US College Admissions Consultant & Essay Coach in Toronto
Get one-on-one help with your college essays and applications. College Essay Guy specializes in US admissions. Our coaches help Toronto students understand what American universities are looking for and write essays that show it. All coaching is online — no travel required.
A growing number of Toronto families are pursuing US college admissions alongside or instead of Canadian universities
US admissions offices see Toronto applicants as part of the international cohort. Students from UCC and Havergal are in the same pool as strong applicants from across Canada and beyond. The Common App personal statement, the “Why Us?” supplement, and the activity list are largely unfamiliar to students who’ve been preparing OUAC applications to U of T, Queen’s, or Western. Canadian university applications don’t require personal essays the way US applications do, so the essay is exactly where Toronto students need to differentiate.
Standing out in that context takes more than a strong GPA. It takes a clear, coherent story that shows who your student is, what they care about, and why they belong at each school on their list. That story lives in the essays, and that is where we work.
As seen in
How College Essay Guy guides Toronto families
College Essay Coaching
The college essay is one of the few places in the application where a student gets to tell their story. Our coaches help students figure out what is actually worth writing about and build an essay around it that is specific, honest, and memorable.
- Common App personal statement
- Supplemental essays for every school on the list
- Brainstorming and topic selection strategy
- "Why Us?" essays, activity descriptions, and short answers
- UC Personal Insight Questions
- Internal team review of every essay
College Admissions Counseling
Good essay coaching doesn't happen in isolation. Strong essays need to be supported by a strong academic profile, compelling extracurriculars, a strong college admissions plan, and positioning a student's strengths across the application. This is what our team of veteran college counselors do.
- Customized college list development
- Academic planning and course selection
- Major exploration and selection strategy
- Extracurricular and summer planning
- Early Decision and Early Action strategy
- Standardized test planning and prep
“Ethan and the College Essay Guy team were amazing in every sense of the word. Their constant back-and-forth on what works and doesn’t work in each of my essays taught me how to become a better writer.
— Kajal, admitted to Yale University
What sets College Essay Guy apart
The most trusted name in college admissions
For 20 years, counselors, parents, and students have come to College Essay Guy first. Ethan Sawyer's books are taught in classrooms, his frameworks are used by independent and school-based counselors around the world, and millions of students have learned to write their personal statements through our free resources. Even many selective colleges have used CEG resources to train their college admissions staff on how to read applications.
Comprehensive admissions guidance
While essays are important, they aren't the most important thing in a sound college admissions plan. Our team of veteran college counselors average 20+ years of experience each and help students think through the entire process: building a balanced college list, planning a challenging course load, shaping a meaningful activities list, navigating financial aid, and telling your story.
A values-based approach
We find that digging deep and starting with self-discovery is the best recipe to creating compelling college applications. Before we touch a college list or an essay draft, our team helps students identify what they actually care about, what they're good at, and what they want the next four years to look like. Applications built on that foundation lead to not just better choices during high school, but more compelling applications and essays.
Consultation and match
Start with a free call, then get paired with a coach chosen for your student's goals and personality.
Brainstorm and discovery
Your student works through our signature brainstorming exercises, so every session starts with real material.
Draft with expert coaching
Round after round of feedback shapes each essay until the writing is specific, honest, and clearly theirs.
Multi-coach review
A second coach reviews the work for range and depth, so more than one expert weighs in before anything is final.
Final review before submission
Your coach does a last pass on essays, activities, and the full application before your student hits submit.
Serving students across the Greater Toronto Area
We work with students and families across the Greater Toronto Area, including:
- Forest Hill
- Rosedale
- Lawrence Park
- Bridle Path
- York Mills
- Leaside
- Don Mills
- Willowdale
- Bayview Village
- Oakville
- Mississauga
- Thornhill
- Richmond Hill
- Markham
- and surrounding areas
Because all coaching is online, we also work with students throughout Ontario, British Columbia, and across Canada.
