Laura George Consulting (LGC) offers one of the only all-inclusive programs on the North Shore for all of your test prep and college consulting needs.

With offices in both Barrington and Lincolnshire, the team of experts at LGC partners with families and students throughout each step of the college application journey. LGC provides concierge-level support and offers comprehensive services ranging from customized ACT/SAT tutoring to college search and selection guidance to college essay coaching and more. The company’s goal is to relieve some college application process stress for both teenagers and their families. As any parent who has been through this knows, the process has changed greatly since the previous generation applied to college, making it complicated for both parents and students to confidently navigate.

Having spent her early career in consumer products marketing with Kimberly-Clark and Saputo, LGC founder Laura George combined her various educational and professional experiences when she decided to establish a college consulting business.

“I have always loved writing, learning about people’s stories, and empowering others to realize their full potential. By putting my different skills and life experiences together, I realized a passion for partnering with families and students on the journey to college,” George says.

George attended Duke University and majored in psychology. She then worked in advertising before attending Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management. “I served as a full-time member of the Kellogg admissions committee when I was an MBA student at Northwestern, and I thought it was a fantastic way to give back to the school. I was selected as one of a handful of students to serve in this volunteer role, and it was really fascinating to learn how to evaluate incoming candidates.”

That generosity of spirit and invaluable experience would come in handy years later.

George and her husband are the proud parents of four sons. After she had her eldest over 19 years ago, she decided to stop working outside the home and pursue her entrepreneurial interests.

“One day my husband, who works in finance, said he had some younger financial guys coming up through his company who wanted to apply to business school. He asked, ‘you could help them with their essays, right?’ And I said, ‘sure, I’d love to do that. I love stories. I love to write. I love to help people.’”

That experience helped spark her interest and soon after that, George answered a local ad seeking skilled test-takers, received training to become an ACT tutor, and went on to teach large group classes in an after-school program at an area high school. But George didn’t care for the fact that she couldn’t effectively personalize her instruction to best meet each of her students’ specific needs. When neighbors heard about this role, they began requesting that she tutor their children individually, and an idea took shape.

“I had been looking at the landscape of what was happening on the North Shore and recognized there were mainly businesses that specialized in only one part of the college process: only test prep or only college consulting or essay coaching. I loved to do all of those things. I soon formed a vision to create a comprehensive college consulting firm where people could work with one trusted expert throughout the journey to college, from navigating high school course selection to researching colleges and forming a balanced list of best-fit schools to obtaining customized tutoring in order to maximize their test scores to benefiting from guidance on how to write the most authentic, compelling essays.” At first, George started on her own. After launching an informative Facebook group, Parents of College Bound Kids, and developing a strong reputation in North Shore communities, George saw demand for her services steadily increase and began to gradually add carefully- selected experts to her team. Over the past six years, LGC has continued to grow, always seeking to anticipate new ways in which the team can guide and support families and students by developing new offerings.

As stated on her website, George “founded LGC to help families and students chart a clear path forward to their best-fit colleges. Over time, I have thoughtfully assembled an expert team of college consultants, essay coaches, ACT/SAT tutors, and parent liaisons. We seek to partner with your family and your child to meet you where you are in the process.”

Laura George Consulting is located at 200 Applebee Street, Suite 211 in Barrington, and at 300 Village Green, Suite 235 in Lincolnshire, 847-363-6780. For more information visit laurageorgeconsulting.com.