...I couldn't be happier with Great Expectations...My son feels very fortunate to be attending the perfect school for him, a school that was actually recommended by Nicole in one of their first online meetings. Everyone at Great Expectations was knowledgeable, and on top of their game, and I feel very fortunate that my son was matched with Nicole throughout this process.

– Brooks R. (parent), Los Angeles, CA

A huge thank you to Ryan S, my son's ACT test prep tutor. He was kind, patient, extremely helpful, and very attentive to helping my son prepare for the ACT. He challenged him and was always available to answer any questions or concerns that either of us had. I have used GE test prep in the past for my daughter and highly recommended them. Jen and her team are outstanding and I couldn’t be more happy.

– Kelly M. (parent), Garden Grove

Great Expectations College Prep is an amazing, hands on company. They care so much about their clients, offering services of general tutoring, ACT and SAT prep, as well as guiding students all the way through the college admissions process in a professional and experienced manner. Their owner, Jen, is a caring, intelligent, wonderful role model! Her staff is the best of the best, namely Chelese who works with transfer students, and helped me to achieve admission to my dream school. Highly recommend!

– Isabella M. (student), Pacific Palisades

I had Jeannie as a tutor, and she was great! With her help, my ACT score when up 6 points. She tailored our sessions to spend the perfect amount of time on both review and practice, and she was super reasonable with how much homework/practice I had to do on my own time. Her explanations were always very concise, and she would give me testing strategies that were fitting to my own strengths/weaknesses. I struggled with timing on the reading section, and she helped me plan the order of the passages and which ones I should skim to save the most amount of time. My reading score improved by 12 points! I had a super good experience with Great Expectations, and as you can tell, my tutor too!

– Elle M. (student), Hermosa Beach

Worked with Nicole with both of my daughters - I can't speak highly enough. She is thoughtful, consistent, diligent. Great access, great relationship with our daughters -- great results!

– Joan K. (parent), Santa Monica

Meghan made the process infinitely easier! The sense of calm. The creativity. The sense of humor. The knowledge of the schools. Her valuable suggestions vis-à-vis the essays. I cannot begin to do Meghan justice in my words. Thank you! Thank you!

– Karin O. (parent), Pacific Palisades

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

Great Expectations matched me with the best tutor I’ve ever worked with. For someone who cannot take a standardized test to save my life, my tutor helped me truly grasp the concepts and different approaches to each section. Not only did my score improve more than 300 points, but the time flew and it never felt like tutoring. She was a joy to be around and an amazing motivator.

– Clara C. (student), Santa Monica

Knowledgable, caring counselors who are dedicated to helping your children with the college submission process. Jennifer and her team can help set manageable expectations and take the scary out of the college admission process.

– Shirley B. (parent), Pacific Palisades

Between the SAT/ACT prep and the college planning process sending my two daughters off to college was pretty easy and stress free. Jen and her handpicked staff are excellent! I've always been contacted to make sure that the tutor and my child are a good fit and the progress being made (I love the follow-up emails after each tutor session keeping me updated). Most importantly I feel Jen and her tutors communicate very well with my kids, which in turn gave confidence to my girls to take ownership of their own college process. I'll have daughter number 3 for them to guide in 2 more years!

– Hanna O. (parent), Manhattan Beach

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

I really appreciate Great Expectations College Prep! Thanks to them, the college application process was greatly simplified. Between helping to narrow down my list of schools, providing helpful feedback on my essays, and even giving advice on choosing the right school for me, GECP made the whole process far less stressful than it could have been. I also appreciated that my college counselor was very flexible with scheduling meetings to fit my busy schedule.

– Diane M. (student), Los Angeles

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

I used the services of Great Expectations for over two years and am so grateful for every session. My tutor helped me with everything from testing to the application process. My test scores improved dramatically in each section because GE helped me understand the nuances of the tests and how to attack each section in the way that best fit to my skills. In addition, the college application process felt so smooth with the help of my GE tutor. I was confident in my essays and knew that I was turning in the best applications I could. Overall, I would highly recommend the tutors at Great Expectations - not only do they teach you everything you need to know about the SAT, ACT, or college applications, but they develop a relationship with you filled with trust, kindness, and teamwork.

– Dallas M. (student), Brentwood

Best investment ever for my son! He wanted to go to a 4 year college and at risk of not getting in! Jennifer tutored him to achieve a great score on ACT and that helped him get into the college of his choice. She did all the work with him on the application process and helped us pick the most appropriate schools to apply. Today we are on a college tour of his first pick and thrilled he was accepted! We owe it all to Jennifer at Great Expectations. Thank you Jennifer. We are truly grateful and owe this accomplishment to you!

– Lisa G. (parent), Newport Beach

I had Jen Kaifesh as my college counselor, and it truly was the best decision I have ever made! Jen helped me from beginning to end. She helped me form my list of colleges, edit the applications, and connected me with great tutors for the ACT and subject tests. Jen's spirit and passion for helping students is unparalleled. She provided support and motivation and she really truly cares about the students that she works with. Thanks to her, I got the ACT score that I wanted and am going to be attending my dream school next year. It was an incredible investment, and I would not be where I am if it wasn't for her!!!

