Lakeside College Advisers

 

Contact us:  312-805-0511

 

Let us help you navigate the college search.

Which path will you choose?

Our Mission

We help students find the college or university that is the best fit.

Our expertise allows you to reduce stress and feel confident in the process. Every student is different, and every college is different. Finding the right match is a challenge that requires professional perspective combined with the kind of personal attention that is often unavailable in the school setting.

IECA Statement on College Admissions

I started my business because I love working with young people and want to see them move into the next phase of their lives with a sense of excitement and accomplishment. The process is always fraught with stress; my job is to make it less stressful, more transparent, and rewarding. I don’t promise admissions to certain schools as a guarantee; in fact, my contract states that I can’t guarantee admission into any school. What I can guarantee is a genuine working relationship with student and family, one where I provide positive reinforcement yet realistic goal-setting; listen to your needs and provide an individualized plan, and let the student take ownership of the process and feel good about the results. As a member of HECA (Higher Education Consultants Association) and IECA (Independent Educational Consultants Association), I adhere to a set of ethics guidelines.

    • The college search and application process should be a fun and exciting time for students and their families. If anyone in any setting is exerting pressure or causing undue anxiety and pressure, be cautious. If you are told someone has “inside” information, can pull strings, provide shortcuts to admission, or give you a special advantage (for a fee or otherwise), you are being misled.
  • There are many great postsecondary options for every student, and no student should be made to feel that they must become something they are not to get accepted. The “best” school is the school that fits a student academically, socially, and financially. Being and presenting one’s authentic self and demonstrating one’s own talents and abilities is a way of ensuring the right college fit. This is central to what an ethical independent educational consultant does.
  •  The vast majority of admissions officers, school counselors, and IECs are ethical and compassionate professionals who dedicate their careers to advising students and families.

What our Clients are Saying

{Julie was a blessing in the college application process with my youngest. My daughter didn’t want direction from me (go figure?) but was extremely open to working with Julie. They immediately hit it off and established a fantastic rapport. Julie’s advice and counsel went above and beyond what either of us expected. Perhaps most importantly having Julie in the mix gave my daughter a measure of control and a sounding board during what would have otherwise have been a very stressful process. I can t thank her enough.
0
{Julie, you were such a huge part of getting (our son) to the right school. The time, effort and genuine passion to want to help guide and direct him was apparent and appreciated.
5
{I felt Julie understood my daughter’s strengths, respected her point of view, and helped her to expand the direction of her essays and supplements. In the end, she was able to build an application which reflected her interests and aspirations. Thank you again.
5
{Julie broke down the college process with insightful campus observations and clarifying feedback. Talking to her gave me a much better understanding both of what colleges were looking for and what I was looking for in colleges.
5
{Julie made the college application process less stressful for me. She always replied quickly to the multitude of emails I sent her and kept me on track with my essays. I couldn’t thank her enough for the help she gave me and I highly recommend her to any incoming high school senior.
5
{Our daughter was helped immeasurably by Julie’s services. She has a unique rapport with teenagers and her admissions expertise is invaluable. Her guidance through the writing process was exceptional. Her value was finding the best approach and concepts for the essays and the guidance was such that our daughter’s writing was still her own but without the rough edges.
5
{I am a Senior at North Shore Country Day School and I’m interested in pursuing a degree in Theatrical Design and Technology. North Shore has great college counselors, but I felt that I needed someone with an arts expertise especially with helping me create my portfolio. Julie was an amazing help to me. She helped me create a list of eight perfect Theatre Design colleges for me. She worked with me for many hours creating a portfolio that I am very proud of, Julie helped me plan my approach to writing and edited the common app essay and it’s supplements, and she was very helpful with keeping me on track with the application deadlines. As of today, I have been accepted to seven of the eight schools that I applied to. I have received three scholarships which were portfolio-based. I really enjoyed working with Julie and I highly recommend her services.
0
{Thank you so much for helping me with my essays. I felt confident sending my final version out to colleges and I could not have done this without you. As you know, I’ll be attending DePaul University, which is my first choice.
5
{Julie was able to make great recommendations that we had not considered, and give additional advice we were not always able to get from the high school college counselor. I think that is because she has visited so many colleges and personally talked to admissions people at each school. She also understands a parent’s perspective, having raised two children who graduated from New Trier.
5
{Ms Hanna truly made the college application and selection process incredibly smooth. Her endless resources with regards to editing essays and organization led me to have more confidence in my application. I would recommend Ms Hanna to anyone.
5

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