I haven't been able to write a review since I was in medical school for the past 4 years, thanks for Shemmassian Consulting! I'm about to become a first year resident, but I remember the anxiety of feeling like I could never realize this dream like it were yesterday. I am a first-gen college grad, and pretty much did everything myself. I didn't have a mom or dad or aunt or uncle in medicine. I didn't go to a school with a strong premed program. I felt I wasn't a strong enough candidate. When I started with Shemmassian Consulting, I was second time applicant. They gave me a complete analysis of my previous application and made a customized plan to help me with my MCAT goals, primary and secondary apps, and gave me insight I couldn't gather anywhere else. I was assigned Erica to consult me, and Dr. Harris. I felt taken care of. They were honest about where I stood and what it would take to get to where I needed to be. They supported me every minute I panic emailed and were so accommodating in times when I had to change things up. I wound up getting accepted to four med schools ! Going through this application process is incredibly draining. With Shemmassian Consulting, I didn't have to do it alone. You don't have to, either! It was worth every cent. Sometimes, you just need someone who can give you a chance. You are good enough, you just need help reflecting that on your application :) read more

Shemmassian Consulting ISN'T WORTH IT! Do yourself a favor and save your money by eliminating him as the middleman. Shirag bends over backwards sending you referrals, calling dozens of times even as late as 9pm and sending countless emails convincing you to sign up with SAC. Convincing us to trust him, he promised to personally and directly be involved in my daughter's application, but once we signed up, we NEVER HEARD FROM HIM AGAIN. I honestly can't quantify the amount of involvement he actually had and there certainly was no direct advice. Shemmassian is a great business man that has done an amazing job compiling free information that is out there to market himself as a leading authority in the Medical School Application process but that is all he is - a great business man that knows how to prey on, market to and convince anxiety ridden med school applicants and their parents into signing up with him. He knows exactly how to exploit our fears that the AMCAS application and cycle brings and will say and do anything to make you sign up for a plan. However make no mistake - Dr Shemmassian IS NO MORE THAN A FACILITATOR BETWEEN EDITORS AND RESIDENT DR's that have no time for you. We paid for one of his top plans expecting his direct personal help and advice (expectations and concerns that were made VERY clear via phone conversations and emails prior to signing up) but we literally got zero . Emails I can't show due to word count. Skip SAC and go to Fiverr or Leland because you will find great Editors, AdCom experienced Dr's or both that work directly with you for THOUSANDS LESS. Then all you need to do is pay a la carte for the interview prep from wherever you want. You will seriously save tons of money this way and find equally capable editors and advisors. Don't pay the premium for Shemmassian's name because all you're paying for is for him to be the middleman. And for those of you that still want a comprehensive plan - I would go to Med School Coach. They have A LOT more experienced staff and experienced advisors to work with than Shemmassian does which we didn't realize until it came to interview prep time. Writing Editor - My daughter liked her writing advisor but there was NO direct input on my daughter's content from her actual Dr advisor in terms of "focus on this, write about this, say this not that etc etc" - not even for his own school that he was a supposed AdCom member of (Hopkins). Once my daughter determined the direction of her essays and crafted them, her writing advisor helped her to rephrase things and refine it for grammar, sentence structure and flow. We appreciated the suggestion she did make, the schedule she kept her on and the reminders she provided like updating her AMCAS mid cycle but again her actual advisor had very little input and Shemmassian had absolutely NONE. Interview Prep - Future applicants - buy the interview prep session ala cart. You'll not only save money but also have control on how many hours of prep time you need and which companies you get that help from. Also DON'T PREPAY FOR INTERVIEW PREP FROM ANYONE'S COMBO PLAN (esp SAC) until you get interviews. You don't know how many interview invites you will get and end up wasting money. If you are considering SAC - know that they are seriously lacking in Dr's/staff from higher tiered med schools so if you are prepping for top tier schools avoid SAC completely if possible. Before signing up we made sure to confirm that Dr. Shemmassian had advisors from top tier schools because we wanted to ensure that during interview prep time, my daughter had the experience and knowledge of various advisors from T10 schools to help her with interview prep. However when it came to actual interview prep, my daughter only had her main advisor from Hopkins because there was no one else from those T10 schools that could work with her. We feel like that was a bait and switch situation by Shirag and as a result, she only used 6 hours as it was restricted to one person thereby making it NOT WORTH the price we were conned into paying for the whole plan. In conclusion - Find experienced editors and advisors to help with the med school process but DO NOT USE SHEMMASSIAN CONSULTING! After locking you in, he just moves on to signing up the next cycle's victim's/income pool. My daughter and I regret using SAC instead of any of our other choices because Shirag personally brought NOTHING to the table to help her with AMCAS applications to warrant his EXORBITANT FEES and her "advisor" Dr Wang barely had time for her. We paid a crazy amount of money due to Shemmassian's lies of personal help which we never got and although the writing advisor my daughter worked with was good, SAC itself wasn't worth the hard earned money we disappointingly paid Shemmassian. Daughters Stats - 4.0 Dual Degree B.S and B.A, MCAT 519, Preview 9/9, Publications and Presentations - Several, Thousands of hours of research, clinical experience and volunteer work, 1 Gap yr. read more

