International admissions
A world of possibility.
A clearer path to college.
For students applying to U.S. universities from abroad.
Make sense of an unfamiliar admissions process with guidance shaped around your education, interests, and family’s priorities.
Personal guidance for international students and families.
A comprehensive & clear path forward
From your story to your next chapter
01
Your story
Identity work and essays
02
School fit
Building the college list
03
Applications
Common App, supplements, interviews
04
Decisions
Offers, merit awards, waitlists
05
What comes next
The Student Success Blueprint
A complete strategy, built around you.
A story only you can tell.
We uncover what makes you distinctive, then help you shape it into a personal statement with purpose and a voice of their own.
01
Discover the story
Explore experiences, values, and the moments that matter.
02
Find the thread
Develop a focused narrative rooted in the student’s perspective.
03
Draft and refine
Build clarity and structure through thoughtful feedback and revision.
Supplemental essays
Guidance on supplemental essays within the agreed scope of your engagement.
The student writes every essay. We guide, question, and give feedback. The work stays their own.
College list development
Part of the comprehensive engagement
A college list that fits the life ahead.
Cristina weighs all three together to build a list around the student and family.
Academic fit
Programs, learning environment, and opportunities aligned with the student’s interests and goals.
Campus environment
Size, setting, culture, and community—how daily life could feel.
Affordability
Family budget, total cost, and potential financial or merit aid.
Target-school merit scholarships
Merit opportunities.
At the schools on your list.
Part of the comprehensive engagement.
Find the opportunities
(01)
Research merit awards offered by the schools already on the student’s list.
Check eligibility
(02)
Review each institution’s criteria, including the rules that apply to international applicants.
Plan the requirements
(03)
Identify whether consideration is automatic or requires additional essays, forms, or other materials.
Track the deadlines
(04)
Coordinate award-specific dates and required submissions with the wider application plan.
Your list.
A focused search.
School-based merit opportunities only. Outside scholarship searches are not included.
Eligibility varies by university, including for international students.
Awards are determined by each institution.
The offers are in.
What comes next?
Cristina helps the family weigh the options, respond thoughtfully, and choose where to enroll.
Compare offers
Look at academic fit, campus life, and the full cost of each option.
Weigh merit awards
Read award terms, renewal conditions, and the costs that remain.
Handle the in-between
Plan school-specific next steps for waitlists and deferrals while keeping other options in view.
Choose where to enroll
Clarify priorities, resolve open questions, and plan the steps toward enrollment.
The decision stays with the student and family.
Application strategy & execution
The right work. In the right order.
Explore how we plan, coordinate, and review the work across the application year.
The student writes and submits. Cristina plans and reviews. The work stays the student’s own.
Start university with a sense of direction.
Meet the Student Success Blueprint.
Sample outline
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Academic direction
Explore your interests and plan a meaningful academic path.
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Campus connections
Find your people and get involved in ways that feel right for you.
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First-semester priorities
Set a realistic routine and tap into key resources from the start.
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Practical next steps
Complete your pre-arrival tasks and create a plan for what’s ahead.
Explore a step for more detail.
Your Blueprint is tailored to you.
Interview preparation
Part of the comprehensive engagement
Ready to speak.
Still yourself.
A chance to put the student’s story into words—and get comfortable with the conversation.
Practice the conversation
Rehearse realistic questions and follow-ups, then reflect on what felt clear and what needs work.
Talk about yourself
Connect interests, experiences, and goals through specific examples in the student’s own words.
Know what to expect
Discuss alumni and admissions interview formats, how expectations can vary, and questions the student wants to ask.
Preparation that builds confidence while keeping the conversation their own.
A few questions, answered.
Clarity before your next step.
Question 1
Answer to come.
Question 2
Answer to come.
Question 3
Answer to come.
Question 4
Answer to come.
Question 5
Answer to come.
Let’s Build your strategy
Their next chapter starts
with a conversation.
Tell Cristina about your student’s goals and where you are in the admissions process.
Personal U.S. college admissions guidance for international students and families, led by Cristina Arias.
Consultations are held online, worldwide.