• COVID-19 Update: All coaching sessions are conducted remotely and the crisis has not impacted our operations.

College Admissions

Finding Purpose: A Four Step Process for Teens
Finding Purpose: A Four Step Process for Teens 1000 1000 Xueying Chen

The best process for developing purpose is through action, a purpose project that we call a Spike. This process is more an art than a science, but we liken it to a very simple 4-step framework that our students follow.

A student looks out of her window, gazing at the moon, which represent family connection.

Healing The Whole Family (NYTimes)
Healing The Whole Family (NYTimes) 1280 853 Xueying Chen

Illustration from “Healing The Whole Family” by Jon Han for The New York Times This New York Times article is reposted with…

Opinion: International Students, Please Don’t Stay Up Late for School
Opinion: International Students, Please Don’t Stay Up Late for School 1000 652 Theo Wolf

This is a guest post written by our coach, Grace Chiang. It’s no question COVID-19 has massively disrupted the education of hundreds…

The Spike Lab Sees Record Interest From High Schoolers To Learn Entrepreneurship During The Pandemic
The Spike Lab Sees Record Interest From High Schoolers To Learn Entrepreneurship During The Pandemic 1200 358 Jennifer Eident

This is an except from our press release published on multiple sites including Yahoo Finance, Market Watch and AP News. See the…

Coach Profiles: Introducing Steven Eno
Coach Profiles: Introducing Steven Eno 1000 1000 Theo Wolf

In this post, you’ll meet Steven Eno, a former teacher and engineer who has built multiple successful STEM and innovation programs at high schools.

The Biggest Changes to This Year’s College Application Season (COVID-19 Edition)
The Biggest Changes to This Year’s College Application Season (COVID-19 Edition) 1000 1000 Larry Liu

Colleges are being forced to rapidly innovate a holistic admissions process that hasn’t been changed in years, all due to COVID-19. Universities and applicants both face significant uncertainty. In this post, we expand upon the issues fueling this uncertainty and how seniors can effectively navigate the upcoming application cycle ahead.

August Recommended Readings
August Recommended Readings 550 584 Jennifer Eident

August 2020 recommended stories on youth innovation and college admissions.

This Summer Is the Perfect Time to Launch a Spike
This Summer Is the Perfect Time to Launch a Spike 538 476 Lloyd Nimetz

If you’re laboring away trying to figure out what to do this summer, labor no more; build a Spike. It’s the most fun, developmentally challenging and rewarding way for teens to spend their summer AND it’s pandemic proof!

How to Stand Out to Colleges When Tests are Optional
How to Stand Out to Colleges When Tests are Optional 1000 675 Theo Wolf

It’s impossible to know precisely how these shifts will affect college admissions, but one thing is certain: academics are going to play the smallest role they have ever played. As admissions officers have less and less confidence in their traditional measures of student aptitude, they are going to look more and more to the untraditional. Spikes will be more important than ever.

Announcing our 2020 Admissions Results
Announcing our 2020 Admissions Results 1280 459 Theo Wolf

We are proud to announce the results from our students in the class of 2020. These students worked extraordinarily hard over the…

The Front, Side and Back Doors into Elite US Colleges
The Front, Side and Back Doors into Elite US Colleges 1080 674 Theo Wolf

The massive admissions scandal shook the foundation of the American college admissions system. In particular, it exposed the existence of immoral and illegal “side doors” into elite universities. This article explains what you need to know going forward if you’re considering hiring a private counselor for college applications.

The Spike Lab’s Reason for Being
The Spike Lab’s Reason for Being 1080 674 Lloyd Nimetz

This article explains our company’s mission: to develop “purpose-driven innovators for life”. We are working to foster a fundamental paradigm shift in adolescent education that puts the development of purposeful innovators at the center.

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