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College Essay-Writing Coach - I'll maximize your impact!
Michael J.

5.0 (22 ratings)

39 hours tutoring

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Hourly Rate: $125
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Response time: 1 hour
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About Michael

Bio

Panic is setting in. Millions of students (and their parents) – both American and international – now face perhaps the scariest deadline of their young lives: applying for admission to U.S. universities. Don’t worry! I can coach you through the most stressful part: producing your Personal Essays.

In just three sessions, I can steer you through the entire process of writing your Common App essay or university-specific Supplemental Essays: from brainstorming a winning idea, to polishing your...

Panic is setting in. Millions of students (and their parents) – both American and international – now face perhaps the scariest deadline of their young lives: applying for admission to U.S. universities. Don’t worry! I can coach you through the most stressful part: producing your Personal Essays.

In just three sessions, I can steer you through the entire process of writing your Common App essay or university-specific Supplemental Essays: from brainstorming a winning idea, to polishing your final draft. I created this unique toolkit of skills, strategies and storytelling from my career as an International Journalist.

I’ve recently coached nine students: five Americans, three Chinese and one Hungarian. For each, I helped identify their persuasive “core messages”; unearth “credible evidence” to prove they truly embody those messages; and wove it all into “humanizing” content that opens a window onto their authentic self.

Here’s how our three sessions unfold: 1) In the first, we brainstorm and strategize, then I write an outline – like a roadmap – for how to open your essay, then lead the reading Admissions Officer from beginning to end. 2) In the second, after you’ve written your first draft, I now critique it, showing how exactly you can improve it – such as, by filling holes. 3) In the third, with your revised draft in hand, we now polish it together.

It’s that easy. I guarantee that you (and your parents) will be satisfied: students I’ve coached have been admitted to undergrad and graduate programs at schools like Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, Emory, University of Florida, Amherst College, University of Indiana, Rutgers University, Carnegie-Mellon University, Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, and many others.

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Education

University of Missouri - Columbia
Journalism
The New School
Masters
  • Licensed teacher

Policies

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Approved Subjects

Career Development

Career Development

In these anxious times, we should all expand our skillset. No one appreciates that more than a career freelancer like me. I’ll happily share with you many of my own survival skills and strategies. Over the past 18 years, I’ve developed and led trainings in Europe, Africa and China, all focused on Professional Development: Global Communications, Cross-Cultural Communications, Empathy & Audience Psychology, International Storytelling, Personal Brand-Building, How to Freelance, Public Speaking, Organizational "Impact Stories," Media Relations, etc.
College Counseling

College Counseling

As you search for a university that’s the “right fit,” one critical challenge is to prove you’re also the right fit for them! But how to do so? By writing a persuasive Personal Essay/Personal Statement that proves your comparative-advantage and value-added, while effectively “humanizing” you, as well. I’ll share with you my Strategic Communications toolkit of skills, strategies and storytelling, which has helped students be accepted to schools like Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, Emory, Amherst, University of Indiana, the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, and many others. I’ve also worked as a Senior Essay Specialist for College Consulting firms in Shenzhen, China, and Houston, Texas.
Public Speaking

Public Speaking

How to achieve impact, with only our words? It starts with crafting a Communication Strategy, which I'm ready to share with you. I myself have been invited to speak publicly, in the US, Europe, Africa and China, about a range of topics - everything from storytelling skills and Fake News to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the China-US relationship. Not only have I tutored students and professionals in public speaking, but while living in China I even taught a course in Public Speaking to Chinese students at the Beijing Foreign Studies University. My four-step formula for you would be to think through: 1) WHO exactly is my audience is; 2) WHAT exactly do I want to say; 3) WHY exactly do I want to say that; and 4) HOW exactly do I want to say it?
SAT Writing

SAT Writing

As a professional journalist, I've reported from 30 countries over the past 25 years - for a wide range of newspapers and magazines. Meanwhile, I've taught Journalism, Writing, Storytelling and Communications to several thousand students and professionals on four continents. I look forward to sharing some of my skills and strategies with you!
Writing

Writing

As you search for a university that’s the “right fit,” one critical challenge is to prove you’re also the right fit for them! But how to do so? By writing a persuasive Personal Essay/Personal Statement that proves your comparative-advantage and value-added, while effectively “humanizing” you, as well. I’ll share with you my Strategic Communications toolkit of skills, strategies and storytelling, which has helped students be accepted to schools like Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, Emory, Amherst, University of Indiana, the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, and many others. I’ve also worked as a Senior Essay Specialist for College Consulting firms in Shenzhen, China, and Houston, Texas.
English

Examples of Expertise

Michael has provided examples of their subject expertise by answering 6 questions submitted by students on Wyzant’s Ask an Expert.

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Michael J.'s Photo

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Response time: 1 hour

Ratings and Reviews

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5.0 (22 ratings)
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Reviews

Knowledgeable and very experienced tutor

Michael helped me polish my personal statement for medical school. He is very wise and has had a lot of experience working on effective writing. Highly recommend him to anyone who needs help with personal statements!!

Prarthna, 1 lesson with Michael

great teacher and advisor

Vikaas really enjoyed working with Michael. He took the time to understand His story and advise him on how to work it into the essay so that it would stand out while being clear and concise

Vikaas, 2 lessons with Michael

Do not miss this guy!

I recently had few meetings with Michael for his assistance in my Admission letter to U.C Berkeley. The experience of working with him is both pleasant and valuable. Michael is both a good listener and advisor. Instead of giving me some cliche advices before even getting to know me, Michael started by engaging me in meaningful conversations that can help him better understand my background and experiences. In these conversations, Michael demonstrated his strong ability of identifying those that are valuable to the Admission Officers and taking note on my ideas and later arranging them into an outline. I think it is the substantive experience Michael had with people working in the media industry over the past few decades gives him this ability of accurately identifying ones shining point and making them into a compelling stories. If you need help with resume, admission letters or anything that requires a substantive amount of people experience, Michael would be a great choice for you.

Yuxuan, 2 lessons with Michael

Michael's Feedback Is Invaluable To My Success

I have learned the importance of a core message and how back convincingly prove my written arguments. My writing has improved tremendously with the help of Michael!

Deaudrea, 4 lessons with Michael
Hourly Rate: $125
Response time: 1 hour
Contact Michael