spark-admissions-logo

Menu

Free Consultation

Work with the nation’s highest-rated college admissions consulting firm

See Our Services
Rachel Rubin of Spark Admissions seated in chair smiling

Our college admissions expertise has been featured by:

  • The Boston Globe logo
  • CNN logo
  • Fox News logo
  • U.S. News & World Report logo
  • The Wall Street Journal logo
  • Time Magazine logo
Smiling teenage boy of Asian descent standing outside school with classmates in background

Admissions Consulting

Spark Admissions counselors help students find—and get into—the ideal schools for them.

  • College admissions
  • Transfer admissions
See Consulting Packages

What makes our admissions consulting services unique:

Expertise

Co-Founder Rachel Rubin led the groundbreaking study on how the 75 most selective U.S. colleges and universities make admissions decisions.

Strategy

We help students achieve their goals by taking a holistic approach to helping them with every aspect of their academic and extracurricular development.

Team

All of our counselors have admissions experience at selective colleges, attended top universities and graduate schools, and are passionate about helping students reach their goals.

Relationships

Students work with one Spark Admissions consultant throughout the entire college admissions process, forging strong and long-lasting relationships.

Services

We offer a range of comprehensive consulting packages and application and essay counseling that can be tailored to fit each family’s needs.

Learn More

Admissions Results

During the past decade we’ve helped hundreds of students gain admission to their top-choice schools.

See All Results

Blog

Admissions tips, trends, and expertise

Read expert advice from Spark Admissions counselors on crafting compelling applications and essays, where to apply to college, admissions strategies and more.

Visit Blog
A female student at her school desk taking a test on a scantron form.

Which Colleges and Universities Will Be Test-Optional in 2023-2024?

Here is an up-to-date list of every school that will be test-optional, test-flexible, or test-blind in 2023-2024.

Read More
A woman working in front of a laptop, surrounded by papers, colored pens, and an external hard-drive.
A graduating senior in her cap standing in front of a chalk board covered in question marks.

Surprising Admissions Trends at U.S. Colleges in 2021-2022

This spring, many students and families discovered that schools that could once have been considered relatively safe bets for strong students were no longer sure things. Here, we’ve highlighted some of the schools that saw a particularly noteworthy drop in their admission rates.

Read More
An entry gate to one of Harvard's side gates.

Changes in Admission at Top Boston-Area Schools

In recent years, colleges and universities in and around Boston (including those in its neighboring suburbs) have received a growing number of applications, and as a result, falling admission rates.

Read More
Northeastern University logo

Understanding the Special Admissions Programs at Northeastern University

Northeastern University has skyrocketed in popularity among college-bound high school students in recent years. As a result, Northeastern has initiated a number of “special admissions” programs that offer unique opportunities for students while also helping the university to manage their on-campus enrollment.

Read More
A female student preparing to enter a large stone-fronted university building.

Admissions Changes at Catholic Universities in the United States

With their rising popularity, Catholic and Jesuit colleges have become increasingly selective. So if you’re thinking that a Catholic university might be right for you, read on to learn more about the most popular options and what they’re looking for in their students.

Read More
A street sign promoting 'Harvard' and 'Yale' terrace.
A female student at her school desk taking a test on a scantron form.

Which Colleges and Universities Will Be Test-Optional in 2022-2023?

Here is an up-to-date list of every school that will be test-optional, test-flexible, or test-blind in 2022-2023.

Read More
A closeup image of a pencil laying on a multiple-choice answer form.

The New Digital SAT – What It Is and What It Means for College Admissions

The College Board recently announced an entirely new format for the future of the SAT. What will it look like, and how will it affect you?

Read More
Two pencils resting on top of a completed scantron form.

Ivy League Schools Go Test-Optional Again for 2022-2023 – What This Means for College Admissions

Harvard, Stanford, and other top universities are extending their temporary test-optional policies. What does this mean for the college admissions landscape?

