Meet the Founder
Dr. Kristen Starkowski

Kristen has over a decade of experience as a professional tutor and college admissions coach. After graduating as salutatorian from Colby College, she earned a Ph.D. in English from Princeton University before working as a college writing instructor at Harvard. Kristen draws on her writing background to help students brainstorm unique angles and craft personal statements that stand out in a competitive admissions landscape.

Over the years, she has guided students through every stage of the college admissions journey—from academic support on English papers and lab reports to shaping applications that have earned acceptances to top 25 institutions, including Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth, Stanford, Notre Dame, and more.

What sets Kristen apart is her commitment to high-touch, structured, and personalized guidance. While many consultants offer general advice, Kristen partners directly with each student to transform strategy into a tailored, actionable plan, providing real-time support as they execute and refine their materials.

Kristen works with a select number of families each year, which allows her to take a hands-on role in every aspect of the admissions preparation process, including academic course selection, writing and homework guidance, college list strategy, application preparation and editing, and standardized test prep planning.