Caltech Admissions Counseling | 7.3x Acceptance Chances

Amy earned her BS from the California Institute of Technology before pursuing a PhD at the University of Colorado, Boulder. With over 20 years of experience in academia, she served on the Board of Trustees of Summer Science Program (SSP) International for 13 years and has been the Chief Academic Officer for over seven years. Previously, she was an Assistant Professor at Brown University for three years, where she also served on the graduate admissions committee. Additionally, she spent four years on Caltech’s undergraduate admissions committee.

Passionate about helping students navigate college applications, Amy finds immense fulfillment in guiding them toward schools where they’ll thrive. Her greatest joy comes from hearing a student say, “I got into my dream school!” She understands how stressful the process can be and is committed to providing support at every step. Students she’s coached have gained admission to Caltech, MIT, Rice, Northwestern, and other top universities.

As a coach, Amy has a highly organized and proactive approach. She believes in getting things done well in advance, allowing ample time for thoughtful revisions and adjustments. This structured method provides flexibility and reduces last-minute stress, ensuring each application is polished to perfection.

In her free time, Amy likes to bake cookies and play classic video games—she also considers herself to be a big Pokémon nerd!

Amy’s Pro Tip?

It is important for every student to let their personality shine through in their application. Many applications end up sounding the same, but if a student puts in the effort, they can create something unique and personal that will catch the eye of an application reviewer.

Mackenzie holds a Bachelor’s from Occidental College and earned her teaching credential at 

California State University. She also earned a CLEAR teaching certificate from Concordia University. Mackenzie previously served as an Admissions Counselor at Caltech, recruiting internationally and reviewing students’ files. She has a decade of teaching experience and has helped many students approach the college admissions process. Students she has coached have been accepted into several prestigious institutions, including MIT and UC Berkeley.

Mackenzie’s passion lies in helping students and families navigate the complex college admission process because she understands how getting into the right school makes people unstoppable in their academic and professional careers.

Mackenzie’s greatest strengths include being an excellent listener and helping people see the best versions of themselves. As a teacher, Mackenzie spends all day inspiring people to believe in their capacity, and she enjoys helping Quad students do the same. Mackenzie also excels at helping students with organization and prioritization.

In her free time, Mackenzie plays strategy board games, goes on hikes, and has fun chasing after her two small children. 

Brennen graduated from the University of Southern California and has earned two Master’s degrees from the University of Denver and University of Washington. He has over three years of experience helping students apply to college, seven years of experience in higher education, and 15 years of tutoring experience. Brennen has helped 500+ students gain acceptance to their dream schools, including prestigious private schools, the Ivies, and the UCs. Of the multiple students Brennan has coached, two went on to become Olympic gold medalists, and three have been drafted to the NFL–he has tutored 10% of USC's NFL draft picks since 2016! Additionally, he is also a member of the invite-only Harvard Business Review's Advisory Council. 

Brennen is passionate about coaching college applicants because he loves helping students reach the next level, meeting students where they are, and helping them achieve their academic goals, no matter what! Brennen enjoys having the opportunity to work with students of all types. Seeing one student apply to Harvard, Pomona, and Yale one day and seeing another student apply to Georgia Tech, USC, and UCLA the next is the joy of being able to help diverse populations. This is one of the main reasons he enjoys working with students worldwide to apply to excellent schools and get great degrees that match them to successful careers.

As a coach, Brennen’s greatest strengths are that he’s kind, encouraging, fun, knowledgeable, and a journeyed consultant. He is currently pursuing his third Master's degree, so he understands the higher education scene extensively and is a West Coast University savant. He has personally taken the GRE, LSAT, and GMAT and has an extensive track record of helping students strengthen skills, applications, profiles, resumes, interview performance, and more.

Outside of coaching, Brennen is an avid music fan and has all the good jams! He also loves reading and writing and has written nine books (mostly academic) since 2012. You can also find Brennen watching and attending sports games and watching funny and informative reels/videos online from content creators who are queer, of color, or have disabilities.

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