With the entrance into the university, everyone has many hopes and plans. At the same time, this is a complicated and rather specific process (especially when it comes to a foreign institution of higher learning), which requires careful preparation, attention, and coordination of all actions. That’s why professional support is so critical.

But because of the abundance in the market of companies and consultants who promise to help with admission, it’s easy to get confused. Therefore, today we want to offer you a short guide for choosing a study abroad consultant.

So, what does the consultant do for admission? In general, his activities can be reduced to the following actions:

• He helps the applicants to understand the options for education and career
• Teaches how to prepare all the documents most effectively- so that they adequately reflect your current qualifications and experience
• Provides comprehensive support throughout the entire
• Acts as a “view from the outside” (critical, objective and professional), which is merely necessary for the finalization of all critical written documents

How to choose a consultant

In our opinion, the essential step in selecting a company oran educational consultant for admission is an individual consultation.

Have you been offered a free initial consultation? If there is no such consultation, how can you understand who you work with? Two consultants always differ from each other – their opinions, advice, methods of work and experience can be very different. Therefore, during the consultation, it is so important to make sure that you work with a professional and that you have a good understanding.

How long does this initial consultation last?  From our point of view, 30 minutes is the absolute minimum for you to ask questions about services, and the consultant could give the first evaluation of your profile and assess the possibility of admission to selected universities.

It is also essential that it precedes the initial consultation. Does the counselor ask you in advance to fill out a questionnaire or submit your resume? If not, then, most likely, the meeting will be somewhat superficial and the central time will be spent on understanding where you studied, what your grades were, where you worked, etc.

One of the essential criteria for the first consultation is whether you are asked a sufficient number of questions (about you, your plans, expectations for a career, etc.)? If not, then this is a reason to think: most likely, such a consultant is ready to work with everyone and his goal is to sell their services (and not help you to enter the chosen program).

Choice of a consultant

In some situations (depending on the contract), the agency has the right to change your consultants. Therefore, if you want to get to an individual consultant, specify it right away and do not settle for a replacement. Also, if the agency does not provide a free consultation with the employee with whom you want to work, it is better to look for other options.

If you choose an individual consultant, you immediately want the person with whom you will work. His approach will be more personal and flexible than the company, but it is essential to make sure beforehand that your ideas about teamwork coincide.