Jack Beecher is a Dartmouth sophomore who worked with us during his senior year, got into both Dartmouth and Vanderbilt regular decision, and then interned with us to create The Ivy Roadmap. Two years after starting college, he came back to share what he wishes he’d known earlier. His three tips: start thinking about college in 9th or 10th grade to build a foundation without stress, learn foundational skills like the 50-10 study method that will serve you for life, and embrace simplicity over complexity. Here’s our full conversation.
Welcome everyone. I am joined by one of our all-star students, former all-star student, and yes, now kind of employee, Jack Beecher. Jack Beecher graduated from CollegeConsulting.us two years ago.
Jack, where are you calling from today?
“Today I am in my sophomore summer at Dartmouth College. It’s been an incredible first two years here and I love it.”
For context, Jack was one of two seniors in our graduating class to end up with Ivy League acceptances. He’s been heading off to four years at Dartmouth in Hanover, New Hampshire. But what makes this conversation special is that Jack was so exceptional, I hired him for the summer after he graduated. His summer project was what he termed The Ivy Roadmap, a five-lesson mini-course that is now interwoven into my program to help elite students understand the nuances of admissions at top 25 schools with single-digit acceptance rates.
Now, two years later, I get to turn the camera around and interview him about what he’s learned.
Contents
What Jack did well to get into Dartmouth
Let me start here. Take a step back. Think about yourself as a high school senior. What things did you do well when working with us to get to Dartmouth?
Knowing what actually mattered
“Well, especially once I started working with you guys, I felt like my ability to know what mattered for college admissions was one of my strengths. I didn’t really spend too much time in my high school years volunteering for random clubs or just being a member at random clubs where I wasn’t really passionate or I wasn’t in a leadership position or giving it my all.”
Focusing on one or two things
“I really focused on one or two things and tried to put my all into that. One of them being golf. And then my other one, which was kind of weird but different and kind of worked for me, was being a professional Fortnite player in high school.”
That gets into the whole “Different > Difficult” concept that we talk about in the program. Jack didn’t try to do everything. He went deep on what he genuinely cared about, even when one of those things was unconventional.
Being systematic with applications
“I think my ability to prioritize and then also be really systematic in applications, because I ended up applying to 22 or so schools, which is kind of a lot of work, kind of a lot of essays. So just being able to plan with the program and figure out when I needed to get everything done by, paired with knowing what actually mattered, I think that was my greatest strength.”
The role his parents played
“Going all the way back, they’re the ones that kind of got me into the whole college admissions program in the first place with CollegeConsulting.us, and I thank them a lot for that. Because they knew they didn’t want to stress about it. They didn’t want to have to think about what I was doing. They knew I was pretty capable and I was going to get it done on my own, but they wanted that assurance.”
This is something I hear from a lot of parents. They know their student is capable. They just want a plan, a structure, and the confidence that comes from knowing someone is guiding the process.
Jack’s journey: the late start
For those watching, in an ideal world, we’d love to start taking students on in 9th grade and 10th grade. Jack didn’t. He started thinking about college the summer going into his senior year.
“If we want to talk about when you should actually start thinking about what schools you want to apply to and applications and stuff like that, 9th grade, 10th grade is a great time to get ahead of the game without having stress and achieve great success. As you said, I was late. I didn’t start thinking about it until the summer going into my senior year.”
Jack made it work. He got into Dartmouth and Vanderbilt regular decision, which at Vanderbilt hovers in the high 4% acceptance rate for regular decision. But he’s the first to say: don’t do what he did if you have the choice.
Tip one: start early
“When should you actually start thinking about colleges? Probably freshman, sophomore year is plenty early. It’s great to start that early and build that foundation.”
Why early matters
“In terms of actual college admissions, being able to start in 9th, 10th grade and build the foundation that you want to then later write about and put in your application, that’s really great.”
The key insight here is that Jack wasn’t just talking about researching schools early. He was talking about building the foundation of who you are as a student, what you’re interested in, and what story you’re going to tell.
The contrast
“I was kind of scraping by, working backwards, trying to make things fit together. I didn’t really build it fundamentally from the ground up.”
When you start early, you build forward. When you start late, you’re reverse-engineering and hoping it all fits together. Both can work. But one is significantly less stressful.
If your student is in that early stage and you’re not sure where to start, my free Saturday Morning Test helps students discover their authentic interests, which becomes the foundation for everything else.
Tip two: learn foundational skills
“A lot of the things I learned for college admissions was just so practical to the rest of life. I still think about the study tips and the different ways I planned and prioritized essay writing now in college when I’m doing assignments or when I’m thinking about jobs and interviews and anything like that.”
The bigger theme
“It was a really reflective phase of my life where I felt like I learned a lot about myself and how I worked. So kind of a twofold answer: when should you start thinking about colleges? Probably freshman, sophomore year. But just thinking about things in terms of the college admissions style can start as early as possible. And I think that’s honestly what the program teaches the best, those fundamental techniques that just apply to anything.”
This is hitting me right in the heart because we have early on in our program several foundational lessons: study habits, effective course selection in high school, actually thinking about how you spend your days, how a high school course is going to get graded, and giving students the ability to take a step back and say, “I’ve got four years here. Let me actually think about how I want to spend these four years and not just go blindfold mode.”
The Cal Newport connection
Here’s something that makes this full circle. The single person that basically taught me how to think about how I studied was Cal Newport. Cal Newport went to Dartmouth. Cal Newport literally worked in some of the same buildings, studied in the same buildings that Jack is now working in.
Jack, when you bring up some of those study habits, do you have one you learned during our program that you’re still using in college right now?
