Laurie's Process

Laurie developed her writing and editing skills during a decade spent working for The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg News. Laurie uses these abilities to help guide the college application process. When she first meets a client, she interviews the student about his or her life, trying to find the most compelling anecdotes to help bring that student’s story alive. She also separately interviews the student’s parent(s) or guardian, knowing that adults bring a different perspective.  At that point, Laurie and her client brainstorm together for ideas for the college essays and personal statements, while keeping parents in the loop. Once essay drafts have been written, she works with the student on countless edits to make sure every single word is used effectively. Laurie's competitive advantage is her extensive knowledge of which specific anecdotes to use in college essays, derived from her experience discovering what elite universities look for in top students. Laurie is used to meeting tight deadlines while maintaining high quality.

Since leaving journalism, Laurie has significantly invested in counseling and career education. She received her Certificate in College Counseling from UCLA Extension in early 2020, and she attends an annual University of California (UC) conference for college counselors to learn the latest news directly from the nine UCs. Laurie visits 10 new college campuses each year on counselor tours. Laurie attends the Western Association for College Admission Counseling (WACAC) and the Higher Education Counselors Association (HECA) conferences whenever possible. She is conversant with the college database Naviance, and believes Naviance is a great resource from which to build a college list. Laurie helps her clients determine a range of target colleges, and then maps a strategy to gain admittance.  A parent herself, Laurie understands firsthand the stresses of applying to college and the need to start thinking about college by the sophomore year of high school. One of Laurie's sons recently graduated from Georgetown University and her other son currently attends UC San Diego.