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Are College Advisors Worth It? Here’s What We Found After Working With 3,000 Students
05/22/2025•15 minute read
Crimson Education helps students 6.75x their chances of getting into Ivy League and Top 10 schools. But do college advisors really make a difference, and are they worth the cost?
We decided to dig into the numbers and student outcomes to find out what role advisors play in the process and whether it truly pays off.
Why More Families Are Seeking Help
The college admissions process isn’t what it used to be. Today, it’s more competitive, more confusing, and far more high-stakes. For many families, it feels like trying to win a game where the rules keep changing.
Parents are expected to guide their children through:
- Picking the right classes starting in 9th grade
- Building an extracurricular profile that stands out
- Choosing a balanced college list across different selectivity tiers
- Navigating early decision, financial aid, essays, testing, and interviews
- All while keeping up with the daily pressures of high school.
At the same time, most school counselors are stretched thin, responsible for hundreds of students and juggling everything from class schedules to mental health concerns. Even the most dedicated counselors often can't provide the in-depth, strategic support the top college applications demand. Take into account that school counselors’ priority are seniors, students in younger years are unable to get the long term support needed to meet the high bar set by top college admissions officers.
So it’s no surprise that more families are seeking expert help.
“At Harvard, 23% of freshmen in 2023 reported using a private admissions advisor. For students from families earning over $500,000, that number jumps to 48%.”
- The Wall Street Journal
The Daily Princetonian reported that between 30-55% of all incoming freshmen in their Class of 2028, with family incomes between 250-500K, used a private college counselling firm.
This is the new baseline for families competing for top-tier universities. The trend is clear: admissions advising has become the norm, not the exception, especially in high-achieving households.
What a College Advisor Actually Does
A college advisor is more than just someone who edits essays or reviews a school list. The right advisor provides structure, strategy, and clarity throughout a process that often feels overwhelming and high-pressure for both students and parents.
Here’s how an advisor supports students through every stage of the journey:
Personalized Planning
A strong advisor helps students map out their high school years with purpose. This includes choosing the right courses, building a coherent extracurricular profile, choosing relevant research projects and competitions, and setting long-term academic goals early on.
Building the Right College List
Rather than relying on rankings or hearsay, a college advisor works with students to identify schools that are a strong fit academically, socially, and financially. This often includes a balanced list of reach, target, and safety schools. It should also include boosting a student’s capability of turning reach schools into targets - and further aiming for what are known as ‘extreme-reach’ schools.
Application Strategy and Execution
Advisors help students understand the many components of an application. From personal essays to teacher recommendations, testing strategies to interviews, every piece is guided and refined with intention.
Extracurricular Development
Students are encouraged to pursue meaningful, high-impact activities that align with their interests and goals. Whether it’s starting a nonprofit, doing independent research, or taking on leadership roles, advisors help students connect their passions with tangible achievements.
Summer program identification and application
Good advisors also help students identify and apply for competitive summer programs (many with winter deadlines) that will resonate on their applications.
Accountability and Support
Advisors keep students on track with regular check-ins, clear timelines, and structured goals. This often reduces stress, avoids last-minute work, and gives parents peace of mind that the process is being managed effectively.
“I could never be happier that I chose Crimson, and I do not think that I could have made it to where I am today without all the help I received here. HUGE thank you to everyone who worked with me. I couldn’t do this without all of you.”
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Avery B., Accepted to UPenn Class of 2028
“I would describe my overall experience as just incredibly supported, with multiple people helping me throughout the entire process. I’m extremely grateful and I would recommend it 100 times.”
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Eleshaday M., Accepted to Harvard Class of 2029
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So Are College Consultancies Worth It?
For many families, the idea of hiring a college advisor comes with one big question: Is it really worth the cost?
Choosing the wrong college, writing a weak application, or missing key deadlines can have serious long-term consequences. These mistakes don’t just impact where a student gets in. They affect the scholarships they receive, the debt they carry, and the experience they have once they’re on campus.
Here’s what’s often at stake:
- Missed acceptances at a student’s top-choice schools
- Thousands of dollars in lost scholarship opportunities
- Transferring schools after a poor fit (seeking counseling support too late)
- Student loan debt from the wrong financial aid strategy
- General student and family disappointment which perhaps could have been avoided
Families spend years preparing for college and often over $150,000 on the degree itself. Compared to the cost of tuition, investing in expert guidance that improves outcomes, reduces stress, and avoids costly errors is a decision many parents now view as practical.
College is one of the most important investments a student will make. The process to get there should be treated with the same level of care and strategy.
Benefits of Hiring a College Consultant
A great college consultant provides more than just information. They offer strategy, structure, and expert insight at every step of the process. For students aiming high and families navigating uncertainty, the right advisor can make a lasting impact.
Clarity and Direction
College consultants help students understand what top schools are looking for and how to align their efforts. Instead of guessing, families follow a clear roadmap that improves outcomes and reduces second-guessing.
Less Stress at Home
One of the most overlooked benefits is the relief it brings to parents. College planning can create pressure, miscommunication, and tension at home. A consultant provides an outside voice who can guide the process and reduce friction between parents and teens.
Stronger, More Competitive Applications
From developing standout extracurricular projects to crafting compelling essays, consultants help students present their best selves. This leads to more confident applications that stand out in competitive applicant pools.
Better College Fit
Choosing a college is not just about rankings. A consultant helps students find schools where they will thrive academically, socially, and emotionally. This often leads to better retention, stronger academic performance, and a more rewarding college experience.
The Best Results Possible!
Achieved by leaving no stone unturned in the competitive application process.
Why Crimson Education?
No other consulting company has an average Ivy League and Stanford acceptance rate that is 675% higher than the general applicant rate.
Proven Results
- 98% of our students are admitted to at least one of their top 5 college choices.
- Over 1,300+ Ivy League offers
- Admissions results independently verified by a Big 4 accounting firm
A Team of Specialists at Your Service
At Crimson, you don’t get just ONE college admissions counselor managing every detail of your application.
Instead, you get access to a dedicated team of specialists, each an expert in their field. As a Crimson student, your team might include:
Meet Our College Counselors
Crimson’s admissions counselors include an impressive lineup of Former Admissions Officers from the Ivy League and several other Top 10 and 20 universities, including Stanford, Duke, Johns Hopkins, Northwestern, and more.
Our students benefit from the first-hand knowledge of admissions decision makers who have reviewed thousands of applications and understand exactly what sets a student apart from the highly qualified competition.
Before submitting their applications, Crimson students can receive 1:1 feedback from Former Admissions Officers from the very schools they’re aiming for, as well as committee-style reviews in which FAOs evaluate their application anonymously in the same way an admissions committee will do.
Ready to See If It’s Right for You?
🎁 Book a Free Strategy Call and receive our exclusive Ivy League Admissions Toolkit:
✔️ 20 Real Ivy Essay Examples
✔️ 10 Activities Lists from Successful Applicants
✔️ 100+ FAQs Answered by Former Admissions Officers
About the Author
Crimson Education Strategists
Our Crimson strategists are top graduates from the world's most prestigious universities, including Harvard, Stanford, MIT, Oxford, and Cambridge. They put their firsthand experience and deep insights to work helping students around the world stay ahead of the curve in college admissions by providing the most up-to-date strategies for success.
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