Please stay away from Shemmassian. They have so much turnover with their advisors / counselors hence there is no continuity for the student. Once you sign the contract and finished making the payments, they could care less. PLEASE PLEASE STAY AWAY! I feel we did not even get 10% of the money's worth. read more

they are a complete scam and waste of money and time. Their advisors are careless, do not know how to shape your application in the right direction, and don't know how to edit personal statements. I used them for med school app and ended up with zero interview. Over $10k spent. read more

Great services and advice. Highly recommend for pre-medical students, as they will teach you how to craft an application that projects your genuine interest in medicine. Great quality and service! read more

My experience with Shemmassian has been very poor. I used their tutoring services for months to prepare for COMLEX Level 1 and saw no improvement on my COMSAE scores. Be warned, this company is not qualified to provide tutoring services to osteopathic medical students. I was lied to multiple times and assured that they would be able to prepare me for my board exam, but the company has NO tutors employed with osteopathic medicine experience. I am down $11,000 now. Even worse, when I reached out to Shemmassian about my disappointment, my emails were ignored. I do not recommend them. read more

I have been receiving support from the Shemmassian Academic Consulting crew for a little over a year now. I can confidently say that I have grown a lot as a student and they have helped me through some of the most difficult moments I have experienced in my journey to medical school (the MCAT, application cycle, interview prep, etc). They have gone above and beyond to offer me help and check in on me along the way to ensure that I feel like a priority to them. I appreciate all of their help and support I have received beyond words and would definitely recommend to anyone who is feeling stressed and overwhelmed going into the process of applying to medical school! read more

I worked with Shemmassian Consulting during my medical school application process, and they truly did help make my application come together. They are highly responsive, and meaningful with the additions/changes they make. I felt guided, while still being able to express the heights of my experiences. I am glad to say I was accepted into a medical school with their help, and waiting on some more results! I highly recommend using their services. read more

Used this consultation service for applying to medical school and was accepted into a program. Aside from their professionalism and timely responses, Shemmassian Consulting also provided exemplary service ranging from reviewing my application, helped formulate my school list, and most importantly, provided great edits and guidance with my personal statement, activity prompts, and secondary applications. Having applied to medical school twice, Shemmassian Consulting made the entire process the second time around much easier and less daunting. I wish I had used this service when I first applied. read more

Everyone I interacted with was very responsive and helpful. I had a lot of questions about the cycle that I couldn't find consistent answers to online and it was incredibly helpful to have someone that could answer all of my questions and help guide me through the entire process. I loved that it was a collaborative environment. They always respected my preferences and points of view and gave constructive advice. If I had a busy or something going on, they were flexible about my turn around time. There are a lot of parts in the medical school application cycle. Having someone help you stay on track and manage all of the different parts makes a huge difference. I would highly recommend using their services. It is worth the investment. read more

I wouldn't recommend this consulting firm for law school admissions. Based on my experience and other reviews, their strength dwells in medical school consulting. My results -- I decided to postpone attending law school and reapply with the help of a consultant. My results were nearly identical to a previous cycle--when I applied without any help from a consultant. Overall, this was not terrible, since I'm not worse off. Pros -- It's nice to have a consultant to email, text, and call when you have questions. Support (during any application process) tends to be a good thing. Cons -- Other consulting firms, such as Spivey Consulting, are far more experienced in the law school admissions process and would likely yield much greater results. In addition, Shemmassian's comprehensive package (for law school admissions) does not include scholarship negotiations. Other consulting firms include this in their packages. Moreover, if confidentiality is important to you and your family, it may be helpful to know that Shemmassian does not adhere to strict standards of privacy--which can result in a breach of ethics and trust. I hope this review helps someone! read more

