Live, Virtual College Essay
Workshops for Your Students
Expert-led, student-centered workshops that help students move from “I don’t know what to write” to a clear, workable draft—while saving counselors time.
Trusted by public, private, international schools, non-profits, and CBOs worldwide
Led by Ethan Sawyer & College Essay Guy facilitators
What Are The College Essay Guy Live Summer Workshops?
College Essay Guy (CEG) Live is a series of live, virtual college essay workshops designed to help students write strong personal statements with clarity and confidence.
- Live and interactive (not prerecorded)
- Built for rising seniors
- Scalable for large cohorts
Students leave with direction, structure, and momentum—without adding work to counselors’ plates.
I LOVE THIS PROGRAM! I recently did a classroom lesson for 12th graders and asked who their favorite college website was. The students said—the College Essay Guy!”
Ellen
High School College Counselor
I am so grateful for your willingness to help students (and counselors!) prepare their students for essays and to address other pertinent questions surrounding the college application process. This will be my 24th year as a Director of College Guidance, and your materials are truly the most user-friendly and practical guides for students I have ever encountered.”
Carla
HS Counselor
Schedule & Details
How to Write the Personal Statement
2026 DATES
- Workshop #1: June 1, 3, 5 (the 8th & 10th are bonus review session dates)
- Workshop #2: June 15, 17, 19 (the 22nd & 24th are bonus review session dates)
- Session Times: 10-11:30am PT (1-2:30pm ET) & 4-5:30pm PT (7-8:30pm ET)
Note: Both workshop options will cover the same content.
Session 1 | Brainstorming
Session 2 | Outlining & Writing
Session 3 | Revising & Upleveling
In this workshop, I’ll walk your students step-by-step through how to brainstorm, outline, revise, and draft their personal statements.
Using my Choose Your Own Adventure essay tool, students will leave with everything they need to revise and polish their drafts.
How to Write the UC Personal Insight Questions
2026 DATES
- Workshop #3: July 13, 15 (note that the 16th is a bonus review session date)
- Session Times: 3-5:00pm PT (6-8:00pm ET)
This crash course provides students with a step-by-step guide to understanding the University of California’s Personal Insight Questions and Activities List.
I’ll cover:
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7 Essential Tips for Applying to the UC Schools
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What are the 13 elements of a comprehensive review?
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How to Pick Your 4 UC Personal Insight Question Topics
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Why You Should Outline Your PIQs Before Writing
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How to Structure Any PIQ
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Getting Feedback on Your PIQ Topics
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Revising a Narrative PIQ (Writing about a Challenge)
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Revising a Montage PIQ (Not Writing about a Challenge)
How to Write the College Application + Supplemental Essays
2026 DATES
- Workshop #4 (Option 1): August 5, 12-2:00pm PT (3-4:00pm ET)
Note: Ideal for students who want to get ahead before senior year ramps up
- Workshop #4 (Option #2): August 26, 3:30-5:00pm PT (6:30-8:00pm ET)
Note: Ideal for students who are back in school or finalizing their college lists
Note that both August 5 & 26th dates will cover the same content
In this session, I offer a values-based approach to helping students produce not only a stand-out Common Application, activities list, and additional information section, but also tips on answering the supplemental essays that many selective schools require. (Counselors are welcome to join too.)
In this crash course, I’ll cover:
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How to Create an Inspired Application in Half the Time
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The Activities List, Additional Info, and “Why Us?” Essay
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The Extracurricular Essay
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Specific Supplemental Essays for 40+ Colleges and Universities
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The Short Answer Questions
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How to Make Sure a College Application Is Doing Its Job
Student will receive access to my Choose Your Own Adventure Tool, which answers pretty much any college essay questions a student might have. They will also receive resources and guides for supplemental essays and the rest of the application, as well as access to the UC Personal Insight Questions Tool.
Trusted by Schools Worldwide
Each year, College Essay Guy Live supports thousands of students across the globe – from urban public schools to suburban independents to international schools.
Public, private and charter programs worldwide
Attended CEG Live workshops in 2025
Students reported feeling more confident selecting an essay topic
Counselors reported CEG Live is critical to essay programming
*Based on 2025 CEG Live Student and Counselor results
Students and Counselors
Can Tune in from Anywhere.
Watch anytime. Anywhere.
Your students will receive simple and clear instructions for logging in to the tools and live events from home.
Adaptable Curriculum
We’ll provide a suite of resources that can work flexibly with your college counseling process.
