Nine Reasons to Hire an Independent Education Consultant

INDUSTRY OVERVIEW
 
   The independent education consultant industry has steadily been on the rise since the mid-2000s. According to Independent Education Consultants Association (IECA), in 2010, there were an estimated 1,500 full-time independent education consultants (IECs) in the United States, another 150 international IECs, and approximately another 4,000 IECs working part-time. In 2015, the IECA estimated that there were now about 3,500 full-time IECs in the US, 5,000 IECs working part-time, and approximately 350 IECs working internationally. At the close of 2024, IECA estimates that there are now anywhere between 8,500 – 10,000 full-time IECs in the states, about 1,500 IECs working internationally, and approximately 10,000 – 15,000 IECs working part-time.
 
   In addition to the IECA, there are three other associations that provide support to IECS: the National Association for College Admissions Counseling (NACAC), the Higher Educational Consultants Association (HECA), and the American Institute of Certified Educational Planners (AICEP). Any student or family seeking the services of an independent education consultant should check to see if the IEC they are considering are members of any one of these organizations.
 
CHALLENGES IN THE COLLEGE ADMISSIONS PROCESS
 
   What explains this proliferation in independent education consultants? There are a few reasons. First, the admissions standards for colleges—particularly selective colleges—have changed dramatically over the past few decades. It used to be that strong academic performance and high standardized test scores were a reasonable predictor as to what students would be admitted to what colleges; this is no longer the case. There are now many more factors that go into the decisions admissions committees as to what type of students are selected. Unfortunately, those factors remain opaque for many students and parents. Good IECs are very aware of what those factors are and guide their clients in successfully navigating those factors to help students present themselves as strong applicants for admission.
 
   Second, high school guidance counselors are extremely overworked and cannot possibly provide students in their charge with the individualized guidance needed to be competitive in the process. The current ratio of public high school students to guidance counselors is 491:1; the ratio is 251:1 for private schools. In addition to college counseling, high school guidance counselors are responsible for overseeing behavioral issues of students, how well students are socially integrating, all while ensuring each student is on track to meet the requirements for graduation. Competent IECs are aware of the lack of individualized support guidance counselors are able to provide students and work to fill the gap to make sure students are receiving the necessary support needed to achieve their collegiate goals and aspirations.
 
   Last, the competition to get into college—in particular, selective programs—has increased tremendously over time, especially in the years since COVID. One reason for the increase in college applications is the ease of the process. The Common App and other online portals have made it easier for students to apply to their member colleges. Paper applications caused students to be more discerning about where they applied to college because of the difficulty in doing so. Online application portals allow students to streamline the process and select a wider range of colleges. Post-COVID test-optional policies also have helped to increase the number of applicants, particularly to selective programs. While the test-optional trend now seems to reverting back to pre-COVID standards of requiring them as a part of the application process, there are still many schools that have kept their test-optional policies in place, at least for the time being. Good IECs are aware of sheer volume of applicants to college and work to help their students individualize themselves in competitive applicant pools. They understand that students are not competing against the large application numbers as a whole, but against a very small subset of similar applicants within those large applicant pools.
 
   So, while there are many reasons to work with an independent education consultant, I would like to focus on nine particular reasons why working with an IECs is a wise investment for students and parents alike.
 
1. SERVE STUDENTS AND FAMILIES AS TRUSTED ADVISORS
 
   Unfortunately, as with most things these days, there is a lot of misinformation and disinformation floating around about how to best prepare students for applying to college. Busy parents often do not have the time to properly research available information to discern fact from fiction. Students themselves can fall into the trap of misadvising each other as they are still developing their critical thinking and reasoning skills. And, as I have already mentioned, guidance counselors do not have the bandwidth to offer individual attention to each student in their charge.
 
   Independent education consultants serve as the “go-to” person for students and parents alike. It is often the sole relationship in the lives of both students and parents dedicated to this complex task. Trust is what makes the relationship between IECs and their clients work, so it is important for all parties (students, parents, and IECs alike) to lay everything on the table and commit to honest, direct, and clear communication before starting any work together.
 
