Hi everyone 🤍 When I started this group, the goal was to give ambitious students real, strategic admissions guidance for free — not just generic tips. And it’s been amazing to see so many of you take advantage of it. But as things have grown, I need to focus my time on students I work with directly — so this group will now function as a resource hub only, without active Q&A. ✅ How to Use This Group Now You still have access to two core resources: - 70+ strategy posts (all organized in the “One-Stop Hub” pinned post) - The free course module (located in the Classroom tab) Both are incredibly valuable and cover the kind of guidance students usually pay counselors for — so I highly recommend making the most of them. I may still share occasional updates or resources here, but I’ll no longer be answering individual application questions. 📲 Want to Keep Learning? That’s all happening on Instagram — @theivywizard. I post new tips, strategy breakdowns, and student examples there every week. If you’re serious about improving your application, make sure you’re following — that’s where most of the new content will be. 🎓 Want Personalized Support? If you're applying soon and genuinely want guidance, you're welcome to book a free strategy call to explore a potential fit with my Ivy Blueprint coaching program. It's a structured, step-by-step system for building a standout application — with personalized coaching and feedback from me throughout the process. 💬 Don’t Forget — One of the main reasons I started this group was to help students connect. You're always welcome to post, share progress, and support each other here — that part hasn’t changed. Thanks again for being part of this community 💜 / Lisa (The Ivy Wizard)

***Update*** Loved all the replies here! I will not be taking any more requests on this post. The two (soon three) “Mock Personal Statement Narrative” posts I created should serve as great and sufficient examples! The posts are linked in the “One-stop-hub” (the pinned post at the top of this page). 🙏🏼💪🏼 ******* Many students worry they don’t have anything unique to say in their personal statement. “Nothing big or dramatic has happened to me.” “My life isn't interesting enough.” “I’m not sure what colleges want to hear.” But you don’t need a life-changing event to write a powerful essay. You just need a real story—something honest and specific to you. Because no one else has your exact mix of experiences, perspective, and personality, you already have something worth telling. 👉 If you answer the 4 questions below, I’ll write a short personal statement narrative based on your answers—just to show you how much story is already in your life. ❕You won’t be able to use it in your actual application (I’ll be filling in the blanks with my own imagination). My goal is to prove that everyone has the raw material for a powerful essay. 👉 Write your answers in the comments (no overthinking): 1️⃣ What were three things you genuinely loved doing as a kid? Not what you were told to do—what you chose. Think Pokémon, baking experiments, comic books, building things, drawing, anything. 2️⃣ What are three words your friends would use to describe you? Be honest. Not résumé words—actual personality traits. 3️⃣ What are two or three dream jobs or lives—if anything were possible? Not what’s expected. Just what feels exciting, interesting, or fulfilling to you. Examples: 🎨 “I’d design video game worlds and write the stories behind them.” 🌿 “I’d live on a quiet farm, grow my own food, and write a book.” 🔍 “I’d research ancient languages and explore lost civilizations.” 4️⃣ What’s one small thing that felt hard for you? Not dramatic—just something that felt frustrating, awkward, or confusing in the moment. Doesn’t need to be school-related. Write in 1 sentence (max 3 sentences) what happened.

Thank you to everyone who joined the Insta challenge. I was super impressed by the quality, creativity, and ambition in your responses. It made choosing really hard, so wanted to also give some shout-outs. 🏆 Winner – Free Full 1:1 Session Incredible clarity, drive, and thoughtfulness. Can’t wait to dive deep into your goals together! @Rayyan Aquino 🎖️ Runners-Up – Mini Strategy Calls You’ll each get a 30-minute mini strategy call to work through your strategies. @Vir Sanghavi @Syed Mohammad Ahmad ✨ Shout-outs These students caught my attention with strong and thoughtful entries. @Aradhya S. @Nour Amor @Godfred Dwomoh @Drishti If you didn’t win, don’t worry — there’s a lot more coming, and you can always join MasterPath for full access to application strategy, tools, and expert support. 👉 Follow me on Instagram @theivywizard for tips & future insta challenges!

Hi everyone! Instead of the regular bi-weekly challenge here, I’m doing something a little different… 🎁 I’ve opened up 1 full 1:1 strategy session ($499 value) — plus 2 feedback call spots — to help students map out their college app game plan. As you know, these sessions are normally reserved for students in the MasterPath program — with the exception of the occasional challenge here in our free group. But this time, I wanted to open it up more widely and connect with a few students who haven’t found this group (yet). The more I learn about you, the better support I can offer. 🗓️ The challenge is happening on Instagram — and it closes Monday, July 8, midnight PDT. 👉 Join challenge on Instagram here The instructions are in the post, but here's a recap: 1️⃣ Follow me on IG @theivywizard 2️⃣ Comment BONUS on the latest post 3️⃣ I’ll DM you a short form on Insta — 5 thoughtful (not perfect!) answers about yourself ✨ You can also share the post to your story + tag me for extra visibility. This will replace the next bi-weekly challenge in the group. Can’t wait to read your entries 🤍 Let me know below if you have any questions!

This is the third narrative in this series—each one imagined from real student replies to 4 simple questions. This narrative is a bit more creative and stylized than the others, to show how even a surreal or poetic angle can carry emotional weight and meaning. It's all about what feels most natural to you. What I pulled from answers: - Childhood habit: Talking to objects about philosophical questions - Personality: Quiet, intelligent - Dream: Professor, Researcher, Lecturer - Future direction I imagined: English & Philosophy major/minor ❗Disclaimer: Everything beyond these details is imagined. And as always, this is just a first draft—specificity, emotional layering, and a stronger take-away will be needed for a final essay. __________________________________ ✏️ Hook At nine, I stood on my bed and explained mortality to the ceiling fan. 🔍 Intro - I’d just learned that stars die. That even the biggest, brightest things end. I stared up and said, “When you stop spinning, will the dust remember you?” - I liked talking to objects that didn’t interrupt. It made space for questions I didn’t know how to say to people. - I wasn’t lonely. Just overflowing—and quiet about it. 💥 Heart / Conflict - At a sleepover, I asked someone, “Do you ever feel like your body’s just your body—but your real self is floating somewhere nearby, watching?” - They froze. Then laughed. That Monday, someone passed me in the hallway and whispered “ghost girl.” - I smiled. Pretended I didn’t care. But that night, I didn’t say anything to the fan. For the first time, it spun without me speaking. - I started shrinking the parts of myself that made people tilt their heads. When someone asked how my weekend was, I said “good.” When I wanted to talk about how rain feels like static, I said “kinda wet.” 🌱 Growth / Resolution - I didn’t stop thinking strangely. I just stopped saying it out loud. - I wrote instead. Voice notes I never sent. A folder called “Conversations That Didn’t Happen.” And eventually, I shared fragments online—in quiet forums, in late-night threads, in posts that disappeared after a few hours. - And people responded. “That made me feel less weird.” “I’ve never heard anyone say it like that.” I realized I wasn’t alone. Just on a different frequency—and maybe part of my job is tuning others into it. I used to think I had to translate myself to fit in. Now I want to build spaces where depth isn’t confusing—it’s invited. - Whether I’m writing, teaching, or building quiet spaces for reflection, I don’t want to flatten weirdness. I want to make it legible—to the right people. - The fan still spins above me sometimes. I still talk to it. But more and more, I talk to people too. And not just when I’ve practiced—but when I need to be heard.