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WHO WE ARE
College Guru is committed to helping students and parents address their academic, career and emotional developmental needs.
Our approach is pragmatic, confidential, non-judgemental and outcome based.
AMARDEEP BHATIA
Founder
Amardeep Bhatia, founder of College Guru, currently resides in Bangalore, the IT capital of India. Always academically inclined, Amardeep earned a Bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering, an MBA, and a Master’s degree in Mathematics Education from California State University, Northridge. An associate member of the IECA (Independent Educational Consultants Association), and a member of the International Association of College Admission Counselling (IACAC), she was trained for College Counselling by some of the best industry experts at UCLA Extn.
Amardeep grew up in India and later spent more than a decade in Los Angeles. She worked as a software developer for many years in LA, but ultimately found her calling to work in education. Having worked in the corporate space in the US and having lived there, she is able to help students not only find the right university for them but also to prepare them for the life experiences that they will have when they are away from home in a foreign land. Her own academic and professional journey took a few detours before she found her calling; therefore, it is her mission now to provide students with appropriate guidance starting from their early high school years. Through her consultancy, she has been helping students in India and other countries; her multiple college counseling certifications enable her to help students with admissions in different parts of the world such as the United Kingdom, Singapore, India, Hong Kong, Canada, Australia, New Zealand as well as the U.S.
Amardeep believes that “one size never fits all”, and that each student is truly special and deserves individual attention. She works diligently to ensure a customized experience for each student, encouraging them to explore colleges for an individual fit rather than to apply to the “best ranked” schools. She is driven to expose students to the endless fields of study available to them besides the typical handful that students and families more often tend to look at.
In her spare time, she enjoys music, impersonations, working with her two daughters on social causes in India. She also enjoys teaching them the five languages she speaks fluently: English, Hindi, Marathi, Punjabi and Sindhi.
“The world has plenty of room for all of us and with a little help and guidance every student is sure to find the right place.”
- Amardeep
Our team of consultants
KATJA IUORIO
Katja has had over 20 years of experience working in the communication world and its correlation to teenagers. With a B.A. in Education with an emphasis on educational counseling and a Master's Degree in Child Psychology from Bologna University Italy, Katja’s expertise lies in understanding the student as a person. This allows her to not only to concentrate on the academic path but also work on building a rich and satisfactory experience from the educational, personal, and social point of view.
Katja travels a lot and this allows her to get to know school facilities in various countries abroad and to have a realistic and updated view of all the factors that affect the final choice of a college or a university. She personally visits more than 20 universities a year and is an Associate member of the IECA and a member of the IACAC.
Katja has an immense understanding of European colleges and universities. She has previously worked as a psychologist with teenagers and now helping students with the college admissions and applications process seemed like a natural choice.
MARGERY KASHMAN
Writing and editing have been Margery’s passions for most of her life. As a high school student, she was a journalist, an editor, and a poet/songwriter, enjoying the pleasures of expressing herself with pen and paper and she took that love to the classroom as an English teacher for 35 years. During her teaching career Margery continued her own education, receiving a Master of Library Science degree and a Professional Diploma in Educational Administration and Supervision, she continued to write about her professional experiences and published several articles in the English Journal.
As she learned more about the college application process, she realized that there was a need not only to counsel students in good writing but to help them view their own backgrounds, strengths, and personal stories as worth telling. Upon retiring from teaching, she became the “College Essay Whiz”, providing clients with advice about applying to college and post-graduate programs, writing personal statements and supplements, creating resumes and cover letters, and practicing for interviews. Margery works with clients all over the world via a wide range of remote platforms.
Margery is a professional member of the IECA (Independent Educational Consultants Association) with specialty designations in college and graduate programs, particularly law school. She is also a member of HECA and NACAC.
MARINA MULVIHILL
Marina’s interests lie in working with students to help them discover their passion and invite them to be exposed to new areas of study that will help them develop their full potential. With a Spanish father and an American mother, Marina has a broad international perspective. Having studied in Switzerland and Italy, highschool in Spain, attended Georgetown University and FIT, broadening her business studies at IESE. Most important of all, she is certified in College Counseling by UCLA-extension.
Marina ’s international experience in her professional career has led to opportunities that arose through this broad exposure. She understands both educational systems and also teaches at the MBA at ISEM (University of Navarra). Her contact with students provides an understanding of their needs. Marina has been part of the team of interviewers for Georgetown University and contributor to the US State department agency Education USA.
Her experience working with schools has exposed her to the application process in the UK, Scotland, Ireland, the Netherlands, and many more destinations.
Our Mission
Our mission is to make the college application process smoother for you and your family and to be part of your team until you have chosen a school that is a good fit academically, socially, emotionally, and financially.
Our goal is to help you grow to your full potential, gain independence, and take ownership of your academic dreams.
Our aim is to help you enroll at a school that allows you to thrive, grow into the best version of yourself, and obtain your career and academic goals, while at the same time being a school that aligns with your family values at a price you can afford. By using our services, you will have less anxiety about the process and more peace of mind.
We will help you and your family build your college list, find scholarships, prepare for essays, interviews, and so much more.