The Best Essay Writing and Critical Thinking Masterclass
for High School Students
that Puts Them in the University of Their Dreams
We Designed the Most Effective, Comprehensive, and Systematic
Essay Writing and Critical Thinking Training
JOIN NEXT SESSION ON JULY 7TH, 2021
that will help high school students easily get A’s in English Class
(including AP English, IB English, and other Advanced classes)
AND train the 3 Master Skills you Need to Succeed in Life
Why these Essay Writing skills are so Vital in
Getting into the University You Want?
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Firstly…
because Essay writing is an element that impacts marks in so many classes.
There’s no running away from it!
…in HIGH SCHOOL, students needs to write essays for
English, Socials, History, Law classes,… etc.
…in UNIVERSITY, almost ALL majors will require essays or academic papers, even majors like Business, Engineering, Physics, Architecture…etc. can require academic papers!
Why?
Because your writing reflects your thinking.
Essay Writing is the best way for teachers, college admission officers, and professors to see a student's thought process—
If you want to be a stronger writer you need to be a stronger thinker.
This is one reason WHY high school and College Admissions think a student's ABILITY to write high level essays is SO IMPORTANT.
This is because they know it’s an indicator of a student's future success.
Every single professional field requires clear-minded CRITICAL THINKERS who can communicate persuasively and effectively.
Strong essay writing ability trains and displays these important skills.
The ability to write an analysis and an argument of a complex topic displays a strong mind that can deal with complex issues.
This is why if your teen is not getting high level analytical and writing training, it can ROB them of opportunities for future success!
Secondly…
The adolescent years is where your teen undergoes rapid and critical cognitive development.
Biological changes in brain structure and connectivity in the brain interact with external stimulation.
High level essay writing and literary analysis REQUIRES complex critical thinking, reasoning from known principles, examining different points of view, learning to ask smart questions, abstract thinking, strengthening their logic, identifying patterns, building frameworks to connect thoughts to words, synthesizing information from different sources, big picture thinking, structuring your own arguments, eloquent persuasive techniques…etc.
These acts CHALLENGE your teens to use their brains in new ways they normally don’t get a chance to do in their day-to-day life.
Therefore, giving your teen intellectually challenging exercises that are required in high level academic essays produces rapid cognitive growth that can have positive lifelong impact that will change your child’s life.
If you miss out on this critical stage that experts consider to be the golden years of your teen’s brain development, you never get those years back.
Yes, I’m ready to help my kids change their lives
Sign Up for Our Next Free Workshop for Parents
For over a decade, Top Student Academy has specialized in bringing smart, aspirational students to the next level.
Our motto is: “Where the Best get Better.”
The founder of Top Student Academy, Rene, realized early on that there’s a big problem when it comes to writing classes:
Almost ALL of the writing classes available online or at tutoring schools are for students who are weaker writers, who are younger, or have weak foundations (such as ESL/ELL students).
But there are NO classes with in-depth, systematic curriculum that helps high level students grow in a substantial way.
Most teachers, including teachers at the best private schools, teach abstract or beginner-level concepts (“have 3 points in your outline,” “start your intro paragraph with a hook,” “use transition words like ‘moreover’ or ‘nevertheless’,” "go deeper with analysis," etc.) that can indeed help students with the BASICS....
BUT they do NOT have a comprehensive system with specific, strategic techniques that can help students improve to the point of EXCELLING.
In fact, the biggest complaint we hear from students who have come to us, especially students in the best private schools (and even universities), is that their teachers at school simply expect them to write high level papers but do NOT teach them HOW to write high level papers.
This ends up causing the students tremendous stress and a lot of wasted time as they blindly struggle in the dark.
We aim to ease that.
Many students that come to Top Student Academy experience similar issues:
They do quite well at school. They are getting A’s or B’s in English, and many of them are creative thinkers and even in advanced English classes.
