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Allie earned a Bachelor's degree in Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania, a Masters in Business Administration from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and a Master's in Public Administration at the Harvard Kennedy School. Professionally, she has worked as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs and as a management consultant at the Boston Consulting Group.

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She has deep experience in higher education admissions, having served as both a writing coach and alumni interviewer at the University of Pennsylvania. She has also supported the development of two courses, at the graduate and undergraduate levels, that help students translate their academic passions into professional career goals.

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Allie’s students have received acceptance into top programs at Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, University of California – Los Angeles, and the University of Michigan. Her greatest strengths as a coach include assisting students with idea generation, identifying differentiating talents, and effectively creating a cohesive story across all elements of an application. Allie particularly enjoys helping candidates transform small anecdotes into a compelling narrative that highlights the unique contributions they can make to a college or university.

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In her free time, Allie enjoys ashtanga yoga, hiking in New England, and reading the latest non-fiction books on the NYTimes Best Sellers list.

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Josef has a Bachelor's degree from Harvard University and has almost a decade of experience as an admissions coach, reviewing hundreds of applications. Josef's involvement in higher education admissions allows him to keep a finger on the pulse of the industry's latest changes and trends. One of his most significant learnings is the difference between an on-the-fence application and an accepted application: proving passion without actually using the word "passion."

Josef's journey to coaching began while tutoring his younger sister and mentoring students while he was in middle school. He has implemented coaching strategies from his state- and nationally-recognized football coaches over the years, some of whom are now coaching on the collegiate (NCAA) and professional levels (NFL). Josef is very competitive by nature, likely from 12 years of playing football and competing for a national championship senior year of high school! He loves the challenge of helping Quad applicants get into the best (and best-fit) programs and schools in alignment with their goals for how they envision themselves making a positive impact on the world. 

Josef is passionate about coaching Quad applicants and places significant importance on bringing his best version to coaching sessions. Similarly, he strives to push applicants to put their best selves forward when crafting their applications and essays. Josef's greatest strength as a coach is helping students find the intersection between their passions and talents. Josef enjoys forming strong bonds and deep connections with Quad applicants, creating a safe and comfortable space for them to share their narratives. It is in the depths of some of Josef's students' dearest hobbies that he's found some of the most endearing stories around which to craft their narratives and establish their unique differentiators. 

Students Josef has recently coached have gotten accepted at Harvard University, Yale University, Princeton University, Dartmouth College, Columbia University, Brown University, UPenn, Cornell University, Stanford University, and MIT.

When Josef isn’t coaching, he enjoys writing screenplays for movies and TV pilot scripts for shows. He also likes making music, doing karaoke, and exercising.

Josef's Pro Tip?

Those who are the best at what they do are constantly driven by pure passion for doing whatever it takes to be their best. Finding that balance between talent and passion is thus pivotal in paving the way for optimal quality of life in college and beyond.

Gregory has a Bachelor's in English from Brooklyn College, CUNY, a Master’s in English and American Literature from Hunter College, CUNY, and a PhD in English and American Literature from New York University. 

With 25 years of experience teaching and mentoring, helping students achieve their goals is in his DNA. Gregory is passionate about supporting students in self-discovery—giving them the tools to understand who they want to be as readers, thinkers, and writers.

After working with corporate lawyers for nearly twenty years, Gregory became a Professor in the departments of Literature, Writing and Publishing, and Interdisciplinary Studies. He also founded and organized a number of Darwin-inspired Moral Sense Colloquia and other multidisciplinary events. He has authored books on literary subjects, moral consciousness, evolution and human culture, art and adaptation, great apes, and the cultural ecology of food. His current interests broadly cover environmental and animal ethics. To date, he has over eighty short-form publications and has written or edited nine other academic books or anthologies.

With his breadth of experience as a mentor and a leader, he has coached countless students through first-year research projects, senior theses, and honors capstone projects. He has helped students achieve their academic goals with admissions to law school, medical school, master programs in psychology or counseling, graduate writing and literature programs, teacher education graduate programs, and more.

As a coach, Gregory enjoys working closely with students—guiding them through the research process. He is very responsive, attentive, and goal-oriented with mentees, ensuring they get the most out of their projects.