The Early Blueprint for a Winning College Strategy
Now’s the time to find schools that value your teen’s innate strengths, because authenticity is their competitive edge
Access the recording and learn:
✔ The best way to start building a winning college list
✔ The Match Pyramid framework for selecting schools
✔ How the right list can strengthen your candidacy
Most students go about this backwards (and start too late).
Our process unlocks intrinsic motivation & stand-out strengths:
PLUS: You’ll have a chance to ask us questions about your student’s goals, target schools, or unique situation
✔ The top mistakes students make when evaluating schools that lead to generic applications, wasted energy, or disappointing results — and how to avoid them
✔ Why starting with strengths and self-discovery creates momentum that lasts — because when students feel aligned with their goals, motivation follows naturally
✔ An inside look at the list-building process behind our 95% success rate — we spend most of our time here, as it informs classes, activities, essays, and testing
✔ How to use our Match Pyramid framework to build a list that naturally leverages your student’s strengths, clarifies their story, and positions them for success
✔ Why juniors need to get started on this now, so they can use the next 8-10 months intentionally instead of chasing accomplishments that don’t serve them
Especially if your kid is a junior, now is the time to join us and learn:
There’s a better way. One that builds confidence and candidacy. And the sooner a student gets started, the better, because their entire college strategy flows from that list.
Starting with schools that sound appealing — high-ranking, name-brand, or “we’ve heard it’s good” — and trying to fit what they think those schools want.
So why do so many families fall into it?
They’re building their college list backwards:
It’s overwhelming for everyone — and it’s not a winning strategy.
It can seem like the only way to get your kid into a good college is to optimize them. Push them to do more. Aim higher.
Take the guesswork out of college planning —
and take the pressure off your family.
WHO’S LEADING THE CLASS?
Sheila Akbar, President & CEO of Signet Education
Sheila has guided hundreds of students and families through this process, helping them make strategic moves that lead to better college outcomes. In this class, she’ll show you how focusing on a student’s strengths before selecting colleges helps shape a stand-out strategy.
Don’t wait for the pressure to build…
Empower your kid to take ownership of the process now.
Creating an authentic list now allows every next step to unfold with intention — from class selection to summer programs to college essays.
Access this webinar to get it right from the start.
(Even if they’re dragging their feet, once they realize they don’t have to fit a mold, you’ll see their energy and excitement unlock.)
Sheila Akbar, PhD is President & CEO of Signet Education, a full service education consulting company offering holistic support to teens and their families as they navigate high school and the college admissions process.
Sheila joined the Signet team in the summer of 2010, bringing with her a wealth of experience teaching SAT, ACT, GRE, literature, and composition in both one-on-one and classroom settings. Sheila loves both teaching and learning, and finds nothing more rewarding than working closely with students to overcome the challenges they face. Sheila holds a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree from Harvard University and two doctoral degrees from Indiana University.
Sheila's bright and uplifting perspective on college prep is changing the face of what it means to parent through the high-school-to-college years. With a deep belief in the successful partnership of parents and teens, her influence is affecting student after student and family after family to reach beyond their dreams to new levels of success. She and her team at Signet Education have seen more than 10K students' lives changed through meaningful academic mentorship.