Student and family context
Review the current grade, coursework, English readiness, family goals, and intended entry date.
Services and Pricing
Comprehensive Application Planning
Structured, individualized guidance from early planning through final application review.
One applicantOne application cycleDefined school or program scope
K-12 Application Planning
K-12 planning uses an individualized written scope
K-12 applications vary by grade, school type, location, timing, interview or visit needs, and the number of schools. They therefore do not use the standard undergraduate, master’s, or PhD package prices.
School and application needs
Clarify school direction, deadlines, interviews, and required materials based on school type and location.
Written confirmation before work
Confirm the number of schools, service scope, timeline, and total price before enrollment and before work begins.
Application Packages
Compare comprehensive application packages
Wise Zebra works with students and families to build a clear application strategy, develop authentic student-led materials, manage important deadlines, and review each included application before submission.
Published prices apply to the standard package scopes shown below. Specialized documents, unrelated fields, compressed timelines, or requirements outside the standard scope may require a custom proposal.
Undergraduate Application Planning
$4,500
For students who need coordinated college selection, application-round planning, family strategy, and support across the Common Application and college-specific materials.
Package includes
- Up to four colleges
- College list and application-round strategy
- Activities and honors guidance
- One main personal essay
- Up to eight supplemental essay units
- Application and final completeness reviews
- Interview, deferral, waitlist, and decision support
Master’s Application Planning
$3,500
For applicants pursuing standard academic or professionally oriented master’s programs in one related field.
Package includes
- Up to four programs
- Program selection and application strategy
- Résumé or CV guidance
- One core statement of purpose
- Up to four supplemental essay units
- Application and final completeness reviews
- Interview and decision support
PhD Application Planning
$5,500
For applicants who need research positioning, program and faculty-fit analysis, academic materials guidance, and individualized preparation for research-focused doctoral applications.
Package includes
- Complete application support for up to three PhD programs
- Recommended program list of up to six programs
- Research positioning and application strategy
- Program and faculty-fit analysis
- Academic CV guidance
- One core statement of purpose
- Up to three supplemental essay units
- One research statement or proposal, up to 1,500 words
- Application form and final completeness reviews
- Interview, funding, and offer-comparison support
Transparent Scope
Why package pricing differs
Undergraduate
Common Application coordination, family strategy, application rounds, and up to eight supplements create a broader workflow.
Master’s
A shared core statement can often be adapted across related programs, with focused program-specific work.
PhD
Research positioning, faculty fit, academic materials, and guidance on a substantial research statement or proposal require deeper individualized review.
Application Process
How Wise Zebra supports the application journey
Understand the Applicant
We review the applicant’s academic background, experiences, goals, interests, concerns, and timeline.
Define the Direction
We develop a realistic pathway, identify priorities, and establish a school or program selection strategy.
Build the Core Materials
We guide the student’s résumé, activities list, personal statement, statement of purpose, academic CV, or other package-covered core materials.
Adapt Each Application
We guide school- or program-specific responses and review each included application for accuracy, consistency, and strategic alignment.
Prepare for the Next Decision
We provide package-covered interview preparation and, when applicable, basic waitlist, deferral, and final-option guidance.
Detailed Scope
Review the complete package scope
Open a package to review its meetings, materials, feedback rounds, and application-specific work.
