...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.
Great Expectations only hires a mere 1-2% of its applicants — our staff is made up of the most experienced, educated, friendly, and charismatic education experts out there.
Maia K
- Classic
- Academic Tutor
- Essay Specialist
- College Counselor
Education | Earned a B.A. in English from Stanford University with honors; earned an M.A. and Ph.D. in English from UC Irvine; earned a Certificate in College Counseling from UCLA Extension |
Hobbies | Reading, traveling, going to Disneyland, playing D&D, discovering new K-pop and electropop music, social media manager for a cat convention, working on a graphic novel |
Academic Subjects | American Literature, British Literature, World Literature, Composition, Creative Writing |
General Strengths | Academic writing, organizational skills, managing test anxiety, creative writing, study skills, standardized test advisement, literary analysis, test-taking psychology, international student application process, summer enrichment planning, major advisement/selection, editing and proofreading college essays, social science programs, resume review/evaluation, pre-college summer programs, course selection for high school, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs, UC specialization, college research and advisement, humanities programs, Cal State specialization, foreign college/university application process, college list building, highly selective colleges/universities specialization, transcript analysis, extracurricular/resume development, application review, personal statement brainstorming and composition, business programs, humanities Masters and Ph.D. programs, liberal arts school specialization, interview skills, visual arts programs |
Related Experience | 7+ years of experience counseling students applying to colleges throughout the US and Canada; active member of HECA (Higher Education Consultants Association); 10+ years of tutoring experience including English, writing, and college essay development and editing; UC application reader; taught freshman composition and introductory English courses on drama, poetry, and the novel at UC Irvine; taught writing for the Johns Hopkins CTY program; studied at the Advanced Oral History Summer Institute at UC Berkeley; studied abroad at the Stanford in Oxford program; recipient of the Huntington-Linacre Exchange Fellowship for Study in Great Britain; writing consultant for PBS Digital Studios; research fellow at the Center for the Study of Los Angeles at Loyola Marymount University |
Maxine D.
- Classic
- College Counselor
Education | Earned a B.A in Education & Social Transformation from UC Los Angeles |
Hobbies | Experimenting with Nespresso recipes, trying new restaurants & cafes in LA, staying involved in my sorority, reading, listening to poetry & podcasts, going to R&B concerts |
General Strengths | Academic writing, organizational skills, summer enrichment planning, major advisement/selection, editing and proofreading college essays, social science programs, pre-college summer programs, course selection for high school, UC specialization, college research and advisement, course selection for undergraduate programs, humanities programs, college list building, highly selective colleges/universities specialization, transcript analysis, extracurricular/resume development, application review, personal statement brainstorming and composition |
Related Experience | Currently serves as a college coach for first-year undergraduate students in various higher education institutions across the country; volunteer with Search to Involve Pilipino Americans' high school/youth mental health program; active member & former new member educator of Kappa Psi Epsilon Sorority, Inc., Delta Chapter; formerly a counselor for undergraduate students at UCLA; former representative on UCLA's Committee on Undergraduate Admissions & Relations with Schools; former chairperson of UCLA's committee of college access & outreach programs; volunteer peer advisor for Carson High School's Academy of Medical Arts; former teaching assistant for UC Berkeley's Early Academic Outreach Program; extensive experience with Bay Area/NorCal applicants |
Miriam C.
- Classic
- College Counselor
Education | Earned a B.M. in Flute Performance and Jazz Studies from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University; earned a Post-Graduate Certificate with Distinction in College Counseling from UC Los Angeles Extension |
Hobbies | Playing piano, concertgoing, travel, volunteerism, reading, sewing, writing |
General Strengths | Video game design programs, performing arts programs, visual arts programs, musical theatre programs, classical performance and composition music programs, contemporary music programs, music industry programs, summer enrichment planning, major advisement/selection, editing and proofreading college essays, financial aid (need-based aid), resume review/evaluation, pre-college summer programs, course selection for high school, college audition preparation for performance tracks, UC specialization, college research and advisement, Cal State specialization, college list building, arts & music Masters and Ph.D. programs, highly selective colleges/universities specialization, transcript analysis, extracurricular/resume development, application review, personal statement brainstorming and composition, scholarship search (merit-based aid), interview skills, career assessment tools |
Related Experience | 4 years as Assistant College Counselor at North Hollywood High School; Independent College Counselor for gifted musicians; 10-year adjudicator for Young Musician's Foundation; mentor and resident guest lecturer on subject of "Breaking Into Hollywood" for Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University; studio recording musician for 35+ years; extensive experience with Videogame Design, Urban Planning, Environmental Science, Political Science, International Affairs, Sports Management, and Entrepreneurship applicants; has edited over 500 essays and assisted highly gifted students; success with scholarships, including UC Regents and Wells Scholarship recipients |