Getting in. Staying sane.
My name is Kevin Martin, and I am shaking up college admissions. There are thousands of books and college admissions blogs that share the “secrets” to admissions at elite universities. They share “six easy steps” to “writing a killer essay” that will supposedly get you into your dream school. I even published one of these “definitive guides” Your Ticket to the Forty Acres. But my previous work and every other college admissions book falls short of addressing the underlying anxieties and insecurities borne from a thoroughly broken higher education system.
If college applications were so easy, why do tens of thousands of students lose sleep and experience extreme stress each year? Reading essay advice books might help you get in, but they won’t help you stay sane. Understanding inconvenient truths will help students and families survive the college admissions madness.
Unlike any College Admissions Book
Unconventional. Irreverent. Brutal. Entertaining.
Surviving the College Admissions Madness argues that the application process is highly undemocratic and dehumanizing. University bureaucracies alienate applicants from their humanity and sense of self. Surviving and even thriving depends on digging deep into your beliefs and understanding your behaviors within the broader context of society. My book is the first of its kind to integrate applicant psychology with the sociology and economics of higher education. I equip readers with the vocabulary, frameworks, and tools to make sense of America’s broken higher education system, starting with the admissions gatekeepers.
Elite Universities Do Not Care About You
Elite universities are hypocrites. They claim to be the vanguard of diversity, yet many universities enroll more students from the top 1% than the bottom half. Enrollment managers and bureaucrats are more concerned about their budgets and bottom line than a genuine commitment to college access. They are the primary contributors to growing inequality in American society. A system of bad incentives in education and society wastes hundreds of millions of hours each admissions cycle. It produces profound suffering for tens of thousands of students each year.
Universities leverage their power over student well-being and family flexibility. Endless essay requirements, unclear and inconsistent requirements, Early Decision policies, aggressive marketing and recruitment strategies, interviews, waitlists, deferrals, appeals, and letters of continued interest serve the interests of universities while corrupting communities and high school learning environments. Holistic Review is a tool not of inclusion but one of oppression. It is neither an art nor a science but a series of hunches that are arbitrary, capricious, and prone to error and bias.
Application numbers skyrocket while first-year student class sizes remain the same despite COVID-19 virtual learning disruptions. Elite universities are neither accountable to nor transparent with the public. Their policies undermine students whether they’re privileged or marginalized, rich or poor, black or white, rural or urban, first-time freshman or transfer, and domestic or international. Almost everyone loses, even those who get into their dream schools.
An Unconventional Educator
Brilliant students require an exceptional counselor. I’ve dedicated my life to writing craftmanship. I read over fifty books each year across a wide variety of domains, and I’ve kept a daily journal for over seven years. After serving as a UT-Austin admissions counselor, I completed a prestigious Fulbright Fellowship in Malaysia. I’ve explored over 115 countries. College admissions isn’t just a side-gig or a passing phase; mentoring people navigating uncertainty is central to my identity.
services
My clients have gained admission into over 70 of the US News Top 100 American colleges and universities, including every University of California campus (with Regents), Amherst, Brown/RISD, Carnegie Mellon, Columbia, Cornell, Duke, Emory, Harvard, Georgetown, Georgia Tech, Johns Hopkins, Michigan, MIT, Notre Dame, NYU, Penn Wharton, Princeton, Rice BS/MD, UNC, USC, UT-Austin, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Washington-Seattle, Wake Forest, Wesleyan, Williams, and WUSTL.
testimonials
“Thank you for helping our family with the college admission process. Having you assist with the essay edits saved our family hours of arguments. I knew our son could do it, but having outside input made the process so much smoother. He is OVER the moon excited as you would expect. We have a sophomore daughter so you will hear from us again in a year or so! Save her a spot. Thank you! Thank you!”
blog
Fresh and unconventional, my perspectives are not another list of tips and admissions tricks. My blog is not an Admissions 101. I call into question the underlying assumptions of higher education. Examining our system through a critical lens will help you gain admission to your dream school while staying sane. I write for families and educators who want a deeper understanding of the college admissions madness.
