Frequently Asked Questions

It doesn't take 11 months just to fill out forms. It takes 11 months to build the high-speed locomotive you are actually putting on the tracks.

Laying the Track (Months 1–9): We use this time to prep for powerful test scores, high-impact activities and unforgettable experiences. By the time the Summer Express application phase pulls into the station, your engine is fully fueled and ready to roll.

Building a Powerhouse Foundation: Spreading the timeline over 11 months prevents last-minute derailments. Instead of pulling an emergency brake on your sanity, you focus on building serious momentum and unstoppable growth.

Full-Steam-Ahead Support: Weekly tutorials and conductor check-ins break the application down into bite-sized, manageable whistle-stops. This steady, rhythmic pace ensures your final package arrives on time, polished and ready to go.

There is nothing I love more than helping students translate their vibrant, three-dimensional stories and lives into compelling two-dimensional essays. After 13 years as a publishing editor in chief shaping inspirational books, polishing personal narratives is my absolute favorite work. To ensure each student receives my highest level of care and attention, I must limit the number of essays I review each year. Consequently, I am transitioning away from stand-alone editing services. Moving forward, essay editing will be available exclusively to students enrolled in my full Destination Application program.

I believe in the power of story, not just in the essay, but as a cohesive thread that connects the entire application. Over the years, I discovered that a single essay simply couldn’t win the day if it was decoupled from the rest of the application.

In this competitive college landscape, EVERY aspect of the application simply must share the student’s voice and story.

College admissions is an interconnected railway system. When I edited just one piece of the puzzle, I found myself stepping in to help with recommendation letter strategies, activity lists, awards listings and resumes to ensure the true heart behind the human didn't get lost in the shuffle. In the process, one-off editing turned into full college coaching and email answering. Tracking individual student schedules without hard deadlines was running my own calendar off the tracks, and editing just one or two essays wasn’t allowing me to serve my students well.

To give your student the absolute best competitive edge, I now exclusively work with and edit for students through my comprehensive, all-inclusive package, Destination Application, or through personal strategy sessions. To protect my family and my time, I no longer accept single-essay editing projects outside of my official cohort manifests.

For the Destination Application cohort, practically everything!

I look at your application as a complete story, which means I edit your resume, awards, activities list, main personal statement (Common App essay) and all of your supplements for up to six colleges. I even proofread and review the final application PDFs for up to six universities.

That means that all 10-12 students in the Destination Application cohort clear the tracks early, heading into the first day of senior year with all applications fully assembled and operating at peak performance while parents sit back and enjoy a smooth, stress-free ride with total peace of mind.

To keep this train firmly on the tracks! Meticulously auditing, brainstorming and editing college applications requires an immense amount of focused energy. By capping the cohort manifest at a maximum of 12 students, I can promise that your child will never be just a number or a faceless file on a screen.

My clients are my people, and developing personal relationships with them is not only my professional goal but my personal privilege. It’s one of the very best parts of the job.

This strict limit ensures that every student gets my eyes, my editing and my enthusiastic, individual encouragement every single week of the summer sprint. My 12-passenger limit ensures your child gets the high-touch, hyper-personalized guidance they need to make their unique voice sing on every single page.

To ensure your student’s train stays firmly on the tracks! Deeply auditing, polishing and proofreading a college application requires meticulous, line-by-line attention. By capping the core review manifest at six superstar schools, I ensure your child's top-priority applications get my full focus.

The beautiful bonus? The Common App automatically populates your core information across your entire list, so the heavy lifting for every other college will already be done!

Of course! In fact, you can also attend the session and then take the keys and drive this locomotive yourself! That’s exactly why I offer the informational session. The full 11-month train is not for everyone, but EVERYONE deserves access to the information. I am always thrilled to offer workshops or personalized strategy sessions to help YOU conduct the train yourself. I’m just here if you want or need another adult to take the wheel.

Absolutely!

While On Track does not contact coaches, secure athletic scholarships or involve itself in any way with the athletic recruiting angle, we DO help student athletes prepare their required applications.

Every single recruited athlete must still submit a formal college application, write the required essays and supply transcripts. While coaches can offer an athlete a spot on the team, they do not work in the admissions office and do not have the final authority to officially admit your child to the university.

That means that even athletes MUST complete ALL ASPECTS of the college application. Michelle can help them do that in a thorough, methodical manner so that, when the athletic offer arrives, the student is already ready to submit and accept.

A coach’s offer is always conditional on official acceptance by the university admissions board. If an athlete submits a sloppy application, writes a careless essay or misses a deadline, the admissions committee can reject that candidate.

We protect your child's athletic opportunity by ensuring the academic paperwork is flawless. We help student-athletes brainstorm and polish essays, organize their extracurricular profiles and track strict university deadlines. We make sure their application is so strong that the admissions committee has no reason to hesitate, giving coaches exactly what they need to finalize the recruitment.

When a coach gives your child a verbal offer or asks for a "pre-read" of their academic profile, having a polished essay and a completed application strategy ready to go puts your child at an advantage. It shows the coach that your family is prepared, organized and serious.

Learn more about sports, student-athletes and the path to admissions in this great article from the Cardinal Education Blog.

I am here to be the passionate, proactive lead conductor of your student’s college application journey! Think of me as the conductor of the college crazy train so you don’t have to be. I take on the timelines, the prompts, the long-term prep and the proofreading so you can preserve a peaceful, positive relationship with your child during an incredibly meaningful milestone year.

Let's get them completely Done by Day 1!