Get to Know College Admissions Expert, Kayte Hager

At Top Tier Admissions, our counselors bring decades of experience, deep knowledge of the admissions process, and a personal commitment to every student they work with. In our Counselor Spotlight series, we’re introducing you to the incredible individuals behind our high-touch, expert guidance. Learn more about their unique backgrounds, educational philosophies, and what inspires them to help students reach their college goals.

Meet Kayte. A two-time graduate of Boston College and its former Senior Associate Director of Admission, Kayte brings more than 15 years of admissions experience at Boston College, Boston University, and the University of Southern California to her work with students and families. She has led student recruitment and selection, worked closely with recruited student-athletes, and shaped enrollment strategy at some of the country’s most selective universities.

You’ve worked in undergraduate admissions at Boston College, Boston University, and USC, three highly selective institutions with very different identities and applicant pools. What has that breadth of experience taught you about what makes an applicant truly stand out?

Having worked at Boston College, Boston University, and University of Southern California, I am deeply grateful for the incredible range of students and families I’ve met over the past 15+ years. While these three universities have distinctive identities, they share a fundamental goal: identifying students who will excel academically and contribute meaningfully to their campus community.

Academic excellence is always the baseline. Students who challenge themselves within their schools’ context, maximize available opportunities, and develop genuine intellectual passions naturally stand out. However, at selective institutions, there are far more qualified applicants than available seats.

So, what truly distinguishes a student? It comes down to alignment with an institution’s specific values and mission.

At Boston College, a Jesuit, Catholic institution focused on educating the whole person, applicants stand out when they demonstrate a desire for interdisciplinary inquiry, personal reflection, and community engagement. At large research institutions like BU and USC, successful applicants often showcase an eager spirit, ready to dive into research, cross academic boundaries, and engage with vast urban ecosystems.

One of the most rewarding parts of working in college admission has always been getting to know a student’s story, understanding the individual behind the application and considering where that student might learn, grow, contribute, and truly feel at home. This is my ultimate goal: to help students discover their academic niche and articulate it with confidence so that they can stand out in the college admission process.

After reading thousands of applications, what are some of the qualities you see in the strongest applications that students and families may not fully appreciate from the outside?

The college application process is an opportunity for a student to showcase their unique talents, interests, and experiences. The strongest applicants do so while also demonstrating a thoughtful connection to the institution and showing how their interests, values, and goals align with the opportunities and community they will find on campus.

For example, Boston College requires a supplemental essay in addition to the Common Application personal statement. These supplemental prompts encourage students to think about BC’s Jesuit Catholic mission and to reflect on the guiding principles of a BC education. Not only do they provide another opportunity to understand a student’s writing and communication skills, but they also offer a glimpse into the student’s authentic voice. I appreciated seeing how a student’s interests, experiences, and perspective might come to life within the BC community.

That connection is an important part of the college application process. Colleges and universities want to enroll students who will engage with the opportunities, people, and ideas that make their campus distinctive. Supplemental essays, interviews, and other components of the application can help admission counselors better understand how a student might contribute to a specific campus environment.

As a counselor, I encourage students to approach these opportunities not as exercises in telling a college what they want to hear, but as invitations to share more of who they are. The goal is not simply to demonstrate that a student can succeed at a particular college, but to help a college see why that student belongs in its community.

Boston College has been an important part of your life both as an undergraduate and as an admissions professional. How has your experience with Jesuit education (and its emphasis on intellectual curiosity, reflection, service, and educating the whole person) shaped the way you think about working with students?

My personal experience with Jesuit education has not only shaped my educational journey and vocational discernment, but it has also deeply influenced the way I approach working with students. The college search process and transition to college can be some of the most formative years in a young person’s life. The Jesuit ideals of reflection and intellectual curiosity can provide a meaningful grounding during this time, encouraging students to think not only about their academic interests and goals, but also about who they want to be and how they want to show up in our world.

I have always believed that it is my responsibility to understand the human being behind the application. As I counsel students, I try to truly listen. I want to understand what genuinely interests and motivates each student and, perhaps most importantly, where they are still growing and discovering who they are.

An important tenet of Jesuit education is the practice of reflection. I encourage students not simply to acquire knowledge throughout high school, but to ask meaningful questions, deepen their interests, refine their understanding of the subjects they love, and remain open to new possibilities. I strive to create a warm and supportive space where students can approach the college process from a place of genuine curiosity and fit, rather than focusing solely on rankings or prestige.

Finally, the Jesuit tradition places a strong emphasis on service and on the call to me “men and women for and with others.” This idea has deeply shaped my own work with students and families, as I aim to serve students as an educator. My ultimate goal is to help each student find a college community where they can truly thrive and where they can grow in confidence, curiosity, and purpose.

One of the hallmarks of Top Tier Admissions is helping students identify and deepen authentic academic interests well before they apply. How do you help a student move from having several interests to developing a more focused and compelling academic direction?

