College Admissions Consulting Agreement

Last Updated May 2024

College Admissions Advising Agreement


This agreement is entered into as of the last date signed by the parties (the "Effective Date") between Barrier Breakers®, Inc. a Maryland Not-For-Profit Organization with its principal place of business at 71 Sayre Drive, Princeton, NJ 08540 ("the Company") and _________________ and _________________ ( collectively referred to as "Client"). 


1. Fees and Services 


Barrier Breakers®, Inc. agrees to provide the Advanced Package as outlined at college.barrier-breakers.org/packages. The fee shown is for the Barrier Breakers® Admissions Advising service contracted by the Client. This agreement will be deemed legal and binding to both parties of signature and will not be transferable or negotiable. 

Any fees listed below are standard prices and do not reflect any discount that may be applicable to the Client. All such discounts and the final total price will be detailed in the final purchase receipt. This agreement will be deemed legal and binding to both parties of signature and will not be transferable or negotiable. Any additional changes, revisions, and modifications will require an addendum, or revised agreement prior to additional work. 

  1. The package of services must be used by August 1 after a student’s senior year (12th grade). Unused services are forfeited. 

  2. Any additional services provided by Advisor to Client may require additional fees to be discussed and agreed upon by the parties. Additional services may require the signing of a separate agreement. Client understands that payment for additional hourly services not covered in this package is at a rate of $250/hour and is due prior to any scheduled meetings. Client further agrees that in the event there is a balance due for any additional advising services, Client will pay the balance within 24 hours of the conclusion of the services. 

  3. Fees cover emails, text messages, phone calls, video meetings, recorded feedback videos, worksheets, and assignments, as well as outside research and editing time. Unavailability for video meetings or phone sessions does not constitute a reduction of fees. 


2. No Guarantee 

The Client understands that using the Company’s services does not guarantee any application decision or outcome. The Company cannot and does not purport to guarantee admission into any particular school or tier of schools. The Company cannot and does not purport to guarantee any specific financial aid package, scholarship, or award. Designated fees are payable whether or not the Client gains acceptance to their school of choice. 

The company is an independent educational consulting company. The Company is not an agent, and fees are not accepted from institutions or programs for referral or placement of a client. 


3. Code of Ethics 

  1. Client understands that the Company will not write essays for the Client. At no point will the Client request that the Company draft essays on the Client's behalf or perform any other act of academic dishonesty. 

  2. By enlisting our services, Client agrees to refrain from any act of academic dishonesty including, but not limited to, plagiarizing or fraud. 

  3. Client agrees not to use artificial intelligence tools to author or write Client's college essay or other essays and further acknowledges that the Company will not author or write any portion of Client's essays. Client acknowledges and agrees that all thoughts and words contained in the essays that Client submits to law schools must be Client's own original work.

  4. Any act of academic dishonesty committed by the Client is neither endorsed nor encouraged by the Company, and should any such academic dishonesty occur, the Company will terminate services effective immediately, without a refund.

 

4. Communication Policy 

Advising requires mutual work from both parties. The Company agrees to provide the services and hours of advising as listed in the package description; however, the Client must put forth their own effort and work to complete the application process and ensure that the advising relationship is fruitful. To ensure a successful advising relationship between the Company and the Client, the following policies are in place: 

  1. Unless specially arranged, Barrier Breakers®, Inc. does not work on the weekends or holidays. Weekends are defined as Friday 6:00 p.m. EST - Monday 9:00 a.m. EST. While communications on weekends and holidays may be sent by the Client, no answer from the Company should be expected before work hours resume. Barrier Breakers®, Inc. observes all Federal, State, and local holidays. 

  2. Clients are responsible for maintaining regular communication with the Company. Clients must be responsive to text messages and email communication from the Company and all Barrier Breakers®, Inc. team members. The best way for clients to reach advisors is via email or by text at 301-417-5167. The Company will attempt to respond to all communications within 48 business hours. 

  3. Advising is not an “on-demand” service, and as such advanced scheduling is required for meeting with the Company. Clients will be provided scheduling links that should be used to schedule meetings. 

  4. While last-minute requests will be accommodated, if possible, accommodation is not guaranteed. Last-minute will be defined as requests for phone or video meetings with less than 48 business hours' notice and essay/resume editing requests with less than 72 hours’ notice. 


