Lars, Westminster College Graduate, Class of 2018

What were your goals for college admission? Did you accomplish them?

My goals for college admission were to get into a good school that I had actually decided I wanted to attend that was also affordable.  I didn’t want to have to go somewhere just because of the cost. I did accomplish my goals and I attended Westminster College in Salt Lake City Utah. It ended up costing about the same as attending Montana State with residency.

What was most helpful about working with Hughes College Prep?

I have never considered myself a good writer and my high school English teachers would agree.  Hughes College Prep helped me with my writing and allowed me to show the schools what I wanted to show them without my poor writing getting in the way.  

What was the biggest surprise, good or bad, about the admissions process in general?

The biggest surprise was that I actually got into schools.  I didn't have high expectations for the schools that I was applying to, but once I applied and the merit-aid awards started rolling in, it was very satisfying.

Were you accepted to one of your top three school choices?

I was accepted to all of the schools I applied to.

Did you feel supported by Hughes College Prep during the admission process? If so, how?

Yes, I feel that I was very supported by Hughes College Prep. I was not only supported by my advisor, but when I met with another tutor because mine was out of  town I felt supported equally. It was an excellent feeling.

What surprised you most about working with Hughes College Prep?

I was most surprised by how effective it was.  I increased my ACT score in every section and got into schools that I did not think I would be able to get into if I had not used Hughes College Prep.

Are there any aspects of your time with Hughes that stick out as having carried through to other elements of your life, beyond college admissions, such as college, jobs, etc.? 

Hughes Tutoring taught me better writing skills and techniques that I have used for everything I have written in college.  They also helped give me more self-confidence.

How quickly were you employed after college? 

Right after graduation from Westminster I took a gap year to travel in Europe. I will be attending graduate school this coming fall in Alaska.

What is one bit of advice you would give to parents of college-bound students? 

I know that when I was applying to college my parents were most concerned about cost and that I would be getting my money out of Hughes College Prep.  Hughes tutoring did more than soothe these concerns as they got me into an affordable school thanks to merit aid and this was worth MUCH more than the cost of the college prep program.

What is one bit of advice you would give to the students themselves?

Students should not limit themselves to only the schools that they know about. There are cases where the advisors know the students as well as the students do, and likely know of other schools that students have not considered. Do not write the possibility off!