Arts & Entertainment

Inventing the Perfect College Applicant

By on • ( Leave a comment )
If there’s one lesson I took away from Caitlin Moscatello’s class-rage-inducing portrait of elite college consultants, it’s that for every well-meaning effort by college admissions officers to level the playing field, there will be a greater effort by the 0.1 percent to tip the scales back in their favor. This New York cover story focuses on 28-year-old Yale graduate Chris Rim’s company Command Education, which hand-holds New York teenagers from late middle school through matriculation for a cool $120,000 a year. The most delicious irony comes when a guidance counselor at the Über-exclusive private school Horace Mann points out that even without this “white glove service,” the fix is in: “They know as well as I do the kid’s going to get in no matter what. The kid could draw circles on a piece of paper for an essay and they’re still getting in.”

—Genevieve Smith, executive editor, New York  

Inventing the Perfect College Applicant For $120,000 a year, Christopher Rim promises to turn any student into Ivy bait.

Photo: Hugo Yu
Read the full story
Enjoying One Great Story?
Subscribe now for unlimited access to everything New York.

More From Today
“I feel like it has helped me focus on what I want to do with the time I have.” Irin Carmon sits down with Cecile Richards, the former Planned Parenthood chief who is still fighting for abortion access — even while living with brain cancer.
READ MORE »
Benjamin Hart speaks with political scientist Graham Allison about where the U.S.-China relationship stands, what might be preventing escalation against Taiwan, and the threat of another Trump election victory.
READ MORE »
From a spellbinding new Soderbergh horror to a drama with a transcendent performance by Saoirse Ronan, Vulture’s Bilge Ebiri and Rebecca Alter break down the best movies they saw at Sundance. 
READ MORE »
On the Strategist, Chris Black helps a dad who’s “addicted to Crocs” upgrade his shoe game, recommends the best oxford shirts for men, and offers some options for a sock refresh. 
READ MORE »
Days of Wine and Roses has been built for Kelli O’Hara and Brian d’Arcy James’s soaring voices, both at the peak of their artistry, writes Vulture’s Sara Holdren. So why does the musical feel a little narrow and flat?
READ MORE »
Introducing The City Desk, a weekly newsletter about New York. Sign up to get it every Thursday.
Get The Newsletter

Categories: Arts & Entertainment, Education, Lifestyle

Leave a Reply