Can anyone from CC who has received/paid for consulting from Solomon for their kids speak on their results with the company?
After talking with a cofounder during a consultation, the advice he gave was very helpful and is nearly convincing me to pay for his consultation. There are literally no reviews online that aren’t from the website, which makes this decision extremely difficult.
If successful, the investment is a safe bet and would save me much more money in the long-run.
How do you expect them to save you money?
Is this a situation where the student needs help with sports recruiting or BFA admissions?
Is this a package where the student receives all of the exam prep as well as placement assistance?
Back in the stone age, I worked for a test prep and grad school placement organization. Yup, each and every one of our students did get into one of the top three places on their application list. That was due to the plain and simple fact that the company made dead certain that there was a solid safety on everyone’s list that that student was fairly happy with. Sure students got into Harvard/Chicago/NYU/Penn for their MBA programs, but those students were clearly top candidates to begin with.
Do a search - this question has been asked before.
I have the same exact question. The difference is that I have already paid. So far they seem to have the right answers. The main point is the following - It’s not that my son is not bright - he definitely has a chance to get into the best universities. But “Computer Science” is a whole new animal. It is twice as difficult, all else being the same.
So we want to get him all the help we can. After a point great grades, great SAT scores are not enough because it looks like every kid who wants to major in Computer Science has it. the competition is so tough that it comes down to the “differentiating Factor” - I hope this is where they can help. Anybody has any experience with them?
@ravishob Can you give us some more info on how it is going/went? My family just talked to their sales guy and we were extremely turned off by their sales person.
If the fee is reasonable and you communicate well with the consultant, then hiring a consultant may be wise.
Because you are trying to become a direct admit to a CS (Computer Science) major, it could be a good move if the consultant can present your story in a more effective manner than you are able to do.
CS is worth it.
@dcab1234 feel sorry for you
overall you cant rely on any of these consultants - your best bet is working hard on your application and make it genuine - all they can do is tell you what some of the students they came across the previous year did to get into school X plus edit your essays (but you can simply hire someone to have a look at the essay without paying thousands for “advice”)
I just got there brochure in the mail and I have to say it’s pretty impressive. I looked on the website but I can’t get any sense of what they charge. Can anyone share the rates for a package or hourly? And if you were happy of course. Thanks!
I just had a consultation with these guys. I was worried if they as good as they say or it’s a marketing gimmick. How is it going for you?
We had a phone consult too. A bit pushy and package rates are sky high. Have you signed up with them ?
Hello. Wanted to know your experience
I am new to this site…is there any way to see the answers to the questions about Solomon Admission Consulting? We are thinking about hiring them? I can’t seem to find any reviews that aren’t from their own website…
No consultant alone can work any magic. And the higher the tier you want, the more you need to realize this and other basics. You have to realize your responsibilities are more than finding and paying a pro.
There are no consultants I know of who take classes for you.
the reality is they won’t tell you anything that can’t be found without paying them beside perhaps helping out on an essay (which i really consider unethical as kids should write their own stuff - one thing is getting help from friend who is better in writing the other thing is getting help from a professional write)
I just wanted to contribute to this community a little. We used Solomon and had a very good experience. DS just got in an HYPS school through SCEA. We contacted Solomon in early October; within 3 days we were matched with a very experienced consultant who was a prior AO at an elite Ivy. It was extremely helpful. I think the experience was very rewarding because the consultant has seen so many application profiles previously. He looked at my son’s raw profile and gave valuable advice on how to present it. When it came to writing essays, the consultant did not write for him, but he had a way to enlighten and stimulate ideas to produce genuine responses. He also set a schedule on the schools that we would like to apply, so by early December, we already had strong drafts for 6-7 schools. If parents can view applying to college as a learning process, then I think the investment is worth the cost. DS improved his writing, his style of personal expression, and his thinking process drastically. His final PS and a number of supplemental essays truly reflected his personality, and I do not think we could’ve done it without Solomon’s help.
One more additional info, DS is well rounded, has the stats and a bunch of ECs , but not necessary shinning points that will wow the elite schools. But our consultant did the “magic”, the consultant helped him to digger out his niches and unique persona, made his story and application very cohesive and unique, and helped him to craft a very impressive memorable personal statement and a number of supplement essays. They also have a very good quality control system, once the essays are produced by the student with the guidance of the assigned consultant, then they will send the essays to a 3dr person to look it over again, with some additional smoothing of sentences, but not change the student’s voice. DS also got interview coaching, which is in the package. Very helpful. Our family are extremely happy that we used Solomon.
Can anyone share how much Solomon charges?
Mine was a very different experience. We received their info, probably based on College Board access with near perfect SAT scores/5’s on all AP etc… We also had the hard sell- had only 24 hours to decide because they only had “one slot”. We went with the more expensive package with personal coaching. If I had to choice knowing what I know now and going through the experience, I would NOT recommend their services. We were nervous about the whole process as this is very different then when we went to college and thought we needed direction because school GC was overwhelmed and of no help. Seems to me that the latest trend is to get a decent score on the SAT , but not necessary perfect score, Subject 2 tests ( no less than 700, near perfect for STEM), don’t spread yourself thin with many EC- have a peak ( meaning demonstrated interest in a certain subject and demonstrating that year after year including the summers - could be business, charity work, academic matter, building something etc…- early the better), and leadership roles (VERY important!). References should be someone who really knows your child and can talk about the vague qualities like kindness, respect for others, likability, getting along with others, accountability, inquisitiveness, learning from mistakes and improving themselves, demonstrating leadership etc…in addition to handling class workload. Pay really close attention to the essays to show genuine personality, not what you expect the ad com to hear but what makes you unique and what YOU can bring to the table. For the elite colleges it really is hit or miss what attracts their attention so always make sure there is a strong safety college on the list. Make sure you are in the situation where you can afford the college that you applied to unless you are in position for need based aid. Merit scholarships are harder to come by in the elite colleges. Remember, most people don’t focus on where you went to undergrad, it’s where you went to med/ law/ grad school and that can be costly. I went to public high school, public state university, higher ed school then president of a successful private corporation. When we interview potential partners, where you recently studied was more important than undergrad school. Save your money! If you have questions- ask in these forums. You have access to parents, students, sometimes admission counselors who had undergone this recently and they are much more qualified. One more thing for students- think about colleges early ( the earlier the better!) and investigate where you may want to go, narrow your list, get the applications early so you have time (once fall senior starts your heavy coursework may suffer and you need to keep your grades up as the schools will want first semester grades), and pay attention to deadlines- application, SAT/ACT scores, transcripts, recommendations, etc…Good luck!