Testimonials

Preston Ball Testimonial:

Marina Kare Testimonial:

Jackie Meyers Testimonial:

“We feel extremely grateful to have had Susanne Condon, Coast 2 Coast College Counseling, as all four of our children’s college guidance counselor.  You were generous with your time and made us feel like we were your only client.  The advice and direction that you shared were grounded not simply on anecdotal evidence but more on empirical research and data.  You were very organized and kept our children on track with deadlines, such that all applications were completed early, and submitted well in advance of any deadlines.  From our first meeting, you were “straight” with us in terms of expectations and likely chances of acceptance into “reach” schools.  You encouraged and motivated our children through a very stressful process, to ensure that their authentic voices shined through in essays and that college applications were presented in the best light!  Your approach has stood the test of time, having now achieved successful outcomes with our son who was admitted to Vanderbilt in 2012, our daughter admitted to Barnard College in 2019, and our twins just accepted to USC and Emory!  But, most important, your world-class service has been provided while upholding an uncompromising commitment to integrity and honesty.  

Marc Mills – Father of Siena, Donovan, Harrison, & Marley – Vanderbilt, Barnard, USC, and Emory

I just wanted to let you know that I’ve decided to attend Columbia University as a chemical engineering major for the next four years (possibly double minoring in sustainable engineering and English if I can find the time). As someone who offered extremely helpful advice and constant support throughout all those months of tumultuous applications and last-minute decisions, you were instrumental in helping me get to where I am now, and I wanted to sincerely thank you again from the bottom of my heart for all your help throughout this process. Please let me know if any of your future students have questions about Columbia; I’d be happy to talk to them.

Alexandria Lam – Columbia

I truly cannot describe how helpful Susanne was to me throughout this process. She clued me in on admissions trends, helped me craft my essays, and gave me ideas on how to improve my applications.  Susanne was there to help me every step of the way, and I couldn’t be more grateful for all the time and effort she put into helping me achieve my goals and my dream for college. The combination of her expertise and warmth is unmatched, and I truly felt like she cared about my success and happiness just as much as I did. The college application process is many things: stressful, arduous, complex, and confusing, but Susanne’s  expertise gave me confidence in my process and, with her support, I finished all of my essays weeks, sometimes months, in advance of the deadlines. With her help I was able to get into my dream school: UPenn Wharton. I couldn’t have done it without her! So for all those considering her services, let me say that with my family’s experience of having put three children through the college application process, there is no counselor who goes above and beyond for their students like Susanne. 

Max Ziegler – The Wharton School of The University of Pennsylvania 

“Susanne has been absolutely invaluable to our family through the college application process. All four of our children have benefitted immeasurably from her great wisdom, years of experience and dedicated guidance. And each of our children was varied from each other in their academics; however, gratefully, each one was admitted to their top preference in schools. She knew when it was best to declare Early Decision, Early Action or Regular Decision. Ironically, we experienced each of those individual decisions being the best one according to each child, and whether their top choice was a stretch or a target school.  Susanne helps each child put their best package together, including not just GPA, class schedule and testing, but by helping them stand out by best emphasizing what makes them unique with their passions, contributions, and activities. She will tell you where the holes are and how to best fill them. Being able to have such a wealth of discernment and assurance has made what can otherwise be a stressful and regretful process, be a victorious one, each of the four times.  When there are hundreds of thousands of dollars going into the investment of your children’s education, it felt like a reasonable investment to make sure the school that we were writing checks to for the next four years was the right one for them. Susanne is also so kind and encouraging, so our children never felt anything but built up in their experience working with her.  I jump at every chance to recommend her to anyone who is entering into the college application process. With all the recent headlines of how crazy this process can be, it truly is invaluable to have someone with so much knowledge and experience, but also with the character and high standards to match, as Susanne Condon.”

Heather and Gary Hershberger – Parents of Four Children

“Susanne’s assistance and guidance played a huge role in my college application process. Like many other students in PV, I already had high grades and test scores, but Susanne taught me how I could accentuate the other unique aspects of myself in my essays and application to show colleges that I am a one-of-a-kind applicant. Not only does she keep you organized and on-schedule with your applications, but Susanne is also such a fun person to talk to. As the college process continues to become more and more competitive every year, it’s important to always be one step ahead of the competition. Thank’s to Susanne, I was accepted into my Number 1 choice, the Global Management Program in the Haas School of Business at the University of Berkeley.”

Jeffrey Zhang – UC Berkeley – One of 30 students accepted to Haas School Global Management Program

We are very happy with our decision to have Susanne guide our daughter and us through the college application process. Susanne provided an honest evaluation of our daughter’s academic and extracurricular activities, and helped us develop a list of realistic target schools. We started working with Susanne at the end of my daughter’s junior year which may have been a little bit on the late side. 

