Dario Rager
I started working on my college apps at the beginning of senior year, and like everybody else, I felt overwhelmed and confused about the process. What were colleges looking for? Grades? Extracurriculars? Leadership roles? The more I looked online, the more disoriented I felt. I needed simple answers from a reliable source. So, I got a traditional college counselor to help guide me in the right direction. We worked tirelessly on my essays and activities lists, but deep down, I knew something was missing that would make me stand out among others. My counselor, based in the east coast, had never herself applied to college in the Bay Area—let alone in the modern-day competitive environment. I wanted a way to stand out among thousands of highly qualified applicants in my area. One year later, after living through this process myself, and seeing hundreds of peers getting accepted and denied from colleges, I learned what it takes to catch the attention of admission officers and secure a spot at a top-ranked university. Looking back, I see that most applicants go through this process somewhat blindly, only hoping for the best. That's why this summer I started College Clarity to help other students who feel as lost as I once did. Our team helps students navigate the college application process from start to finish, from building an initial college list, to polishing essays and activities lists—all for a much more reasonable price compared to traditional college counselors. Since we all graduated from Miramonte high school in 2025, we have the most up-to-date Bay Area-specific advice for new applicants. We got into top schools for our respective programs, and our goal is to help your children do the same.
2025 Miramonte Grad, Orinda CA
Ethan Brar
2025 Miramonte Grad
After the end of my sophomore year, I entered summer knowing absolutely nothing about the college admissions process. Coming from an immigrant family, all I had known was that I needed to take challenging classes and have good grades. Reality hit me hard when I watched a YouTube video of an admitted student’s application to Stanford. I quickly realized that a good GPA and a couple years of swimming would only get me so far. My parents were against the idea of a traditional college counselor, so I turned to social media for inspiration. That summer, I scoured all social media platforms for new information every day and gained knowledge that I still use to this day. With this new knowledge, I took initiative and started my own kombucha business to promote gut health in my local community. This was my main project throughout the rest of high school and it helped me get into my top schools. This was not only what colleges wanted to see, but it was what I wanted to do, which made me have more fun and get better results. Online websites as well as Miramonte counselors played a huge role in my success with my essays and activities lists. I’ve learned a great deal about the college admissions process as a whole over the past couple of years, and I look forward to sharing it with our future students. My main goal is not only to help your child get into their top college, but to provide clarity for them through this tough process that I never had.
Adam Liao
2025 Miramonte Grad
When the time came to apply to college, the odds seemed against me. I was an Asian-American male from the Bay Area applying for engineering majors. It felt impossible to navigate the convoluted college application process, let alone apply to the most competitive majors as the most competitive demographic. As a first-generation immigrant, I didn’t have parents or older siblings who knew how to help me with anything college-related. Without a clear guide on “the correct way” to do things, I stumbled through Google searches trying to find important information — “letters of recommendations, SAT/ACT scores sends, decision deadlines,” — it overwhelmed me. So to help the upcoming seniors be more confident in the college application process, I’ve collaborated with College Clarity as the Primary Essay Editor. Looking back on my college application experience, it all boils down to one piece of advice: essays play the most crucial part in college applications. In the sea of applications, essays are each student’s opportunity to reveal who they are and what unique interests drive them. As a 3-times New York Times contest-winning writer, I aim to guide the next wave of students to craft impactful essays that grab admission officers’ attention. Being deliberate in how I approach college essays got me accepted to multiple top 20 schools in the U.S. — so I know what it takes to impress AOs and convince them to accept an applicant. Through my essay editing service, I pass on crucial application-writing secrets and empower students to develop meaningful stories that make every word count.
