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Ask The Expert - Jason C. Frazzano, Esq.
08/30/2011
Jason C. Frazzano, Esq.
Stanford University, B.A. , M.A., Columbia Law School, J.D.
Focused Coaching – Founder and Master Coach
331 Newman Springs Road, Suite 143
Red Bank, NJ 07701
(732) 671-1834
www.focusedcoaching.com
Jason C. Frazzano Esq. is the Founder and Master Coach of Focused Coaching. During a career in litigation, Jason began dabbling in the college admissions industry. Four years ago, he decided to make college admissions his full time career and founded Focused Coaching, an elite test preparation and college admissions coaching service. Through Jason’s guidance, Focused Coaching’s students have seen SAT score increases in excess of 800 points and have been admitted to every top 20 college in the nation.
Many of our readers may be new to the college admission process and admissions coaching—can you tell them what exactly college coaches do and the need they fill?
Typically, college coaches help students with test preparation, resume building, mock interviews and college selection. College coaching exists as an industry because there is a lack of information out there concerning how SATs, grades, recommendations, essays and extracurricular activities all factor into the application process.
Where is there the biggest gap in information regarding the college admissions process?
Test taking. In particular, a lot of parents have a hard time understanding testing and its relevance for college, as well as “the truth” about the SAT when it comes to college admissions.
What is “the truth” about the SAT when it comes to college admissions?
Many parents who are first-timers through the college process find themselves unhappy with their children’s college prospects and the thought of paying $53,000 a year for third-rate private colleges. They sit and wonder, “What the heck went wrong?” These parents seem to always blame the SAT. They say, “It’s so unfair that one test can determine so much about our kids.”
Is the SAT the single most important factor in a student’s college admissions?
The SAT is one of a bundle of about 60-70 tests that students can take to show off their ability. If students don’t like the SAT, there is the ACT, a similar, more knowledge-based basic skills test. There are also 20 SAT II subject tests that cover subjects ranging from physics to Latin. If students don’t like the SAT, ACT or 20 SAT IIs, there are also 30 or so APexams in varied subjects. On top of these tests, there are a number of national exam-based competitions in every conceivable subject area. All of these tests show how a student achieves on a national scale, so it’s not just one test that gets a child in or keeps him out of his dream school. It’s 60+ tests, class rank, extra-curriculars and then the application.
What do most parents say when they hear about all the testing options?
Well, there is some shock. If they start the college admissions process in July before a student’s senior year, there is a sense that it might be too late.
Is it too late to start the college process in the summer or even fall of senior year?
Not at all. It’s not optimal, but it is possible. Just as an example, one student in only the top 35% of his high school class, with high-average SATs and poor SAT IIs, began working with a college coach from July 18 before his senior year until January 1 of that same winter. During that time, the student took seven tests, wrote 14 applications, prepared for 12 interviews, assisted his teachers and guidance counselors in crafting their recommendations and made several college visits. By the end of it all, this student had a $110,000 scholarship to NYU, an opportunity at Johns Hopkins and one at Michigan, and a matriculation to Cornell, where he is now a senior. He changed his opportunity dramatically in just six months with the aid of a college coach.
And what does all of this cost?
Typically, private rates range from $75 an hour for a novice counselor to $275+ an hour for experienced experts. Dedicated students can have great success in under 15 hours of instruction (score increases from 1900s to 2300s). Application assistance in a group setting runs around $3000 from a number of local services and private applications can range from $3,000 to, well, much, much more. For those of lower income, there are both public and private options. Many of the local coaches also offer pro bono services.
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