FAQs | Darwell Admissions

We match you with a Guidance Consultant. A current university student or recent graduate of the program you are applying to, who coaches you through supplementaries, essays, video responses and interviews. One request. The right match.

If your session is 24 hours or more away (counted from its start time) and you cancel, you get a full refund. If your session is your first oneand it turns out not to be useful, our first-session promise applies.

A booking is confirmed once we have matched you with a Guidance Consultant and sent your booking confirmation with payment details.

Yes. Parents may send the request, manage the booking and pay for their student.

Three people are involved in a booking: the parent (who usually books and pays), the student (who is applying and writes every word), and the Guidance Consultant. Only the student and Guidance Consultant work on drafts together. Your consultant asks questions, points out what is unclear and gives written feedback, but never writes, rewrites or polishes your work. The words in your application stay yours from start to finish.

A Full Application gives you six hours of sessions. Plus four written reviews, a mock interview, school-list strategy and support through your deadline.

We will tell you honestly. If there is no good match yet, we can keep your request open or suggest a related option. Send us a note through our contact page with your program and we will reply with the options.

It depends on your program and how quickly you reply. We send a match and a booking confirmation as soon as we find the right person.

Yes, every session is a video call. From your first request to your match, booking confirmation, payment and every session after that, everything happens online, so you can join from wherever you are.

Send us a request with the program you are applying to and what you need help with. We reply with a match and a booking confirmation. Start on our contact page.

Of course! Send your questions through our contact page and we will happily explain how sessions work, which package fits and which tier your program sits in, before you pay anything.

A few basics help us match you well: (1) the student’s name and grade, (2) the program or programs you are applying to, (3) the help you want, such as a supplementary, an essay or interview practice. Bring a draft if you have one, plus your questions. Everything else is explained in your booking confirmation.

Three people are involved in a booking: the parent (who usually books and pays), the student (who is applying and writes every word), and the Guidance Consultant. Only the student and Guidance Consultant work on drafts together. Your consultant asks questions, points out what is unclear and gives written feedback, but never writes, rewrites or polishes your work. The words in your application stay yours from start to finish.

Payment goes through Darwell, by card through our secure Stripe checkout when you book.

Prices are listed on our program pages and in the tier table. The booking page shows your tier, your package and the exact total in CAD before you pay.

We have three tiers: Elite, Competitive and Core. Pricing depends on the program you are applying to and the package you choose (Masterclass, Consultant Hour, Sprint or Full Application).

No. Every price is shown up front, and your exact total appears before you pay.

A 90-minute live group session on one program’s application, with up to 40 seats and a recording you can watch for 7 days afterwards.

The one thing we never include is writing. Consultants do not write, rewrite or polish your essays, and no package comes with an admission promise. *No consultant or package can promise an offer. Admission decisions belong to each university, and we never suggest otherwise.

A Sprint is built around one program, covering: two 60-minute sessions, two rounds of written feedback, a 72-hour turnaround and one mock video interview. It works for one program’s supplementary such as the Waterloo AIF and Ivey AEO , or the Queen’s and McMaster Health Sciences supplementaries. You write every word; we coach.

If you compare it with free advice online, it can look like a lot. But generic tips rarely know your program’s supplementary. Instead, Darwell offers clear, tiered prices and feedback from students who just got in, on the program you want.

Packages are built around your deadline, so tell us early if things change. Any session cancelled 24 hours or more before it starts is refunded in full, and we will talk through what is left of your package with you.

If your first session isn’t useful, you get a free consultant swap or a refund of the unused portion, so you never pay for help that did not help.

You work on your drafts. Your consultant’s written feedback shows you what to tackle next.

Your drafts, your questions, the program’s prompts and a quiet spot with a good connection.

A parent or guardian books for students under 18 and is our main contact. Whether a parent sits in on sessions is up to your family; just tell us.

Your Guidance Consultant gets to know your goals, looks at where your application stands and agrees on a plan with you for the sessions ahead.

Right after your booking is confirmed, we send the date, the time and next-step instructions.

Sessions can start as soon as your booking is confirmed, at a time that works for you and your Guidance Consultant.

Guidance Consultants are current university students and recent graduates, within about four years, of the specific Canadian and US programs families apply to. They have written the same kinds of supplementaries, recorded the same kinds of video responses and sat the same kinds of interviews you are facing now. In sessions they ask questions, explain what each prompt is asking, point out what is unclear in your drafts and run practice interviews. They coach; you write. Consultants work with Darwell independently and are not Darwell employees.

Yes, subject to availability and a quick note to the Darwell team.

That’s the idea. Matches are made by program.

You can ask for one, subject to availability at the time of booking.

Never. You write every word; your consultant gives feedback.

Your consultant points out what is unclear and asks questions. Making the changes is your job.

Ghostwriting is never permitted at Darwell, in any form.

All sessions and payments go through Darwell. Families and Guidance Consultants agree not to arrange private paid work outside Darwell for 12 months after meeting through Darwell.

Yes, through a Direct Engagement request, which carries a one-time $500 fee. Just ask the Darwell team.

One-on-one sessions are recorded only if everyone agrees. Masterclasses include a 7-day recording.

No, never. Admission decisions belong to each university. We promise honest feedback, never an outcome.

No. Darwell is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by any university. Program names only describe where students apply.

No. We are not partnered with any university, high school or application service, and university names on this site only describe the programs students apply to. Guidance Consultants speak from their own experience as applicants, never on behalf of a university. If anything here suggests otherwise, tell us and we will fix it.

A good consultant can help you understand each prompt, find stronger examples from your own life and walk into an interview prepared. That is real help. What no one can do is control an admission decision, so we never promise one. We focus on what you can control: clear thinking, honest drafts and practice.

Yes. Ontario applications go through OUAC, other provinces through their own application systems, plus program supplementaries. US applications use the Common App plus school supplements. We match you with someone who knows your system.

Carefully. We collect only what we need to arrange sessions, and our privacy page has the details.

Darwell is built for applicants in Canada and their families, mainly students in Grade 11 and 12, applying to competitive Canadian programs or to US schools, who want guidance from students who just got in. It also suits parents who want clear prices, honest advice and a plan.