I used Shemmassian for both MCAT tutoring and application drafting and review. I worked with different people for each of these. MCAT Tutoring - Shawnt's demeanor and passion for the material made it easy to be excited about what I was learning. He encouraged me to explore and had a surprising amount of answers to my difficult questions on hand. He also didn't try to wing it when he did not know, and instead got back to me with a well-researched answer. I had enough time with him to get all of my questions answered. I gained a far greater mastery of all of the content than I have ever had before and learned useful study-over-time techniques that will serve me well throughout medical school. You were a knowledgeable tutor and a joy to speak with personally. I appreciate all the work you put into helping me excel. As someone who took the MCAT previously (and tried very hard then), I can say it is obvious how much having a knowledgeable guide through the process really makes it all click. Application Crafting - Medical school applications are beast. You will likely write upwards of 50 essays. The ability to have someone who knows you get back to you within a couple days with high quality reviews is critical, especially as you find your footing and voice in your writing. I was consistently blown away by the attention to detail put into my reviews and the quality of conversations we had about the material. This was not an impersonal experience where I sent essays to a black box and they came back with edits, but I had a relationship with my reviewers who really had a conversation with me about getting things right. Let me be clear -- this is a mountain of work. They do not do the heavy lifting for you because it is your application after all. What they do is ensure your effort is directed fruitfully and help keep your ideas fresh and you motivated, while assuring quality doesn't drop (which it inevitably tends to when you are months into writing). Cost - The elephant in the room: This is an expensive service, certainly the most expensive I considered using. However, I chose them because I also think they are the best at what they do. Just watch some of Dr. Shemmassian's videos on youtube if you want a sense for the professionalism and integrity this service offers. I worked to put myself through college and had to pay out of pocket (not out of my parents pockets) for this service, so I feel I am in a good position to judge its value. If money is no object, this is the way you should go, hands down. If, like me, money was a major consideration with real consequences, this was my thought process: If you just look at the cost per hour spent with tutors, it does not seem to be the best deal (and that's true, you can get similar types of service for less). But I felt that what I was really buying was increased odds of getting into a school I truly wanted to attend and thereby setting myself up for success in residency and beyond. Having wound up at a T5 school, I have no regrets for having spent more for the service that helped me get the best out of my application. Would I have gotten in on my own or with another application service? Maybe, but it certainly would have been a lower chance. I feel it is a worthy investment (plus it is hardly anything compared to the loans most students will take out for school - so might as well take those loans at the school the want to attend!). read more

I had a wonderful experience working with the Shemmassian team during my residency application process! I not only felt supported by my primary consultant in their guidance through the application process, but also as a wonderful support system easing any anxiety I had during the process. I absolutely recommend Shemmassian Academic Consulting for residency consulting -- with their support, I am excited to share that I will be starting as a pediatrics intern at NYU-GLISOM this summer! read more

BE CAUTIOUS OF THEIR 14-DAY MONEY BACK GUARANTEE! I would recommend that you read the fine print of the 14-day money back guarantee very carefully. It might be a good idea to ask them in advance and get it in writing what a service is defined as and what they would bill you for in case of a cancellation within that period. When we asked if we could talk to the consultant assigned before signing up, we were told that was not possible but not to worry since they had a 14-day money back guarantee. Few days after signing up, and even before our first meeting with the consultant, we were not comfortable going forward and asked to cancel. They presented us with a $1000+ invoice (to be subtracted from our refund) for welcome emails, and reviewing a generic survey our son filled in order to assign a consultant to us, who we didn't even meet!!! Based on our experience, we would not recommend this agency. read more

Shemassian Counseling helps students navigate the intricacies of the med school admissions process. Although I am not applying to medical school yet, I wanted to try out what med school counseling was like, and I highly recommend taking advantage of counseling if you need help with writing essays, finding research opportunities, hearing a second opinion about course options and extracurriculars, etc. My counselor, Jacob Shaw, was always supportive and encouraging, so the experience overall was very insightful and valuable! read more

My essay editor was phenomenal and helped me gain admission to Georgia tech for computer science masters

Had a great experience with Shemmassian for my MCAT study process. My tutor Kara is very knowledgeable, and very accommodating to my specific study skill. The schedule Kara made for me is specific tailored towards my schedule including research and volunteer. Kara just a pleasant human to be around! You know Kara really cares when she even remembered my MCAT score release date. Kara also provided me other tips such as the types of snacks on the test day which turned out to be extremely valuable! read more

I used Shemmassian's MCAT tutoring services which helped me immensely. Max was was so patient and always willing to help me with anything and everything. The tutoring services truly helped me achieve a score I was happy with, and I was recently accepted to UCLA Medical School! Thank you so much for everything Shemmassian. read more

