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🌈 Writing Professor & Personal Essay Expert w/ Ivy League Deg. + PhD
Jenna K.

5.0 (11 ratings)

19 hours tutoring

Your first lesson is backed by our Good Fit Guarantee
Hourly Rate: $130
Contact Jenna
Response time: 9 hours

About Jenna

Bio

Hi! I’m Jenna (she/they), a writing professor with a BA from Dartmouth, an MFA in Creative Writing from UVA, and a PhD in American Studies from the Freie Universitaet Berlin. I’ve worked as a tutor for two decades, coaching dozens of students to Ivy League admissions and supporting dozens more with test prep, subject tutoring, writing projects, and B’nai Mitzvah. I've worked with high school students, ERAS applicants, and those applying to graduate programs in law, medicine, business, social...

Hi! I’m Jenna (she/they), a writing professor with a BA from Dartmouth, an MFA in Creative Writing from UVA, and a PhD in American Studies from the Freie Universitaet Berlin. I’ve worked as a tutor for two decades, coaching dozens of students to Ivy League admissions and supporting dozens more with test prep, subject tutoring, writing projects, and B’nai Mitzvah. I've worked with high school students, ERAS applicants, and those applying to graduate programs in law, medicine, business, social work, and across the humanities and sciences. I remain active as a professor, teaching writing workshops, undergrad courses, and graduate seminars at universities in NYC and Berlin.

The personal essay is my specialty – my own was chosen by The Princeton Review as a teaching model, helping thousands of high school juniors and seniors get into the college of their dreams. Most people who apply to elite programs have the grades and scores to compete. What really sets applicants apart is a convincing essay, one that tells a compelling story about who you are as a thinker – and a human being. That’s where I come in. Even the best writers need editors; I’m here to make sure you sound impressive without sounding fake. Drawing on my unique combo of lit-kid storytelling chops, university-insiderism, and lifetime experience in elite academic environments, I’ll help you write a statement that catches admissions officers’ eyes – and sticks in their guts.

Beyond the essay, I support with admissions strategy (focus on American and European universities), test prep, writing or research projects, and subject tutoring. I’m a former AP and TOEFL grader, a former tutor for Kaplan, Manhattan GRE, and smaller boutique agencies, and the recipient of perfect scores on both the SAT and GRE. I tutor mostly by word-of-mouth in the NYC prep school scene. (I myself was a scholarship kid at Trinity, where I graduated top of my class.) Newly on Wyzant for the geographic diversity – and to support LGBTQIA+ students in underserved communities.

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Education

Dartmouth College
History
University of Virginia
Masters
Freie Universitaet Berlin
PhD

Additional Languages

German

Policies

  • Hourly Rate: $130
  • Rate details: For comprehensive admissions consulting (narrative strategy, application review, etc.), I offer packages.
  • Lesson cancellation: 24 hours notice required

  • No background check

  • Your first lesson is backed by our Good Fit Guarantee

Schedule

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Approved Subjects

Creative Writing

Creative Writing

I hold an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Virgina, a top-five program globally (and second most competitive after Iowa the year I was admitted). At UVA, I was a fully funded Poe/Faulkner fellow two years in a row. My fiction has appeared in Conjunctions, my screenwriting has placed at the Sundance Screenwriters Lab, and my literary translation has been positively reviewed in The New Yorker. I've won multiple residencies and awards, including the Zoetrope: All-Story Fiction contest and a grant at Can Serrat. As a creative writing mentor, I’ve taught hundreds of students from all walks of life – from young learners in afterschool programs to adult learners in continuing education. I’ve run workshops with aspiring screenwriters at Germany's premier film school, pre-meds at the University of Virginia, law students at the Freie Universitaet Berlin, and the entire writer’s room of a queer dystopian sci-fi show in development with Netflix.
English

English

I hold an MFA in Creative Writing and a PhD in American Studies and have been teaching writing at top-tier programs for two decades, including Dartmouth College and the University of Virginia. My literary accolades include a positive review in The New Yorker, a selection at the Sundance Screenwriters Lab, and development and production funding from the Saul Zaentz Innovation Lab. I’m a regular contributor to Time Out, Wallpaper*, and NPR; have editorial credits with Penguin Random House, the MIT Press, and Suhrkamp; and won the Burlington Magazine Contemporary Art Writing Prize for my cultural criticism. I’ve taught English all over the world, to students of all ages and from all walks of life. I’m particularly passionate about helping folks who have long struggled to find joy in reading and writing.
German

German

Native speaker, raised bilingually. Experience teaching undergrads and graduate students at universities across the US and Germany, including Freie Universitaet Berlin, Robert Schumann Hochschule, Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg, Universitaet Augsburg, University of Virginia, and Dartmouth College. I've translated several books from German into English, including works commissioned by Penguin Random House, DISTANZ, and Suhrkamp Verlag, and have worked as a communications consultant for Gropius Bau, Bauhaus University, and Volkswagen Design Lab. My translation of the oral history Der Klang der Familie was positively reviewed in The New Yorker, and my translation of the performance piece Black Tie toured the world.
Literature

