For those families who want tailored support throughout the US application process, we strongly recommend our college counselling service. We will assign you to a dedicated and experienced advisor who helps you to navigate the complex US admissions process from beginning to end. This includes advice on choosing colleges, demonstrating interest, standardised testing, scholarships and funding, preparing an artistic portfolio or musical audition, writing college essays, completing applications, and applying via an early admissions programme.
If you would like to discuss our college counselling service in more detail, please click the links below to book a free call with one of our Senior Counsellors or send us an enquiry:
Free Counselling Consultation
Our Counsellors
Get in touch
Liaising With Schools
Schools are an essential part of the US application process and need to produce important documents including a school profile, student transcript, and letters of recommendation. We work very closely with schools to ensure they understand and fulfil these requirements. When students do not have an experienced guidance counsellor at their school, we are also able to advise the school on the US application process from the school’s perspective at no extra cost, ensuring that teachers understand how to write letters of recommendation for US colleges and put together transcripts, a school profile, and the Mid-Year and Final report.
Professional Associations and Codes of Conduct
As members of the International Association for College Admissions Counseling, we adhere to NACAC’s code of ethics and professional practice. For more information on how this code governs our work, please read
here
.
To see how our own terms and conditions govern our college counselling, please click
here
.
Jason Smith
Jason is the founder of UES and has 10 years' experience in working with students to help them gain admission to US colleges. As well as overseeing partnerships between UES and schools across the UK and Europe, he has poreviously worked with schools such as Wetherby Senior School, where he helped set up successful US universities provision. He also works closely with UES partners the Fulbright Commission on the Sutton Trust US programme, and regularly speaks for organisations such as the International Association for College Admission Counseling, and at top schools across the UK and Europe. Jason has developed a deep understanding of the many facets to a successful US college application and this is borne out by his students going on to study at such universities as Harvard, Duke, Notre Dame, UT Austin, and many more.
Jason has a First-Class Master's degree and a PhD in Applied Mathematics from the University of Nottingham. After graduating he carried out postdoctoral research in academia followed by nuclear research in industry and the European Commission. Outside of work, Jason is an ex-international competitor in Taekwondo, a keen skier, and a seasoned traveller.
Free Counselling Consultation
Aida Rocci Ruiz
Aida Ruiz attended Harvard for undergraduate, graduating Magna Cum Laude with Highest Honors in Psychology in 2014. She then retuned to Harvard to pursue a Master's in Fine Arts in Dramaturgy and Theatre Studies at the American Repertory Institute in collaboration with the Moscow Art Theatre, followed by a second Master's in London at the prestigious Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Inspired by her experiences of international applications, she now works for UES as a tutor and counsellor, using her drama and psychology skills to inspire students to tell their stories in a compelling and personal way, essential for successful US college applications.
On top of teaching, she continues to work as a literary advisor and editor in the dramatic arts, and writes for The Theatre Times. Aida's students have been admitted to top colleges across the US, most notably via transfer, for which the admit rates are extremely low.
Linda de Flavis
Until recently, Linda spent most of her working life in sunny climates overseas. As a university advisor at United World College in Singapore for 23 years, she supported international students with their applications to universities around the world, with the US consistently proving the most popular destination. She also taught IB English and enjoyed developing US essay-writing workshops for students and other counsellors. She has attended and delivered sessions at many international conferences for college counselors, sometimes co-presenting with admissions officers from elite universities from the US, UK, Canada and Netherlands.
In her earlier life, Linda pursued an academic career. Awarded a scholarship to complete her PhD at the University of Southern California, she subsequently taught at Stanford University for 6 years. That experience gave her insights that she brings to her current work with high school students, helping them to reveal the ‘college potential’ university admissions officers look for. Her goal is to guide students to universities that will genuinely match their strengths and aspirations, and empower them in the next stage of their journey. While she has placed students at all of the ‘top’ universities in the US, she is even more proud of those who have gone to less famous schools and proved equally successful. Growing up in rainy UK, Linda completed her first degree in English Literature at the University of Southampton and her Post Graduate Certificate in Education at Oxford University.
Giorgio Serci
Giorgio Serci is an award winning guitarist, composer, arranger and educator with international credentials. He is Senior Lecturer at ACM, visiting professor at Guildhall and Royal Holloway University and a columnist for Guitar Interactive Magazine. His compositions have been published by Trinity College for the new Acoustic guitar graded syllabus, and he has just recorded the brand new classical guitar graded syllabus commissioned by RSA, which feature two of his own compositions. He studied classical guitar and Jazz and has a Masters Degree in Composition from the University of Surrey, a Diploma in Jazz & Popular Music and a Postgraduate Certificate of Education. Co-founder of Bansangu Orchestra, specialising in original music featuring world-music and Jazz, which has been endorsed by the likes of Quincy Jones.
He has performed internationally and recorded with the likes of David Garrett, Ivan Lins, Basia, Kenny Wheeler, Martin Taylor, Sylvain Luc the BBC Concert Orchestra, Julian Lloyd Webber to name but a few. He has his own signature model guitar by Fibonacci and endorses Yamaha Classical guitars.
Successful Applications
Amongst many others, we helped students successfully apply to the Universities listed below in the 2021-2022 application cycle:
-
Babson
-
Boston University
-
Baylor
-
Brown University
-
Caltech
-
Case Western University
-
Chapman University
-
Clemson
-
Columbia
-
CU Boulder
-
Drexel University
-
Emory
-
Fordham
-
George Washington University
-
Michigan State
-
Notre Dame
-
Northeastern University
-
NYU
-
Penn State
-
Pomona College
-
Santa Clara University
-
Skidmore
-
Syracuse University
-
Temple
-
Tufts University
-
Trinity University (Texas)
-
Tulane
-
Yale University
-
UC Berkeley
-
UC Davis
-
UC Irvine
-
UCLA
-
UC San Diego
-
UChicago
-
UMass Amherst
-
UMinnesota
-
Uni of New England
-
U North Texas
-
UPenn
-
Uni of Richmond
-
UT Arlington
-
UT Austin
-
Uni of Vermont
-
UVA
-
WashU
-
Wisconsin-Madison
-
Wake Forest
|