Uncommon Futures is a college and gap year counseling company that helps students pursue uncommon paths by combining practical tools, creative exploration, and reflective mentorship. Through 1-on-1 work, we help students build strong college applications, write authentic essays, and navigate the admissions process. For those exploring a gap year, we bring the same thoughtful guidance to designing purposeful experiences that prepare students for college and life.
The current educational and career landscape is increasingly competitive, stressful, and elite, and often designed for people to follow traditional paths. At Uncommon Futures, we believe it should be about authenticity and purpose. Our goal is to guide students on a journey that not only prepares them to be strong candidates—whether for college, a gap experience, or future careers—but also helps them become better writers, thinkers, and humans.
Rather than fit the mold, we work with students to take initiative, seek challenges, engage their curiosity, contribute to their communities, and gain a broader perspective of the world and themselves.
Who We Work With:
- 9-12th grade students
- High school graduates
- College students
- College graduates
Our Students Are:
- Diverse
- Creative
- Adventurous
- Passionate
- Off-the-beaten-path
- Authentic
- Curious
- Engaged
- Have many interests
- Have specific interests
- Not sure what their next steps are
Our Services
1-on- 1 College & Essay Counseling
- Focused on mentorship, exploration, and organization
- Comprehensive support for every stage of the application process
- Reflection and brainstorming on career and college major pathways
- Thoughtfullyt designed, balanced college lists tailored to student goals and interests
- Strategy for testing, admissions options, courses, and impactful extracurriculars
- Essay coaching with unlimited feedback for authentic, standout writing
- Guidance on activities lists, recommendations, and all application details
- Support in evaluating acceptances, waitlists, and final decisions
1-on-1 Gap Year Counseling
- Visioning, research, and planning for intentional gap year experiences
- Program and independent project guidance, plus logistics
- Resume and cover letter support for internships, jobs, and fellowships
- Ongoing 1-on-1 mentorship and check-ins before, during, and after the gap year journey
Sample of Our Student Acceptances
- Bucknell
- Carnegie Mellon
- Colorado College
- Columbia
- CU Boulder
- Dartmouth
- Lewis and Clark
- MIT
- Oberlin
- Rochester Institute of Technology
- School of the Art Institute of Chicago
- Tufts
- University of Colorado Boulder
- University of Vermont
- And more
Testimonials:
“Aside from accomplishing the job to be done and getting everything done on time in a way that my daughter was proud of, I would say that [working with Uncommon Futures] contributed to my daughter's overall excitement and ownership over her own journey towards her next path in life. As a parent, I can't put enough value on this!”— Heather H. | Parent
"I truly feel like I've found a place where I fit in as an unfiltered version of myself. Thank you for your wonderful help guiding me through this process. I am literally so happy" — Claire | Student
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