I used Shemmassian Consulting for MCAT tutoring, and I was very happy with the service! My tutor, Brent, was always very patient with me and willing to work with my schedule. They definitely took the time to listen for the style of tutor I was looking for, and I was paired well. Though I had an unconventional schedule and wanted to take 5 weeks to prep to re-take the MCAT, they were willing to help me and my score definitely improved enough to get into medical school. I owe my success in this application cycle to Shemmassian and my tutor. I believe that I truly got what I paid for with their services. Our communication was always timely and professional, even through abrupt interruptions in our well-planned study schedule. My tutor listened to my concerns to help come up with a schedule with adequate breaks to keep me motivated. Thanks Shemmassian! read more

I have been kicking myself every day for months for using this service. I finally decided to post a review so that others in my position don't end up with the same regrets. I purchased the Primaries plan in Jan 2023, with the initial idea of upgrading to the Combination plan if the services were as good as they seemed. As a middle-class student, I was extremely wary of the $5000 price tag, but like many others, I was convinced by the thoroughness of their online website and Dr. Shirag Shemmassian's warm demeanor and numerous promises. As soon as my payment went through, my contact with Dr. Shemmassian ceased immediately. I was assigned an advisor and an essay editor. I'll start with my essay editor, who had a lot of writing credentials and seemed highly qualified. However, from the start, her edits were entirely asynchronous and completely devoid of context. She never had a conversation with me about what I wanted to convey through my writing, so for something as personal as a Personal Statement, I wasn't receiving anything individualized or tailored to who I was. The edits were generic and of very little help. I have worked with professional editors before, and I have never met an editor who makes cuts or changes to an essay with zero explanation as to why they think those should be made, but this is what I got. My essay editor would cut some of my favorite sentences in my Personal Statement, and if I didn't take her suggestions, she would send the document back with the same edits rather than taking note of my disagreement. To her credit, when I eventually complained about the completely detached services, she adapted to the editing model I had previously said I required, and began offering more context and explanations when editing my Work and Activities. However, I ultimately feel like I did a good deal of the editing and paring down either myself or using other free resources available to me at my university. I could not believe the amount of money I paid for the editing I actually received. Moving on to my advisor, I'll start by saying that she seemed perfectly nice and I actually learned that we had a lot in common. We went to similarly ranked undergraduate institutions, were both from the same geographical region of the country, and had relatively similar academic statistics. However, I didn't know any of this until the very last time I spoke with her in May. Over the course of a semester, I talked to my advisor on the phone exactly three times, for a grand total of two hours. It was nearly impossible to schedule meetings, and when we did schedule them, they often had to be moved or rescheduled fairly last-minute. At one point, my advisor confused time zones and missed the meeting entirely before realizing. I understand why her schedule was hectic--she had a newborn at home and was also moving across the country during that time. However, the fact remains that I was promised a level of advising that I simply never received. It was on Dr. Shemmassian to provide me with an advisor who had the time to actually advise me. My advisor knew next to nothing about me, did not help me with my school list, barely gave me advice on my primary application, and was difficult to get ahold of. Any of the ways she could have helped me by being a good match like I previously described were entirely negated by the fact that we hardly ever spoke. All of this goes back to Dr. Shemmassian's promises. When you sign up, he asks you to fill out a fairly lengthy Google form detailing what you're looking for. I followed these instructions and wrote that I specifically needed an editor that gave quality tailored feedback, and an advisor who could meet with me on a consistent, regular basis. I received neither of these things. When I asked my advisor if we could set up a schedule with a 30 minute meeting every week or a 60 minute meeting every other week, she essentially told me that wasn't possible with her schedule. I couldn't even have 2 hours a month with how busy she was. When I complained to Shemmassian, I was met with the most insane run-around. I had to send several emails back and forth before they even let me speak to a human being on the phone, and even then, it wasn't Dr. Shemmassian. They don't tell you this, but there is no way to contact Dr. Shemmassian directly: no cell phone, no email, nothing. When I made my concerns very clear to another member of the Shemmassian team, little to nothing changed about the advising I was receiving. My questions were hardly answered in depth (sometimes I was just sent a link to one of Shemmassian's webpages) In conclusion, Dr. Shirag Shemmassian is only supportive until he secures your money. He is happy to take $5000 from a 22-year-old girl who had to work 20 hrs/week for five months to earn that much money. And in return, he will provide two full hours of advising and asynchronous edits. If you are first-generation or middle-class like me, I promise it is NOT worth it. read more

