Can parents sit in on meetings with consultants?

On certain meetings, absolutely. On others, we’d gently recommend stepping back — not to be secretive, but because the nature of the work changes when a parent is in the room.

The kickoff strategy call, school list discussions, and conversations about logistics or timeline? Parents are welcome and often essential. These involve strategic decisions where family context, financial parameters, and shared perspective genuinely matter. Your presence adds real value.

Essay brainstorming sessions, draft reviews, and interview prep are different. Here, we encourage parents to give the student some space. Not because you’d say the wrong thing, but because students behave differently when a parent is listening. They self-censor. They reach for the safe answer. They perform rather than excavate. A seventeen-year-old who might otherwise share a real failure or uncomfortable truth will often hold that story back if a parent is on the call — and that story might have become the essay.

We’re always transparent about what happens in any session. If you’d like a debrief, your consultant will give you one. But the protected space between consultant and student is one of the most valuable things we offer — not because anything is hidden, but because honesty needs room to breathe.