Founding Team
FOUNDING EDITOR
Michael Choi
Michael Choi graduated Columbia University in 2002, majoring in English, and quickly entered the world of editing and writing. He joined one of the Internet’s first admissions consultancies and ascended through the ranks, being promoted to Quality Assurance Editor and then Managing Editor by 2007. He led his global team to a 98.5%+ client satisfaction rating and helped thousands of clients to get into their top choice of universities.
In 2009, Michael went abroad to join one of China’s leading educational groups and here he gained direct experience on the application process from the school’s perspective. Over 60% of his students gained admissions to a top-10 program and to complement his experience with elite US schools such as Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Michael’s students gained admission to Oxford, Cambridge, and LSE. During this time, Michael also conducted volunteer alumni interviewing for his university.
Michael is based in Korea, and in addition to ensuring quality for the whole network, he helps to grow the company in Asia.
MANAGING EDITOR
Noël Norcross
In 2001, Noël graduated with a BA in English from Harvard University where she was awarded the Thomas Temple Hoopes Prize for her poetry thesis. In 2004, she graduated with an MFA in Poetry from Columbia University’s School of the Arts. Her work has been published online and in several journals. In 2007, while pursuing her PhD in English at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa, Noël was a recipient of the John Young Scholarship for the Arts. Her studies focused on Contemporary Polynesian Poetry, Contemporary American Poetry, and the Pedagogy of Creative Writing (with an emphasis in Poetry).
Having worked as an independent editor for 20 years, Noël has helped thousands of customers craft eloquent and successful personal statements for a variety of schools, from competitive undergraduate programs to renowned business, law, and medical schools, among others. She has also worked with scholars and professionals in diverse fields, ranging from history to economics, editing documents including journal articles, book chapters, and full-length fiction and non-fiction manuscripts.
Noël is based in San Diego and helps to ensure the quality of the editing network.
MANAGING EDITOR
Ryan Hickey
Ryan Hickey is an expert in many aspects of college, graduate, and professional admissions. A graduate of Yale University, Ryan has worked in various admissions capacities for nearly a decade, including writing test-prep material for the SAT, AP exams, and TOEFL, editing essays and personal statements, and consulting directly with applicants. He enjoys sharing his knowledge to aid others in achieving their educational goals and, when he gets a break, loves hiking and fly fishing with his wife and two border-collie mixes.
Ryan is based in Montana and helps to ensure the quality of the editing network.