I have nothing but great things to report about Shemmassian Academic Consulting. I did both their tutoring and advising plans-- both of which were excellent! I received so much one-on-one support. Advisors and tutors were available to be around the clock. I could not have done it without them! They helped me get into the medical school of my dreams. read more

I would not waste my money on Shemmassian. The website does a great job selling their services, but they do not even come close to living up to their promises. We purchased almost everything for my daughter including the MCAT tutoring. MCAT tutoring: The first tutor was awful. Yes he was smart and got into a great medical school, but that is the only pro. We paid for a set number of hours of tutoring. The first two hour call was "to get to know each other". So basically I paid a ridiculous amount of money so they could talk about swimming and where they lived. He did send my daughter a study schedule at the end of the call. My daughter received some sort of tablet in the mail from Shemmassian, she asked her tutor what it was for. He clearly had no idea so he told her some students like to take notes on it, but she doesn't really need it if she has her own tablet. She later found out from the new tutor that it was the whiteboard so they could share screens. My daughter had specifically said she was a visual learner, so this would have been helpful. In one session with this tutor she said she really needed to look at the question he was asking, and he replied, "Ok you can write it down, I'll wait". The website says if you just read the books you will not do well, you need Shemmassian to guide you on the key points to study. Her tutor gave her a weekly study schedule to read the books. When my daughter had questions, he asked her if she had googled it and told her that is what students do. Then he asked her to read to him what was in the book. Then he said what else does it say? She says that's all. So he says, so what do you think that means? He was so busy eating his dinner that he didn't even pay any attention and didn't want to teach her. He made her feel really stupid and my daughter almost gave up. When she did reach out she was reassigned an excellent tutor. But we were not offered any extra hours or refund for all of the wasted time already used. Advising: My daughter's advisor did literally nothing. She told my daughter to fill out lots of spread sheets. She told her she would go over her activities and help her choose her most meaningful. She did not. She just told her to go ahead and write all of them in the next 48 hours! Then she never had her start pre-writing her secondaries until May when she told her just pick some of the most common questions and write a draft. No guidance on how long or anything. Her advisor did not help her select which schools to apply to. She was too busy preparing for her wedding to advise my daughter. That would be fine if someone else had covered for her. So my daughter just created her own list of schools and sent it to her. Her response was to ask my daughter to fill out a spreadsheet with info about each of these schools. At this point I emailed regarding how bad this service had been. Rudest response ever, I was told the advisor was actually working on that now! I was also told I should have no reason to complain about the tutoring since her second tutor was great. After my daughter filled out the spreadsheet her advisor recommended some schools, some were already on her list, some were state schools that don't accept many if any out of state students. So my daughter made a final list, and her advisor said, "I guess it looks ok since I really don't know what connections you have with any schools". This advisor was eventually replaced. The new advisor told my daughter he would have had her apply to different schools, but by this time it was too late to do anything about it. Just before my daughter was assigned her new advisor there was a problem that everyone was locked out of all of her spreadsheets because her advisor was not available. They asked my daughter if she could go ahead and recreate this for them. I am really starting to think Shemmassian should be paying us for all of the spreadsheet work. Secondaries: As already noted, secondaries were a last minute rush. They have a 48 hour guarantee on turnaround time for editing. For the most part that happened. However, the advisor was supposed to sign off on these before release. That is when the waiting started, with multiple follow ups before she would sign off. I really don't know what the advisor is supposed to do. It was also obvious that the editors were slammed during secondaries, especially since nothing was pre-written. Interview prep: When my daughter did get an interview it was very short notice (the next week). So her (new) advisor sends her a note asking for her availability that week. He ends up scheduling a session with her at 7:30 pm the night before her interview. My daughter asked if there was anything sooner. In the end she was assigned to someone else for the interview prep. This person thought she was interviewing at a DO school in Oklahoma when she was actually interviewing for an MD school in Florida. Shemmassian needs to review their hiring and training guidelines. read more