Susanne was a really positive, calming and caring presence through what can be a pretty stressful process! Susanne had actionable and constructive ideas on improving the overall application and also introduced us to several great volunteer opportunities.We were most impressed with the great feedback on the essays. Susanne really helped my daughter communicate who she was and show a very personal side of her that she normally would be reluctant to share. 

Another key thing that made a huge difference was how firm and organized Susanne was with deadlines…but she balanced this with a great knack for knowing when to ease up when school got busy and stressful. This talent definitely saved us a lot of potential family conflict. And even with some procrastination, my daughter was finished early on all her applications and she was relaxed when her friends were rushing to turn in their applications at the last minute. We’d strongly recommend Susanne to anyone and we’re planning on having our son work with her when time comes. 

“I want to thank Susanne so much for guiding me in the college process. She helped me pick out what schools would be right for me to apply to and taught me how to write the essays they required. I could tell she was extremely experienced in these areas. My senior year and the college application process was stress free because she made sure I was always on top of my work and gave me a lot of great advice. Susanne pushed me to be the best version of myself in my application and in real life. I really feel like she wanted me to succeed, and I did because I am going to my top choice school, UCLA, next year. Thank you so much, Susanne!”

Mary Bernadett – UCLA

Susanne,
We wanted to Thank You so much for all you have done for both of our sons, who are now going to excellent colleges.

First, you helped us so much with our older son, who has ADHD and other disabilities but is a very bright person. His high school counselors told him that he would NOT be able to go to a 4-year college and only to a community college. He really wanted to go to a 4-year college and study Forensics. With your help and our son’s hard work, he was accepted to 10 excellent colleges across the United States and now has one year left for his Bachelor’s Degree in Biology (with partial merit-based scholarships each year) and is currently applying to graduate schools.

Then you helped our younger son, who just finished high school, get accepted to some amazing schools across the United States. Some of which were, Northeastern University in Boston, Penn State, Purdue, Loyola Marymount (with almost a full scholarship), University of Indiana, Bloomington, Ohio State University, University of San Diego and others with many of these offering partial scholarships. Some of these colleges we had never even considered as they were in the middle of the country, and in the end, our son chose Ohio State University and is so excited to be going there next month.

We cannot thank you enough for your caring, guidance and professionalism with both of our sons. You believed in them and helped them throughout the entire College Application process.

Don and Ana Glunts – Parents of Matthew and Derek

“Mrs. Condon eases all stresses of the college admission process. Her apparent dedication to helping each student shines a bright light on the complexities of college applications. She is incredibly enthusiastic, helpful, and kind-hearted. From organizing essays to planning out each application, she does it all! I am extremely grateful that I had the opportunity to work with Mrs. Condon! Best college counselor ever!  I was accepted to 14 schools out of the 18 schools I applied to. I will be attending Cal Poly San Louis Obispo in the fall!”  She also helped my brother Ari get into Stanford!

Marina Kare, Ari Kare – Cal Poly SLO, Stanford

“The college application process is a rough one. Without Susanne, I do not know what I would have done. Starting sophomore year, I met with Susanne, and she advised me on what classes/ extracurriculars would be beneficial to my applications. Also, she provided a plan for allowing me to take the SATs/ACTs on time. Once my junior year came around, I was already beginning to craft my essays and outline all my thoughts.  Also, Susanne helped me get a general layout of the application process, and I will admit it was overwhelming. Instantly, Susanne created an organized plan to ensure I would have my applications “in” on time. Susanne offers a mix of encouragement and discipline which was just what I needed. She pushed me when I needed it and had a soft side when I needed it. My personal statement was my life in one essay and I don’t think anyone could have helped me articulate my choppy words into an essay as she did. She sat with me and gave me undivided attention while working through the countless essays. Between junior and senior year, I had already completed a majority of my essays, and with applying to 21 schools, it was an overwhelming amount of writing. One by one, I would write, and she would edit continuously providing ideas on what I should emphasize throughout my essays. Her availability was undeniable. During this time, Susanne became like a second mom always telling it to me straight. With Susanne at my side, my applications were virtually complete by the end of the summer going into my senior year. This way, I could focus on keeping my first-semester grades up, and my stress down. By December, I had already been accepted to four universities, so the weight on my shoulders was finally lifted. Not only has Susanne helped me receive acceptances to renowned universities, but also a bountiful amount of scholarships. With 17 acceptances, 12 colleges gave me academic scholarships to attend. Some schools even offered me in-state tuition. And, some universities offered to fly me out for a free to visit their campus. I cannot be more pleased with the college I chose. Susanne suggested UW for me and I am so beyond happy with my future home. I highly recommend Susanne to anyone who wants a less stressful junior and senior year with favorable outcomes.”