5. Parent and Student Responsibilities in the Admissions Process

Student Responsibilities: 

  1. Maintaining regular communication with the Company

  2. Responding to text message and email communication from the Company

  3. Completing all assignments and essays by the agreed upon due dates in College Planner Pro

  4. Disclosing relevant academic and psychological history, including report cards, official score ports from standardized testing, IEP, and 504 plans, if appropriate

  5. Scheduling and making college and university visits

  6. Sending official test scores to colleges and universisites

  7. Securing academic and personal recommendations

  8. Completing and sending applications

  9. Monitoring status of applications and advising colleges and universities of enrollment intentions

  10. Maintaining communication with the high school counselor and following the requirements of the high school guidance office

  11. Maintaining academic integrity in all writing 

  12. Following all deposit rules by the college or university 

Parent Responsibilities: 

  1. Maintaining regular communication with the Company

  2. Disclosing relevant information of the student’s academic and psychological background, including report cards, official score ports from standardized testing, IEP, and 504 plans, if appropriate

  3. Understanding the goal of the Company is to find the best fit colleges for the student, which may not necessarily be the most prestigious or popular colleges. Parents will refrain from putting undue emphasis or pressure on the Student or Advisor to gain admission to schools on the basis of prestige

  4. Reviewing periodic email summaries of their Student’s progress; responding if requested

  5. While email and phone communication with the Advisor is covered under the package, Parent agrees not to abuse this line of communication. 


6. Cancellation and Rescheduling Policies 

  1. 24-hour notice is required for all cancellations or rescheduling requests unless there are extenuating circumstances. Advisors will make a good faith attempt to reschedule sessions canceled with appropriate notice. 

  2. All sessions canceled without 24-hour notice will count against the number of meetings in the package. There are no refunds for sessions canceled. 

  3. There is no fee for the first late-canceled session, however, other than cancellations for unexpected illnesses, death, natural emergencies, or other extenuating circumstances as determined by the Company, a $50 cancellation fee will be assessed for all sessions canceled with less than 24 hours' notice. 

  4. In meetings, we will discuss due dates for assignments. Assignments will be completed by the agreed-upon due dates. If Clients do not complete assignments by the due dates and/or prior to the appointment, the appointment will be canceled. 


7. Standard Essay Policies 

To ensure a successful and smooth application process, the following policies are in place: 

  1. Documents must be uploaded to the appropriate channels to be read. Advisors try to return documents as soon as possible. However, sometimes it may take up to 72 business hours to return feedback. During peak application season, between May-October, that return time may be extended to 4-5 business days. If advisors can return sooner, they will. Advisors do not read essays over the weekend. If Clients submit documents over the weekend, Clients can expect a response no later than the close of business on Wednesday, unless Monday is also a holiday. 

  2. The Client will be informed of the Company’s holiday closures at least one month prior. The Company typically closes for a winter holiday the last two business weeks of the year. The company will not read or return essays or meet with clients during this time.. 

  3. Client must submit first drafts ten (10) business days before a school or program deadline. Unfortunately, because our process requires several rounds of drafts, advisors will not be able to help with applications in which they do not receive the first draft ten (10) days before the due date. 

  4. A maximum of five submissions will be read per Client each week. Clients that submit more than five documents for review at one time will receive a maximum of five documents returned, per week, in accordance with our turnaround time.

  5. While Clients will work primarily with a main Advisor, we work as a team at Barrier Breakers®, Inc, and our essay editors may help with end-stage essays and supplemental essays to refine tone, clarity, and grammar after they have been workshopped with Client’s main Advisor. Client’s main Advisor will always see and sign off on any revisions and edits. If necessary, Client may meet with an alternative Advisor if their main advisor is unavailable. 

  6. It is crucial to the advising relationship that there is trust between the Client and the Company on the process and on the feedback provided. From experience, multiple editors and sources of feedback create confusion, insecurity, and doubt. It also leads to sub-optimal support and results. For that reason: Clients should minimize getting outside feedback on their essays while in the process of developing and crafting them with the Company. This includes feedback from parents, family members, coworkers, friends, or other attorneys. 

  1. Advisors at the Company will not co-edit essays with another essay editing service procured by the Client, a teacher, or any other outside providers procured by the Client. For academic integrity, there should be no Google Drive comments or edits on the essays that are not coming from the Client. 

  1. Once an essay has been finalized it will be marked as complete on our essay platform. Clients are then free to show their essays to parents, family members, coworkers, etc. after this time, but the Company will not re-edit essays based on the suggestions of outside third parties. 

  2. In the event that the Company becomes aware of comments, edits, or work on an essay from a party other than the Client, the Company reserves the right to discontinue work on the affected essay.

