Writing (and, for that matter, reading) spans all careers and disciplines. I thus offer writing tutoring in a variety of writing-related areas, with a focus on college and graduate application essays. Beyond this, I have worked with students to develop in-class essays, CVs, cover letters, and more.

Now more than ever, the college application essay is so important to get right. As of 2025, more than 80% of colleges and universities are test-optional. The essay thus represents the most direct, personal way to demonstrate to application committees that one is ready to write, read, and think at a college level. 

Good writing is a tricky thing to get right. Like any skill, it requires time, practice, patience, dedication, and a bit of luck. To compose even one piece of writing, I have found that students benefit most when tutoring involves developing all aspects of their writing practice, not "just" the essay itself:

-The rules, and breaking them. Grammar, syntax, and vocabulary might seem dry, but their correct usage is essential to getting across an idea clearly. Indeed, all levels of writing—from high school essays to academic publications—could use more clarity. If an essay is able to communicate an idea or perspective that a reader instantly and deeply understands, it already surpasses the vast majority of writing.

-Voice. When reading a good piece of writing, there is a distinct sense of who is writing it. Getting across one's personal voice is, however, no easy task. I teach students how to lean into their own voice, and how to express what comes naturally to them in speech. Application committees are inundated with thousands of essays to read; voice is what makes the best pieces stand out.

-Sitting down, and writing! Too often teachers assign writing with no instruction on how to actually sit down and write. I teach students how long to write for in a given day, whether writing should be sporadic or in one long block, how progress should be measured, what to do about writer's block, how to spend dedicated writing time (less straightforward than you think!), and much more.

-"To write is human, to edit is divine" —Stephen King. The right editing can take a work from good to great. In school, a first draft might suffice, but for the most important pieces of writing like applications, editing is essential. I work with students on how and when to edit their work, offering suggestions, direction, and high-level editing best practices.

-Read! Good input = good output. Good writing requires, before the fact, having read beautiful writing. This is essential. I assign short readings to my students to supplement their writing. While time is tight, especially during applications, increasing reading and reading comprehension is absolutely time well spent. It translates into writing faster than one might think. 

I have written in a number of formats ranging from criticism to philosophy to the PhD application. From each, I have learned something new about writing, and I incorporate all I've learned into my teaching: from philosophy, the importance of novel ideas; from criticism, voice, style, and brevity; from all my various school applications, how to be convincing while staying true to oneself—which is itself all the more convincing!

And if I must provide external validation: my writing has appeared in Confluence, Emulsive, Active Chapter, The Philosophical Salon, West 10th Magazine, and more. When graduating Magna cum Laude from NYU, I was chosen as my class student speaker. You can watch my speech here or look at other sections of my website examples of my own writing. Past student's of mine have been accepted into schools like Standford and Georgetown.

Call or text me at 937-244-1522 or email aaa@nyu.edu for more details

Sessions are $100/hour. Generally, I meet with students throughout the summer and/or the fall semester preceding application due dates at a frequency of every week or every other week.