At Foundry, we offer a highly individualized coaching experience—just the two of us, working closely with a small number of students each year. We specialize in helping students with diverse interests, from STEM and engineering to the humanities, arts, and scientific research. Every student follows a custom curriculum based on their goals, background, and authentic voice.

We believe that what sets an application apart today isn't a perfect résumé or a polished template—it’s a story only you can tell. In a sea of AI-generated essays and résumé-stuffed activities lists, what stands out is something real. Our job is to help you uncover and invest in your genuine interests, and to teach you the thinking, research, and writing skills to express them in a compelling, memorable way.

Foundry began over a decade ago in Los Angeles, when Sophia founded a creative writing school where kids wrote thousands of words through fantasy and science fiction games. That spirit of imaginative, student-driven learning still drives our work. Since then, we’ve combined our experience—Sophia as a creative writing educator with degrees from Harvard and work at McKinsey and the Obama Foundation, and Daniel as a Dartmouth-trained writer and former software engineer—to support students who are building original futures for themselves.

Whether you’re applying to a top engineering program, a liberal arts college, a competitive summer program, or launching a passion project that matters to you, we’ll help you shape a narrative that admissions officers won’t forget—and give you the tools to succeed far beyond the application process.