Undergraduate Application Planning$4,500
Student and Family Review
- Detailed student and family questionnaire
- One 75-minute kickoff meeting
- Review of academic record, interests, extracurricular activities, family priorities, goals, and application concerns
- Student positioning and overall application narrative
College Selection and Timeline
- Recommended list of up to ten colleges
- Aspirational, target, and more likely-fit categories
- Early Decision, Early Action, and Regular Decision planning when applicable
- Final selection of up to four package-covered colleges
- Personalized application timeline
- Requirements and materials checklist
Common Application Materials
- Common Application profile guidance
- Activities list guidance with up to two feedback rounds, plus honors list guidance
- One student-authored main personal essay, up to 650 words
- Brainstorming, structure guidance, and up to three substantive feedback rounds
- Recommender selection and recommendation strategy
College-Specific Work
- Up to eight standard supplemental essay units, with up to two feedback rounds per unit
- Application form review for four colleges
- Final completeness review for four colleges
Interview and Decision Support
- Two interview preparation sessions, up to 60 minutes each
- Up to three student and family strategy meetings, up to 45 minutes each
- Basic deferral or waitlist strategy
- Guidance on one package-covered deferral or waitlist letter when applicable
- Basic offer-comparison and final-college decision support
Master’s Application Planning$3,500
Applicant Review and Positioning
- Detailed applicant questionnaire
- One 75-minute kickoff strategy meeting
- Review of academic background, experience, goals, strengths, areas that may need context, and application concerns
- Overall applicant positioning and application narrative
Program Selection and Planning
- Recommended list of up to eight programs
- Program fit and competitiveness discussion
- Final selection of up to four package-covered programs
- Personalized application timeline
- Requirements and materials checklist
Core Materials
- One résumé or CV with up to two feedback rounds
- One student-authored core statement of purpose, up to 1,000 words
- Topic planning, structure guidance, and up to three substantive feedback rounds
- Recommender selection and recommendation strategy
Program-Specific Work
- Reasonable adaptation of the core statement for up to four included programs
- Up to four standard supplemental essay units, with up to two feedback rounds per unit
- Application form review for four programs
- Final completeness review for four programs
Interview and Decision Support
- Two interview preparation sessions, up to 60 minutes each
- Up to three additional strategy meetings, up to 45 minutes each
- Basic waitlist guidance
- Basic offer-comparison and decision guidance
PhD Application Planning$5,500
Academic and Research Positioning
- Detailed academic and research questionnaire
- One 90-minute initial strategy meeting
- Review of academic history, research experience, publications, projects, employment, research interests, and long-term goals
- Identification of the applicant’s central academic and research narrative
- Discussion of strengths, gaps, and matters that may require explanation
Program and Faculty-Fit Planning
- Recommended list of up to six PhD programs
- Complete application support for up to three selected programs
- Program, department, and research-area fit analysis
- Identification of up to two potentially relevant faculty members for each included program when appropriate
- Review of publicly available information about faculty interests, program requirements, and funding structures
- Personalized application timeline
- Program requirements and materials checklist
Core Academic Materials
- One academic CV with up to two feedback rounds on the academic CV
- One student-authored core statement of purpose, up to 1,200 words
- Topic development and structure planning
- Up to three substantive feedback rounds on the statement of purpose
- Recommender selection and recommendation strategy
- General faculty-contact strategy
- Review of up to two faculty-outreach email templates
Research Statement or Proposal
- Guidance on one student-authored research statement or proposal, up to 1,500 words
- Discussion of the proposed research question and direction
- Guidance on document organization and structure
- Guidance on connecting previous research experience with future research goals
- Application-level guidance on proposed methods and expected contributions
- Guidance on connecting the proposed work with the three included programs
- Up to three substantive feedback rounds
- Reasonable adaptation of the program-fit portion for the three included programs
Program-Specific Application Support
- Reasonable adaptation of the core statement of purpose for up to three included programs
- Up to three standard supplemental essay units
- Up to two feedback rounds per supplemental essay unit
- Application form review for three programs
- Final completeness review for three programs
Interview and Decision Support
- Two PhD interview preparation sessions, up to 60 minutes each
- Up to two additional strategy meetings, up to 45 minutes each
- Basic waitlist guidance
- Basic comparison of admission offers, faculty fit, funding structures, tuition support, assistantships, fellowships, stipends, and program options
Standard Scope
PhD work requiring separate scope confirmation
The following work is not automatically included in the standard PhD package and requires separate scope confirmation when applicable:
- Research documents longer than 1,500 words or separate proposals for unrelated research directions
- Multiple writing samples, academic paper or manuscript editing, or full literature-review development
- Technical or scientific verification
- Extensive faculty outreach or applications across substantially unrelated research fields
Additional Applications
Adding more schools or programs
Additional Undergraduate College
$750
- College-specific strategy
- Up to two standard supplemental essay units
- One application review
- One final completeness review
Additional supplemental essay units: $225 each.
Additional Master’s Program
$600
- Program fit and strategy
- Reasonable core-statement adaptation
- One standard supplemental essay unit
- One application review
- One final completeness review
Additional supplemental essay units: $175 each.
Additional PhD Program
$1,000
- Program-specific research and fit analysis
- Review of department and program requirements
- Identification of up to two potentially relevant faculty members when appropriate
- Reasonable adaptation of the core statement of purpose
- One standard supplemental essay unit
- One application form review
- One final completeness review
Additional essay units are $250 each. Substantial proposal adaptation is $350. A substantially different research direction may require a custom proposal or a separate application pathway.