Counselor Support
Counselors get access to all the resources, tools, and live sessions so you can follow along.
Who College Essay Guy Live Is For
A great fit for:
- Public, charter, and independent schools
- Schools with limited counseling ratios
- Counselors who want a consistent essay framework
- Programs serving first-generation and low-income students
Note that this program is not open to students to register directly, but only available to students whose counselor has registered for College Essay Guy Live.
Plus, we’ll help you get the word out
To make CEG Live as impactful and joyful as possible, we’ve created a collection of shareable assets, ready to send out to your students:
Assets Included:
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Promotional PDF (download here)
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Email templates you can copy and paste
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Short snippets of text for social media
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Images/graphics to share with your students
Live Parent Workshop
“How Parents Can Support Their Teens Through the College Essay & Application Process”
Live on May 19 & June 18 (5-6pm PT / 8-9pm ET).
Ethan’s Updated Book: College Admission Essentials
You’ll get a physical copy of College Admission Essentials for your college counseling office.
College Essay Guy Live
Schools and Organizations
$997
$497*
*Early Bird Pricing
Regular Price: $997 per year
For: Any school or organization. Your contribution supports our
Matchlighters Scholars program.
College Essay Guy Live
Schools and Organizations
$0*
*Pay-What-You-Can Spots
per year
For: At College Essay Guy, we’re committed to providing access to high-quality essay support for any student, anywhere. Qualifying schools or organzations may join College Essay Guy Live at little to no cost.
College Essay Guy Live
Book a Private Workshop
Schedule a Call
with Us
- Private customizable workshops for your school
- Led by an inspiring trained facilitator
- Take place virtually or in person at your school
- Professional development, student workshops, and consulting options
You know soooo much about the college essay process. It was an easy program to promote and I felt comfortable knowing that an expert was leading the process for my students. It was a win-win!
Susan
Public School College Counselor
The entire experience was very insightful and gave me the inspiration and motivation to get ahead on my college search and application process.
Angelina
Student
You’re an amazing teacher, and I can feel the passion you have for us. I really appreciate all the work you’ve done for us. Thanks to you, I’ve been able to say what I’ve wanted to say about my life and show how it has impacted me. That’s something that I’ve struggled to do in the past. So from the bottom of my heart, I just want to say thank you!
Miles P
Student
I followed every step from your videos for the main personal statement essay and my college advisor was wowed by my first draft. I made some small changes and now it’s finished. I just wanted to thank you for that.
Tea
Student
First of all, this was incredibly beneficial for my writing process. Kudos to you and your team and my school counselor for recommending this. I enjoyed the brainstorming activities a lot, especially the “Essence Objects” and the “I Love” exercises. I have a few essays written now, thanks to those brainstorming sessions. Also, independently of the sessions, I found your list of recommended verbs for the activities list. It was a lifesaver.
Alex
Student
I love how we went over actual samples to critique so that we could look out for certain things in our own essays! I loved how there was a step by step process to follow that made the whole process achievable. With everything going on, the brainstorming part of the process helped me further appreciate what I have instead of mourning the things I’ve lost. The process has shown me how grateful I am to have so many things worth writing about. That being said, I just wanted to say thank you.
Andrea
Student
Got a Question?
YOU MAY BE WONDERING (FAQ)
How do I login?
If you have purchased any of our online video courses or live webinars, you can login by going to the website menu bar > Log In > Online Courses. You can view that page here. From there you can access all of your products in your library.
How long do I have access to the workshop content?
Students have access for one year from the date of purchase.
Are application reviews included with the course?
No. If you would like someone to review your essay, you’ll want to look into our One-On-One Coaching or Complete Application Review Service.
Can I get a discount?
Access is really important to all of us at College Essay Guy. It’s at the heart of most everything Ethan does and is why so many resources on the site are free. As this is something we are passionate about, we have an option to submit a pay-what-you-can request on each of our course pages.
What if I can't afford it? What is "Pay What You Can"?
Access is really important to all of us at College Essay Guy. It’s at the heart of most everything we do and is why so many resources on the site are free and pay-what-you-can. We offer pay-what-you-can spots for students from low-income homes. You can submit a request on this page at the links above. As this is something we are passionate about, we have an option to submit a pay-what-you-can request on each of our course pages.
What if I have another question?
My FAQ page has you covered. Or, if you can’t find the answer there, shoot an email to my team: [email protected].