Where she started

I came in really naive looking at this college process. I thought applications were like two or three paragraph questions — you send them out and every school gets an interview. I had a very incorrect perception.

I always assumed I had to do the clear-cut things. Join these top programs at name-brand colleges, take all the hardest APs. I remember my first day wearing a UC Berkeley hoodie. I wanted to be like all the other STEM kids at my school. I was that textbook student looking to hit checkpoint A, B, C to get into a UC.

I’m a nervous planner — I procrastinate by planning to avoid doing the task. I didn’t know about any of the programs in my school, or half the things I could do with the classes I was already taking.

What changed

The biggest way Zenith helped me was letting me see my full potential in a different way. They showed me that if I was passionate about something and willing to run with it, develop it into my own project and put my energy into it, it would work out.

You could actually do what you want to do, be good at it, and show someone who’s really willing to listen that you’re worth that shot.

When I was struggling with AP Calc, my counselor told me: your struggle right now is finite, you may never touch a calculus textbook again. But the skills you learned from that struggle — how to get answers, how to find people who can help — that’s what’s going to stick with you.

The moment it felt different

Everyone was so personable. I never felt like I was talking to a robot. The biggest thing you’re getting with Zenith is an ally in your corner. It was altered to fit who I was.

My counselor was so proactive you felt you were their only student. I never once felt like I was a project to them.

My relationship with my counselor was like a life jacket. They would never let me drown, but would help me swim and keep going. They were never there to direct my path — they were the guide rails that helped me get where I wanted to go.

Going into applications

I went from being that textbook student to a student who says, I want to create my own path. Zenith helped me realize that college isn’t just about going somewhere you’ve heard other people talk about going.

My counselor was the best third-party figure anyone could have. They gave me reality checks. When I was crying about coding classes saying I can’t do this, my counselor said: I have to be real with you. I’m not putting you in this to make you an engineer — I want you best prepared for whatever the job market throws at you. Now I use those HTML skills in research positions at UNC.

Having a clear plan was the best thing. I didn’t have to do any of the planning — they gave me the scaffold to build on. I was able to do twenty more things than if I’d had to plan and execute myself. I never felt bogged down.

Where it led

Me as the middle schooler coming in versus who I am today — they are not the same person. If you stuck middle-school me in the situations I’m going through in college right now, she would be drowning.

I’m doing research at the top pharmaceutical school in the country. I’m a medical scribe. I teach STEM to kids. I work with underprivileged communities in soup kitchens. I never would have had faith in myself to do any of these things without Zenith.

I didn’t get those positions because I’m the smartest. I got them because I’m hardworking, hungry, and passionate. They never told me to just do what was necessary. They always asked: what more can you do?

I told my younger sister — Zenith understood who I was coming into this, and they changed their plan for me. No student is built the same. Zenith is a family. I don’t think you can really leave the program. You always gain a mentor and a support system that follows you wherever you go.

Where she started

I didn’t really know what to expect. I thought, probably all I have to do is keep my grades up and not do dumb things while I’m growing up. We knew absolutely nothing about what colleges actually look for. We were going in completely blind.

The hardest thing was knowing what I actually was interested in. All I liked was school, my friends, and video games. School was everything — it was all about grades. I never did anything else.

Knowing how to manage my time was probably my biggest struggle. I didn’t know what I wanted to do, and I was just planning to do what everyone else was doing. I felt pretty insecure — like, I’m just doing school, I’m not really doing any extracurriculars.

What changed

I realized there’s a lot more to college prep than keeping grades up. A huge part of it was showing interest and exploring. Zenith walked us through everything, told us exactly how it’s done, and pointed us to the right places for the rest.

They found great opportunities for me to explore interests I had, or develop new ones — and showed me what was on the path ahead so we could plan for it.

One of the greatest lessons I learned was knowing when to quit: when to take a step back, take a deep breath, and build a plan that actually works instead of running in blind. I don’t think I ever pulled an all-nighter after joining Zenith, because they taught me how to plan around my work and when to take breaks.

The moment it felt different

Everyone at Zenith is just so easy to talk to. It never felt like I had homework. There was always a counselor there for anything you needed. It was a lot more than college help.

I didn’t feel mounting pressure before every meeting. We were able to talk like friends, and that way our conversations were more honest. My counselor never pressured me into anything — he’d give me ideas and say, it’s completely your decision. I was the one making the decisions, I just had someone who had my back.

