The world of college admissions looks very different today than it did even five years ago, and seismic shifts in the admissions landscape have led to greater transparency about what top schools are looking for in applicants. It is now public knowledge, for example, that Harvard admissions officers rate students on categories including their academic achievement, extracurricular involvement, and athletic ability, as well as the strengths of their recommendations and their interview on a scale from 1 to 6 (with 1 being the most desirable outcome). We also know that Dartmouth admissions officers generally consider test scores to be of value to an application—even when students assume their scores are not impressive.
More importantly, it’s clear that a perfect GPA and a 1600 SAT score are no longer enough to earn a student a spot at a coveted Ivy League university.
If grades and test scores were the entire focus of admissions, top schools and Ivy League colleges could fill their entering classes several times over with students with perfect academic statistics. As a result, it is essential that applicants stand out from their peers. Top-tier colleges want to admit students who have made an impact in their community, followed their passions, and gained real-life experiences through internships and jobs.
Rather than selecting only high-achieving students, colleges seek to build well-rounded classes composed of students with distinct passions, dynamic interests, and distinct focuses. The biggest challenge students face is becoming those types of applicants.
If a student intends to become such an applicant, they should begin to explore and adapt their passions early in their high school career so that they can engage in meaningful experiences that convey the depth of their commitment. their with their determining interest.
Seeking to share his discoveries and admissions story with other aspiring students and help families navigate the changing landscape of elite college admissions, Christopher Rim founded Command Education to empower students to identify their passions and articulate accomplishments , their interests and experiences in high schools.
Why trust Rimi? He was accepted to Yale University with an unweighted 3.7 GPA—almost unheard of when discussing Ivy League admissions—thanks to his extracurricular activities, which allowed him to stand out.
Rim’s theory rings true, as he was the only student out of 18 other applicants in his high school accepted to Yale. In conclusion, Rim had the lowest grades of all.
What is Command Education?
“I realized that admissions officers could never really understand what it’s like to be on the other side of the process, so I envisioned a different approach to college admissions consulting,” says Christopher Rim, Founder and CEO of Command Education, a college counseling boutique. strong
Rim developed what he refers to as the “near-peer mentoring model” somewhat inadvertently—friends and family reached out to Chris after he was accepted to Yale, asking for college application help for their children. “They won’t listen to me,” they told him, “but everyone knows you got into Yale, so maybe they will.” He worked individually with Ivy League hopefuls to explore their defining passions in sophisticated, authentic and demonstrable ways that would enable them to stand out to admissions officers.
Since founding Command Education in 2015, Rim has worked with dozens of students from Horace Mann, Trinity, Collegiate, Brearley and Riverdale — and parents pay him up to $1,500 an hour to help their teens get into schools. required Ivy League.
“I’ve seen firsthand that the difference between a good application and a great application was authentic passion—it’s the one thing in the admissions process that can’t be bought or manufactured,” says Rim. “When students are inspired by someone their own age to tap into their passions and rise to new challenges, they do things they didn’t even realize they were capable of. They become better students, better people good – and better applicants.”
Rim further explained that curating genuine interests aims to help students stand out. After all, almost all students who apply to Ivy League schools have near-perfect grades and test scores. This makes extracurricular activities, research and projects vital to landing a place on the admissions list.
To maximize each student’s opportunities, many Command Education clients begin the process in ninth grade; however, some start as early as seventh grade. That’s because “you can’t go back in time” and “everything matters in the college application process,” he says.
Best of all, when students join Command Education, they are matched with a mentor throughout the college admissions process to help with tutoring and guidance. The firm’s team of experts consists of recent graduates of the Ivy League and other top schools. Having successfully navigated the admissions process at the nation’s most elite and selective colleges in recent years, mentors play the role of a supportive, close figure in students’ lives, bringing an emotionally intelligent and highly personalized approach to the counseling process. . Customers get access to them 24/7 via email, phone calls, messages and meetings.
“We know that admissions committees are looking for curious, ambitious intellectual leaders—but most importantly, we know how to help students tap into their passions, develop and demonstrate these coveted characteristics, and make it in a way that is completely original and unique to help them stand out from admissions officers,” says Gabe Cramer, Director of Mentoring at Command Education.
This interpersonal, passionate, academic-led program pits many other college admissions services against each other, as others serve as “more of a checklist,” according to Rim.
Does Command Education Work?
In addition to the success of Rim and Command Education, one may still ask, “Does Command Education really work?”
Considering that 100% of students who applied to Harvard in 2021 with the help of Command Education were accepted, more than nine out of 10 students who applied got into at least one of their top three schools, and that the company has led nearly 1000 teenagers. with a 90% direct referral rate, we say yes.
Satisfied parents of happy students are also proof that Command Education is worth it – even with the high price tag of $85,000 to $120,000 per academic year.
“We have hired almost every teacher and counselor for [Command Education student] Brooke before working with Chris, but no one was able to approach her like Chris and his team,” said a mother of a former Riverdale Country School student. “Command Education put her in a positioned to succeed like no one else she’s ever worked with.”
Senior mentors have helped students leverage their passions and skills to present on pressing public health issues before Congress, spearhead multiple volunteer initiatives to address food insecurity in their areas, present original research on gender disparities at STEM conferences and develop new technologies to help multi- able students navigate their schools and communities. These standout initiatives can transform a good but forgettable application into one that admissions officers can’t ignore.
While these projects may seem too ambitious for high school students, Rim emphasizes that they are student-driven from start to finish—a core value of the firm’s approach that sets them apart from other consultancies. This is especially important, he says, because admissions officers can spot inauthentic and contrived efforts from a mile away—and they see right through them.
“Student projects are born out of their genuine interests, passions and adaptation to the unique needs of their communities,” notes Rim. “Our mentors simply take students’ ideas and push them to go further, dream bigger and speak louder. They are there every step of the way to ensure students have the resources and support to turn their wildest, wildest and most ambitious dreams into reality.”
Because of Command Education’s unparalleled mentorship, passion-driven approach and academic foundation, Rim told The Post that the company “has no competitors” and is confident that “no one works with students like [Command Education] does.”
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