Hi! My name is Zach Pava and I am a Senior College Admissions Counselor with Insight Education. I run our East Coast office, which is located in Newton, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston. I studied at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut and graduated with a degree in Psychology. It is wonderful to work with the extraordinary team of professionals at Insight Education, who provide a comprehensive, but personalized approach to college admissions counseling.

I am currently in my twelfth year as a full time counselor and have successfully guided Insight students from the more open-ended nature of middle school and freshman year to the more rigorous demands placed on juniors and seniors as they prepare for the intensive college application process. My background in psychology and prior managerial and teaching experience have allowed me to effectively and accurately assess the specific needs of other people. This has been greatly supported by my experience as a writer.

Since high school and college and spanning a wide range of opportunities, I have been a creative writer. I have contributed book chapters, newspaper articles, blogs, screenplays, film reviews, marketing slogans, and much more. I have reviewed thousands of student essays, from the most mature and accomplished student writers to those who may need a dozen drafts before they are ready to submit an application. No two students are exactly alike, each one bringing his or her own unique personalities and goals to the admissions process. I believe firmly that the college essay is the place where students can most convey their voice and character, and allow colleges to get to know them as individuals who can stand out from the crowd.

In my role as an admissions counselor at Insight, I have worked with students applying to the UCs, the Ivy League, the NESCAC, the Claremont Colleges, BS/MD programs, graduate schools, and world-class STEM-focused institutions, such as Caltech. I have supported thousands of students, from aspiring artists to athletes to musicians to engineers, with every type of college essay and application. This includes the UCAS, the CSU app, and schools that offer their own private applications, like MIT, Georgetown, and ASU. I also lead several of our counseling clinics, including our annual Common App clinic, where I walk students through each section and specific question of the application. I have also stayed in touch with hundreds of former students, who stay connected and seek advice long after graduating from hundreds of universities, including Stanford, Harvard, Penn, NYU, Michigan, Tulane, Oregon, Carnegie Mellon, BU, Rice, Wisconsin, Duke, Purdue, USC, Santa Clara, Tufts, and Columbia.

Another major area of focus has been assisting students to apply to prestigious summer programs from coast to coast. This can be a demanding process that requires students to gather materials, secure recommendation letters from teachers and counselors, and write several essays. There are programs for everyone, from future Computer Science majors to aspiring business leaders. My students have attended many wonderful programs, including SIMR at Stanford, Boston University RISE, MIT MITES, RMP and SRA both at UC Santa Barbara, the University of California’s COSMOS program, PROMYS, ASDRP, the SIP program at UC Santa Cruz, and countless other precollege programs.

When not conducting mock interviews, supporting families with course selection, and helping students to find part-time jobs, I can be found cheering on the Red Sox at Fenway, relaxing on the beaches of Maine with my family, and watching new movies with my son and daughter, who always keep me busy and surprise me consistently with their humor and insight.

I very much look forward to meeting you

Zach