One moment stands out. I was writing an essay and could not come up with an idea, so I hopped on a call and sat there rattling off everything I was thinking. He stopped me and asked one very specific question. I went off on a whole other tangent — and he didn’t say anything after that. Just the one question. That’s the essay I ended up submitting.

Going into applications

Working with my counselor made me feel relaxed but also extremely motivated. He always had ideas — programs to apply to, books to read. He sparked a thirst for knowledge that grew stronger every time we met.

Sometimes I’d get a bad grade, or get rejected by a program, or something would just go wrong. He’d say, it’s no big deal, we’ll rework our plan and do better next time. He always pushed me to be better, but when things didn’t go my way he was there to help me set my sights on the next thing.

Without Zenith the application process would have been extremely stressful, because I wouldn’t have known when to start or how to plan. Having that timeline in place was reassuring — it helped me set my own goals instead of following the norm.

Where it led

I was accepted into pretty much every UC school, as well as some really great engineering schools I was excited about — UIUC, Georgia Tech, Purdue. And the wild card I was not expecting was UPenn, which is where I am now.

When you see the word “congratulations” and the little confetti animation, you’re on top of the world. It’s a great feeling to know that everything you’ve worked for has paid off.

Zenith exceeded my expectations because they were so much more than college application help. It was really about helping me become a better person and a better student — knowing my limits, and how to push them further.

Where he started

My mother and I read all of the information on the college sites, along with many of the articles written. What we had from that was, unfortunately, still a somewhat basic understanding — because there are many things about the college process you don’t really know until after you’ve gone through it.

The college process felt like a game I didn’t know the rules of. Early on, a lot of my passions didn’t quite shine through in my writing. Building metal models, my love of hiking, the time I spent with my family — none of it sounded genuine on the page.

I faced the anxiety that every student does: what if I don’t get in? What if I get deferred from every school and end up at a safety? I’d be going to college, of course, but my aims were set a lot higher.

What changed

A lot of what we learned from Zenith was very constructive — not something we could have understood on our own, even having done as much research as we did.

Getting there myself would have been more of a trial by fire, learning through failure, rather than having a team with a lot more experience share it with us so there were no surprises.

My counselor’s feedback helped me strategize the process. And I improved a lot as a writer — how I feel about my passions became a lot more present in my writing, rather than just me saying things.

The moment it felt different

The reputation of the program is very good — the same reason we looked at many colleges. But beyond that surface level, what truly convinced me was my first meeting with one of the counselors.

When my mother and I met with him, there was alignment between a lot of what he thought would help me and a lot of what I already felt about the college process.

I realized the program was not going to be a set of steps to follow, or impersonal advice. It was going to be something that would help me as a person.

Going into applications

Zenith helped me realize I didn’t need to look at it as a what-if scenario. There were a lot of things I could do to put myself in an attacking position, rather than simply waiting and hoping.

The mindset I had at the end that I didn’t have at the beginning: I wasn’t sitting around waiting for a college to accept me. I was going out and chasing these acceptances.

Knowing I was doing all that I could made me a lot more confident. That confidence helped beyond being prepared — it showed in how I presented myself in interviews, and I’m sure it showed in my essays.

Where it led

My college acceptance was the least of my benefits from the Zenith program. The most valuable things I took out of it aren’t relegated to the application process — they’re going to last me far beyond college.

Coming in, I’d never done anything like a college application before. It was by far the biggest challenge I’d ever faced at that point.

From the moment I joined, it was simply another class, except without the pressure of a grade. So I’d tell a friend: don’t be intimidated by the workload. It’s just there to help you. What I valued most was the empathy I received throughout the process.

Where they started

ParentAnything we were finding was pretty much asking friends or colleagues, or doing a Google search. All of it was good enough, but we weren’t confident about any one of those things. We didn’t know exactly how they were going to play out.

ParentSome of the things we knew were good and right. But some things we didn’t know about altogether. For example, you have to write five, six, seven essays. It was feeling very overwhelming.

AiktaI didn’t know anybody else I could reach out to. The hardest part as a student is managing your school work along with the college applications process.

What changed

ParentZenith helped us understand how to start. They guided us on what courses she should take the next school year to build her particular profile. Some of those we would not have figured out ourselves.

ParentOnce they started providing structure, we realized yes, you do have to write a lot of essays — but there’s a framework, and you customize from there for each college.

ParentZenith was targeting every application to be ready and submitted a month before the due date. That itself provides a lot of confidence that you’re not rushing at the last minute.

