How Much Does It Cost to Hire an Educational Consultant?

You cannot overlook the importance of educational consulting for the learner or the parent of a learner. Doing so will defeat the purpose of preparing a child for college and getting him or her acclimate to the process.

Preparing a Roadmap

A college-bound teen often needs an educational roadmap so he or she knows where they are headed academically and personally. Educational consulting, in this instance, can cover:

• A customized step-by-step outline of a student’s preferred preferences.
• An answer to personal educational needs and advice.
• Consulting sessions that include a list of schools.
• Graphic images to help organize to-do lists.
• Tailor-made test prep plans.

By using this type of visual and consulting services, both the student and his or her parents benefit. Roadmaps may include the following topics:

• College admissions
• Homeschooling
• Learning space designs

Therefore, the cost of paying for this assistance is trivial when you consider how it can affect a student’s future education and eventual job prospects.

When considering the expense of tutoring or educational consulting, you have to view the cost as an investment. While some costs are merely expenses, other costs are actual investments. Therefore, what you invest is incidental to the services you receive.

Instead of focusing on the cost, which can range from $85 to $200 per hour, let’s review the benefits and objectives.

Why You Need an Educational Consultant’s Help

It’s not surprising that the field of educational consulting continues to grow. As little as five years ago, you could not find that many consultants in the field. Today, thousands of consultants work full-time and part-time. 

An educational consultant can help you in various ways.

• Admission requirements for colleges can vary today. You need an educational consultant to delineate your choices. A generation ago, students got into college programs, primarily based on GPAs and test scores - not so today. A lot more goes into the decision-making process, which strains both teachers and students mentally.
• An increase in the cost of education also makes consulting mandatory. Special schools, secondary schools, and colleges--both private and public--keep increasing costs. For example, a private college can cost a family as much as $250,000 over four years. Secondary schools can cost over $60,000 annually. Therefore, what you pay for an educational consultant’s services is well worth the expense.
• School counselors, in many school systems, are overworked. Some advisors, in public U.S. schools, handle caseloads of 1,000 students. Not only are they responsible for academic counseling, they often have to extend their advice to issues that touch upon behavioral or social conflicts.
• Learning-disabled or gifted students have special needs. Therefore, their educational needs are unique. This is also true for high school athletes and gifted artists.

An educational consultant, then, can handle some things that a school counselor cannot offer as an advisor in a school setting. By using first-hand information and knowledge, an educational consultant can help students find their ideal fit, academically and socially. Consultants are current on the latest trends in education as well as updates in financial aid and admission policies.

So, the expense to hire an educational consultant pales by comparison in relation to what you receive academically.

It’s All in the Details

The field of academic consulting is involved and is attached to many small details. For instance, if you are a parent, do you often think about how to plan your child’s summer?  If they are in high school, is their extracurricular time well spent? Have they want to do when they reach college?

Applying for College

Each year, families in the U.S. discover the intricacies involved with the college application process. One application may involve a whole list of to-dos - items that may become as confusing as they are to follow. 

For example, you may overlook signing up for an interview, which strikes as a strike against the applicant. Also, when do SAT test dates close? You might not realize that the date for your preferred school is different from the majority of colleges.

However, placing the deadlines aside, people live busy lives. Therefore, keeping a college list current, determining what essays are written, or establishing a visiting time turns into a full-time occupation. That is why using the services of a tutor or educational consultant is in your best interest.

Developing a Plan

Before parents sit down with an educational advisor, they should speak with their child and glean more information from him or her about their interests and they want to pursue their future goals. Having this discussion helps parents develop an academic plan that they can gear toward their child’s learning requirements and goals.

What a Parent Should Ask

A parent should ask the following:

• Where do I need academic advice?
• Where does my child need to improve if he or she wants to pursue a specific field of learning?
• In what ways can my child benefit from working with a tutor?
• Is my child fulfilling his or her educational goals with the most efficiency of management and time?

Remember, it is important to plan so you are prepared both academically and financially.

Now--Not Later--Is the Time to Act

Now--not later--is the time to focus on your child’s learning activities. By using the skills of an academic consultant or having an advocate on your side, you can outline a program that will work successfully for both you and your child. Whether your child directs his or her learning toward STEAM or STEM activities, they can go forward and progress and realize their educational objectives.