I love getting to know the students better through this process. The essay coaching is where the personal anecdotes come out, where I learn about what the student is truly passionate about, where they have struggled.
What aspects of essay coaching do you find challenging?
I think it is hard when I have a student that is not very introspective or reflective, or is so introverted that it is difficult for them to open up and share information. I also find it hard with students that are procrastinators to keep them on task with their deliverables. Another challenge is balancing the student’s interests and capabilities with the parent’s expectations, if the parent is heavily involved with the process.
What do you hope to gain from participating here?
I hope to strengthen my professional network. I look forward to hearing different perspectives and getting new ideas about how to approach problems or manage the coaching process more effectively. I also look forward to having colleagues to contact when I am stuck or need some ideas to assist a student.
What do you think you can offer other professionals?
As an IEC who came from the admissions side, I can offer the perspective of someone who has had to read thousands of personal statements as a part of the admissions process. I also did participate in the WOW Writing Workshop for counselors so I can share what that experience was like for anyone in the group who is thinking about joining.
What else would you like us to know about you?
I am originally a Chicagoan. I met my husband at Northwestern University. He moved to Columbus, OH after college and I joined him after he proposed. I went to Ohio State to get my master’s in Human Resource Management, but my Graduate Assistantship exposed me to Higher Education and Admissions as a career path, and I never left. I worked in graduate admissions for 15 years before taking a break and deciding to launch my IEC practice. I have three kids (14, 12, and 7) and an Australian Labradoodle named Marvin :)