The moment it felt different

ParentAt our initial meeting we felt reassured and confident with the people we were talking to. After a few meetings we realized she’s in good hands and we don’t have to keep attending the sessions between her and her counselor.

ParentThey developed a relationship where she was comfortable talking to the counselor regularly, and counselors were proactive in checking in.

AiktaIf I’m not feeling certain about something, they’ll walk me through it, explain it, or we can switch to another option. That made me feel confident in the decisions I was making. I wasn’t uncertain about anything we were doing.

Going into applications

AiktaThe timeline they created was very helpful, and we worked with our counselor to rearrange it around our travel — so we still finished on time, but it fit what we were doing that summer.

AiktaMy counselor made sure we were applying to the right schools and which to apply to early to maximize chances. The monthly check-ins on how my grades and classes were going were a nice personal touch you might not think is part of college counseling.

ParentEven though she applied to almost 27 colleges, the way it was structured — which colleges we focus on first, what needs to be done when — gave a lot of confidence that everything was on track. And when I say there was no pressure: there was pressure, but not to the point that it creates stress on the student. It was a balanced approach.

Where it led

ParentShe got in Early Decision II, which closed the process early enough. We’ve seen students who didn’t do early decision have a lot of anxiety watching their friends’ results come out. Her decision came by February 15th and she knew she had committed.

ParentThere was internal discussion about why we should go for an external counselor when the private school has counselors. The school counselors were good — but I don’t think without Zenith it would have been possible.

AiktaI don’t know where I would have ended up navigating the process without Zenith. Whenever somebody asks me about my experience, one of the main things I mention is the timeline they created.

Where she started

Before Zenith, I had a general understanding of the college application process, but there were so many moving parts and it felt really overwhelming. There was no clear strategy.

What changed

Zenith helped me navigate the complexities with confidence — from refining my essays to making sure I had great extracurricular opportunities, as well as a well-balanced college list. Their insights on how to frame my experiences made a huge difference.

The strategic school selection and the extracurricular opportunities I wouldn’t have found on my own made the overwhelming parts a lot more manageable. I appreciated how they helped me highlight my own experiences in a way that felt authentic.

Afterward I had a much deeper understanding of what admissions officers really look for, and how to strategize my time to make the best of high school. I felt a lot more in control.

The moment it felt different

Zenith is a lot more than a college consulting service — it was like a mentorship that really helped me shape my story. They take time to understand your strengths, interests, and goals, and they make sure your application reflects the best version of yourself.

The feedback is detailed and insightful. The monthly check-ins helped me feel prepared and structured through my high school journey. Zenith always provided constant support without feeling overbearing.

Going into applications

The confidence Zenith gave me was the peace of mind of knowing I wasn’t navigating the process alone. Having experts validate my choices, give constructive feedback, and keep me on track helped me stay calm and focused, even when things didn’t go according to plan.

Their encouragement made me a lot more confident, and I knew I was submitting my best possible work.

Where it led

The high school journey and the college application process is very stressful, but they made it feel a lot more manageable — and even exciting at times.

Their insights helped me put together applications I was truly proud of, and I wouldn’t have had the same level of confidence without them.

Where he started

Before I joined Zenith, I didn’t know any of the opportunities there were for me to discover. I didn’t really have anything on my resume.

I would have just forced myself to take extracurriculars because I felt I had to — not because I actually enjoyed them.

What changed

What Zenith really helped me with was giving me a lot more things to be interested in. The main benefit was being able to do activities that I genuinely enjoy.

Through Zenith I discovered a lot of opportunities. I attended a UPenn class on sports business and learned more about that. I did programs like LaunchX and others I found really interesting.

I learned a lot about the admissions process just by talking to my counselor. I’d ask a lot of questions and he’d always come back precise, breaking it down so I could understand.

The moment it felt different

What I really liked is how easy it is to get information. Whenever I email my counselor, he responds in maybe less than one hour — and it’s always concise and easy to understand.

Going into applications

The peace of mind Zenith gave me was adding a lot more to my name. Before, I didn’t really have anything. Afterward I was able to put together a coherent resume with my extracurriculars, activities, and everything I did.

I was able to use what I learned from my counselor for my colleges, and for school in general.

Where it led

My overall experience was very positive. I discovered a lot of extracurriculars I found really interesting. They also helped with my applications — checking my essays, giving me advice, telling me how the process goes.

Without Zenith, I think I’d be a lot worse off. What I want other families to know is that these guys know their stuff. They’ve worked with hundreds of kids, so your kid is in good hands.