If you are struggling with your application process, CONTACT DR. SHEMMASSIAN ACADEMIC CONSULTING RIGHT NOW! I came to know Dr. Shemmassian when I was applying to graduate dental schools and I was so lost in the process. Dr. Shemmasian and Ellen Hoang are definitely the most trusted and professional admission consultants I have ever worked with and I would recommend them to anyone who is applying in a heartbeat. Their expertise is beyond what words can describe and reaching out to them was undoubtedly the best decision I made. My essay writing sucks, even in my mother tongue, let alone in English and I was too frustrated by spending a lot of money on my statement without getting a satisfying result. While completely hopeless for being able to meet the deadlines, I reached out to Dr. Shemmasian. From that moment on, Dr. Shemmasian and his amazing team of consultants have made me feel like I am not alone in this stressful process and helped me with every step of my application. They even came up with a custom plan and multiple payment options to make the process even easier. Dr. Shemmassian paired me with Ellen Hoang and she certainly hasn't disappointed, but in fact, has exceeded my expectations. While guiding me through various steps of writing a winning statement, Ellen not only helped me write my ideal statement but also helped making the whole application process much easier. Her magical work made meeting the deadlines possible and restored my hope and confidence. THANK YOU SO MUCH DR. SHEMMASIAN & ELLEN HOANG FOR THE AMAZING SERVICE AND INVALUABLE SUPPORT YOU PROVIDED. YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY THE BEST. read more

What made my experience great was the personal attention Dr. Shemmassian gave to me as a client. I have a complicated legal history and it was hard to find an advisor that was optimistic enough to believe that medicine was worth pursuing in my case. Dr. Shemmasian did eventually find the right advisor for me after delicately taking a closer look at everyone's backgrounds (both mine and my advisor's). Once we connected it actually took me an additional year to get the MCAT score I needed before I was ready to apply, but all my consulting fees were rolled over into the next year's cycle at no charge. I worked with a Shemmassian tutor on my MCAT retake and went up 4 points. When I finally did apply, I did so broadly, I received more than ten interview invites and was given a very early acceptance to one of my top programs. This year's cycle is not even over yet and I'm still getting interviews. I would recommend Shemmasian to anyone who is doubtful about their future in medicine. The advisors are all physicians who served on admissions boards who can help you demystify and better comprehend how admissions truly works. With the volume of bad information available at an all time high, real expertise like this was incredibly helpful and saved me from ever needing to attend a master's program while only possessing just below average stats. read more

scammers, no help at all. They will take your money and that's about it. they don't care about your future success, the quality and delivery of coaching is terrible. Their tutors don't care and the literally don't want to put any efforts. read more

The MOST Trusted, professional, compassionate and knowledgeable academic service I have ever worked with. This was my fourth attempt to find someone that actually cared about our son getting into medical school. Dr. Shemmassian and his amazing staff conversed with me several times before we even committed to using their service. That is how much he cared! Our son applied to several medical schools and they assisted him with his interview for GEORGETOWN and he was accepted! This admittance process is exhausting both emotionally and financially and you need to be with someone that will truly care about your son or daughter. They are reasonable with fees and incredibly ethical and professional. This service is so worth the expense to help insure a spot at medical school. The medical school application process is incredibly competitive especially with diversity issues and only up to 40% matriculating so I highly recommend you invest in this. I promise you will not regret it! I am that confident! Thank you Dr. Shemmassian for helping our son accomplish his dream come true. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx7l7GusEB1xMDPGM_TYHeQ read more

Stay away. After the first few sessions the counselor puts very little effort and have late responses, Shirag is good at selling his product to you during the initial call but the actual service leaves much to be desired read more

I recently engaged Shemassian Consulting for assistance with my medical school application, and unfortunately, my experience was far from satisfactory. Here are the key issues that contributed to my disappointment: 1. Unpleasant Advisor Transition: One of the major setbacks during my engagement with Shemassian Consulting was the unexpected change in my physician advisor midway through the process. This transition proved to be highly disruptive, as the new advisor held different views than the initial one. It was frustrating to have to start from scratch and update the new advisor, leading to a lack of continuity in the guidance provided. 2. Failed Commitment to Weekly Calls: Prior to making payment, I emphasized the importance of having weekly calls with my advisor to stay on track with the overwhelming tasks associated with the medical school application process. This commitment was made during the initial agreement, but unfortunately, it was not upheld. The promised weekly calls never materialized, leaving me without the expected support. 3. Ineffective Communication and Oversight: The lack of proper note-taking by my new advisor became evident when I submitted my medical school list for review. Despite being from California, the advisor repeatedly cautioned against applying to California schools, citing a high in-state advantage. This contradictory advice, coupled with incomplete information on other schools, led to a misguided application strategy. 4. Misleading Information on In-State Advantages: The advisor provided a list of in-state advantages for various medical schools that seemed selective and misleading. This resulted in me choosing schools with low in-state advantages for states I am not from, only to later discover that many of the schools I applied to had significantly high in-state advantages. The lack of consistent guidance on this critical aspect was both confusing and frustrating. 5. Delayed Responses and Slow Approval Process: Despite having a positive experience with my writing advisor, the turnaround time for improvements and approvals was disappointingly slow, especially considering the substantial investment made. On the day the application opened, I sought final approval, but my advisor took two days to respond, adding unnecessary stress to an already demanding process. 6. Exorbitant Cost for Limited Value: Perhaps the most disheartening aspect of my experience was the high cost associated with Shemassian Consulting's services. The return on investment did not align with the high price tag, and I believe that students can find equally valuable assistance from college writing advisors or trusted friends without breaking the bank. In conclusion, my overall experience with Shemassian Consulting was marred by ineffective communication, advisor transitions, and a lack of value for the exorbitant cost. I would strongly advise prospective clients to reconsider and explore more cost-effective and reliable alternatives, such as seeking guidance from college writing advisors or trusted friends who can provide comparable assistance. All of this compounded onto the fact that I tried to do as much research as possible and of course was met with such utter niceness from Shemassian before purchasing it (which I purchased with money I saved while working during college--which is not easy to do while maintaining a 4.0, being the head of a medical club, shadowing, being an undergraduate researcher, and undergoing pretty extreme medical procedures) only for all that niceness to go away after sending over my money. I'm still kicking myself for spending a penny with this company and I hope I can prevent others from wasting any more money. read more

