What we think

what we think

What We Think

We think that the college admissions process should be full of possibility, not something terrifying that drains the future of its excitement. We want to make sure your college admissions experience – from test prep to school selection to admissions — fulfills your needs and goals and opens the door to a bright future.

We think that the process looks different for every student. Some students will need more prep than others while some won’t need any prep. Some students won’t find the most competitive colleges fulfilling, even if they have the admissions profile to compete for an admissions spot. Others will discover ambitions that lead them to completely re-imagine what school would be the most rewarding for them.

We think there is a lot of bad advice out there that survives because families are terrified that their kids will somehow miss out on their futures as high school students. We aren’t interested in feeding the college admissions beast that drives so many families to pay for whatever service someone is willing to offer. Our mission is to help families see their options clearly (and there are a lot of options!) and make the best possible decisions about the entire college admissions process.

Best Practices

There are lot of options out there for test prep and college admissions. Some have big names and have been around forever. Many are your local school teachers who try to transfer their classroom skills over to the (strange) world of ACTs and SATs. Unfortunately, good intentions and expertise aren’t the same thing. We understand that at the end of the day, you may not work with Breakaway. But you should insist that whoever you do work with follow some very sensible best practices.

  • One on one instruction Let’s face it, there is no better way to prep a student than in a one-on-one setting. We get to focus on your student’s strengths and weaknesses, not a group of two, three, four or more’s strengths and weaknesses.
  • The opportunity for regular assessments in addition to homework assignments and session work. Students should have the opportunity to work through exams in real test conditions.
  • Real test materials. Both SAT and ACT have made some of their exams available. In addition to test-taking strategies, real material should be at the heart of any serious prep experience. If a tutor shows up with a Princeton Review book or some other “big brand” book under his arm, just keep in mind that you are paying for your student to learn how to succeed on that company’s best guess at the SAT or ACT.
  • Adaptable prep plans. There should always be opportunity for regular feedback and the opportunity to adjust plans accordingly. There is no need to make a top-notch math student sit for hours and hours of math prep or a strong reader to spend hours and hours practicing reading problems.

This is the second time that my family has used Breakaway. I personally liked how my Breakaway counselor never let me go through the college process alone. He was always there to help me with whatever I needed help with. He made me feel secure with the choices I made and answered all my questions. Breakaway in general is a huge help and my stress was relieved because I worked with them.

  • Lauren C., University of Rhode Island

Our Offices