“Obviously Cal Newport’s a pretty big inspiration and role model to me now. You passed them on. I’ve been reading his books and being able to study and think about the spots that he was in, which are near the spots I’m in now. It’s just incredible.”
Tip three: simplicity over everything
“The one kind of takeaway I have, which is one thing I’ve learned throughout the program and just the last four years of my life, is simplicity over everything. Make things as simple as possible.”
What simplicity looks like
“I don’t have crazy productivity routines for how I’m going to study, how I’m going to get work done. It’s mainly just setting aside big blocks of uninterrupted time. No phones. Not studying with friends. I’m just sitting in a room, hopefully by myself, hopefully it’s quiet, and I’m just going to work for like two hours on the most important thing I can do.”
The 50-10 method
“Cal Newport calls it deep work and that’s pretty much the most important thing. If you can just set aside two hours every day, one hour depending on what kind of task you have going on, and just work for that period of time uninterrupted, get a lot of your stuff done, reach that flow state, then the rest of the day kind of frees up and you just realize you have a lot more time on your hands than you once had.”
I call it the 50-10 study method. 50 minutes on, 10 minutes off. But the bigger theme is exactly what Jack said: you have an uninterrupted block, in his case for 50 minutes, and that’s all you’re doing. You’re sitting there.
We’ll flash on the screen screenshots of success stories of students in our program and honestly students in our free community who have used the 50-10 method and it’s changed their life. It might sound simple, but just think about if you learned about the 50-10 method as a 9th grader, what profound effects that could eventually have on your college admissions results in 12th grade.
The life application
“If I knew how to study in 9th grade where I wasn’t just sitting on my phone watching TikTok and then sort of half studying and then watching YouTube and not really paying attention, it would have saved me a lot of time just actually getting the work done.”
“You can kind of pull all of your stress into one period of time and then you know that period of time will take it. You’ll get your stuff done and then you can just live your life, which is what I’m trying to embody this summer now, what I tried to embody back in college planning, high school stuff. And hopefully what I’ll be embodying in 15, 20 years working and doing whatever I’m doing.”
“It’s the stuff that never leaves you.”
Jack’s background: Different > Difficult in action
For those who don’t know, Jack scored a perfect 36 on his ACT without standardized test prep, all on his own. He applied restrictive early action to Princeton (got rejected, which he calls “rejection therapy” and “the name of the game”), then got into both Dartmouth and Vanderbilt regular decision.
He spent the entire month of April deciding between the two schools.
“The decision was definitely tough. I spent the month of April going back and forth, flip-flopping. I was like, okay Dartmouth, okay Vandy, okay Dartmouth. I could not for the life of me pull up my computer and put my deposit down for either school.”
After visiting both schools, he chose Dartmouth because it “felt different.”
“Vanderbilt had a very typical what I expected out of college. I really liked everything about Vanderbilt, thought I was going there for the week after that. Then I went to Dartmouth and I kind of just felt like it was a different kind of place. And I was like, you know what, I like to be different. I might as well try it out, give it a go.”
Two years later, he’s thriving.
The summary: what high schoolers need to hear
So is it safe to say the biggest takeaways are: for all you parents of early high schoolers out there, start early, it can only help. And for all the high schoolers out there, learn foundational skills, it will set you up for the rest of life?
“100%. If I knew how to study in 9th grade, it would have saved me a lot of time. You can pull all of your stress into one period of time, get your stuff done, and then just live your life. It’s the stuff that never leaves you.”
It’s the stuff that never leaves you
Jack Beecher is a true definition of an A player. What I love about this conversation is that two years after getting into his dream school, he’s still using the habits he learned. The 50-10 method. The focus on simplicity. The understanding that foundational skills aren’t just for college admissions, they’re for life.
For parents watching: start early. It can only help.
For high schoolers watching: learn foundational skills. They will set you up for the rest of your life.
And for everyone: simplicity over everything. Set aside uninterrupted time. Get your stuff done. Then live your life.
That’s the stuff that never leaves you.
Ready to take the next step?
If you’re saying, “I would love a personalized approach. I want to know exactly what my 8th grader, 9th grader, or 10th grader should do to prepare for the next three, four, five years,” you can book an entirely free 45-minute college planning strategy session with our team.
We’re pretty particular with the families we speak to. We know we’re not a fit for everyone. We’re a fit for high-performing students who are dedicated, self-motivated, and really just want a plan of attack.
If that sounds like your student, we’d love to chat.
Frequently asked questions about getting into Dartmouth
Did Jack have perfect grades to get into Dartmouth? Jack was a strong student, but what set him apart was his focus on a few things he genuinely cared about (golf and professional Fortnite) rather than trying to do everything. His story was authentic and different.
How important was test prep for Jack’s perfect ACT? Jack scored a perfect 36 without any standardized test prep. He self-studied using methods like the ones taught in our program. Not everyone will get a 36, but the study habits matter more than expensive prep courses.
Is it too late if I’m already a junior or senior? Jack started the summer before senior year and still got into Dartmouth. It’s possible. But he’s the first to say: if you have the choice, start earlier. It’s significantly less stressful.
What made Jack’s application different? He was a professional Fortnite player in high school. That’s unusual. That’s memorable. Combined with golf, it told a story of someone who goes deep on what they care about rather than padding a resume with activities they don’t care about.
How many schools should I apply to? Jack applied to 22 schools, which he admits is “a lot of work, a lot of essays.” The right number depends on your situation, but having a systematic approach to managing that many applications is critical.
How do I decide between two great schools? Jack used our decision matrix, visited both schools, and ultimately went with his gut. He knew he’d be happy either way, which freed him to make the choice without agonizing forever.
