Ariav founder Ian Friedman’s entire professional experience has been in education.
He was a corps member in the first class of Teach For America before working as a public school teacher in the south Los Angeles area community of Lynwood and on the north side of Chicago.
Ian is the author of several non-fiction books targeted to middle and high school students and he has also worked as a writer and editor of curriculum and assessments.
In addition to his certification in College Counseling from UCLA, Ian earned a B.A. in History from the University of Michigan and an Ed. M. in Teaching and Curriculum in the Field of History from Harvard University.
In his decade-plus as a college admissions consultant, Ian has greatly enjoyed helping hundreds of students—including his own three children—find excellent college fits. He and his wife live outside of Chicago, where Ian plays rec-league basketball, dotes on his two incredible dogs, and cheers for his beloved Detroit sports teams.
TESTIMONIALS
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Ian was awesome. He takes the time to understand a student’s goals and strengths. And he helps relieve student anxiety and stress throughout the process.
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— Nicole N.
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I am very grateful for everything you have done for me from test prep to essay help…I greatly appreciated your calm approach and constant positivity during a stressful time.
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— Claire M.
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My husband just told me ‘This was the best money we ever spent’ and I agree! [Our daughter] is thriving, she got lots of merit aid, and she loves college so much we don’t have to worry about her transferring or dropping out.
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— Susan W.
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Ian made the stressful process of applying to college easy and very manageable. I left my sessions with him excited to go write the essays … He was able to pull ideas out of me I could have never come up with without his help and I turned those ideas into essays I was very proud of…I could not have been happier with my essays.
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— Erin M.