– Hannah 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

The tutors at GE prep don’t let you slack off — many of my friends took prep courses with a group of people or in a classroom setting where they were able to get away with not completing their assigned practice tests, and were also not shown techniques that might have worked best for them individually. Working one-on-one with a tutor who knows you very well is a crucial component in getting the best score a student can on a standardized test! I am so grateful for the personalized techniques and attention I had when preparing for the ACT because I couldn’t have been more pleased with the result.

– Jennifer E. (student), Pacific Palisades

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

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Meet Our Staff

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Carlynn W

ClassicCollege Counselor

Education	Earned a B.A. in Plan II (Honors Liberal Arts) and Italian from the University of Texas at Austin with minors in Classics and Religious Studies; earned a M.T.S. from Harvard Divinity School; earned a B.F.A. in Illustration from Rhode Island School of Design
Hobbies	Cooking/baking/eating, hiking, reading, visiting galleries and museums, experimental animation
Test Prep
Academic Subjects
General Strengths	organizational skills, creative writing, study skills, reading comprehension, technical writing, literary analysis, college-level courseworksummer enrichment planning, major advisement/selection, editing and proofreading college essays, resume review/evaluation, course selection for high school, college research and advisement, course selection for undergraduate programs, humanities programs, college list building, arts & music Masters and Ph.D. programs, highly selective colleges/universities specialization, extracurricular/resume development, application review, personal statement brainstorming and composition, arts & music programs, liberal arts school specialization, art portfolio building and review, visual arts programs, BFA programs, studio art programs
Related Experience	Extensive personal experience applying and gaining acceptance to extremely competitive academic programs; 2+ years developing workshop and arts enrichment curriculum for underserved children in South Boston; 5+ years teaching art and design in a variety of contexts to both children and adults; 5+ years writing professionally in a variety of formats and contexts; 15+ years as an award-winning freelance illustrator with a specialization in children’s books and editorial work; significant exhibition record in galleries and group shows; animations selected for screening in film festivals and showcases; working artist with a studio practice in Los Angeles; vast experience both conducting and receiving professional portfolio reviews, especially in a peer-to-peer context

Chelese B

Founder's CircleAcademic TutorCollege Counselor

Education	Earned a B.A. in History from UC Berkeley with honors; earned an M.F.A. in Theatre from The Actors Studio Drama School
Hobbies	Photography, hiking, yoga, baking/cooking, watching/making movies, traveling, writing
Test Prep
Academic Subjects	American Literature, British Literature, AP English Language & Composition, AP English Literature & CompositionUS History, AP US History
General Strengths	organizational skills, study skills, literary analysis, students with learning differences, college-level coursework, students with ASDinternational student application process, summer enrichment planning, major advisement/selection, editing and proofreading college essays, social science programs, resume review/evaluation, transfer student application process, pre-college summer programs, course selection for high school, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs, UC specialization, non-traditional student application process, college research and advisement, course selection for undergraduate programs, humanities programs, business school applications, social science Masters and Ph.D. programs, Cal State specialization, foreign college/university application process, college list building, film programs, public health programs, STEM Masters and Ph.D. programs, arts & music Masters and Ph.D. programs, highly selective colleges/universities specialization, high school selection, transcript analysis, extracurricular/resume development, application review, personal statement brainstorming and composition, arts & music programs, business programs, medical school applications, humanities Masters and Ph.D. programs, scholarship search (merit-based aid), liberal arts school specialization, interview skills, art portfolio building and review, dance programs, visual arts programs, BFA programs, performing arts programs, classical performance and composition music programs, contemporary music programs, film, television, and digital media, acting programs, studio art programs, video game design programs, architecture programs
Related Experience	15+ years counseling experience & tutoring experience; conducted presentations to Los Angeles high school students about the college application process; volunteered with the Young Storytellers to bring creative writing and arts to underserved youth in Los Angeles; tutored in Oakland/Berkeley after-school programs and taught SAT prep classes; filmmaker (10 years), actress (15 years), former competitive dancer (20 years)

Christine L

ClassicCollege Counselor

Education	Earned a B.A. with honors in Gender and Sexuality Studies and Ethnic Studies at Brown University; currently working towards a PhD in Sociology at Cornell University
Hobbies	Hiking with my dog Hiccup, swimming at my local neighborhood pool, biking around the San Francisco Bay Area, writing and journaling, reading theory-heavy books, cooking plant-based foods, acrylic painting, propagating plants
Test Prep
Academic Subjects
General Strengths	academic writing, technical writingsummer enrichment planning, major advisement/selection, editing and proofreading college essays, social science programs, financial aid (need-based aid), resume review/evaluation, pre-college summer programs, college audition preparation for performance tracks, UC specialization, college research and advisement, course selection for undergraduate programs, humanities programs, social science Masters and Ph.D. programs, college list building, course selection for Masters and Ph.D. programs, highly selective colleges/universities specialization, extracurricular/resume development, application review, personal statement brainstorming and composition, humanities Masters and Ph.D. programs, liberal arts school specialization, interview skills, art portfolio building and review, visual arts programs, BFA programs, performing arts programs, career assessment tools
Related Experience	Extensive college counseling experience to students in the San Francisco Bay Area as well as to high school students in Brown University's pre-college summer program at the Leadership Institute; 4 years of training in a pre-professional, conservatory-style theater program at a public arts high school in San Francisco, including preparation for arts college auditions; background in working with marginalized students (BIPOC, LGBTQ+, immigrant, first-generation, low-income)

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