   

8. Application Progress and Deadlines 

It is our expectation that Clients work judiciously to make adequate progress in their applications. As such the following policies are in place: 

  1. If you sign up before the end of the student’s junior year, all essays must be finished by November 1. 

  2. If you sign up between July and October 1 of a student’s senior year, all essays must be done by December 1. 

  3.  If you sign up after October 2 of a student’s senior year, all application materials will be completed by January 10, however, we cannot guarantee that any early action deadlines will be met. 

  4. If you sign up after November 1, we cannot guarantee that all application materials will be completed before January 10. 

  5. If you sign up after December 10, you will not begin working with your Advisor until after January 15. 

  6. Clients are expected to remain in communication with advisors throughout the duration of the application package unless mutually agreed upon by the Client and the Company in writing. Clients will not “disappear” or fail to respond to advisors for more than 2 weeks. Clients will maintain at least a once a month check-in with their advisor unless mutually agreed upon by the Client and the Company in writing. . 

  7. Clients that fail to respond to multiple communication attempts or fail to meet with an advisor for a period of 30 days will have their services terminated without refund. 

  8. Advisors are not able to “rush” a Client through the process. Clients may meet with an advisor a maximum of one time per week. 

  9. Clients are expected to work with their advisor at a consistent pace in accordance with timelines set up at the beginning of the advising relationship. 

  10. Barrier Breakers is able to provide mission-based pricing and discounts to students because of generous donations from donors and grants. Clients receiving mission-based pricing have an obligation to keep the Company informed of admission and scholarship decisions and attend a post-application meeting between April - June for final admission decision guidance and/or updates. Refusal to provide admissions and scholarship data may result in a revocation of the sliding-scale discount applied to the services.


9. Termination and Refunds 

  1. If Client chooses to terminate services prior to the completion of package hours, Client understands that there are no refunds for any services, used or unused. Cancellation by Client will not extinguish the Client's obligation to pay the full package fee as outlined in Section 1. Client will remain obligated to pay all remaining unpaid fees in full. 

  2. Due to the nature of the Services, no refunds can be provided. Client understands that disputing a charge through his or her financial institution (in the form of a “chargeback”) is a violation of this Agreement and agrees to not do so. There will be a $100 charge for each instance of unauthorized chargeback.

  3. In the event that Client engages in abusive or unprofessional behavior towards the Company or towards representatives of the Company, the Company reserves the right to cancel Client’s participation and terminate access to the Services. No refund will be provided if this takes place. Client will remain obligated to pay all remaining unpaid program fees in full. 

  4. The Company requires participation and cooperation from all parties involved as outlined in Client responsibilities in Section 6. In the event of a material breakdown in the relationship between the Company and Client, as evidenced by multiple and repeated violations of the Client responsibilities, including but not limited to, multiple no-show appointments, failure to meaningfully participate in assignments, failure to communicate with Company for an extended period of time ( more than 30 days) without notice, multiple missed deadlines, failure to submit applications as discussed, failure to follow timelines, and/or failure to disclose material information regarding education, mental health, or learning differences, the Company may terminate the relationship after (2) written warnings or attempts to rectify the relationship. At the time of termination of the relationship by the Company, all unused services will expire, and no refunds will be issued. 

  5. Client’s failure to effectively participate is not grounds for a refund. 


10. Payment Plans 

  1. If a Client chooses to terminate services prior to the completion of a package of hours, cancellation by Client will not extinguish the Client's obligation to pay the full package fee as outlined in Section 1 even if they decide to voluntarily end services before starting or completing applications. Client will remain obligated to pay all remaining unpaid fees in full. 

  2. Any modification of an internal payment plan frequency, duration, or amount must be done in writing and agreed to by both parties. Barrier Breakers is unable to modify payment plan terms entered into through Klarna or PayPal.

  3. A 10% late fee will be assessed if any internal installment payment becomes more than five (5) days past due without prior discussion and agreement from the Company. 

  4. The Company will automatically charge the card on file for any internal installment payment that is more than thirty (30) days late unless an alternative arrangement is made in writing beforehand.

  5. The Company will continue services as long as payment is not more than 30 days late. Late payments past this date will cause an interruption and/or pause of services. Clients who miss more than 3 months of payments consecutively, or clients who have more than 3 failed charges of their payment plan will have their services terminated without refund.   

  6. Failure to remit payment or provide a card with sufficient funds for more than ninety (90) days will cause the full balance to be sent to collections unless an alternative arrangement is made in writing beforehand. Any fees associated with sending this bill to collections will be the sole responsibility of the Client. 


