SUM TOTAL
Whole family college coaching — before the pressure begins.
Explore Programs →College planning is often treated as a student-only process. We believe it's a family milestone — one that touches aspirations, expectations, financial realities, and the future your child is beginning to imagine.
Our programs intentionally include caregivers alongside students so the entire family develops the knowledge, strategy, and shared vision needed to navigate high school and college admissions with confidence.
"This was the first time our entire family understood the college process. We stopped guessing and started planning together." Parent testimonial placeholder
Grades 8–9
Build confidence, explore strengths, and align as a family — before the pressure begins.
Learn more →Grade 10
Refine direction, strategize academics, and plan intentionally for what's ahead.
Learn more →Grade 11
Position the profile, develop application themes, and prepare with purpose.
Learn more →Grade 12
Craft applications, manage deadlines, and choose with confidence.
Learn more →College Students & Recent Graduates
Refine your direction, strengthen your profile, and apply with purpose.
Learn more →College planning is not just a student process — it's a family transition.
Students and caregivers participate in guided discussions about aspirations, expectations, and possibilities — creating space for every voice in the family.
Families learn how admissions, financial aid, and timelines actually work — so decisions are based on knowledge rather than assumptions.
With shared information and stronger communication, families approach the high school years ready to make thoughtful choices with less stress.
Students and caregivers approach the college journey informed, aligned, and confident.
Agency Is Built — Not Rushed
Starting early allows families to move from reactive participants to informed decision-makers — with time for the conversations that matter.
Starting early isn't about accelerating childhood. It's about giving families time, clarity, and choice.
College planning is one of the first major transitions families navigate together. It involves aspirations, expectations, financial realities, and important conversations about the future.
By starting early and including caregivers in the process, families gain the clarity and shared understanding needed to approach the college journey thoughtfully — rather than reactively.
We built SUM TOTAL because we saw — from inside university enrollment offices — that the families who started earlier arrived in a fundamentally different position. Not because they were wealthier or more connected, but because they were informed.
We hear this often — and we're parents too. Kids should absolutely have space to enjoy being kids. Our early work is not about applications. It's about helping families understand what motivates their student, what success looks like for the family, and how to make thoughtful decisions over time. Starting early simply means more time, more options, and less pressure later.
Traditional college counseling typically focuses on the student — matching their strengths and interests with the right college environment. We do that too. But we also believe the family voice matters. From choosing colleges to planning how education will be funded, families are part of every major decision. Our approach intentionally includes caregivers, creating space for shared conversations, aligned expectations, and informed decision-making. Your counselor serves as a navigator — helping the entire family move forward with clarity while discovering opportunities and new possibilities along the way.
We deeply value our colleagues in school-based college counseling. In fact, our curriculum was shaped by the very conversations counselors have with families every year — especially what they wish families had known earlier. Our programs prepare families to fully benefit from the services already available at their schools. When students reach the junior and senior years, they arrive informed, organized, and ready to engage with their school counselor effectively. Our goal is simple: to help families approach the college journey informed, aligned, and confident — long before the pressure begins.
We do not promise admissions to specific colleges. What families gain is clarity, strategy, and preparation — a student who understands their goals, a family aligned on expectations and financial realities, and the communication tools to navigate the years ahead together.
This is common — especially with 8th and 9th graders. When a young person feels genuinely listened to — not lectured, not directed — they open up. Our sessions are designed to be engaging and student-centered.
SUM TOTAL is new, but our experience is not. Our founders spent decades inside university enrollment offices — one as a Vice President of Enrollment, the other as a Director. Both have served as presidents of major regional college counseling organizations.
Choose your student's grade level to explore program details, pricing, and available sessions.
Schedule a Conversation →A 20-minute conversation — no commitment, no pressure.