Client Testimonials
Tami was the difference maker for Daniel in his application process. He knew what he wanted to say but was struggling to convey his messages effectively within his essays. She was patient and worked with him to draw out his thoughts and ideas to ensure his essays captured all he wanted to say to each school, both the Common App and individual app.
With her guidance, Daniel achieved his goal - acceptance to VMI. She has worked with both my children, who are opposites, and was successful with both. We are grateful for her guidance and would recommend her highly!
- Pam, Parent of Virginia Military Institute Student
Composing my Common App essays felt like trying to run a marathon blindfolded. Whatever I managed to write felt ineffectual and disjointed, and the process felt truly never-ending. Fast forward to a month before the early action deadlines, and I hadn't even settled on a topic for my personal statement.
Tami was referred to me by a few friends who had already submitted their applications. I reached out to her, and we scheduled a time to sit down and discuss my steps going forward. An hour later, Tami had completely alleviated my initial hesitancy. After only a few days, I finalized my first draft, confident I was on the right path. I sent Tami my draft, anxious to read her critiques. Tami responded that same day with an entire page of encouragement and a thorough list of ideas to enhance it. Determined to improve, I pushed on, writing three more drafts. Tami diligently reviewed each subsequent draft, providing further constructive criticism.
Last week, I received my acceptance letter to Grinnell College and a $20,000 yearly scholarship. I am incredibly grateful for Tami's enthusiasm and insight. She went out of her way to ensure my success and was a joy to get to know.
- Charlie, Student at Grinnell College
Tami did a great job meeting my son Colin where he was in his college planning process. She was so full of helpful information about identifying colleges to apply to, figuring out the real statistics to help us compare apples to apples, and offering gentle encouragement. She also suggested Colin look at some schools he might not have otherwise considered. When it came time to actually edit essays, she worked quickly, responding to Colin's drafts and making helpful suggestions for edits. She was so easy to work with, and her services represented excellent value!
We are so glad we hired Tami to help our son with his essays and would wholeheartedly recommend her to other families as their kids go through this often bewildering process. We were successful with our applications, and our son is delighted to enroll at William and Mary this fall. Thanks, Tami, for all your help!
- Rochelle, Parent of College of William and Mary Student
As if the college application process isn’t already stressful for the entire family….We connected with Tami to help our daughter with her essays. We were surprised that some schools required numerous essays. It seemed never-ending, and each one needed to have a thoughtful submission.
Tami oversaw this entire process. She was like a jeweler helping to polish a rough stone. She was extremely patient, professional, polite, positive, and polished. All of the essays remained in the voice of our daughter. The confidence and pride my daughter had when she completed her essays was wonderful to see. Thank you, Tami!
- Marc, Parent of Rochester Institute of Technology Student
The college application process is stressful - and it’s changed so much since my husband and I applied to college. We decided to call in the experts to help us, and Tami fit the bill. She was able to take some of the burden by helping our daughter create essays that were genuine and authentic, but also helped her differentiate herself from her peers. Tami was an invaluable resource for our daughter, offering guidance and coaching along the way.
For parents just starting the college search process, I’d highly recommend reaching out to Tami - she knows the process, knows what colleges are looking for, and is an expert at guiding students through the process.
College essays are daunting under the best of circumstances, but our son decided to write about the recent, tragic death of a close friend before we consulted with Tami. Tami was thoughtful and caring in providing her initial feedback which, as we suspected, suggested that while the draft essay was a beautiful tribute, it needed to focus more on our son. The thought-provoking questions she posed on the original draft caused our son, on his own, to revisit the topic and to instead write about his own background and aspirations. Tami made the revision process easy with prompt review, productive suggestions as to how maximize the essay’s impact and a wonderfully, supportive approach.
We are grateful for Tami’s assistance in helping our son find his voice to craft a personal statement and supplemental essays that he is really proud of. And, we are pleased to report that our son has already been accepted on an Early Decision basis to his first choice school with a healthy scholarship! Process complete! Thank you, Tami!
- Keri, Parent of Virginia Tech, Honor’s College Student
- Lisa, Parent of High Point University Student
It can be daunting to come up with a college essay topic. After her introductory phone conversation with Tami, my daughter was able to develop a personal statement that truly describes who she is as a person. Tami was relatable, easily accessible, and quick to review all drafts. But one of the best gifts she brought to the process was her ability to hone in on the details that needed development in a positive and constructive manner. Her suggestions and recommendations were deliberate and purposeful, and she let my daughter lead the process to ensure that the end product was truly hers. We are incredibly grateful to Tami for her knowledge and expertise!
- Amy, Parent of University of Pittsburgh Student, Honors College
My daughter was accepted to a few good schools but VCU was her top choice. She loves the urban campus, the strong marketing and design programs and just the overall vibe. She was always a strong student but virtual learning hit her hard. Her grades were not where they needed to be during the critical junior year and she was very concerned about college applications. Her test scores were strong and she has tons of excellent extracurricular and leadership activities. I share this because her essay really mattered. She needed to share a strong narrative about who she is, how she was able to advocate for herself and get back on track with academic excellence in the first half of her senior year. I turned to Uncommon Essays for help.
Tami is an expert writer and editor who has spent her career in the higher education nonprofit arena. She had excellent insight into the common app and how to create a winning essay. Her guidance and counseling was invaluable to my daughter and I cannot thank her enough. Tami worked with her to create a strong, concise and clear story that I really think helped her secure the acceptances she was seeking. For those of you with high schoolers approaching their senior year, I cannot recommend her service highly enough. Check out her website for more information.
- Daphne, Parent of Virginia Commonwealth University Student
It was nice to have professional help to polish and put the cherry on top of my son's college application. Things are very different from when I applied. Tami took the guesswork out of essay writing for admission. I wish Uncommon Essays had been around for my other kids. It would have alleviated so much stress. We just heard - my son was accepted to his first choice.
- Eric, Parent of University of Maryland Student
Tami diligently helped to craft and perfect my college admissions essays to seven colleges. We worked side-by-side for weeks, either in coffee shops or by emailing Word drafts, refining each essay. I truly believe my applications stood out amongst the crowd due to her word-smithing and creative writing assistance. She made sure no matter how many iterations an essay went through it always retained my words, voice, and meaning. I was accepted into my dream school, the University of Virginia, thanks to Tami’s immensely helpful guidance.
- Danielle, Alumni of University of Virginia