But they still want to improve their writing, sometimes because essay writing can still be a struggle for them with a lot of wasted time (many of them produce A or A+ papers, but only after hours and hours of pain) and sometimes because they want to gain a competitive edge.
However...When they work with tutors or take other writing classes (online classes or at tutoring schools), the teachers either tell them that they “don’t need help” or that they find those other classes too simplistic and are a massive waste of time and money.
Top Student Academy's founder experienced similar issues when she was a student, and it inspired her to develop a unique program that specializes in helping these students get to the top with ease.
Since the majority of our students have been ambitious students with dreams of top universities, getting big scholarships, and creating an amazing life, conventional, regular teaching cannot satisfy their high demand.
Therefore, it gave Top Student Academy a unique opportunity to continuously develop the most cutting edge and advanced techniques and create a teaching method that deliver the best results.
Years and years of specializing in working with elite and ambitious students who wish to break their limits and reach their highest academic potential empowered us to keep testing and perfecting materials and methods.
...and now YOU get to enjoy the fruit of our labor.
We have poured tens of thousands of hours into the creation of each course, and you and your child can reap the rewards with a fraction of the effort.
Yes, I’m ready to help my kids change their lives
Sign Up for Our Next Free Workshop for Parents
Mission Statement
_____
The core mission of Top Student Academy is to provide the most comprehensive and effective critical analysis and academic essay training program for aspirational high school students.
It is our goal, through our program, to help parents and students reach both the short-term goal of getting higher marks in courses that require critical thinking and essay writing and the long-term goal of mastering the 3 Master Skills that are absolutely necessary to achieve success in work and life in your child’s future.
We are committed to offering a positive, highly efficient learning environment that can inspire and drive transformation to help our students reach excellence and evolve beyond their potential.
We are committed to finding the best way to help students develop intellectually, mentally, and emotionally.
We believe in the power of using intrinsic motivation to help our students achieve the most outstanding results and do so in the shortest timeframe.
We understand that it takes great trust for parents to place your kids in our hands, and we don’t take it lightly.
We are committed to doing our best to provide the most effective program that deliver deep, long-lasting results.
Our Program
When you join the highly sought-after Top Student Academy program, your high schooler gets:
✓ The most in-depth and meticulously-designed academic writing and critical analysis course (that teach your teen hundreds of analysis and writing techniques within just under one year)
✓ Ongoing support to help your teen maintain discipline and persistence
✓ And personalized attention where we provide detailed feedback for every writing assignment
Most of our students are between 9th and 12th grade.
(even though sometimes we also have university students who take and benefit from our course).
Since we are committed to providing the best results, there is a simple application process to ensure that our program is the best option to help your child.
Once registered, our specialist will help with student placement to find the most suitable level for the student.
In Canada:
McGill
University of Toronto
University of British Columbia
McMaster
Queens
… and many others!
In the U.S:
Harvard
Princeton
Columbia
UPenn (Wharton)
Brown
Cornell
UC Berkeley
Northwestern
Johns Hopkins
NYU
USC
U Chicago
Carnegie Mellon
… and many others!
In the U.K:
Oxford
Imperial College London
University College London
King’s College London
University of Edinburgh
… and many others!
"Yes, I’d love to sign my child up for the program!"
Learn more about our program and how to sign up in the online workshop
Check Out What Some Of Our Students Have To Say About Top Student Academy
My writing skills have improved significantly.
I became a lot more confident in my writings and I’m able to express myself more eloquently…
Moreover, I gained more appreciation of the English language in general and I am no longer afraid of essay writing/English classes like before.
I could not have gotten into my top choice universities without your help!
Thank you so much again!
- Sally C. (Brown University)
Before 10th grade, which was before taking classes here, my English mark was around 81%-82%. The highest I ever got was 84% so it was really close to an A. And usually it was because my essays weren’t strong enough or they didn’t have well-supported evidence.
But in 11th grade after I started working with you, my English mark was around 93%, which was really high for me. I never thought I could actually achieve that!
