John was undoubtedly an invaluable asset to the intricate process of our daughter's application to read Theology (and the Philosophy of Religion) at Cambridge University. His immense guidance and experienced stewardship throughout this period, including some highly insightful interview preparation sessions, greatly helped O gain her place at Cambridge, and we are all hugely grateful for John's assistance and could not recommend his expertise and services more.”
About seven years ago, a friend recommended that we meet with John Devoy to discuss the possibility of our eldest son applying to MIT for engineering (his school had little experience in US applications). John clearly explained the US university system (a system that we had not fully understood) and chatted with us and our son to gauge his interests and strengths. Following this consultation, our son decided that he would be better suited to the UK Oxbridge system. John then formulated a bespoke 18-month development programme, which included critical thinking, subject specific training (including for the ENGAA exam), and interview preparation. This was done with a combination of Oxbridge subject specialists. John advised on the personal statement and college options and greatly assisted with the whole UCAS process. All of this led to our son receiving an offer from Cambridge to study Engineering.
We therefore had no hesitation in using John’s services for our second son, who was interested in history. We have just finished this 18-month journey, which incorporated a completely different bespoke development programme, as well as preparation for the AHCAAT (the first year that this exam had been used). The result was our son receiving a place at Oxford to study Ancient History and Classical Archaeology.
Seven years ago, we originally looked at other companies who specialise in US and Oxbridge admissions. We decided to move forward with John Devoy, as we felt that he responded more personally and individually to our son and also that he better understood the US & UK systems, the application processes, and the colleges. He was genuinely interested. Both our sons were not ‘natural applicants’ and both had challenges at school. John worked with us and them through these – it was truly a personal service. What is more, our sons enjoyed the training, and we saw them develop and mature as a result.”
Having worked as a teaching colleague with John at a top independent school, I can say that his knowledge of both UK and US university applications is outstanding. In my subsequent teaching post I went on to engage John as an independent UCAS consultant to help prepare my Oxbridge candidates. John's experience and attention to detail were invaluable to my pupils' UCAS preparations. John's contributions boosted my Oxbridge group's performance in terms of their college selection, UCAS personal statement and also interview preparation. John's holistic and thorough approach gave my pupils confidence in their applications and made a significant impact on my school's rate of Oxbridge success. I highly recommend John as an insightful and capable university counsellor.”