“Sharon Cravanas is a perfect blend of counselor, advisor, and mentor. Her engagement around the college process is thorough and comprehensive. It results in expanding the horizons of the young people with whom she works, while also coaching the parents on the sometimes difficult transition from manager to mentor.

"The [college admissions] process" has become so complex and emotionally charged that parents and students alike are often in a swirl about what action best suits their family, goals and desired options. Sharon directs the process like a maestro leading an orchestra. She goes well beyond the 3 lists -- safety, match, and stretch, to get students to be open to schools other than the ten or so most frequently attended by that community or school. She is one of the few counselors who really gets it when she talks about "fit."
Sharon has traveled internationally on a quest to identify environments where her students can thrive as collegians and she's magical about the whole package, particularly personal statement topics. Sharon has the combination of decades of experience in a variety of educational settings (charter, public, independent), application review from the most discerning entities, and an urban sensibility that allows her to straddle the ever emotional worlds of who's going where to study what.

Sharon Cravanas coached both my daughters, and encouraged me to trust the young women I had raised to experience this process holistically and without angst. Here's what options my second born ended up with -- UPenn, Northwestern, Harvard, Oberlin, Tufts, Columbia and Barnard. This was a young woman who wasn't a great test taker, yet was a confident test taker, and under Sharon's leadership sat for one exam, generated a compelling package and had the desires of her heart met with the options mentioned above. Ms. Cravanas is a gifted visionary in this space and I wholeheartedly recommend her as a college admissions coach and counselor.

Michelle Davenport, PPC

My senior year in high school, I didn't have the proper resources to guide me through the college application process. I decided to take a gap/bridge year with Global Citizen Year – as my brother did two years prior – and was pleased to find out that Ms. Cravanas was still the college counselor for the program. From our first meeting at orientation week, Ms. Cravanas gave me the confidence I needed, both in myself and in her advising expertise, to carry forward with absolute certainty that the admissions process would work in my favor this time around. Decades of college advising experience would provide anyone with enough to understand the system and all of its intricacies and give great advice. Where Ms. Cravanas stands out, though, is in her empathy and wisdom collected from hearing and internalizing others' stories; rather than helping me tailor my essays to fit the mold of what college admissions officers wanted to read, she challenged me to be bold, to unapologetically portray my truest self, and to tell stories that I felt needed to be heard. When I hit 'submit' on my final college application this year, despite knowing it would yield positive results, I didn't really care what the outcome would be; I couldn't have been more proud of the essays I wrote, and I would be happy with any college that would see the value in me. Through hours upon hours of video calls – often on weekends and at strange times due to the time zone difference with Ecuador – Ms. Cravanas devoted herself to helping me find my method of storytelling that challenged the status quo and helped me learn about myself in the process. By the end of March, I hadn't received a single rejection and found myself choosing between my top four schools: Northeastern, Lafayette, Bowdoin, and Tufts. Beyond the success that Ms. Cravanas helped me achieve this year, I am honored to know such a kind-hearted, devoted, wise, and selfless human being. Anyone would be incredibly lucky to have the opportunity to work with her.

Charlie Dickerson, Tufts University

Ms Cravanas was a Godsend to our family! She is an expert in the college admissions process. She is knowledgeable beyond my expectations in almost every college and university in the nation. More impressive for me as a Mom, she has key contacts, knows the culture of most of the colleges and universities that my daughter applied to and has the unique ability to be able to match the student’s personality, needs and academic preparedness with specific colleges. She has also been so patient, resourceful, insightful and available with her time. We will forever be grateful to you!

Lenore A Tate, Ph. D.

“Sharon Cravanas is a fierce advocate and a phenomenal coach. She brings a wealth of broad expertise, experience, and excellence that are integral components of her coaching practice. 

Sharon has helped me detach from the sticky patterns of procrastination and unacknowledged self-doubt that have stalled my momentum and have interfered with completing my goals. Sharon’s style is kind and direct, with a focus on accountability. She keeps me motivated, inspired, and on task, and I look forward to our sessions. Our work together has been powerful. I’m grateful that I have finally taken this leap forward equipped with the very best coach! 

Simply put, Sharon Cravanas will help you move past YOUR obstacles that are stalling your success.”

Joelle Crepsac, LMFT, aPCC, ATR