In this series, we spotlight Hebron High School’s Rising Valedictorian, who has worked with Vanguard for Test Prep since middle school and continued on for the College Application process. Here is our interview with Parth, who applied to numerous colleges for Pre-Medicine for the Fall of 2025. He was accepted to Brown University’s Program in Liberal Medical Education (PLME), Johns Hopkins University, Rice University, Washington University-St. Louis, UT Austin, and UT Dallas with the Eugene McDermott Scholarship!
Why did you choose Vanguard to work with you during the college application process? What was the biggest help to you in our process?
I chose Vanguard because I felt confident that their specialists and counselors had the experience and understanding of the process to elevate my application and my story. The essay help was amazing and better than I was expecting. I was a test prep student, so I kind of got to know about Vanguard’s counseling program through that. I knew that they went pretty in depth, so my mom and I met with [College Counseling Director] Alina and then I started working with them in 2024.
What were you the most nervous about going into the college process?
I was most nervous about my essays as I felt well prepared on the other pieces of my application. I knew that essays could be make or break, so I didn't want it to hamper my application. I had tried to control as many parts of my application as I could—whether it was stats, recommendation letters, awards—but essays were the one thing that I knew was never really my strength.
In what ways did you feel more prepared in your college application journey than your peers who did not seek our services?
I had someone constantly looking over my work and always had a counselor or specialist to talk to in case I had any question or doubts. The constant feedback and almost immediate aid was unmatched. I don't know if there was ever an emergency, but definitely anytime I had a question, anytime I had an update on an essay, or even more recently me and [Essay Specialist] Sara have been in touch a lot talking about results and what a specific decision could mean. A lot of it is also just about keeping my nerves, because it's a lot of waiting time. My first decision was my REA decision that came in December and then I had a January decision for UT and then I had to wait until March. With Vanguard, I got very quick responses all the time, and Sara was very responsive. She was very quick to edit essays—I got almost same day feedback if I submitted something that day. And I think the dynamic and the workflow was also very well done. She had a good schedule planned for me, and as long as I stayed with that schedule and followed what we discussed in the meetings, it all worked out!
How did your Vanguard Specialist help you through the process and with the anxieties you had going into college applications?
Sara, my Vanguard Specialist, totally transformed the story of my application and the way I was presenting myself. It was extremely reassuring, especially being in the midst of such a competitive cycle, that I had someone who had a plan for every single essay and every single school. She was really good at taking what I was saying and what I wanted to say and phrasing it in a very kind of well done way. It seemed like after we got through the Common App essay—which was kind of where I showed my flare and my personality—most of my supplemental essays were pretty straightforward and to the point. I would say. But the Common App was funny and interesting, and I definitely would not have been able to do that myself. But even more than that, for the supplemental essays, it felt like after the first three schools were done, Sara had a plan for almost every single essay, and that provided a lot of ease throughout the process. I wasn't struggling with deadlines like a bunch of my friends, I wasn't getting advice from various sources, and I had confidence going into it.
Was there anything else Vanguard helped you with during the college selection/college counseling process that you would like to highlight?
I don't have anything specific but they helped me with essays, activity and honors descriptions, getting letters of recommendation, interview preparation, Letters of Continued Interest, and even just being a person to talk to when I was nervous or doubting a specific decision (ED vs REA, for example).
What was essay coaching like at Vanguard?
It was amazing. This might be specific to my Specialist, but I feel like my essay just after Sara and I had polished it was good enough to submit to these schools—and then, there were two extra levels of review that took place! This ensured that any mistakes or perspectives that were not previously thought about were caught and worked on.
If you are willing to share, what did you end up writing your college essay about and how did the end result turn out? How does the essay you wrote with Vanguard compare to what you would have written about on your own?
I loved my narrative. I wrote about my Rubik's cubing, mocktails, fantasy football obsession, and medical podcast, and how they all showed my intellectual curiosity. It was definitely a lot more unique and more of a risk than if I would have written it myself, not to mention the elevated style of writing.
What colleges did you get into? Where did you choose to go and what are you studying?
I got into UT Austin, the UTD McDermott Program, WashU St. Louis, Johns Hopkins University, and Brown University as a part of the PLME program, which is where I am headed. I am studying cognitive neuroscience, but with the new freedom offered by the program, I am considering adding an Economics/Applied Math or Computer Science degree to learn new skills. I think it'd be good if I was able to learn a skill like computer science or something, to get more efficient with technology going forward. I think that's going to be helpful in anything that I do.
What are your future goals with your degree?
Go to medical school and become a doctor. I've been really interested in Alzheimer's research, and I know eventually that'll lead me down the path to becoming a neurologist or neurosurgeon, but one of my goals in the next four years is to test out other fields of medical research, and even some more public health related stuff. I really just want to get my feet wet.
What was your favorite part of working with Vanguard or your most proud achievement during your time working with us? Is there anything else you would like to highlight about your experience?
My favorite part was the openness of the Specialists and counselors to work on whatever I wanted. They are truly worth the money if you can afford the help. One of the things I wanted to do was a portfolio, so Alina and I worked on that for a month and a half or so. She was super open to scheduling time for me. And I did interview prep with Sara. The assistance and the help that you are provided past the essays—I never really felt like there was a “no” to anything. I’d be like, “Hey, can we revisit this essay?” and it was always a “Let's do it!” It was super encouraging and a very collaborative workflow, so I think my overall experience with Vanguard was super positive.
How did the skills you learned at Vanguard help you after you left the program? Perhaps at school or other areas?
I definitely became a better writer and understood how to communicate myself and my ideas more effectively. Having to write so many essays about the same thing in my case over and over again made me understand how to dispel that information, whether it's to a specific committee or any person, very well. I started using hyphens a lot. Just small little things like that to polish up my writing and make my ideas clearer, whether it's in school in AP Lit or even like writing emails to people, writing resume items. Vanguard helps with so many different parts of your professional development at this stage of college applications.
What advice would you give to younger Vanguardians embarking on their College Application process?
Trust the process, follow the deadlines, and listen to your Specialist and counselors. Another thing I would add there is, feedback is good. One of the advantages of Vanguard is that you get so many levels of review and taking advantage of that is very important. I think another thing is to advocate for yourself. If you are unhappy with the direction that an essay is going, then speak up about it.
Specialist Madison L.
Hamilton College