2. PROVIDE STUDENTS ONE-ON-ONE GUIDANCE
 
   On average, students spend about 38 minutes meeting with their high school guidance counselors over the course of four years. 38 minutes is hardly enough time to create an individualized plan to become a strong applicant in competitive college applicant pools. In addition, each student presents a variety of needs that must and should be address when thinking about what colleges are the right best fit for them. The individual attention IECs offer can prove to be invaluable for students seriously thinking about their futures and seeking to use their high school careers to prepare themselves for the road ahead.
 
   There are a range of options of colleges available to students. If a student not only knows that they intend to apply to college, but also know what type of college experience they are seeking, then it is important for them to know what they will need to accomplish to get there. Rather than applying a “one-size fits all” approach to the preparation process, IECs can and should be able to flex their services to the needs of each individual student. With the proper guidance and support, partnerships with IECs will help students by meeting their varied needs during the course of an engagement.
 
3. REDUCE STRESS AND TENSION DURING THE PROCESS

   One of the most telling benefits of an independent education consultant comes from one of my past clients. She once told me that the most valuable aspect of hiring me to work with her son is that it allowed her to “just be Mom” instead of being a de facto guidance counselor to get him through the process. Most times, the parent relationship is the most influential relationship in a student’s life, especially during the high school years as a young person is seeking to establish his/her/their independence. That relationship also comes with an emotional history that is difficult for both students and parents to separate in the preparation process of applying to college. That history can sometimes leave both students and parents frustrated in the process, especially if they don’t always see eye-to-eye.
 
   Strong IECs can act as healthy disruptors of that dynamic. They can provide both students and parents with a sometimes much-needed neutral perspective. They are able to advise both parties and make recommendations on what is the best roadmap to help students achieve their collegiate goals without the emotional history that exists in the parent/child dynamic. Students value that there is another adult in the process that also has and keeps their needs front and center while parents value that there is another adult in the process dedicate to helping their child do his/her/their best in high school.
 
4. PROVIDE EXPERTISE IN THE COLLEGE ADMISSIONS PROCESS
 
   Unlike applying to colleges in other countries, successfully applying to colleges in the United States requires more than just good grades and strong test scores. There are many nuances involved in the admissions process such as teacher recommendations, extracurricular and academic activities as well as personal statements and interviews. Particularly with selective colleges, admissions officers want to see how much as student has worked to develop themselves for future career fields by using whatever resources are available to them. Unfortunately, colleges do not publish a playbook on what it takes to be truly competitive in their applicant pools, so students and parents often find themselves flying blind to understand what it takes to be admitted.
 
   It is the role of the IECs to know what these opaque nuances are guide their clients accordingly. IECs are experts in the field of college admissions; they study trends, attend conferences, build relationships with admissions officers, and stay informed on the industry as a whole. They help students identify what colleges are the right best fit for them, help them meet all of the qualitative and quantitative requirements for admission, and navigate students’ high school careers to eventually be competitive in the college application process. They also work closely with their students on their college applications to make sure students are presenting themselves to admissions committees in the best and most compelling light.
 
5. ADVOCATE FOR STUDENTS' SELF-DISCOVERY

   As I mentioned earlier, trust is at the heart of any student/parent/IEC relationship. Honest, direct, and clear communication between all parties helps to establish that trust. When that trust is built, IECs can help students think about their futures from a deeper perspective. When students trust that an independent education consultant is truly there to help them not only navigate the college admissions process, but help develop them into their best selves, they tend to open up and accept the IEC as a true partner in their development process.
 
   IECs who are able to develop this sense of trust with their students can help them think critically about the academic choices, which extracurricular activities best align with students’ core values, and encourage students to step out of their comfort zones and take risks. IECs can also help students develop their leadership skills and advise them on how to do so, whether it is starting a club, running for an office or launching a service project. Good IECs will also help student connect their activities in high school with their professional aspirations and help them make choices that align with those aspirations.
 
