Ivycoach
Ivycoach is a Manhattan-based, family-owned college admissions consulting firm serving high school and graduate applicants globally via virtual delivery, staffed by former admissions officers from Harvard, Stanford, Yale, and other elite universities.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1998
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Ivycoach does
Ivycoach (legal entity Ivy Coach, Inc.) is a privately held, family-owned college admissions consulting firm headquartered in Manhattan, New York. Founded by Bev Taylor — a former Long Island high school counselor and one of the earliest private college counselors in the industry — the firm has operated for more than three decades (with conflicting sources citing founding dates of 1990, 1992, and 1998; the firm's own marketing material references 30+ years). It is currently led by Managing Partner Brian Taylor, a Dartmouth College graduate and Peabody Award–winning producer. The firm differentiates itself through a bench of approximately 11 senior consultants who are former admissions officers at Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Penn, Columbia, Duke, Dartmouth, Brown, the University of Chicago, and Washington University in St. Louis — collectively having evaluated tens of thousands of applications inside elite admissions offices.
The firm's product portfolio comprises four core service lines: (1) College Admissions Counseling for grades 6 through 12, covering coursework planning, extracurricular strategy, essay development, interview prep, Early Action/Decision strategy, and deferral/waitlist recovery; (2) Graduate School Admissions Counseling for MBA, Law, Medical, PhD, and MA programs; (3) Test Preparation Tutoring for SAT, ACT, AP, SSAT, ISEE, GMAT, GRE, LSAT, MCAT, and TOEFL delivered virtually; and (4) a Pro Bono Counseling program for U.S. military veterans launched in 2015, which has helped 67 veterans gain admission to 11 elite universities. All services are delivered virtually via Zoom, phone, and email, enabling a global client base without physical retail footprint.
The business model is a direct-to-consumer professional services offering with premium, non-publicly disclosed package pricing tied to the number of colleges in a family's application strategy. New client acquisition begins with a complimentary 15-minute consultation and is supported by a content-led marketing engine built on the Ivy Coach Daily blog (described as the most widely read admissions blog), a curated Ivy League statistics database covering classes from 2007 to 2029, an email newsletter, a YouTube channel, and sustained earned media in outlets such as Forbes, Bloomberg, The New York Times, ABC Nightline, and every Ivy League student newspaper. The firm reports perfect admission sweeps at Harvard (27 of 30+ EA/ED cycles), Dartmouth (24), Brown (26), and Duke (25), and a 100% Early Action admission rate to Harvard for the 2025-2026 cycle among its package clients. The firm is bootstrapped with no external funding, no parent company, and no identified acquisitions or institutional investors.
Ivycoach firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Ivycoach
- Legal name
- Ivy Coach, Inc.
- Website
- https://ivycoach.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1998
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Ivycoach is a Manhattan-based, family-owned college admissions consulting firm serving high school and graduate applicants globally via virtual delivery, staffed by former admissions officers from Harvard, Stanford, Yale, and other elite universities.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Ivycoach industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Educational Consulting Services
- NAICS
- Educational Support Services (61171), Educational Services (611)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Undergraduate (First-Year) Admissions Counseling (EDANAEAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Transfer Admissions Counseling (EDANAEAB), Graduate & Professional School Admissions Counseling (MBA/MD/JD/MS) (EDANAEAD), College Application, Admissions & Essay Coaching (EDAMAKAE)
Keywords
Where Ivycoach is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Ivycoach business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- College Admissions Counseling Packages: The firm offers counseling packages based on the number of colleges families work with through the admissions process. Services include strategy sessions, essay brainstorming and revision, extracurricular guidance, interview prep, and ongoing support through high school and application cycles.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Complimentary initial consultation |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels7 records
Ivycoach product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Ivy Coach provides one-on-one college admissions counseling and consulting services to students and families targeting highly selective undergraduate and graduate programs. The firm's core deliverable is a packaged counseling engagement (priced by number of colleges) that covers strategy, essay development, extracurricular positioning, interview prep, Early Decision/Action planning, and ongoing guidance across the admissions cycle, delivered remotely by former elite university admissions officers.
Product overview
Ivy Coach is a boutique private college counseling firm offering a portfolio of admissions consulting services. The core offerings include College Admissions Counseling (undergraduate and transfer admissions for grades 6th-12th), Graduate School Admissions Counseling (MBA, Law, Medical, PhD, MA programs), SAT & ACT Tutoring and Test Prep Services (for undergraduate, prep school, and graduate school admissions tests), and Pro Bono Counseling for Veterans. Services are delivered via Zoom, phone, and email by former Ivy League and elite college admissions officers, with counseling tailored for each phase of the admissions process from early planning through waitlist and transfer support.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- College Admissions Counseling Comprehensive college admissions consulting for undergraduate applications to Ivy League and other highly selective universities, covering students in grades 6 through 12. Includes pre-application strategy, Early Action/Decision planning, essay brainstorming and revision, extracurricular guidance, interview prep, deferred/waitlisted support, and transfer admissions. Delivered remotely by former elite university admissions officers.