Like other reviewers stated Shirag is very welcoming and responsive before you buy a package. If there is a problem with the counselor he asks for super lengthy explanations and even if you waste your time providing those, he doesn't do anything about it. Most of the stuff he promises is over a phone call, never in writing. I observed that when you email questions he calls back instead of replying to the email. This company is too smart for us.The first couple of meetings with the counselor were useful but after that it was a waste of time. And I agree with other reviewers that he is very good at twisting words and there is definitely a disconnect between the owner who makes promises and the counselor who you actually get "advice " from. This company is sitting on thousands of dollars of mine with no intention to refund or give a suitable alternative. read more

Dr. Shemmassian is one of the kindest, most caring individuals! He and Dr. Plana helped me immensely throughout my process. I have experience with a few consulting companies, but none like Dr. Shemmassian's. Sincere care isn't something that I found particularly easy to come by. Dr. Shemmassian very much exemplified genuine care and understanding :) very happy to have worked with him and his team read more

I had a fantastic experience commissioning SAC to review my personal statement and application for internal medicine residency. My reviewer (who was herself an accomplished physician at a highly reputable institution) gave me detailed and incisive edits and comments in a very short amount of time. SAC clearly improved the quality of my application and I would highly recommend the service to anyone else. read more

Everything you can ask for in an academic advisor plus more! I used Shirag's services throughout basically every step of the medical school application process--primary statement edits, secondary edits, and interview prep. Every editor Shirag set me up with (Anthony for my primary, Phil for my secondaries + interview prep) was not only incredibly professional, but returned my essays with direct, honest feedback in a timely manner. (Which in my opinion, is quite hard to come by these days. I have had editors in the past who edit just for the sake of editing, or who sugar coat comments in an effort to spare my feelings. These editors, on the other hand, are as straightforward as it gets!) For interview prep, Phil pointed out issues that no one else I practiced with before had noticed. After 3 interviews, I can say with full confidence my practice interview session with Phil helped me more than anything else had. But what really stands out about Shirag's services when compared to others was the emotional support the team offered for me. If I was panicking about a detail I missed in my application, or confused about a part of the process, or just simply needed to vent, Shirag and his team were the first ones I would reach out to. This quality made something as arduous as the medical school application process much easier to manage! With their guidance, I have been accepted into my dream medical school! I give Shirag and his team my highest recommendation for anyone who wants to optimize their application. read more

I did a mock interview through Shemmassian Academic Consulting before my first medical school interview, and I couldn't be happier with how it went. Even with a short notice of 5 days, I was able to schedule an interview. All communication was extremely clear. The interview itself was very helpful. Not only was I asked the typical questions you would expect in a Medical school interview, but my interviewer (Dr. Thenappan) also made sure to ask more difficult and obscure questions to really make sure that I was prepared. The feedback was amazing, and using the tips and tricks I was taught, I felt more than prepared when the actual interview came around. With Shemmassian Consulting's help, I was able to get accepted to a top 15 medical school! Thank you! read more

I used Shemmassian for interview prep, & I couldn't be happier. They were prompt in providing information & answering questions, & the practice was invaluable. I did the 2 interview package, which was great bc I was exposed to different styles of interviewers. I'd 100% recommend. read more

