turn your story into a winning college essay

A three-session live essay intensive for rising seniors who are aiming for an Ivy League college, taught by Michael Torto, whose own essay was published in 50 Successful Harvard Application Essays and who's helped over 50 students get admitted to the Ivy League.

Students leave with a chosen topic, a structure, and an outline of the essay they will write.

about ivy league stories

50+

Acceptances into the Ivy League

240+

Acceptances into T20 schools

14.8x

Higher admit rate vs the average applicant

98%

Admitted to at least one target school

The problem

most students don't know how to write the right college essay

Acceptance rates into the Ivy League can be as close to 4%, and competition is higher than ever.

Most students write a competent essay about a safe topic and never realize it made them blend in with everyone else in the pile.

Great grades and extracurriculars are the part of the application that everyone has. Your story is the part that no one does, and it only does its job when it's written with enough depth that an admissions officer finishes it with a clear vision of who you are.

This is what these group sessions are for.

What students leave with

Not notes. A finished plan.

Fifteen to twenty candidate topics generated in the Story Inventory
Three topics scored against specificity, ownership, and revelation
One chosen topic and an outline of the essay they will write
The vocabulary admissions readers use when they write about a student
The workbook containing every exercise, framework, and checklist used in class
A structural model matched to their chosen topic

Reserve a seat

Two ways to join

General Seat

$199

25 seats available

All three live sessions
The student workbook
Pre-class seed submission and the Seed Report
Parent access to Session Three

Workshop Seat

$449

8 seats available

Everything in the General Seat
A written review of one full essay draft
A 30-minute one-to-one session with Michael

The full amount you pay is credited toward any Ivy League Stories one-to-one

package if your family enrols within 30 days of the final session. This applies to both seat types.

exclusive bonus

Michael shares his own Harvard admission file

Get an insight into the admissions reader's written evaluation of his application, every rating including the ones

that were not strong, and the alumni interview report so you can learn what you need to do to get in.

group class schedule

Session One · Students only · 120 minutes

Where Essays Come From

Two versions of the same essay, and what changed between them
The Seed Report: a live diagnosis of every student's pre-class submission
Michael's published Harvard essay, taken apart as architecture
The four failure modes: the résumé, the trauma bid, the thesis statement, the humblebrag
The Story Inventory: five timed rounds of guided mining
The three filters, and a shortlist of three topics

Session Two · Students only · 120 minutes

Building the Essay

Case studies: full readings of past students' admitted personal statements
The four architectures a personal essay can take, and how to spot which one fits
The First Fifty Words clinic: live diagnosis of student openings
Three endings that fail and three that work
Supplemental essays: where most applications lose ground

Session Three · Students and parents · 60 minutes

Inside a Harvard Admission File

The reader's written evaluation of Michael's application
Every rating, including the ones that were not strong
The alumni interview report
The vocabulary admissions readers use when they write about a student
Fifteen minutes of open questions with parents in the room

the schedule

All three sessions run across a single Saturday and Sunday.

Times are set so morning commitments stay clear on both coasts.

SESSION	DAY	TIME (ET)	WHO
One	Saturday	1:00 – 3:00 PM	Students
Two	Sunday	4:00 – 6:00 PM	Students
Three	Sunday	6:30 – 7:30 PM	Students and parents

Run One: Saturday, September 19 and Sunday, September 20, 2026

Run Two: Saturday, September 26 and Sunday, September 27, 2026

The results

Meet Your Counselor

Michael Torto is the founder of Ivy League Stories and a graduate of Harvard College. His personal statement was published in the sixth edition of 50 Successful Harvard Application Essays and featured by The Harvard Crimson. He is a national speech and debate champion.

He works one-to-one with every Ivy League Stories student personally and caps each cycle at a small number of families. He teaches this class himself, all three sessions.

Who this group class is for

This fits a student who

Is a rising senior applying to US universities this fall
Has no topic, or one they suspect is weak
Has a draft that reads flat and can't say why
Wants instruction before committing to a full package

This class does not cover

School list construction
Testing strategy
Activity and extracurricular planning

common questions

Are the sessions recorded?

Sessions One and Two are recorded and available to registered families for thirty days after the final session. Session Three is live only and is not recorded.

Do parents attend?

Parents are invited to Session Three and are encouraged to attend it with their student.

My student already has a draft. Is this still useful?

Yes. Session Two covers structure, openings, endings, and supplemental essays, and applies directly to an existing draft. Workshop seats include a written review of one full draft and a thirty-minute one-to-one session.

What happens to the fee if we want one-to-one work afterward?

The full amount is credited toward a one-to-one package if your family enrols within 30 days of the final session.

What is required before the first session?

A 150-word written submission, due 72 hours before Session One. Instructions are sent by email after registration.

Reserve your student's seat

Only 25 general seats and 8 workshop seats are available.