Dr. Rachel Rickard Rebellino

As Spark Admissions’ Director of Academic Affairs, Dr. Rickard Rebellino guides the firm’s academic policies and practices, positioning Spark at the forefront of an increasingly complex and evolving admissions landscape. She leads the development and ongoing evaluation of Spark’s advising strategy, ensuring that the firm anticipates changes in selective admissions while maintaining guidance that is creative, rigorous, and deeply student-centered.

A veteran admissions consultant with more than 15 years of experience, Dr. Rickard Rebellino’s advising approach emphasizes intellectual curiosity, authentic storytelling, and strategic academic positioning. She has helped students gain admission to over 100 different colleges and universities, including every Ivy League institution, and, in her last full-time admissions cycle, 14 of her students were admitted to one or more top-20 universities, including MIT, Harvard, Stanford, and Yale. These outcomes reflect her ability to help students craft creative, highly individualized academic narratives that resonate across a wide range of selective institutions.

Prior to joining Spark Admissions, Dr. Rickard Rebellino served as an English professor at multiple institutions, teaching graduate- and undergraduate-level literature and writing courses. Her background as a scholar and educator informs both her advising philosophy and her leadership in shaping Spark’s writing standards and academic framework.

She was a Presidential Fellow at The Ohio State University, where she earned a doctorate in teaching and learning, and she graduated with distinction from the University of Michigan. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her husband and son and working through her ever-growing to-be-read pile of books.