The 7 independent college counselors serving Istanbul are Ali Yucad, Dante Admissions Consulting, Ece Öyken Tunçay, Mehmet Sağlam, Plus Education Career, Sedef Gazioğlu, and Selin Kaynak. The table compares them at a glance, and each profile below adds who the counselor is best for and who should look elsewhere.
Independent college counselors in Istanbul: compared
| Counselor | Focus |
|---|---|
| Ali Yucad | Independent university counselling, Canada specialist, also UK, US and Europe |
| Dante Admissions Consulting | Not listed |
| Ece Öyken Tunçay | Not listed |
| Mehmet Sağlam | University consultancy for Turkish students going abroad and staying in Turkey |
| Plus Education Career | Not listed |
| Sedef Gazioğlu | International university counseling (USA among countries covered), career planning, graduate applications |
| Selin Kaynak | Not listed |
Counselor profiles
Ali Yucad, HorizonIstanbul
- Not the right fit if: Families who want a US-only counselor (his specialty is Canada)
- Focus: Independent university counselling; Canada specialist; also UK, US and Europe
- Services: College search, college entrance test preparation, talent identification, study-abroad counselling; runs the StudyAway platform (virtual counselling in development)
- Test prep: In-house
- Credentials: CIS Affiliated Consultant Network; also ECIS and OACAC (per CIS profile). BSc Electrical and Electronics Engineering (Isik University, 2000); MBA (Sabanci University, 2002).
Visit HorizonIstanbul's website
Dante Admissions Consulting
Visit Dante Admissions Consulting's website
Ece Öyken Tunçay, Oyken International College Counseling
- Credentials: NACAC IEC directory member
Mehmet Sağlam, Universal Counselor
- Best for: Istanbul and Ankara families who want a founder with US private-counseling experience
- Not the right fit if: You want a published fee, memberships or named counselors besides the two founders
- Focus: University consultancy for Turkish students going abroad and staying in Turkey
- Services: One-on-one meetings; online resources; activity planning; communication skills training; identifying strengths
- Credentials: Co-founder and CEO; College Counseling Extension program, UC San Diego; seven years as a private college counselor in San Diego, San Francisco and Los Angeles (per the site); no memberships listed
Visit Universal Counselor's website
Plus Education Career
Visit Plus Education Career's website
Sedef Gazioğlu, Sedef Gazioğlu International University Counselling
- Best for: Istanbul students from private schools who want an independent counselor after the school-counselor model
- Not the right fit if: Students who want US-only expertise: page does not say she counsels US applications specifically
- Focus: International university counseling (USA among countries covered); career planning; graduate applications
- Services: International university counseling, essay writing, career planning and major choice, CV planning, internship preparation, graduate program applications
- Languages: English, Turkish (site in both; counseling languages not stated)
- Credentials: UCLA College Counseling Certificate; British Council Education UK Certificate; MEd Educational Leadership, George Washington University; BA/BBA Franklin & Marshall; IACAC member. Former Director of International College Counselling at TED Istanbul College (2014-2020) and Associate Director of College Counselling at Koç School (2020-2023)
Visit Sedef Gazioğlu International University Counselling's website