College Admissions Consulting in San Jose, CA

Alex earned dual Bachelor of Science degrees from Northwestern University and an MBA from Stanford Business School. He served for years as an alumni undergraduate candidate interviewer for Stanford and leverages this expertise to help students secure admission to their top-choice schools.

Over the course of his career, Alex has also helped countless professionals to develop and improve their resumes and prepare for tough interviews. In addition, Alex co-founded and launched a STEM tutoring startup focused on helping high school students achieve success in their toughest classes. Alex has had a distinguished international career in the hi-tech industry, focusing on product management, marketing, business development, and alliance management. He worked at HP for 18+ years, working in many leadership positions such as Marketing Director and Director of Enterprise Business Development. 

Alex’s passion for coaching stems from his love for writing, creating stories, and building brands around an individual persona. Students he has coached have gotten into top schools such as Stanford, Northwestern, Columbia, UCLA, Yale, Duke, and NYU.

As a coach, Alex is highly results-driven and draws on his extensive writing expertise to empower aspiring candidates. As a skilled and published writer, his work has appeared in numerous publications and online platforms. He takes great pride in helping candidates achieve their dreams, relishing the challenge of helping them craft compelling, impactful materials that set them up for success.

In his free time, Alex enjoys working out, hiking, playing pickleball, reading economics and world news, and traveling. He has spent considerable time working and living in Europe and has traveled extensively, gaining deep knowledge of and appreciation of diverse cultures. He is bilingual and proficient in several other languages. 

Alec has a Bachelor’s degree in both Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and Asian Studies from Rice University and an MBA from Stanford University. He has several years of experience helping college candidates get into their dream schools.

As a coach, Alec enjoys helping others find confidence and pride in what sets them apart. Essentially, he loves to see students embark on journeys to further cultivate their individuality. His greatest strength when working with Quad applicants is his ability to help them find their confidence and voice. Alec understands the difficulty in articulating the “why” behind your experiences and decisions when applying to college. He prides himself on his ability to help students dig deep so they can determine the motivations behind their choices, whether it's their reason for pursuing an activity, a school, or a program.

Students Alec has recently coached have gotten accepted into UC Berkeley, Yale University, Princeton University, MIT, Stanford University, Washington University St. Louis, Rice University, and Vanderbilt University.

In Alec’s free time, he enjoys taking courses online, making up games, and solving computer science problems.

Alec’s Pro Tip?

Students do better in the interview when they answer extemporaneously from the heart rather than when they memorize what "should be said".

Cole is a graduate of Stanford University, where he obtained both his Bachelor’s degree and Master’s degree. He also obtained a second Master’s at the Yenching Academy of Peking University. 

Cole believes the college application process is an opportunity for students to crystallize what matters to them, what makes them unique, and what they hope to gain from the college experience. While Cole himself was applying to undergrad and grad school, he experienced this self-affirming impact of college applications. Cole understands that applying to college can be stressful. Still, it is also an incredibly exciting time and an amazing opportunity for students to think about what makes them who they are today. Professionally, Cole has worked at some of the most prestigious research institutions in the world, including the Center for Strategic and International Relations in Washington, DC. Currently, he works in tech policy with a focus on AI and other critical and emerging technologies, which allows him to further hone the analytical skills needed to help students identify and accomplish their goals.  

As a coach, Cole enjoys working with applicants to determine the most important 'watershed' moments that have shaped them. His strengths include: helping students incorporate past experiences and demonstrated interests to show, not tell; outlining a clear schedule with deliverables; creating a manageable application process; and creating a warm, welcoming environment in which applicants feel comfortable sharing their worries and concerns. Additionally, Cole prides himself on his ability to empathize and connect with applicants to create a stress-free and open working relationship. Cole looks forward to applying his expertise and advice to help support Quad applicants in this journey!

Students Cole has recently coached have gotten into NYU, Stanford University, McGill University, UC Berkeley, UCLA, and Emory University.

Cole grew up in the Bay Area in California, the DC area, and Moscow, Russia. English is his native language, but he also speaks and reads Chinese at the intermediate-high level. Cole enjoys cooking, playing basketball, hiking, and listening to podcasts in his free time.

Cole’s Pro Tip?

It’s essential to craft an intentional, revealing, and unique narrative throughout your application that remains absolutely true to who you are and what you have done.