Active Clients
Add standalone support only when it is actually needed
Standalone work is not automatically included in a comprehensive package and is not sold directly from the public website. Activated clients may contact Wise Zebra from their confirmed email and provide their Student ID to request the current add-on service menu and pricing. Every added service requires a separately confirmed scope, fee, and deadline.
01All required signatures are complete, the activation payment is verified, the voluntary review period and every applicable statutory cancellation period have expired, and written activation is sent.
02Provide the formal Student ID and confirmed email when contacting Wise Zebra so staff can verify the client record.
03Scope, price, deadline, and payment are confirmed in writing before added work begins.
Scope Definition
What counts as one supplemental essay unit?
A standard supplemental essay unit is generally one school-specific or program-specific response of 101 to 650 words.
Up to three short responses of 100 words or fewer each may be grouped as one supplemental essay unit.
Research proposals, writing samples, portfolio narratives, major scholarship essays, and other specialized documents are not standard supplemental essay units.
One feedback round means the student submits one complete draft and Wise Zebra provides one consolidated set of feedback.
A completely new topic, substantially different response, or complete restart may be treated as a new essay unit.
Custom Scope
When a custom proposal may be needed
- K-12 private, day, or boarding school applications
- MBA, law, medical, dental, Physician Assistant, or other professional-school requirements
- Architecture, art, design, film, music, performance, or portfolio materials
- Applications across multiple unrelated academic or professional fields
- Substantial research proposals, multiple writing samples, or technical research materials
- Extensive faculty outreach
- Complex academic, disciplinary, employment, or prior-application explanations
- Scholarship or fellowship applications
- A complete review after an unsuccessful prior application cycle
- Service beginning fewer than 14 calendar days before a major deadline
Rush work is accepted only when consultant availability permits and may require a separately quoted rush-service fee.
Service Standards
Important service boundaries
Wise Zebra provides application strategy, planning, organization, review, and professional feedback. The student remains the author and owner of every application.
Student authorship and application ethics
All personal statements, statements of purpose, supplemental essays, résumés, activities lists, research statements, and application responses must be completed by the student. We do not write on a student’s behalf, invent experiences, or assist with inaccurate or misleading content.
Not included unless agreed in writing
- School application fees and other third-party costs
- Standardized test preparation
- Document translation or credential evaluation
- Portfolio production
- Immigration, legal, or tax advice
- Completion of financial-aid forms
- Scholarship or funding guarantees
Applicant and family responsibilities
- Confirm official application deadlines
- Request official transcripts and test scores
- Secure recommendation letters
- Pay third-party fees
- Review the final application content
- Complete the final submission
Schools, universities, departments, programs, faculty, and admissions committees make admission and funding decisions independently. Wise Zebra does not guarantee admission, scholarships, funding, visas, waitlist outcomes, or any other specific result.
Standalone Paid Consultation
Application Strategy Consultation: $350
Undergraduate and master’s consultations are 75 minutes; PhD consultations are 90 minutes. Suitability, discussion scope, time, and payment method are confirmed in a retainable written notice before purchase. Submitting an initial consultation request is free.
Final appointment details and applicable terms are confirmed in writing before payment.
- After an appointment is confirmed, provide at least 24 hours’ written notice to reschedule. Each paid consultation includes one no-fee reschedule.
- A cancellation made at least 24 hours in advance may be refunded to the original payment method or retained as consultation credit. Late cancellations and no-shows are ordinarily nonrefundable, except for an emergency or as required by applicable law.
- No audio or video recording is permitted without both parties’ prior written consent.
- If the same applicant purchases an eligible comprehensive package within seven calendar days after the Application Strategy Consultation, the $350 Application Strategy Consultation Credit reduces the signed Net Package Fee by $350. It has no cash value, does not reopen the completed consultation for cancellation or refund, and does not apply to third-party costs, additions, or rush fees.
- The consultation provides planning, strategy, and professional judgment. It does not guarantee admission, scholarships, funding, visas, or any other outcome.
Initial Consultation
Begin with a Clear Application Plan
Submit the free consultation request form so we can review the applicant’s goals, timeline, academic background, and service needs. The initial strategy consultation is $350: 75 minutes for undergraduate or master’s planning and 90 minutes for PhD planning.
The $350 consultation fee may be credited toward an eligible comprehensive package when the applicant enrolls within seven calendar days.
Request an Initial Consultation
Submitting the consultation request form is free and does not purchase a service.