal Poly University-San Luis Obispo (SLO)
Cal State University-Channel Islands
Cal State University-Chico
Cal State University-East Bay
Cal State University-Fullerton
Cal State University-Long Beach
Cal State University-Los Angeles
Cal State University-Monterey Bay
Cal State University-Northridge
Cal State University-San Marcos
Carnegie Mellon University
Champlain College
Chapman University
Clark University
Clemson University
Colgate University
Colorado School of Mines
Colorado State University
Columbia University
Cornell University
Dartmouth College
Davidson College
DePaul University
Drake University
Drexel University
Duke University
Eckerd College
Elon University
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Emerson College
Emory University
Evergreen State College
Falmouth University
Fordham University
George Washington University
Georgetown University
Georgia Tech University
Gonzaga University
Guilford College
Haverford College
Hawaii Pacific University
Humboldt State University
Indiana University-Bloomington
Juniata College
Kenyon College
Lafayette College
Lehigh University
Lewis & Clark College
Loyola Marymount University
Loyola University-Chicago
Manhattan College
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Miami University of Ohio
Michigan State University
Middlebury College
Milwaukee School of Engineering
Mount Holyoke College
New York University
North Central College
Northeastern University
Northern Arizona University
Northwestern University
Oberlin College
Occidental College
Ohio Wesleyan University
Oklahoma State University
Oregon State University
Otis College
Oxford College of Emory University
Pace University
Pacific University
Pepperdine University
Pitzer College
Point Loma Nazarene University
Pomona College
Portland State University
Pratt Institute
Princeton University
Providence College
Purdue University

Reed College
Regis University
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rice University
Rhode Island School of Design
Rochester Institute of Technology
Salem State University
San Diego State University
San Francisco State University
San Jose State University
Santa Clara University
Sarah Lawrence College
Savannah College of Art and Design
School of the Art Institute of Chicago
School of Visual Arts
Scripps College
Seattle University
Seton Hall University
Sierra Nevada University
Skidmore College
Smith College
Sonoma State University
Southern Methodist University
Southern New Hampshire University
Southern Vermont College
St. John’s College-Annapolis
St. John’s College-Santa Fe
Stanford University
Stevens Institute of Technology
Suffolk University
Syracuse University
Temple University
Texas A&M University
Texas Christian University
The American University of Paris
The New School
Trinity College
Tufts University
Tulane University
University College Dublin
University of Arizona
University of Bridgeport
University of California-Berkeley
University of California-Davis
University of California-Irvine
University of California-Los Angeles
University of California-Merced
University of California-Riverside
University of California-San Diego
University of California-Santa Barbara
University of California-Santa Cruz
University of Chicago
University of Colorado-Boulder
University of Colorado-Denver
University of Connecticut
University of Denver
University of Edinburgh
University of Georgia
University of Hawaii
University of Illinois
University of Iowa
University of Kansas
University of La Verne
University of Maryland
University of Massachusetts-Amherst
University of Miami
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
University of Minnesota
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
University of Nevada-Reno
University of New Hampshire
University of New Mexico
University of Notre Dame
University of Oregon
University of Pennsylvania
University of Portland
University of Puget Sound
University of Richmond
University of Rochester
University of San Diego
University of San Francisco
University of Southern California
University of St. Andrews
University of Texas-Austin
University of Texas-Dallas
University of the Pacific
University of the West of England-Bristol
University of Utah
University of Vermont
University of Virginia
University of Washington
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Vanderbilt University
Vassar College
Villanova University
Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets
Wagner College
Wake Forest University
Washington State University
Washington University-St. Louis
Wellesley College
Wesleyan University
Western Washington University
Westmont College
Whitman College
Willamette University
Worcester Polytechnic Institute

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