Preston Ball – University of Washington

“Coast 2 Coast is an unbelievable college application service! The quality of attention they put into each student’s application exceeded my expectations. Not only was I able to get accepted to my dream school, Georgetown University, but with Coast 2 Coast I was admitted to UPenn, Cornell, UCLA, and Duke University, which I will be attending in the fall. Without a doubt, I would not have been as successful had I not had the expertise of Coast 2 Coast, and my senior year was manageable because they made the process so simple. 10/10 would recommend!!”

Emily Fechner – Duke

” I have had the supreme pleasure of working with Coast 2 Coast and let me say that they do indeed get results. With their help, I was able to get into my dream school and the school that I will be attending in the Fall, Yale, along with many other top universities and liberal arts colleges. I wholeheartedly recommend their services to any applicant who is looking for a dynamic duo that is professional, helpful beyond measure, and that balances the right amounts of encouragement and discipline…”

Stephen Lee –  Yale

“Every chance I get, I sing the highest praises about Susanne Condon and Coast 2 Coast for making the college admissions process a dream come true. The journey to college can be quite daunting for parents and students alike.  Susanne’s expertise, experience, and enthusiasm are second to none in making the undertaking manageable and successful.  Susanne’s  attention to detail is what separates her from the competition. She focuses on the individual student, spends valuable time with each person, and capitalizes on his or her strengths to create a unique and memorable story. I know that both of my sons received a priceless gift by being able to work with Susanne.  If ever she was in doubt about something, she picked up the phone and called the college directly to ask for answers to be accurate and timely. Each year the application process can vary with requirements and Susanne stays on top of everything to be sure her information is current and in sync with what the colleges require.  Susanne’s track record speaks for itself. Her students are accepted year after year to their top schools and the results are phenomenal. Every penny spent is worth the investment to gain peace of mind and confidence knowing the best choice for the college counseling process is Coast 2 Coast and Susanne Condon.”

Marisa Marshall – Mother of Luke Marshall (UCSB) and Jake Marshall (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo) 

I feel extremely grateful to have had Susanne Condon, Coast 2 Coast College Counseling, as both my daughter’s college guidance counselor.  This was a very stressful and intimidating process and Susanne was able to put the whole family at ease with her calm demeanor and professionalism. Susanne was very generous with her time and made us feel like we were her only client.  She was very organized and kept our daughters on track with deadlines, such that all of their applications were completed early, and submitted well in advance of any deadlines.  She encouraged and motivated my daughters through a very stressful process.  This was done with integrity, making sure it was my daughter’s work the whole time, and their authentic voices in their essays and applications. Susanne’s approach and guidance helped one daughter get admitted to UCLA and the other admitted to USC. These were their dream colleges and they could not have been happier! We cannot recommend Susanne enough.

Sandy Spallino – Mother of Adri USC and Anna UCLA

“I honestly cannot imagine how I would’ve made it through the college application process without Coast 2 Coast. Like many nervous seniors, I entered the application season cautiously, anticipating the pressure I would come to face. Luckily, Coast 2 Coast became an immediate source of support. I had heard horror stories of the infamous application procrastination, but thanks to Coast 2 Coast’s scheduling expertise, these were not my reality. I finished the majority of my essays before the school year even began, allowing me to focus my attention on my first semester grades and perfecting every last detail of my applications. While their resources, advice, and organizational guidance were indispensable throughout my senior year, I believe what truly sets Coast 2 Coast apart is how much they truly care about each individual. They took the time to not only get to know me as an applicant on paper but also as a very excited (but terrified) student with goals and concerns. By establishing an understanding of me as a person, they were able to help my unique qualities shine through in my application, which I firmly believe gave me an advantage during the admissions process. But even more importantly, their care and reliability granted me peace of mind. I knew that when overwhelmed by the stress of this often complex, arduous process, they were only a phone call away and always willing to talk me through my worries. Coast 2 Coast went above and beyond to ensure my success and happiness; I can’t imagine where I’d be without them.”

Katie Shewfelt – Wesleyan University

“Susanne, thank you for guiding Gio throughout the college process. Your expertise, patience, and constant presence were absolutely phenomenal. I appreciate so much you looking at my son and for helping to find and identify his strengths and for building his resume so he could showcase himself and make his true character stand out. We are thrilled with all the wonderful options Gio has for college.”

Francesca Forcucci