Nirmal Agarwal

BA, Stanford University, USA (Economics)
MBA, Certificates in HR and Marketing (University of Cambridge International Examinations)
Certificate in College Counselling (University of California)

Brought up in Kolkata, Nirmal navigated his college application process in the late 80’s, securing admissions with full scholarships into four Ivy League Universities and Stanford. During his undergraduate years at Stanford, Nirmal discovered a love for mentoring and counselling when he was selected for various roles as a teaching assistant and residence coordinator.

After returning to India, Nirmal furthered his passion for mentoring by advising scores of students on their college applications – providing them the support he felt he had lacked during his applications. He also successfully incubated several education ventures, and is recognised as an expert in school education, career counselling, and college admissions.

Nirmal’s strives to help students find a balance between their academic and personal development, as he believes that accomplishments in both areas are crucial for students to stand out amongst an increasingly competitive pool of applicants. He loves helping his students to reflect on their values, aspirations, accomplishments, and create an impactful personal narrative that best showcases the person they are.

He believes that no matter who the students are, there is a right match college for each individual. He is constantly striving for the best fit college for each student (quite successfully) and for that elusive hole-in-one in his other passion of Golf (not so successfully)!

Devanshi Dabriwal

BA, Wellesley College, USA (Economics)

As a peer tutor, student-organisation leader and community volunteer, Devanshi found her passion and interest for mentoring while working closely with and for the Wellesley community. Writing having always been one of her strengths, she actively honed her skill during her time at Wellesley by taking writing intensive courses.

On her return to Kolkata she decided to combine her passion for mentoring with writing to become an education counsellor at Cognix. Over the past 2 years, Devanshi has worked closely with students to help them craft applications that are competitive and unique. Much like her education, Devanshi’s approach to mentoring is holistic and while she helps high-schoolers with all aspects of the application, she is biased towards the dreaded personal essay that she finds most satisfying to work on. Helping high schoolers introspect, gauge impact and make connections between the various threads of their life to create a powerful narrative keeps her motivated and challenged.

Be it finding the perfect fit college, easing teenagers through the application process or mentoring them to find the right balance to create holistic development, Devanshi is motivated by the first-hand impact she is able to create in helping teenagers chart a trajectory for success that is aligned to their specific goals.

Gargi Sen

MA (English), M.Sc. (Mathematics), MA (Education), B.Ed.
Accredited Cambridge Trainer for Teaching & Learning, Education Leadership
Certifications from NABET and SQA, Scotland, as Accreditor and Trainer

A Presidency College alum, Gargi is passionate about motivating teaching-learning communities, and helping them explore their talents and abilities. She started her career as a Mathematics & Physics teacher and soon established herself as an Accredited Trainer working internationally.

Gargi has been actively involved with several academic institutions providing end-to-end solutions for their learning needs. Along with her regular interactive sessions with students of these institutions, she has been training and consulting for teachers and school leaders as well.

For almost three decades now, she has assisted students and teachers in their career and professional planning. She is a firm believer in identifying an individual’s ability or potential and nurturing them in the right direction, thus contributing to their growth.

Her passion lies in training and guiding students, mentoring them on a variety of projects in the sciences, maths, and the performing arts. She works with her students using psychometric tools and innovative activities to enable them to identify their strength and personality, and steer them towards a balanced path in their academic, personal and career plan.

Radhika Sahni

Radhika’s penchant for languages led her to complete a double degree in English literature and Russian. Having worked for years with diverse groups of international travellers to curate and design niche travel experiences, it was her strength in communication and her ability to understand the needs of each individual client that led her to discovering her passion for working with and amongst people. A Welham Girls’ alumni, Radhika remains invested in community based initiatives and has established a sustainable network of support. She is currently using her experience to mentor young adults enabling them to manage and pursue their higher education goals effectively and create their own success stories.

Wendy Bigler

BA, Trinity University, USA (Biology)
M.A.G., Texas State University (Geography)
Ph.D., Arizona State University (Geography)

Education has been at the core of Wendy’s professional life. In the United States, she has spent nearly 20 years in secondary and higher education, also working in environmental chemistry and environmental conservation. Moving to Taiwan with her Mexican husband in 2011, she understands the challenges and opportunities that come in living away from one’s homeland and choosing an international lifestyle. As a college counselor for the past seven years, she has helped students of many nationalities and backgrounds find their pathway to university studies. Now in Japan, she works with new international high schools to help them establish college counseling departments. She has presented at international conferences on understanding university rankings and what early career college counselors need to know.

At the core of her practice, she seeks to know her students, understand their values and aspirations, and help them present their best selves to universities. Additionally, she recognizes that academic and financial fit are critical to families as they choose universities that are affordable and will provide the specific sort of academic and social foundation that a student needs for a successful life.

She has helped over 300 students apply to universities in 15 countries; most attending college in the US, Canada, UK, Japan, Netherlands and Hong Kong. Students have remarked that although they entered the college application with anxiety, with Wendy’s help they were able to lower their stress levels and come to conquer and enjoy the process.

She is a member of the International Association of College Admissions Counselors and the Independent Educational Consultant Association.