Meet the founder, Ronke Olatilo, MBA, LPC.

I am a researcher, problem solver, strategist, professional counselor, and mother. I am a lifelong learner. I spent over fifteen years in various corporate roles spanning, research and development as an engineer, product management, marketing, and business development.

Throughout my years in the corporate world, I often found myself identifying and creating opportunities to mentor, advise and share my knowledge with others. Driven by my strong desire to help and mentor people, I returned to graduate school, obtained my Master’s in Professional Counseling, and became a licensed professional counselor (LPC).

In my various roles as counselor, I found that I was most fulfilled when coaching clients who were working on personal growth and development or working through making major life decisions. I enjoy gathering data, analyzing it, and uncovering insights to aid my clients’ decision making. I have used my strong listening and problem-solving skills to fully understand clients’ and then work with them to achieve their goals. I have also used these skills to help friends and family members with career and college decisions which I thoroughly enjoy. To that end I have now turned my focus to college admissions counseling and mentoring.

In developing my unique approach to college admissions counseling, I pulled not only from my corporate and counseling backgrounds but also from my broad educational experiences which enables me to connect with students who also have multiple interests and curiosities. I have a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from The City College of New York, an MBA from Purdue University’s Krannert School of Management, and a M.A. in Professional Counseling from Liberty University. With my educational experience in STEM, social sciences, and business, I am able to easily assist students with translating their educational goals into real world careers that hold the potential of providing them with fulfillment and success.

My College & Graduate School Application Story

Although born in the U.S., I completed my elementary and high school education outside of the U.S. I returned just in time to attend college.

Returning to America post-high school meant I did not have guidance counselors, mentors, or coaches to help me navigate my college application process. I completed applications all on my own therefore I know from experience how confusing and stressful the college admission process in the U.S. can feel for those not familiar with it. First-generation students, children of immigrants, and students whose parents may have even attended college in the U.S. but did so two to three decades ago, often share the same feelings of overwhelm when navigating the process today. Things have become much more nuanced and competitive than it was back then!

When I returned to the U.S. after completing high school internationally, I did not realize all that went into putting together a winning application for highly selective colleges. In fact, I did not fully appreciate the different types of colleges that existed and the differences in career outcomes that may result from going to my local public- vs private- vs out of state public- known specifically for my major. Furthermore, I did not realize that as a child from a low-income, single-mother family I could potentially identify colleges that will meet my financial need as well as grant me merit aid. Long story short, I proceeded to attend my local college just because it was what I saw near me! I realize in hindsight that I left so many things on the table when it came to identifying my best-fit college because of lack of information.

Fast forward to when I applied to graduate school (2 separate graduate degrees, over 10 years apart), I was more methodical about the process because I had a better understanding of myself and what I wanted out of my education. I learned a lot through research and from going through my own educational experiences. With this knowledge and experiences I have helped others, including my daughter, find their best-fit colleges. 

Let me work with you and your student to gain a better understanding of the current college admission process, take the stress out of it, and improve the chances of you gaining admission to your best-fit college.

I meet with students/families from anywhere across the country or the world virtually, and can travel to meet with families in person when all parties are comfortable and within an hour drive of the Lehigh Valley in PA.