Find the thread,not the spike.
General admissions advice loves a “spike”: one neat interest that makes you easy to categorize. But you’re more than that! I didn’t have one either. My pursuits spanned far and wide: STEM, debate, climate, feminism, Vietnamese story-telling, and far too many side quests.
If your interests look scattered, I’ll help you step back, find the thread connecting them, and turn your “too many things” into a story that makes sense, and sounds just like you.
Don’t flatten yourself! Find your underlying, unifying feature.
Found it!
Nothing changed except the way it was read.
Hear it from me
coming soon
A short film on how I actually work, from first conversation to final draft.
The Process
four stagesThe Conversation
Before anything gets written, we talk about you! I come bearing lots of questions. I want to hear how you think and what you actually care about. Most students leave this first call already sensing which story is theirs, and I begin to have an idea of your voice and which story-telling style suits you.
won regional robotics
mom keeps every rubber band
volunteered at the clinic
the line you almost skipped
The First Draft
We open that blank document and get to writing! Together we dig until we pull together the skeleton of the story worth writing about. Usually, something you’d never have guessed was “essay material”, and ties your application together in a way that is uniquely you.
- opening
- specific scene
- turn
- reflection
the shape we found
Make the Case
This is where our inadvertently persuasive side comes out! We start adding the flesh and essay gold onto the first draft. I’m in the margins the whole way; asking questions, giving honest feedback, pushing gently, but keeping it distinctly yours. We shape the story into something purposeful and persuasive; not just what happened, but why it matters and what it shows about you.
was
I learned the importance of perseverance.
now
By midnight, the motor smelled like burnt toast.
one sentence, before and after
We polish until it sounds like you
Line by line, we tighten everything and read it out loud. Every word must earn its place on your application! When you finally submit, it sounds unmistakably like you on your most honest, most alive day.
- Does it read out loud?
- Is every word earning it?
- Does it sound like you?
- Could anyone have written it?
the last read, out loud
Focused, productive sessions
Every session has a purpose. Before we meet, you’ll send me your draft, profile, and ideas and tell me what you’re struggling with, so we can get straight to work. I’ll give you some prior brainstorming templates and readings so you’re prepared too.
During the session, we’ll dig into your story, identify what’s strongest, and figure out in what direction the essay needs to go. Depending on what it needs, I’ll work through big-picture structure, targeted comments, or line-by-line edits; never editing just for the sake of it. You’ll leave with clear, concrete next steps, and I’ll be there to guide you through each revision so you always know what to work on next.
- I say what I don’t believe yet.
- I show you one alternative, never a rewrite.
- You decide. Every accept is yours.
- The thread closes and the draft moves on.
For the unconventional applicant.
International student?
Applying from outside the US, often from a school that sends almost nobody there, with no counsellor who has done it before. Your achievements don’t always make sense across countries, curricula, and admissions. I can help give you the context they need, without letting it take over your story.
A STEM heavy resume?
Research, olympiads, robotics, code, calculations? Most of what you’ve written so far has rewarded precision and punished creativity and the word “I”. I want to help you find the curiosity, personality, and why underneath the technical stuff.
Multiple countries?
Six countries, far too many moves, three school systems, a few languages, and a life that needs a footnote? I know the feeling. I’ll help you turn all those seemingly separate experiences into a perspective that feels cohesive, without forcing a neat narrative.
Unusual school system?
IB, A-levels, a national curriculum, an exchange year, a gap you have to explain, or something admissions officers may not immediately understand. I’ll help you explain what your context means, and make sure your accomplishments are seen in the right light, especially if you don’t have a school counsellor to do so.
No obvious spike?
Seven real interests yet no perfectly packaged passion? Trust me, me neither! Yet even distant stars are connected through constellations; your interests will be connected by a thread. That complexity is part of your story, not a weakness.