Concierge College Consultants: The Key to Elite Universities

Getting into an Ivy League college or another elite university requires hard work from a student, including top grades, scores and stellar essays. But for some wealthy families, it takes a bit more to tip the scales in their child's favor: College consultants who can charge up to $750,000.

The rise of concierge college consultants comes as acceptance rates for top universities have continued to shrink. Only about 3.5% of the nearly 60,000 annual applicants for Harvard's class of 2027 gained admittance — down from about 16% in 1980. Other top colleges have similarly shaved their acceptance rates to the low single digits.

"These are the 1% of the 1%," said Christopher Rim, the founder and CEO of Command Education, which charges $750,000 for a six-year consulting package, of his clients. "Their biggest priority is their child's education and health — you can't compare Harvard against a state school."

He added, "They want every resource out there. These parents care so much about who their kids are surrounded with. They want quality friends."

Across the U.S., thousands of high school seniors are now sending off their applications ahead of general admissions deadlines, which typically fall in early January. But wealthy families can start prepping their kids well before senior or junior year, with some hiring consultants as early as middle school to start honing their kids' passions and to create a compelling case for top colleges' admissions teams.

It's more than just bragging rights for these parents, as having an Ivy League pedigree is viewed as securing a foothold in an increasingly competitive world. And an elite college degree can pay dividends down the road, with a recent study from Harvard economists finding that grads of Ivy League and equivalent schools are 60% more likely to have incomes among the top 1% compared with those who didn't attend those colleges.

"For high-net-worth families, this is part of their generational wealth planning — to plan their children's future," said Adam Nguyen, the founder of Ivy Link, a consultancy that charges from about $150,000 up to $500,000. "In the U.S., we don't have an aristocracy. It's been about meritocracy and the way to achieve social status in the U.S. is based on education."

Most U.S. college students attend a school other than an Ivy League institution, with 99% of students choosing this route.  And a majority of the nation's roughly 1,300 colleges and universities accept most of the students who apply, Pew Research Center found in 2017.

Concierge College Consulting

It is no secret that the wealthy have an advantage when it comes to gaining admission to Ivy League and other elite colleges. A recent study by Harvard economists found that children from the top 1% income bracket are accepted into "Ivy plus" colleges at more than twice the rate of any other income group with similar SAT or ACT scores.

This disparity highlights the growing gap between the top 1% of income earners in the United States and the rest of the population. Over the past half-century, wealth has become increasingly concentrated at the top, while wages for the average worker have remained stagnant. While there are multiple factors contributing to this inequality, experts argue that the rising cost of higher education and the prevalence of legacy admissions at top schools have exacerbated the problem.

The importance of gaining admission to highly competitive colleges was further emphasized by the Varsity Blues scandal. This nationwide scheme, orchestrated by college advisor Rick Singer, involved bribing college officials and cheating on tests to boost the scores of wealthy students. Singer was sentenced to over 3 years in prison, and many of his clients also faced legal consequences.

Today, high-end college counselors stress that wealthy students must work hard and that simply having a large bank account is not enough to secure entry into the Ivy League.

High-End College Consultants: The Secret to Ivy League Acceptance

"We are very upfront if they don't do the work, it's a waste of time and money," said a consultant who is an alum of Yale University. "We even get rid of students. I'm not in the business of wasting time and money."

So what do these high-end consultants do? First, they often begin working with students in middle school because colleges scrutinize an applicant's history starting in 9th grade, which means kids need to demonstrate their focus and drive as soon as they step foot into high school.

"To prepare, to have a strong footing in 9th grade, you have to start the child much earlier to build their interest and passion," noted another consultant who is an alum of Columbia and Harvard and previously worked in Columbia's admissions office.

"Every dollar was worth it"

That means talking with a child and coaching them on developing their interests, with one consultant noting that his team helped a young woman interested in fashion and beauty build her own YouTube channel and become an influencer in the space. The consultant said the student was ultimately accepted at two Ivies and Stanford.

They're on call at all times, with one parent who hired a consultant's company noting that she'll text her consultant at 11 p.m. and get a response in 5 minutes.

Parents Seek College Consulting Services

A parent recently praised the assistance provided by Chris in helping their son develop entrepreneurial skills and gain acceptance into the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, his top choice. They also mentioned that their younger child is now working with Command Education.

The parent acknowledged the stress of the college application process, expressing disbelief at the acceptance rates. However, they felt that every dollar spent was worth it because their son got into his desired school.

Worries Extend Beyond Ultra-Wealthy Families

It's not only wealthy families who are concerned about college admissions. Middle-class families also share these worries, especially when considering the high cost of education, which can be as much as $90,000 per year before financial aid.

While some families hire college consultants for fees ranging from hundreds to thousands of dollars, most begin the process in high school rather than middle school.

"Parents are just nervous," said Michelle McAnaney, founder of The College Spy and an experienced counselor. She offers counseling services ranging from several hundred dollars to about $16,500.

Many Gen X parents are experiencing anxiety when it comes to their children's college applications. This anxiety stems from the fact that when they applied to colleges, acceptance rates were much higher. They are now surprised to find that what were once considered "safety" schools are no longer so safe. For example, Boston University's acceptance rate has dropped from 54% in 2007 to just 14% now.

"A lot of [colleges] have become a lot more difficult to get accepted to," said McAnaney. "That might be where the families are coming from when they have this anxiety."

Students in public schools

Erika Kerekes, a college essay coach in Los Angeles who primarily works with public school students, highlighted some challenges that current seniors are facing. These students were in 9th grade during the first full year of the pandemic, which resulted in a significant loss of school time and extracurricular activities. Additionally, many of them have never had to write the type of personal essay that is required for college applications.

In addition to these challenges, big city public schools often have a limited number of guidance counselors serving a large number of students. This means that the counselors may not know the students as well as those in suburban or private schools, or those who hire personal consultants, according to Kerekes.

Kerekes, along with other consultants and parents, emphasized that having a third-party expert can help alleviate tension within families during this stressful time.

"I felt guilty that I was feeding the college industrial process," she noted. "But the pros were, for something that was affordable as it was, why not try to get a little extra help? I don't think the parents should be too much in that process because it's a very tense process and for a parent to be involved isn't great anyway."

Finding a good fit

Parents and consultants for middle-class families also noted that part of the work involves finding the right fit for a student — and it might not be an Ivy League college. Meg Rosequist, 53 and an attorney in Los Angeles, said she paid several thousand dollars for a consultant to help her son apply to colleges two years ago. He's now a sophomore at University of California, Berkeley.

"I liked him because his approach was, 'There are lot of good schools out there, let's find a good fit," she said, adding that her son didn't apply to any Ivy League colleges.

The consultant also helped at a time when her son, like other students, was coping with his high school's shutdown, which also ended some extracurriculars. In the end, her son co-founded a Model UN program during the pandemic, she noted.

As for consultants to the 1%, it's also about helping students find their passions and, possibly, a path in college that will carry them into their professional lives.

"It's not just about grades and test scores, those are a given," said Nguyen. "A place like Columbia is looking for a talent, a niche — a passion and something that helps the student contribute to the school in a meaningful way."

Still, Nguyen noted that the edge that wealthy students can gain isn't always fair. "Overall, having resources definitely helps increase your admissions odds significantly more," he said. "And so there is no easy answer to that from where I'm standing."