Literature

I hold an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Virgina, a top-five program globally (and second most competitive after Iowa the year I was admitted). At UVA, I was a fully funded Poe/Faulkner fellow two years in a row. My fiction has appeared in Conjunctions, my screenwriting has placed at the Sundance Screenwriters Lab, and my literary translation has been positively reviewed in The New Yorker. I've won multiple literary residencies and awards, including the Zoetrope: All-Story Fiction contest and a grant at Can Serrat, and am a proud alum of Tony Tulathimutte's CRIT workshop. My dissertation explored the intersection of law and language, and I've taught Literature, Cultural Studies, and History courses to undergrads and grad students on both sides of the Atlantic. As a creative writing mentor, I’ve taught hundreds of students from all walks of life – from young learners in afterschool programs to adult learners in continuing education. I’ve run workshops with aspiring screenwriters at Germany's premier film school, pre-meds at the University of Virginia, law students at the Freie Universitaet Berlin, and the entire writer’s room of a queer dystopian sci-fi show in development with Netflix. When I'm not teaching, I'm ghostwriting for well-known cultural commentators, speechwriting for politicians, supporting artists with work statements, or helping people find the right words for urgent occasions, whether weddings or funerals. In my free time, I’m a writing mentor and workshop facilitator in PEN America’s Prison and Justice Writing Program. I can support students with analytic and academic writing, fiction, humor, creative nonfiction, screenwriting, application essays, d’var Torah and more.
Personal Statements

Personal Statements

I'm an Ivy League grad, New Yorker-reviewed writer, and author of the Princeton Review’s teaching model college essay. I hold an MFA in Creative Writing and a PhD in American Studies and have worked two decades as a writing professor and mentor, helping students find their voice, tell their story, and make a big impression when it matters most. A stand-out personal essay is the key to successful college and grad school applications -- but it's also so much more. Working together, we'll figure out who you are at your core, what you want to achieve, and what you can offer to the world. In the process, we'll develop practices that you'll carry with you for the rest of your life: critical self-reflection, effective self-presentation, the ability to incorporate feedback and to iteratively revise. Most important of all, we'll open the right doors to your future.
Writing

Writing

Writing is not just my profession – it’s my calling and my passion. I hold an MFA in Creative Writing and a PhD in American Studies and have been teaching writing at top-tier programs for two decades. My literary accolades include a positive review in The New Yorker, a selection at the Sundance Screenwriters Lab, and development and production funding from the Saul Zaentz Innovation Lab. I’m a regular contributor to Time Out, Wallpaper*, and NPR; have editorial credits with Penguin Random House, the MIT Press, and Suhrkamp; and won the Burlington Magazine Contemporary Art Writing Prize for my cultural criticism. My academic writing has received multiple grants and prizes from Dartmouth, the CUNY Graduate Center, the German Research Foundation, and the Freie Universitaet Berlin. When I'm not teaching, I'm ghostwriting for well-known cultural commentators, speechwriting for politicians, supporting artists with work statements, or helping people find the right words for urgent occasions, whether weddings or funerals. In my free time, I’m a writing mentor and workshop facilitator in PEN America’s Prison and Justice Writing Program. I can support students with analytic and academic writing, fiction, humor, creative nonfiction, screenwriting, application essays, d’var Torah and more.
American History
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Response time: 9 hours

Ratings and Reviews

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5.0 (11 ratings)
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Reviews

Straight To The Point!

Jenna was extremely helpful with my personal statements. She gave me exactly what I was looking for; constructive feedback on how to make my application stand out. I could tell she made the effort to understand who I am and the message I'm trying to send. Would definitely go to her again!

Noelia, 1 lesson with Jenna

Truly Outstanding Writing Support

I cannot recommend Jenna enough as a writing coach. She was invaluable in helping me strengthen my law school application essays, and I genuinely appreciated how thoughtful and engaged she was throughout the process. I went into our work thinking my personal statement was already in great shape, but she gently—and incredibly effectively—helped me see how much more powerful it could be. After working with her, I can say with full confidence that it is. Jenna’s feedback is incredibly deep, insightful, and precise—far beyond what most coaches offer, and certainly beyond what many charge far more for. She is responsive, flexible (whether you prefer video calls or asynchronous collaboration), and truly committed to supporting your goals. Thanks to Jenna, I feel like I submitted the strongest possible version of my applications, and I could not be more grateful.

Olive, 10 lessons with Jenna
Hourly Rate: $130
Response time: 9 hours
Contact Jenna