Amy Bennington Buist, M.Ed.

A dear friend recommended Amy to us, and I am so glad she did! She helped my daughter narrow her focus regarding her career path with directed research, slim down what universities made sense for her to target, boost her SAT scores and strategize on what coursework she needed to be best prepared for her future journey. She was accepted to the school she wanted even though their acceptance rates have been lowering due to the prestige they have achieved, her SAT scores went up more than 100 points, and all that hard work has completely paid off. Amy is a treasure and I highly recommend working with her!

Amy is amazing! It was such a great experience with both students. Amy led them through the college decision process with her expertise and experience to make a stressful situation much less so. She helped keep both of my students on schedule and led them to great institutions. We are grateful for her guidance!!

I cannot express enough gratitude for Amy's guidance throughout the college application process. She took an evidence-based approach by first having my son complete assessments to identify his interests. After understanding our goals, Amy developed a step-by-step plan to achieve them. She helped my son manage timelines, stay on track with deadlines, and explore scholarship opportunities. Additionally, she connected him with SAT prep that boosted his score significantly, opening up numerous opportunities. As a result, he received multiple scholarship offers and was accepted into honors programs at his preferred colleges, ultimately finding a university that was a perfect fit for him. All of this was made possible through Amy's dedicated efforts, and I am truly grateful!

I cannot recommend Amy highly enough. Today's college application process is grueling. Having gone through the process once with our older child, we felt it would be helpful to have someone help our second child navigate the process. He had a very specific goal that is a real reach for anyone. He met with Amy and immediately felt comfortable with her. She provided a perfect mix of support and push he needed to stay on the ball. Amy helped him develop a strong, varied list of schools that best fit his long term goals. His process was very interview heavy and she helped him prepare and stay focused and also made sure he did not miss any of the multiple deadlines he had. Amy really helped him develop his voice in his essays and distill his why for the different schools he was applying to. What sets Amy apart from the many options today is the depth of her background and experience. It is a booming business, but not many have over 20 years of accredited college counseling experience. As they say, the proof is in the pudding: our son got into his dream school and is very happy there now. But, he also got into many other wonderful schools and honors programs he was not expecting with significant scholarships. He would have been very happy landing at any of the schools Amy had on the list. She truly cares about each client, their happiness and success.

Amy was a life-saver. Punctual, highly organized, patient with my son, and very knowledgeable about the entire college process. Her focus is finding the right college for your child instead of just focusing on the "big name" colleges. She helped to eliminate the frustration that could have taken place between a parent and kid that was overwhelmed by the entire process. I will be using her again for my daughter!

Amy provided invaluable help navigating the complex and competitive college admissions process. She started working with our son when he was a freshman. Amy provided strategic advice every step of the way, such as ensuring that he was taking the most competitive classes. Amy also helped our son solidify his career aspirations with her evidence-based approach. She helped us develop a college list that combined career interests with the strength of programs and merit opportunities. In the end, our son gained acceptance at almost every target school, including honors programs at Alabama, Clemson, and USC. Collectively, the schools provided over $600,000 in scholarships. From top to bottom, Amy made this process an informed one and one that we believe will benefit our son for many years to come. We are confident our son is on a great path and that he has made an excellent college decision. Amy’s guidance during this process was truly invaluable!

I had the good fortune to find Amy Buist’s website as I was considering offering my daughter’s family a gift of more intensive college counseling for my granddaughter than was available at her small high school. Amy’s experience and credentials were excellent, her rates extremely reasonable, and from the very first response to my e-mail, she customized her consultations to meet the various perspectives of three generations. The in-depth testing early in the process to help our student identify where her interests and talents converged was priceless, and immediately opened doors to her that she would not have found on her own. Amy never pushed her in one direction, but continually coached her on evaluating options. Within weeks, my granddaughter’s self confidence and skills had blossomed, she was considering, and applying to, “reach” schools and after months of focused effort, she recently accepted an admission to Cornell University! I cannot begin to express our gratitude for Amy’s guidance, the relief of much of the stress of navigating the daunting admissions process and for helping my granddaughter achieve this life-changing opportunity.

Amy is simply stated WONDERFUL!!! I interviewed several college navigators prior to hiring Amy. Compared to other navigators I spoke with, Amy was reasonably priced and I was very pleased with her credentials. She immediately put my 17 year son at ease. She was incredibly helpful , knowledgeable and REALLY cared about my son’s future. This is honestly my favorite thing about Amy, She genuinely cares about the kids & wants to help them find a career that’s a good fit & one they will enjoy!! My son was accepted into the college of his choice, & honestly the entire process was concise and very pleasant. We fell in love with Amy & I’d recommend her to anyone seeking assistance in this area, Look no further, you won’t be disappointed🤩

Amy assisted my daughter last year and was an invaluable asset in her college application process. My daughter will start college this Fall. Amy is currently assisting my son, a rising senior, with his college search and application process. My kids could not be more different and yet Amy has expertly guided both through this difficult process (and continues to guide my son). I’m not sure I can accurately express the comfort that Amy has provided me during this process. Through her goal development and guidance for both my kids, I have not had to worry about their college selections, testing, application deadlines, or missing potential scholarship opportunities. She is a trusted expert and a wonderful person who cheers them on every step of the way.

Amy did an amazing job of guiding our son through the college application process. She really dug deep to help him figure out what kind of college experience he wanted, and from there the two of them worked together every step of the way. I couldn't believe how much she was able to motivate him and keep him on task--I barely had to do anything! Amy was positive and encouraging, but at the same time realistic about the current admissions climate. Thanks to Amy, our son will be attending his dream school this fall.