About me
After graduating from Northwestern University in 2017, I was selected as an AmeriCorps Teaching Fellow. The following year, I traveled to the Czech Republic on a Fulbright grant to teach English to high school students. Since 2019, I've worked as a writing tutor specializing in application essays. On the tutoring platform Wyzant, I have 2,700+ hours and 700+ 5-star reviews.
My story
My love of writing stretches further back than I can remember. My grandmother told me that even before I learned to write, I filled in the lines of my notebooks with scribbles. Both of my parents were journalists and were my unofficial writing teachers. When I asked for their feedback on school essays, they would never give me abstract advice and send me away. Rather, they rolled up their sleeves and walked me through the slow, iterative process of editing and refining. My teaching style is very much informed by these memories. Rather than being taught one-size-fits-all tips, my students learn by doing.
From 2013-2017, I attended Northwestern University where I studied English and film. During my summers, I worked as a marketing intern for a PBS/Ken Burns documentary film, The Two Who Dared. I was tasked with cold-calling and emailing hundreds of organizations across the world. Some days my visionary boss would ask me to write a letter to the pope, other days to the White House. I was fascinated by how the right combination of words could be the difference between a yes and a no. And I was amazed when the White House actually said yes and hosted a screening of the film.
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After graduating, I was selected as an AmeriCorps fellow and worked at Match School in Boston. There, I tutored students one-on-one and helped in the college counseling department, where I first helped students with their Common App personal statements.
In the Czech Republic, I worked as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant at a gymnazium in a suburb of Prague. Though most of my time was spent teaching in the classroom, I unofficially became a writing advisor for students at the school. As I helped them on their application essays for exchange programs in the US, I realized how important writing about yourself can be in obtaining opportunities and expanding your world.
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​In 2019, I began working one-on-one with students as a writing coach. The more I taught, the more I refined my approach and noticed patterns and similar problems that many of my students faced. I kept meeting students who had achievements and stories that moved and impressed me, but often who they really were was not coming across in their first drafts. I have since developed tools and exercises to help my students cut through the blocks and anxieties that stand in the way of expressing themselves on paper. I'm passionate about showing students that this process does not have to be anxiety-inducing or particularly difficult. ​
​​I've now been working as a writing coach for 5 years. I am still working with students one-on-one in addition to developing courses and curriculum that can be shared more widely. I've also been invited to give talks on essay writing to a range of audiences, from the library in my hometown to an international high school in Germany. It has truly been a joy to work with students from all walks of life, from a manager in the oil industry who wanted to pivot careers to a 9th grader in the suburbs who sought my help because she wanted to write a philosophy paper on Descartes. And I must say, the cliché is true: I have learned just as much from my students as they have learned from me.
My approach
I've learned to decode and analyze what institutions and organizations seek in applicants. When you ask me to help you answer an essay prompt, I not only “read between the lines” but do research on the institution and the kinds of qualities they most want to see in applicants. I also bring years of research on the admissions process to the table, and I am realistic about what actually happens in the room when your essays are read and discussed. This information informs our strategy.
But essays are so much more than strategy. After all, an admissions officer will be reading your essay, not you strategy, and this is why authentic expression matters just as much, if not more, than an abstract idea of what you “should” do. In fact, this is the biggest misake I see applicants make. They attempt to conform to an idea of what they think admissions officers want but sacrifice what makes them unique in the process.
That is why my process aims to help you write essays that land in the sweet spot where strategy and authenticity overlap. I’ve developed tools and exercises that remove the anxious blocks that impede writing and get you into a place where you can write freely and edit critically, but not at the same time.
Frequently asked questions
How many sessions does it take?
The number of lessons is different for each student. It depends largely upon 1) the level of writing ability that you already have and 2) the amount of time and effort you put in between our sessions. For personal statements, the number of sessions needed tends to be in the 1-8 range. For supplementals essays of about ~300 words, it tends to be 1 session per essay. However, I would encourage you to take ownership of this process and use me as a resource in the way that best fits your needs and budget. In just one meeting, I can offer a lot of perspective and information that can shift your approach to writing all of your essays.
What is your process?
If you'd like to work with me from start to finish, there is a typical set of steps we'll move through. This is especially the case for high school seniors applying to college.
1. Brainstorming
This is the fun part. During our first meeting, I’ll ask you a ton of questions, gathering material about your experiences, anectodes, and interests that we will draw from throughout the process. I have several brainstorming exercises that I’ll walk you through as well. By the end of the first meeting, I will assign you several free writing prompts, which will become the basis for your essays.
2. Freewriting
Next, you freewrite on your own time. First, a quick definition of “freewrite.” A freewrite is typically a written response to a thought-provoking prompt, but what distinguishes it from a typical essay is that the writing should be completely uncensored and unedited. More is more when it comes to freewriting, even if you think it's "bad."
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Freewriting is an extremely important step of this process, as it forces you to get out of the anxious, critic’s mindset that so often plagues my students during application essay writing. Freewrites also allow me to see which essay ideas are truly worth pursuing and which just aren’t working without investing too much time. It also allows you to find out which topics you are truly most interested in writing about and which topics flow the most easily. Being able to freewrite is the single most important skill in making this process quick and easy rather than excruciating.
3. Outline
During our second meeting, we will review you free written responses and use that material to create more structured outlines for one or several essay prompts. I help you decode the (often) confusing language of essay prompts to get to the heart of what they are asking for.
4. Draft
In your own time, you will write drafts of essays based on the outline we created. If you have a solid pool of material from the freewriting step, then drafting will be easy — just a matter of piecing together and editing what you already have.
5. Revise
In our third meeting, I will give you detailed feedback on your drafts and offer ideas on how to improve the essays. Typically, I will offer you big-picture, structural feedback at the beginning and then give you much more detailed feedback once the big problems are fixed.
6. Repeat
The remainder of our meetings are typically spent repeating Steps 4 (Draft) and 5 (Revise). After each meeting, I will give you a list of things to work on, and then when we meet we will go over your work and continue to revise together. Usually, it is most time efficient to work on several essays at once. Throughout the process, I’ll break down your work into manageable deadlines, creating a timeline that reduces stress and maximizes efficiency.
Do you write essays for students?
No. Although I have a high standard for my students, I refrain from writing for them. This is both ethical and strategic. Admissions officers have a sharp eye for language that is written by an adult or an essay coach. They can easily compare a student’s writing ability in the essay to the student’s letters of recommendation, scores, and transcripts. If they suspect that a student’s essay has been written by someone other than the student, this will only harm the student.
What do you expect from parents in this process?
The right kind of parent involvement can be a huge asset to a student when writing their essays, but the wrong kind of involvement (usually well-intentioned) can hurt more than help. I’ve seen students finally hit a stride with their writing, only to have the draft edited into a safe, polished, resume-like essay by an understandably concerned parent. Misguided advice from parents or other adults is usually rooted in false assumptions about how essays are actually read by admissions officers.
If you want to be a resource for your child as they work on their essays, I ask that you do the necessary research so you are informed. Otherwise, I ask that you put your trust in your child and me so that we can move through this process without the added stress of “too many cooks in the kitchen.”