Emily Robles
Founder, CEO of Emily Robles Consulting LLC
Working with students and families in the college application process is an area of passion for me. Showing a student how to tell their story and helping them understand what particular colleges need to hear in the college essay/application can make a big difference in an applicant’s success. It is also extremely rewarding to me to help a family find good-fit colleges and universities for their son or daughter that are also in line with their financial needs. Ultimately, I want to help families find solutions for college that meet both the student’s and the family’s goals.
Marketing Background
For the last 20 years, I have worked in different aspects of marketing. I have been responsible for direct mail campaigns (five million pieces annually), bind-in cards, blow-in cards, package inserts, merge/purge process, outside name acquisition and setting list priorities. In addition, I developed a regional ethnic consumer database for product survey use as well as created promotional materials to benefit a children’s hospital. I learned how to use marketing to help my clients get desired outcomes.
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I earned a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from the State University of New York at Oswego. During college, I minored in Spanish and was an exchange student in Spain, Puerto Rico, and Germany.
Personal Background
I am married and have two sons currently in college (Stanford University and Princeton University). I enjoy hiking and traveling with my family. My favorite trips have been to Olympic, Glacier, and Redwood National Parks.
How I came to start my business…
As a parent, I “did my homework” by attending the high school college planning meetings, running hundreds of college net price calculators, and creating college comparison spreadsheets that listed factors that were important for both my son’s and my family's college selections. My intention was to identify our best-fit colleges, have my son choose seven to apply to, and be accepted into at least two colleges.
It wasn't until I read my son's common application essay following an application work session and review by an English teacher that I sited an area of concern. My marketing experience and perspective started to kick in. Even though he had selected a great topic, researched college essays authored by students at top universities, and invested time and effort in his essay, it was not effective enough. Not only did the essay not sound like my son, but it was missing key depth and essential components needed for the colleges he was applying to. The message he was communicating was not accurately depicting him and was not complete or detailed enough. I worked with him to tweak his essay and common application. He was willing to take my advice and made five essay revisions. Then we worked together to build a "whole story" common application.
From September to December he sent off his applications to top colleges with acceptance rates that ranged from 4.7 percent to 48 percent. And he waited. In October, he was accepted into our state university. Then in December, he was accepted into his "dream school" during the Restrictive Early Action process. At the end of March, he learned he was accepted into all the remaining schools he applied.
When he saw his last acceptance, he turned to me, with joy in his eyes and said, "You need to do this as a business". That was a pivotal moment for me. My teenage son was telling me he appreciated my advice and that I needed to share it with other students and families.
His success in applying to colleges was the impetus for me to work with other students and families today. It is a pleasure for me to help families find the same joy that my sons have experienced in the college application and acceptance process.
I would welcome an opportunity to discuss the possibilities with you and your son or daughter. Please contact me at (513) 560-6221 or eroblesconsulting@gmail.com. I look forward to speaking with you.