Blog - Julie Kim Consulting

When to take the SAT/ACT

While we’ve all heard that the college application process is “holistic” (and it is), we can’t ignore the fact that students with higher SAT and ACT scores are admitted at a higher rate than students with lower scores. So it’s important that your child strategically plans WHEN to take the SAT or ACT. You might wonder… “can’t we just take it the end of junior year? Beginning of senior year?” Nope! And here are the reasons: Reason #1: The SAT/ACT

The #1 Problem Holding Your Child Back: What’s keeping them from their dream college?

As soon as I started college, I had one goal in mind. I’m going to get straight A’s. ...Not to show off to my friends that I’m smart. ...Not to brag about how smart or hardworking I am. I knew that getting straight A’s was important because I was planning for Harvard grad school. My intention and motivation didn’t last too long though… I got a C on one of my economics chapter test-- it was actually my FIRST test

How to Get over Social Media Addiction

A few months ago, a mom with a teenager from Princeton, NJ reached out to me for help. “How can I tell if my son is addicted to technology? At what point do I need to seek professional help?” And I’m sure that you’ve asked yourself this question too because… Your daughter is on her Instagram account in between homework assignments instead of studying for the next day’s quizzes. Your son is playing games when he has a math test

What You Need to Get Accepted into your Dream College: The Formula for Success

When I was in 10th grade, I worked with a counselor. Although he was so popular for getting students accepted into prestigious colleges, I hated going into our monthly sessions. The reason? He was telling me what to do without really understanding who I was. He told me to get straight A’s, get the best SAT score (and when I told him I scored lower than expected), he would just push push push me. But he never asked me “why”.

How to Volunteer the Right Way

The world of college admissions has somehow implanted a stubborn belief that volunteering is a critical component of getting accepted into Ivy Leagues and top tier colleges. As I’ve been working in the college admissions industry for nearly 10 years now, let me share with you what I’ve been realizing over and over again: Not every 15-year old wants to volunteer. The reason is quite simple -- they’d rather spend their free hours catching up on sleep, watching their favorite

5 HUGE Mistakes to Avoid in High School

Today, I’ll be sharing 5 mistakes that thousands of high school students and parents make when navigating through the college admissions journey. Mistake #1: Trying to get as many awards and certificates as possible Proud of AMC 10? Awards from Robotics Club? Certificates from Johns Hopkins? When it comes to obtaining certificates and awards, students and parents get obsessed with how MANY they’ve accumulated. Colleges are more interested and impressed by the “why” not “how many”. The Common Application only

3 Surprising Factors for Getting Accepted Into Your Dream College

You’ve probably heard how important GPA, SAT/ACT scores, and stellar college essays are in the college admissions game. As a parent, you’re doing a fantastic job providing all the resources and tutors for your child. I want to applaud you for supporting your child in unimaginable ways! To help you out even more, I’m going to share 3 surprising factors you most likely overlook or don’t pay too much attention to. Let’s get started. Surprising Factor #1: How curious

My 7 Secrets For Getting Straight A’s in High School

When I started my 9th grade year, I honestly thought, “How hard could high school be? I mean..I didn’t study that much in middle school, but I still got straight A’s” Does this sound familiar? High school students see a drastic drop in their GPA when transitioning from 8th to 9th or 9th to 10th grade. And to be REALLY honest, I also fell into that trap. In my 1st semester of 9th grade, I received 5 B’s and 1

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