6. ASSIST WITH CAREER PLANNING
 
   Unlike prior generations, current high school students are more connected to the world at-large than ever before. They have the ability to research prospective career paths from the comfort of their homes via the internet. With social media apps like TikTok and YouTube, curious students can learn about potential career paths directly from those currently working in professions in which they may be interested. IECs can help students with this by doing such research themselves and make recommendations to students about what might be the most appropriate channels to follow.
 
   IECs can also help students connect to potential career paths by determining which programs (i.e. – summer programs, science fairs, academic competitions, etc.) are the best fit for students’ professional aspirations. IECs may also help students by advising them on which programs to avoid, might not be worth the investment, or ultimately might not be the right fit. They can also inform students which extracurricular programs are the most impressive from an admissions officer’s perspective and work with them to successfully apply to such programs.
 
7. RESEARCH SCHOLARSHIP AND FINANCIAL AID OPTIONS
 
   The cost of college looms large for most students and families these days. Year after year, millions of dollars of scholarship money goes unclaimed because students do not apply for them. IECs can help students and families offset the cost of college by helping students know what types of scholarship are available to them and help them fill out scholarship applications. IECs also should know which schools offer merit-based scholarship and, as a part of the process, help students not only be strong applicants for admission to college, but strong applicants for merit-based aid as well.
 
   There are also financial aid options that IECs can help students and parents know of. Some schools—particularly the more selective schools—often have generous financial aid packages in order to attract the best talent to their programs. If IECs are true experts in the college admissions process, they will know which schools offer the most generous aid packages and can help students and parents use this as a determining factor for which schools ultimately end up on a student’s application list. IECs can also help students and parents navigate the sometimes-complex process of applying for aid and make the proper recommendations accordingly.
 
8. DETERMINE RIGHT-FIT COLLEGES FOR APPLICATION LIST
 
   The most important part of the college application process is for students to apply to colleges that are the right best fit for them. It can be a challenge for both students and parents alike to know exactly what that means. The United States is home to not only some of the best colleges in the world, but also home to many different types of colleges, each specializing in different programs with unique and distinct cultures. From the plethora of choices available to them, how are students to know which set of colleges are the right best fit for them?
 
   It is the work of IECs to be experts in programming and cultural fit, and help their students know which colleges are most aligned with not only the student’s choice of major, but also aligned with their core values, interests, and strengths as well. By helping students know what their core values are gain clarity as to what they want for their collegiate experience, IECs are able to help students to narrow down their college application lists to a good set of choices. Aligned college list choices increase the likelihood a student will have success in the application, and IECs can play a key role in this determination.
 
9. INCREASE CHANCES OF ADMISSION
 
   Any good IECs will tell students and parents that, even with the best and most polished applications, they cannot guarantee any admissions decision; that decision solely rest with each college’s admissions committees. What good IECs can do is work with students to make sure they put their best foot forward in the application process, and work with students on a granular level to make sure each student presents themselves in the best light possible.
 
   After grades, the most important factor in college applications admissions officers look for what is what a student says about themselves in their responses to the essay questions (and also college interviews, if applicable). IECs should work with students to help them really understand what each question is asking and develop compelling narratives in response to each question, whether the word count limit is 50 words or 650 words. IECs should also help students list their high school activities in order of importance on the application and make sure activity descriptions are equally compelling. IECs can also help students in the college application process by preparing them for the interview portion by conducting mock interviews and strengthening their verbal and nonverbal communication skills.
 
SUMMARY
 
   The college admissions process is a complex one, with many moving parts and goalposts that seem to change with every admissions cycle. Understandably, it can create stress and anxiety among even the brightest students and most well-prepared families. Investing in a partnership with an IECs has many benefits and should be something students and families who are serious about the college application process should consider. The earlier students and parents begin work with an IEC during the high school years, the better the outcomes that can be expected from the process. So remember, do your homework, ask the right questions, and find an IEC that is the right best fit your student’s and families’ needs.
 
   Good luck!