- Fred F. (Northwestern University)
Through teaching me how to become a better writer by pushing me to write dozens of essays, experiment with extremely complex sentences, and learn Latin roots, I not only became a better writer, but more importantly, I gained a new medium to express myself.
Previously, I would sweat with apprehension when any of my teachers at school asked me to write an essay.
Now, thanks to your guidance, I am able to confidently complete the task knowing I am fully able to express my ideas.
Having you as an English teacher was life changing, and I know I will use the knowledge you have given me again and again in the future.
- Angel W. (Wharton, University of Pennsylvania)
The most direct way to show how I have improved is through marks.
I improved by 20% from my grade 10 provincial exam to my grade 12 provincial exam, which was from 74% to 94%!
And my IB mark (IB High Level English) also improved from a high 4 (~80%) in 9th grade to a high 6 (~95%) by 11th grade, and a 7 (~100%) by the end of 12th grade!
Before coming to this class, I had several private tutors. And this is actually the first time I was exposed to group learning, and I found that it was a very enriching experience.
- Linda L. (USC)
Thank you so much for taking me as a student back in grade 9.
Your classes were the most inspiring outside-of-school classes I’ve taken, and they’ve helped me all the way through high school.
Even though AP Lit (AP literature) this year is a lot more work than my English courses in previous years, I’m still doing really good…
In September I’ll be going to Princeton University for engineering (I’m not sure which kind yet.) I’m so excited for the opportunity, and hopefully I’ll meet teachers as passionate about what they teach as you!
- Kathy F. (Princeton University)
I don’t like her class—I LOVE it!
Looking back through all my years, I feel like the system she created is really apparent.
So each year I know what I come into and what I’ll get out of it.
It progressively gets more difficult—and in a good way.
It never becomes overbearing or overly simplistic to us.
I think that really shows how much she put into creating this wonderful system.
- Jaxon W. (Johns Hopkins University)
I went from just writing down what’s in my head before coming to your class, to actually having a plan and knowing what each sentence should include….
There are things that schools don’t really teach you how to do, such as writing an outline. Just like she says: once you have a good outline down, half of your work is done.
In school it’s very different—they don’t teach you how to write a proper outline.
They just say: ‘Oh, think of 3 ideas and just start writing.’
After the training here, when I finish my outline, I know what exactly will be in every one of my paragraphs. I know what the end product will look like before I even start writing.
I find that extremely helpful with time management as well.”
- Jasmine Y. (Brown University)
Through your writing lessons I have forever changed the way I structure essays and sentences…
You have helped me grow into a much more mature and thoughtful person through my tumultuous teenage years and I cannot thank you enough…
The English lesson you have taught are different from all the other tutors I have been to and definitely the most effective. I went from a weak writer to a confident writer through your classes and can now easily get A’s in any English class. The academic writing style you have taught me helped me immensely during my (IB) extended essay and I am sure these lessons have prepared me well for the expectations of university.
- Gloria L. (University of Michigan)
I would like to thank you for all the trainings that have truly honed my writing skills and elevated my writing to another level.
Extremely thrilled to let you know that I will be attending Brown’s MD-PhD program this coming fall! Just want to say thanks for helping me elevate my writing skills and making me a confident writer. This accomplishment would not have been possible without your mentorship throughout the years.
- Joshua W. (UC Berkeley & Brown University MD-PhD)
To whoever is considering taking this class, I assure you that it will be a decision that you will never regret! My name is Edward, and I enrolled in this class in grades 10 and 11.
During my first day in this class, I was astounded by the difficulty of our first poem to analyze. I stared at it blank-faced, unable to comprehend much of the text, but our instructor guided us through each stanza and taught us a step-by-step technique to analyze poetry. Using this methodology, I was shocked to find how much easier it was to understand the text and derive deep meaning beyond the literal level. From that day on, I learned so many more techniques in analysis for poems and prose, as well as finding ways to make meaningful connections between multiple texts. In addition, we wrote in-class essays for each of the texts, which were opportunities for me to explore new sentence structures, vocabulary, and analysis, and receive invaluable feedback.