Read More
Smiling high school girl of Indian descent wearing graduation cap and gown with classmates in background
A young student erasing an answer from a standardized testing answer sheet.
A graduating senior in her cap standing in front of a chalk board covered in question marks.
Two pencils resting on top of a completed scantron form.
A woman taking notes in a notebook while working on a laptop.
A student hidden behind a stack of AP and IB textbooks.
Hands typing on a laptop computer.
A set of five friends or roommates sitting together on a low wall.
Two Macbook Pro laptops on a desk transferring data from one to the other.
Scholarships vs Grants vs Loans
An overhead view of a set of walkways cutting through a grassy quad between several large university buildings.
A student expressing frustration while studying at a laptop.
The entrance to one of the buildings at the University of California.
Students sitting in a lecture hall during a university class.
A graduating senior with the LGBTQ flag on her graduation cap.
A student laying down, surrounded by textbooks, study electronics, and notebooks as she holds her head in stressful frustration.
A female pulling her yellow rolling suitcase across a town square in a foreign city.
students lined up for high-school graduation in their cap and gown.
A female student of Asian descent studying hard at her laptop while taking notes in a notebook.
Three students, two female one male, presenting something to a group from across a conference table.
The inside of an empty classroom with a chalkboard and wooden-topped desks.
A man filling out a paper application, while sitting in front of a laptop that states "Send your application now!".
The exterior of several stone-faced buildings at dusk, just as the lights are coming on.
A woman working in front of a laptop, surrounded by papers, colored pens, and an external hard-drive.
A 2020 graduate in her cap and gown wearing a yellow protective face mask.
Looking down the walkway of a college library with shelves on the right and reading desks on the left.
A graphical illustration of what the Corona virus looks like.
Two pencils resting on top of a completed scantron form.
A graduating senior in her cap standing in front of a chalk board covered in question marks.
A female sitting on a couch across from an interviewer.
A blackboard with numbers 1-3 to list pros and cons.
A broken pencil on a multiple-choice test form.
A medical professional sitting with a notebook on her lap and a stethoscope around her neck.
A female student preparing to enter a large stone-fronted university building.
A young student taking notes in a notebook from information gained on his laptop.
A group of private school students around their chemistry teachers desk.
A female perusing through many books stacked on a wall full of bookshelves.
A man playing tennis up close to the net.
Two soccer teammates passing the ball in the middle of a soccer match.
A Crew team practicing on a body of water with the focus on their oarlocks.
Mixed letter blocks with a handful that spell out Dyslexia running through the middle.
A red marker checking off a box in a list.
Two graduates next to large numbers saying '2020' backlit by a fiery sunset.
An application form that has been stamped as "ACCEPTED".
A pencil laying on a standardized testing answer form.
A grade scale explanation table from a standardized testing form.
Several students taking tests on a long white table.
A woman walking on a path with an arrow pointing both forward and to the left.
A professional businesswoman extending her hand.
A closeup image of a pencil laying on a multiple-choice answer form.
A teacher writing formulas on a chalk board.
Female hands typing on a laptop.
A street sign promoting 'Harvard' and 'Yale' terrace.
An entry gate to one of Harvard's side gates.
One of the pathways through a a massive stone building on the Princeton campus.
An overhead drove perspective of the main fountain on the Stanford campus.
A sundown view of the buildings on the Yale University campus.
A couple and their young daughter sitting and talking with a consultant.
The large stone face of one of the massive buildings in Massachusetts.
Private school students going up and down a school staircase.
Someone standing on a chalkboard covered in question marks.
A wooden signpost that mark 'This Way', 'That Way', and 'The Other Way'.
Lightbulbs whose internal filaments seem to write 'help', 'support', 'assistance', and 'guidance'.
A metal six-pointed 'Star-of-David'.
A green signpost with arrows saying 'public' and 'private'.
A grassy stretch between some of the buildings on the historic Harvard University campus.
Historic Sather Gate at the University of California at Berkley.
A young student erasing an answer from a standardized testing answer sheet.
A female student smiling while in a lecture hall with many other students.
a high-school boy in a blue sweater standing outside his local library.
three high-school girls studying in their school library.
A collection of squash equipment.
Two squash players with their equipment gathered around a laptop computer.
A stack of books with a graduation cap on top and the text 'National Merit Scholarship' in the negative space to the left.
A sprinting track on a school's sports field.
A collection of various sports equipment.
A student taking a test at a classroom desk.
A report card's grade column.
The tips of yellow pointed shoes in front of two chalk arrows pointing both left and right with a question mark between them.

We have more 5-star Google reviews than any other college consulting firm.

Contact us to learn more about our admissions consulting services.

Schedule Your Free Consultation