We hate to brag…
But we know parents are often curious about the numbers.
Schools We Serve
We work with families attending top schools across the Greater Toronto Area
Our Toronto students come from leading public and private schools across the region.
- Upper Canada College (UCC)
- Havergal College
- Trinity College School
- Bishop Strachan School
- Crescent School
- Branksome Hall
- St. Andrew's College
- The York School
- Ridley College
- Forest Hill Collegiate Institute
- Northern Secondary School
- Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute
- Earl Haig Secondary School
- Marc Garneau Collegiate Institute
…and many other schools across the GTA.
Colleges our Toronto students apply to
Toronto students applying to US schools typically target the Ivy League alongside strong research universities and liberal arts colleges. We help with the full list.
US Target Schools
Toronto students applying to US schools typically target the Ivy League alongside strong research universities and liberal arts colleges. A handful of schools are need-blind for international students — Harvard, MIT, Yale, Princeton, and Dartmouth — while most others offer limited merit aid.
Strong Liberal Arts & Selective Universities
Beyond the Ivies, Toronto students often find strong matches at top liberal arts colleges and selective research universities.
Canadian University Options
Many Toronto students also apply to Canadian universities through OUAC. CEG focuses exclusively on US applications; for Canadian university guidance, consult an OUAC specialist.
Let's connect.
Schedule an initial consultation.
We'll learn about your college admissions goals and share more about how we can help.
Here's what happens
on the call.
- Talk through where your student is in the process — grade, timeline, and what's feeling hardest right now
- Hear how CEG's coaching approach works and what makes it different from typical essay help
- Get a clear picture of package options so you can make an informed decision — no pressure
- Ask anything — about our coaches, our process, our free resources, or all of the above
Whether you sign up or not, you'll leave with more clarity than you came in with.
“College Essay Guy reduced our family’s stress, increased my daughter’s confidence, and kept her on schedule while helping her create fantastic essays that reflected her personality and goals — priceless!
— Sarah K., Parent
Frequently Asked Questions
Is coaching online or in-person?
All coaching happens online over video calls. We’ve worked this way from the beginning, so the process is smooth, and parents say they love the flexibility to reschedule and avoid wasting time in traffic. Plus, being virtual allows us to have a broader range of counselors and coaches to pair you with, rather than limit your choices to those in your zip code.
Students just need a quiet spot and a reliable connection.
When should we start?
The earlier the better, though the right answer depends on your student’s year and goals. Rising seniors just looking for support on their essays and applications benefit most from starting in the spring or summer before senior year.
Students who want help with building a broader strategy and extracurricular positioning start as early as 9th or 10th grade to allow time for exploring academic and extracurricular interests.
What's included in coaching?
It depends on the package. Most students work with a coach on their personal statement and a set of supplemental essays. Full college admissions consulting packages including everything else: school list strategy, timeline planning, extracurricular profile building, and more. Schedule a call to learn more about the options.
How do I know if College Essay Guy is a good fit for my student?
The best way is to book a free consultation and talk through your student’s situation. We will ask about their schools of interest, timeline, and what they have already figured out. If we are the right fit, we will tell you how we would work together. If we are not, we will say that too.
Students considering a college admissions planning package and working with our college counselor will have a chance to schedule a Get to Know You call.
Do you work with students who already have strong applications?
Yes. Often the students who get the most from essay coaching are the ones who look great on paper but have not yet translated that into a compelling application in their essays, activities list, and Additional Info section. Essays are where the differentiation happens, especially at highly selective schools where most applicants are already academically qualified.
Does applying from Canada put me at a disadvantage for US admissions?
Not inherently. Selective US schools actively recruit strong international students, including Canadians. The challenge is that the Common App process is less familiar than OUAC — the personal statement, the supplementals, the activity-list format require specific preparation Canadian applications don’t typically demand. That’s what we help with.