I love working with multi-passionate students. While college admissions is evaluative, I see it primarily as a journey of self-reflection and a chance for students to discover what truly drives them and chart a personal parth forward.

To bridge the gap between curiosity and a focused direction, I encourage students to step into real-world academic environments: undertaking independent research, enrolling in college-level courses, or participating in summer programs. Engaging directly with professors, mentors, and peers allows students to explore potential vocations. Sometimes this deepens their passion and other times, it gives them permission to pivot – both of which are hugely valuable.

For example, when working with a student drawn to business, often through their experience in high school programs like DECA or from a trusted adult’s experiences, I help them take that interest a step further. We might explore launching a high school investment club focused on social impact, taking a college course in FInancial Markets, or securing a hands-on summer internship.

These immersive experiences move a student from a passive interest to an active scholarly pursuit. For admission officers, this demonstrates intellectual curiosity and ambition, initiative, and persistence. For the student, it provides clarity through concrete examples. My role is to help students navigate these choices and authentically share their story so they not only find a university where they’ll thrive, but also lay a strong foundation for their future.

You’ve evaluated applicants from different regions, backgrounds, and school contexts throughout your admissions career. What do you wish more families understood about how admissions officers actually read a student’s application in context?

Applying to college takes immense time and effort, and I’ve always believed admission officers owe students that exact same dedication while reviewing applications. What many families don’t realize is that applications are never read in a vacuum. Rather, they are evaluated entirely in context.

Before looking at high school transcripts, admission officers thoroughly review the high school profile. This document details course offerings, grading scales, and school-specific programs and policies. Parents often worry a student doesn’t have access to specific courses or niche electives, but admission offices evaluate students in the context from which they come from. Taking the most rigorous curriculum offered in your environment is what actually matters.

The counselor recommendation is another critical piece families often misunderstand. Beyond highlighting character and academic accomplishments, counselor letters provide essential nuance. They explain scheduling constraints, unique school dynamics, or personal circumstances that may have shaped a student’s path.

Ultimately, admission officers aren’t looking for a standardized ideal. Rather, they are working to understand each applicant’s unique story and trajectory within their own high school and community setting. My goal is to reassure families that their student will be seen as an individual, celebrated for their accomplishments, and evaluated with fairness and care.

What do you value most about working directly with students throughout the admissions process, and how does your experience as an admissions officer inform that work?

Working directly with students during such a formative time in their lives is an absolute privilege. Having worked as an admission counselor for so long, I’ve seen firsthand the investment families pour into this process as well as the joy a family experiences when students find the right fit.

This perspective deeply shapes how I counsel students today. Above all, I value open communication and a relationship built on trust. Where to attend college is a major family decision, and my goal is to always meet students where they are. I listen closely to their goals, acknowledge their challenges, and partner with them to build a plan that feels both inspiring and reassuring.

My college admission background helps me demystify the process for students, removing unnecessary stress so that students can focus on genuine growth. By helping them deepen their intellectual curiosity, take on meaningful challenges, and reflect on what truly matters to them, my hope is that they approach the process with confidence. After all, in addition to supporting students to submit strong applications, it’s about helping students discover who they are and the campuses that will best support them.

Having experienced Boston College first as a student and later from inside the admissions office, what do you understand about choosing a college now that you wish you had understood when you were 17?

Looking back over the past 20 years, I’m continuously struck by how deeply my undergraduate experience shaped not just my career, but who I am as a person. I’ve certainly learned a lot about the college process that I wish I could share with my 17 year old self!

First, true fit matters far more than rankings or prestige. While academic rigor is essential, discovering an institution’s core values and seeing how they align with your own aspirations is what creates a truly formative experience. Colleges are not interchangeable and the right campus culture acts as an accelerator for personal growth and development.

Second, admission offices value curiosity over perfection. So many high schoolers approach the college search feeling they need every answer mapped out. Instead, colleges love prospective students who demonstrate authentic intellectual curiosity. They value students who are willing to explore diverse disciplines, pivot when new interests arise, and test their passions through real-world experiences.

Experiencing BC as both a student and professional has shown me that the college experience is truly more than an academic experience. It is a community to embrace.

What should recruited student-athletes and their parents know about how admissions and athletics work together?

The athletic recruiting journey brings an added layer of complexity to college admissions, complete with accelerated timelines, earlier campus visits, and sometimes earlier testing goals. Navigating multiple lines of communication with coaches, athletic staff, and admission officers can feel overwhelming, which is why clarity and organization are key.

Most often, students who are successful in this process focus on transparent communication with both athletic and admission offices. While athletic departments identify prospective student athletes from a competitive standpoint, admission officers evaluate candidates to make sure their academic accomplishments thus far have prepared them for university academic life. Although coaches can advocate for student athletes, students must still demonstrate the academic drive to thrive in the classroom and contribute to the broader campus community.

Because athletic priorities and support vary significantly depending on the division, conference, and specific sport, at Top Tier, we aim to support each prospective student-athlete with individualized care and attention.

The goal isn’t to make the college process bigger. It’s to make it clearer.