- Graduate School Admissions Counseling Specialized admissions consulting for highly selective graduate and professional programs including MBA, Law School, Medical School, PhD, and MA. Services include Statement of Purpose drafting, supplemental essays, resume redrafting, letters of recommendation, and interview preparation.
- SAT, ACT and Test Prep Tutoring One-on-one standardized test preparation tutoring for SAT, ACT, AP, SSAT, ISEE, TOEFL, GMAT, GRE, LSAT, and MCAT, conducted remotely via Zoom. Available to undergraduate, prep school, and graduate school applicants.
- Pro Bono Admissions Counseling for U.S. Military Veterans Free college admissions counseling for U.S. military veterans, including application guidance, essay preparation, and support with transfer admissions to elite undergraduate and graduate programs. Recommended by the Harvard Undergraduate Veterans Organization.
Quantifiable outcome
- 100% Early Action admission rate to Harvard for 2025-2026 cycle
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Ivycoach
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments7 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Ivycoach technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Ivycoach partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators12 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Ivycoach competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Top Tier Admissions: Top Tier Admissions is a boutique college admissions consulting firm employing former Ivy League and highly selective university admissions officers. Direct peer competing for the same pool of high-achieving applicants and families.
- IvyWise: IvyWise is a New York-based private college admissions consulting firm offering individualized counseling with former admissions officers, directly competing with Ivy Coach in the elite admissions niche. Both firms serve Ivy League and highly selective university applicants with comparable pricing and service models.
- Applerouth: Applerouth is a test prep and college admissions tutoring company specializing in SAT, ACT, and subject test preparation plus college admissions strategy. Direct peer in the test prep + admissions counseling combination, though with more emphasis on standardized testing.
- CollegeVine: CollegeVine offers college admissions consulting paired with a digital platform of admissions data and essay feedback, competing with Ivy Coach on admissions counseling plus content/data resources. Their Q&A and chancing tools overlap with Ivy Coach's blog and statistics database.
- Veritas Prep: Veritas Prep provides test prep (SAT, ACT, GMAT, GRE) plus admissions consulting for undergraduate and graduate programs, directly overlapping with Ivy Coach's combined test prep and admissions counseling portfolio. Targets similar high-achieving student demographic.
- Compass Education Group: Compass Education Group is a boutique college admissions consulting firm that employs former admissions officers and serves students applying to highly selective universities. Direct peer in service positioning, pricing tier, and target customer.
- PrepScholar: PrepScholar is a leading online test prep and college admissions platform offering SAT/ACT prep plus admissions counseling, directly competing with Ivy Coach's test prep and admissions services. Differs in delivery (digital-first, scaled) vs. Ivy Coach's boutique human-only model.
- Empowerly: Empowerly is a college admissions consulting company using former admissions officers and AI-driven matching to serve students applying to selective universities. Direct peer in target market and core service offering, with a more technology-forward delivery model.
- Admissionado: Admissionado is a college admissions consulting firm staffed by former admissions officers serving applicants to Ivy League and highly selective universities. Direct peer in positioning, customer base, and service model.
Others
- College Confidential: College Confidential is a longstanding college admissions information platform and forum rather than a paid consulting firm; comparable to Ivy Coach's blog and statistics database as a top-of-funnel resource but does not directly compete for paid counseling engagements.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Ivycoach social profiles
Digital presenceIvycoach financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Ivycoach leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles12 records
Ivycoach funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Ivycoach M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Ivycoach
What does Ivycoach do?
Ivy Coach provides one-on-one college admissions counseling and consulting services to students and families targeting highly selective undergraduate and graduate programs. The firm's core deliverable is a packaged counseling engagement (priced by number of colleges) that covers strategy, essay development, extracurricular positioning, interview prep, Early Decision/Action planning, and ongoing guidance across the admissions cycle, delivered remotely by former elite university admissions officers.
Is Ivycoach a public or private company?
Ivycoach is a private company. It is classified as family owned and is currently operating.
When was Ivycoach founded?
Ivycoach was founded in 1998. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Ivycoach based?
Ivycoach is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Ivycoach make money?
One revenue line is on record: college Admissions Counseling Packages.
Who are Ivycoach's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Top Tier Admissions, IvyWise, Applerouth, CollegeVine, Veritas Prep, Compass Education Group, PrepScholar, Empowerly and Admissionado. College Confidential is listed as an others.
Does Ivycoach have an API?
No public API is recorded for Ivycoach.
What industry is Ivycoach in?
Ivycoach's product category is Educational Consulting Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDANAEAA, Undergraduate (First-Year) Admissions Counseling, with a secondary code of EDANAEAB, Transfer Admissions Counseling. Its NAICS code is 61171 and its SIC code is 8200.