After each essay, I wrote faster and more concisely. It used to take me almost an hour to write a paragraph, but now it takes me less than 15 minutes. The most important part about this course was the applicability of the writing skills I learned to all my courses, including university and beyond. I will be keeping my notes for reference in the future, and I strongly suggest that you will do the same too.
In grade 11, I entered IB English Higher Level, which is equivalent to a university-level English class. Immediately, I noticed the stark contrast in skill level compared with my previous English courses. IB English required you to think much more critically, read a lot more texts, and derive meaningful analysis. Whereas many of my classmates experienced a drop in their English marks, I found that my marks improved as I was well-prepared with the writing skills. In the end, I received a 6 in IB English, which is equivalent to 96%. I am grateful that I had a head start because of this course. I ultimately was accepted by Princeton University for Engineering!
This course is invaluable to anyone, even people who are interested in STEM like me. Don’t be scared to invest your time and effort in this course, for you obtain life-long skills and it will be worth it. I promise.
- Edward Z. (Princeton University)
I want to say you so much for teaching me English all these years but we both know you deserve so much more than a simple thank you note. I have learned so much from you, especially from your life lessons and the importance of having the right attitude…
Your Last Minute Emergency Kit is the best thing on this planet and it’s so impressive how you managed to break down an English exam into something so precise and science. You have prepared us so well: for the provincial, for university, and for life.
- Lydia J. (Columbia University)
Your guidance has helped my writing and life immensely.
Both my essays and my life were not as structured before you taught me your strategies…
This class has certainly helped me in improving my vocabulary, sentence structure, and the complexity of my writing, resulting in improved marks in school and provincial exams, but I feel an even greater fruit is how much my worldview has changed.
It is because of this I have always persuaded my mom to let me take your class…
I usually dislike having tutors since they are costly and inhibit my ability to self-learn, but I sincerely believe no other English tutor can come close to what you have taught me, let alone being able to improve my skills in other areas and reform my mind.
Thank you for helping me become a more enterprising young man.
- Dalong H. (Georgia Tech)
You have helped me improve my English grades drastically, from a 4 to a 7 within a year (if I translate my IB grades into normal grades, it's about a 20% increase in my English grade.)
Before, I had sporadic or random ideas and points that I wanted to discuss in my essay, but I never knew how to actually group them together to form three or more solid points.
Now, I am finally able to convey my analysis and arguments clearly and concisely to the readers, which, in a way, has empowered my voice through written language.
Without your help, I wouldn't have been able to come up with essays that clearly showcase my uniqueness and capability. I am sure that you have contributed so much in making the admission officer fall in love with me enough to offer me a place at the University of Southern California (class of 2024) to study business administration with an emphasis in cinematic arts and a 70K USD international dean scholarship. ”
- Judy J. (USC)
Checked this morning [and got] a 7 in higher level (HL) English. AHHHH so so happy about my English mark and I really have to credit it to you and your classes as I found your notes so so helpful when I was doing my IAs and exams!!
My mom and I are so so soo happy and cannot believe I got a 7 esp in English HAHAHA. I’m def bringing all your notes with me to uni heheh!!
- Nicole C. (NYU)
- Angel W. (Wharton, University of Pennsylvania)
- Joshua W. (UC Berkeley)
- Sally C. (Brown University)
- Katy F. (Princeton University)
- Tina T. (HAAS, UC Berkeley)
- Lydia J. (Columbia University)
- Nicole C. (NYU)
- Edward Z. (Princeton University)
- Alvin L. (UBC Law)
- Jenny D. (University of Toronto; Accepted by Columbia University)
- Gloria L. (University of Michigan)
- Fiona G. (UBC)
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