As I predicted in my earlier review, Dr S and his team (Dominique & Akash) worked their "magic" again. Thrilled to report that my son was accepted to several top 10 law schools in the US and will be attending #8 University of Virginia School of Law this fall!! Thank you Dr. S!! We couldn't have done it without you!!!! read more

I used Shemmassian consulting for my application to medical residency. They paired me with a matched resident, Dr. Michael, who helped me along every step of the way. From proofreading personal statements to feedback on my application and final hospital match list, I always felt like I had someone to turn to with any questions. My case was unique as I am a foreign MD grad applying to the states with less than optimal scores. I was able to navigate the stressful process with someone by my side. I'm so glad I decided to use this service. It was recommended to me by a friend from UCLA who was recently admitted to medical school himself. I highly recommend them myself now! I matched at the top of my list and I'm very happy! read more

great informational call to learn more about the product and find the plan that worked for me -included great resources. My tutor Monica was fantastic and made a very comprehensive schedule for me to follow while still being flexible. explained concepts really well and gave great strategies too. The MCAT is a marathon but they really stick with you every step of the way. read more

After attending a seminar held by Shemmassian Consulting at my school, I quickly signed up for their emailing list and I am glad that I did. Since then, I have constantly received links to articles and videos that have helped me better understand how the medical school admission process works. Shirag's extensive knowledge about the application timeline allowed me to create a comprehensive plan for tackling the MCAT, asking teachers for letters of recommendation, and when I should begin working on my application. I have been able to chat with Shirag during a complementary consultation and I have been able to speak with the admissions specialist Michael about specifics in my application. I recommend that prospective applicants sign up for their emailing list and utilize their vast resources! read more

I think Sephanie S.'s review is spot on. We were impressed with the articles on Shirag's web site and expected the service to be extraordinary based on those. However it did not amount to anything more than a mediocre to lousy essay review/feedback service. The consultant assigned to my son, Jordan was totally detached from the content on the website and didn't even bother to provide feedback even if we brought some content on the website to his attention. It's as if Shirag outsources to the consultants without any affiliation to his website, doesn't bother to even make an attempt to integrate with his service and then neglects the proceedings throughout the process even though he is copied on every email. On to the consultant: Jordan decided early on that my son's academics and extracurriculars were good enough for top 20 schools and any weaknesses to my son's overall application profile that we brought to his attention was to be overcome by the positives. Similar to what's mentioned in Stephanie's review, my son is a strong STEM student but his writing needed a lot of attention. So you'd think this would be a great match, but you'd be wrong. Once Jordan settled on a draft of the personal statement that he thought was again 'good enough', he stuck to it. That draft left a lot to be desired. It wasn't even logically consistent among other things. But no matter how many new variations my son wrote to improve it, Jordan stuck to the original version. Jordan had essentially check out. We had reservations about Jordan from the beginning and had a conversation about it with Shirag. On top of that, he was copied on every email as mentioned earlier, but he chose to ignore everything. Us parents and students are new to the college admissions process and bring the consultants on because they're professionals and we expect that they would relieve the burden of having to navigate the process at least for us parents, but that didn't happen. We spent just the same amount of time and energy as we would have without a consultant but in a mad scramble near the end after we realized that we couldn't really depend on Shirag/Jordan. We would have been so much better off without hiring them. To borrow Stephanie's words - I was more certain this process was failing us when my son submitted his last application. Now that all the college decisions are out, I know for sure this process failed us. My son got accepted to almost all of his target/safety schools but none of the reaches. The success that he did have were with the improved version of the essays and not with the version that Jordan loved. He wasn't even accepted to the honors program in the state school (usually automatic for someone with my son's stats) using that version. Update on 8/12: After rejecting Shirag's offer to take my review down in return for a partial refund, Shirag showed his class by twisting my words around in his feedback. Please save your time and money and learn from my costly mistake. read more

WHAT A SENSATIONAL EXPERIENCE !! I was feeling very lost as to what to highlight within my secondary/supplemental essays for my medical school application. Every impression counts, especially with a competitive pool like there was this year ! I received exceptional and pin-pointed recommendations and received them within less than a day !! Their input absolutely helped me write better pieces and it allowed me to create the best application packages I could have ever hoped to produce ! Regardless of how strong or weak your application is...Their guidance will allow you to place your best foot forward ! You will most certainly benefit from their expertise and their candid recommendations ! Their focus is to get you into medical school, and I just got an interview from Albany Medical College after the most competitive year to date ! You've got this, be smart, invest in yourself by using Shemmassian's support ! read more