11. Terms of Use 

  1. The Company makes available may various materials, information, quizzes, tests, questions, articles, news and other information. Such documents are stored in the Client's Google Drive folder which is owned by the Company but shared with Client during the duration of the advising relationship. The Company authorizes the Client to view and download one copy of the Materials. Company retains all copyright and other proprietary notices contained in the original Materials on any copies of the Materials. 

  2. Clients may not modify the Materials in any way or reproduce, share or distribute them. Clients may not copy, reproduce, duplicate, distribute, disseminate, publish, post (on social media, online, or elsewhere), display, perform, modify, create derivative works from, upload to, transmit, or in any way exploit any Materials provided by the Company without express and written permission. Clients may not sell or offer for sale any of the content, or allow third parties to access it, or use such content to construct any kind of database. Clients will keep all Materials confidential, and will not sell, auction, loan, rent, give away, describe, summarize, or otherwise reveal the Materials or their contents, to any other person or entity. Any breach of these Terms of Use automatically terminates the advising relationship and use of the Materials. 


12. Trademark and Copyright 

Barrier Breakers®, Inc. and certain other brands, trademarks, and service marks are marks of the Company and its affiliates. The Materials on the Company's website are copyrighted, and any unauthorized use of any Materials may violate copyright, trademark, and other laws. All materials – including but not limited to text, photographs, video, audio, images and any other content – appearing via the Online Course, Google Drive, and/or on the Website are protected by copyrights and/or other proprietary rights belonging to the Company and/or other third parties. 

13. Limitation of Liability 

In no event will the Company be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, those resulting from lower admissions outcomes, interruption of services or inaccurate information) arising out of the use, inability to use, or the results of the use of advising services or the Materials or information provided, whether based on warranty, contract, tort or any other legal theory and whether or not advised of the possibility of such damages. 

14. Scope of Expertise

The Company does not provide financial or legal advice and cannot assistant in financial planning or legal disputes. The Company does not assist in tuition reimbursement issues or disputes, tax planning, financial savings planning, issues arising from custody or marital settlement agreements, court orders, court documents, or interpretations or violations of any school’s code of conduct. The Company is not liable for any damages whatsoever arising out of any legal or financial conflicts. 


14. Applicable Law  

This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Maryland applicable to contracts executed and to be performed therein, without giving effect to the choice of law rules thereof. Any action to enforce any provision of this Agreement may be brought only in a court of the State of Maryland within Montgomery County. Accordingly, each party (a) agrees to submit to the jurisdiction of such courts and to accept service of process at its address for notices and in the manner provided in Section 13 for the giving of notices in any such action or proceeding brought in any such court, and (b) irrevocably waives any objection to the laying of venue of any such proceeding brought in such a court and any claim that any such proceeding brought in such a court has been brought in an inconvenient or inappropriate forum. Client hereby waives all rights to trial by jury. 


15. Alumni Platform and Network 

  1. Barrier Breakers maintains a strong and active alumni network of students after they graduate. This alumni network includes semester check-ins from Barrier Breakers staff, continued free resources and mentorship throughout college, and career opportunities from our sponsoring corporate partners. We also maintain an internal alumni network where students can find other students from their schools, reach out to Barrier Breakers alumni working in corporate and other professional settings, and reach out to Barrier Breakers alumni in graduate schools across the country. If you do not wish to be part of this nationwide life-time network, at no cost to you, you need to opt-out in writing to admin@barrier-breakers.org. If you do not opt-out, you will be opted-in to this network upon your graduation from high school. 


15. Privacy Policy 

  1. Clients can expect the highest of sensitivities to them and the confidentiality of their personal information. Client educational or financial information will not be shared with anyone, especially institutions of higher learning, standardized testing companies, or other professionals associated with the application process without express Client permission. 

  2. Throughout the process, Client’s will benefit from seeing examples of other students' work. Client acknowledges that after they matriculate to college, Client work, without any identifying information or specific details that would allow anyone outside the Company to identify the work as belonging to any particular Client, may be used as examples for other students as well. 

  3. The Company operates as a team. As such, other advisors and Barrier Breakers® staff have access to emails and other shared documents in furtherance of their job duties. 

  4. Client agrees to indemnify advisors, the Company, and all of its related organizations, employees, agents, officers, and directors, and hold the same harmless from and against all injury, loss, liability, expense, damage, penalty, or expense of any kind which Client or the Company may sustain, incur, pay or have asserted against it, by reason of any alleged violation of the Privacy Policy set forth in this paragraph.