The international pool is a different competition
This is the fact most Hong Kong families are not told early enough. At the most selective American universities, international applicants are evaluated against each other rather than against the domestic pool, and the admit rate in that pool is materially lower than the headline figure the university publishes.
Hong Kong International School, Chinese International School, German Swiss International School, Harrow Hong Kong and Li Po Chun UWC are all familiar names in American admissions offices, as are Diocesan Boys' School, La Salle College and St Paul's Co-educational College on the local side. Familiarity cuts both ways: a committee knows how to read those transcripts, and it reads a great many of them.
A student from Hong Kong with three A*s and a strong SAT is not unusual inside that pool. They are typical of it. Everything we do here is aimed at the part of the file that is not typical.
Running the US and UK applications together
Most of our Hong Kong families apply to both systems, and the two reward almost opposite things. UCAS wants depth in one subject and a personal statement that reads like an academic argument. American universities want a shaped human being with one unmistakable strength, across essays that are personal rather than scholarly.
The timelines collide as well, with UCAS closing in October for Oxford and Cambridge while US early rounds close in November. We plan both calendars from the start rather than discovering the clash in the autumn of Year 13.
Financial aid for non-US citizens
A small number of American universities are need-blind for international applicants. Most are not, which means an aid request can affect an admissions decision. Families should know which list a university sits on before the application is submitted, not after. We go through that explicitly.
What an engagement includes
Families work with us on a single end-to-end package rather than buying hours. One team, one plan, from the first strategy session through to the acceptance letter.
- Strategy and school list built around early-round positioning.
- Personal statement and supplements, developed with former admission officers.
- The Hook Program, in which a student builds an original project with real users or real recognition.
- Independent academic research with a Ph.D. or professor, published in an academic journal.
- Summer programs and internships drawn from our own database and partner companies.
- Admissions Roundtable review before the application is submitted.
Pricing sits in two tiers, Standard and Premium, each quoted after a private consultation. See how the tiers differ, or read how we work.
Where else we work
Alongside Hong Kong, we work with families in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Singapore, Dubai, Bangkok.