Frequently Asked Questions

No, and no honest advisor can. Admission is decided solely by each university. What we do is make sure the application is as strong, complete and well-timed as the student's record allows — and tell you plainly, early, where a target is unrealistic.

Families pay us a fixed fee per engagement, agreed in writing before any work starts. We accept no commission from any university, which keeps our advice on where to apply independent. The most selective universities in the US and UK do not work with commissioned agents at all.

For a full-strength application, two to three years before the deadline — Year 10 or Grade 9 — so subject choices and activities can be planned rather than retrofitted. A student in the final two years can still be supported well; the work simply focuses on the application itself.

UK admissions are course-first: one UCAS application, one personal statement, and decisions weighted towards grades in relevant subjects, with tests and interviews for the most selective courses. US admissions are holistic and university-first: essays, activities, recommendations and context matter alongside grades. Many students run both tracks; the calendars overlap in the autumn of the final school year.

IB Diploma, A-Levels and IGCSE, the American curriculum with AP courses, and CBSE and ICSE — the four systems most common in UAE and Gulf international schools. Each maps differently onto university entry requirements, and part of the early work is understanding that mapping for the student's target list.

No. The student writes; we plan, question, edit and challenge. Universities expect the work to be the applicant's own, and a statement written by someone else is both an integrity risk and, in interview, immediately obvious.

One named advisor stays with the family from the assessment onwards and is accountable for the plan. Specialist counsellors are brought in for essay coaching, admissions tests or interview practice as the plan requires, and are introduced to you by name before any session.

We brief families on the visa route, tuition and living-cost picture for each destination as part of planning, and, through Citizenship & Co., on residency options that may affect fee status or long-term plans. Visa applications themselves, and legal or tax questions, are referred to the appropriate professionals.

Yes. Most sessions run online, and families across the GCC and beyond work with us the same way a Dubai family does. In-person meetings are available at our Dubai office by appointment.

It is used to reply to you and to plan the engagement, held in confidence, and never sold or passed to marketers. We collect only the parent's contact details and the student's first name and school stage through this website; anything more is gathered under a signed engagement with parental consent. See our privacy policy for the full position.