Bespoke Admissions Counseling

US News Top-100 Admissions Offers

My clients have gained admission into over 70 of the US News Top 100 American colleges and universities, including every University of California campus (with Regents), Amherst, Brown/RISD, Carnegie Mellon, Columbia, Cornell, Duke, Emory, Harvard, Georgetown, Georgia Tech, Johns Hopkins, Michigan, MIT, Notre Dame, NYU, Penn Wharton, Princeton, Rice BS/MD, UNC, USC, UT-Austin, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Washington-Seattle, Wake Forest, Wesleyan, Williams, and WUSTL.

WHAT MAKES KEVIN DIFFERENT?

Many consulting services have never worked inside an admissions office. They don’t write unique content let alone full-length books. A few families fire their counselor and hire me each year.

Drawing on years of experience from a rigorous UT-Austin humanities honors education and working with thousands of prospective students in UT’s Office of Admissions, I help craft complete applications with concern to admissions reviewers, intention, and strategy.

Brilliant students require an exceptional counselor. I’ve dedicated my life to writing craftmanship. I read over fifty books each year across a wide variety of domains, and I’ve kept a daily journal for over seven years. I completed a prestigious Fulbright Fellowship in Malaysia. I’ve explored over 115 countries. College admissions isn’t just a side-gig or a passing phase; mentoring people navigating uncertainty is central to my identity.

Services

  • Assistance with nationwide universities like the Common App, California system, Apply Texas, flagship research public universities, the Ivy League and equivalents, BS/MD programs, and Small Liberal Arts Colleges (SLACs)

  • Brainstorming, drafting, line-by-line edits, and proofreading of admissions, scholarship, and honors essays

  • Sequencing in which order what applications and supplements need to be completed

  • Assessment of a candidate’s chances of gaining admission into their desired universities

  • Building a reasonable college list and weighing enrollment offers

  • Assistance with fall and spring first-time freshman and transfer applicants

  • Video and phone call consultations

  • Help with high school course selection to best prepare students for the transition to their major

  • Review and optimization of the Common, Coalition, California, and other applications

  • Consultation regarding best fit and exploration of potential major options

  • A “second opinion” essay/application review option for students nearing submission or those who have already worked with a counselor

 

Getting in

Admissions Madness® practices a student-centered philosophy. Founder of Tex Admissions® and former UT-Austin admissions counselor, Kevin Martin offers a boutique independent college consulting experience that rejects templates and cookie-cutter, one-size-fits-all approaches to essay writing and applications.

I recognize the pivotal role that parents and educators play in the application process, and I am here to supplement those efforts during these sometimes stressful times. I do not hire assistants, so you will always work directly with me.

My services are a combination of Zoom calls and revisions directly on Docs/Word. I return essay feedback almost always within 24 hours of receipt. I work seven days a week during the busy season (late May to early November). I don’t outsource anything - all of my blog and video content is created by me.

My most successful clients are those who reach out early in the process, are open to constructive criticism, and are willing to work hard. Like a movie director tasked with eliciting the best performance from an actress, I help students present their best selves to admissions committees.

Most consulting services are concerned with the “how” of gaining admission. I focus on the “why.” I cannot promise admission to a particular program or university. However, through collaboration, I can give an honest assessment of a student’s admissions chances and work our hardest to realize entry into their dream school.

 

staying sane

I underpromise and overdeliver. Doing business as Tex Admissions, my clients and I almost always have a smooth application process. Over 100 first-time freshman and transfer clients since Fall 2017 have submitted my end-of-year questionnaire soliciting feedback with 1 as strongly disagree and 5 as strongly agree with the following statements. I have a nearly universal client satisfaction rate.

  • My clients answered 4.9/5 in strong agreement with the statement: Do you feel that you submitted your strongest application?

  • How satisfied are you overall with our work? They rated our work 4.8/5

  • 4.8/5 feel satisfied with counseling services - communication, guidance, expertise

  • They responded with agree 4s and strongly agree 5s, 300 times out of 308 possible answers

  • Fall 2020 freshman clients answered strongly agree 95% of the time and 5% agree. All who responded would recommend me to their friends and family. Nobody responded with a 3 or lower to any question, and only one student responded with a 4.

 

Complete List of Admitted Universities

Full tuition or greater Scholarships in bold

Adelphi; Alabama; Amherst; American; Arizona; Arizona State; Arkansas; Austin College; Babson, Baylor; Bradley; Brown; Bucknell; University of California at: [Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, Santa Clara, Santa Barbara]; California State Polytechnic; Carnegie Mellon; Case Western Reserve; Chapman; Clemson; Colgate; Colorado-Boulder; Cornell; Delaware; Drexel; Duke; Elon; Emory; Embry Riddle; Florida; Florida State; Fordham; Fresno State; Furman; George Washington; Georgia; Georgia Tech; Georgetown; Harvard; Harvey Mudd; Hofstra; Houston; Illinois; Indiana; Johns Hopkins; Kansas; Kentucky; Kenyon College; Loyola Chicago; Loyola Marymount, Maryland; McGill (Canada); Miami (FL); Miami (OH); Michigan; School of Mines; Minnesota; Missouri; MIT; NC State; Northeastern; New York University; Notre Dame; Ohio State; Oregon; Oklahoma; Oklahoma State; Pace; Penn State; Pepperdine; Pittsburgh; Pitzer College; Portland; Pratt; Princeton; Purdue; Rhode Island School of Design; Rice; Rose Hulman; Rutgers; SMU; Southwestern (TX); South Carolina; St. Edwards; Syracuse; Temple; TCU; Texas A&M College Station; Texas State; Texas Tech; Tennessee; Trinity University; Tulane; UNC Charlotte; UNC Chapel Hill; Utah; UT-Austin; UT-Dallas; University of Southern California; Vanderbilt; Virginia; Virginia Wesleyan, Wake Forest; Washington-Seattle; Washington University at St. Louis; Wesleyan; William and Mary; Wisconsin