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Dan Ulin has quietly spent decades mentoring ambitious teens, long before college admissions became the high-stakes race it is today.
What he’s doing with high-achieving teens isn’t just about getting into college.
It’s about helping them build lives of meaning, leadership, and confidence.
I’ve had the privilege of travelling the world with Dan—LA, Pakistan, Dubai, the Philippines—and wherever we go, he’s the same thoughtful, present, deeply committed person. He is the kind of guy who listens more than he talks and mentors without preaching.
From Card Tricks to Calling
“My very first job was teaching magic to eight-year-olds when I was eleven,” he told me. That was in Newton, Massachusetts, where he grew up.
It wasn’t just about the magic. It was about the connection—the spark of helping someone else learn something new. That stuck with him.
Through high school, he volunteered with learning-challenged kids and served as a big brother figure.
Later, at the University of Pennsylvania, he studied creative writing—a skill that would become core to his ability to help students express themselves in college essays and beyond.
A Global Lens on Learning
After college, Dan received a six-month fellowship to work with Panasonic and the Japanese Ministry of Education. He stayed in Japan for four years.
“Every day I woke up there,” he said, “I realized I knew less. And that, to me, is a beautiful thing.”
He co-developed English-language curriculum materials for Japanese high school students during that time. This global immersion shaped his worldview and commitment to experiential learning.
“ABC doesn’t just stand for the alphabet,” Dan told me. “It means Always Be Curious.”
That mindset fuels his coaching approach. He’s also worked in Hollywood and with multinational corporations—but all of it ties back to one mission: helping young people find their voice and lead with purpose.
From Word-of-Mouth to World-Class Mentorship
Friends began asking Dan to help their kids with college applications. It quickly became clear this wasn’t just about essays—it was about unlocking who these students were meant to become.
“It pulled together everything I loved—teaching, mentoring, writing, helping kids step into their power,” he said.
That’s how Elite Student Coach was born. He didn’t run ads. He didn’t build funnels. To this day, 100% of his clients come from referrals.
This is 100% similar to what my buddy Damon Burton does by helping people with SEO and getting referrals from satisfied clients.
The quality of his work does the talking.
Here’s what one parent had to say:
“After contacting Dan, I knew right away he’d be the perfect mentor to help my daughter raise the bar on her writing so that she’d have the best shot at getting into her wish list schools. Dan also helped her develop a brilliant outreach plan so that admissions officers would view her as an unforgettable candidate. My daughter ended up being admitted to her first pick—one of America’s most competitive universities. I know she’ll carry the lessons she learned from Dan well into her adult life and pay those forward to others.”
— Dr. Darin Klein
The Speakeasy of Mentorship
While in Las Vegas with Dan Ulin, he told me he sees his program like a speakeasy—”a well-kept secret in the bustling city of academic preparation.”
That analogy nails it. He’s not chasing scale. He’s focused on fit.
From the first call, he evaluates: Is this the right student? Is this the right family? Are they committed to growth?
Dan builds deep, multi-year relationships with both parents and teens. He mentors with care, but also with accountability. And when it’s a fit, it’s powerful.
The Workshop Model: Teach What You Love
One of the most innovative things Dan does is help students turn passions into peer education. He calls it the workshop model.
“I’ve got two 14-year-olds teaching financial literacy to sixth graders,” he told me. “One explains compound interest. The other shows them how to open a bank account. How awesome is that?”
This isn’t résumé padding—it’s real-world skill-building. He encourages students to take initiative, teach others, and turn knowledge into impact.
He shared that multiple students have been accepted to top-tier schools like Stanford and Penn, with admissions officers specifically citing the workshops as standouts.
“Lean In. Step Up. Stand Out.”
During one of Dan’s Pakistan speaking engagements, the audience wasn’t connecting with the presentation.
So, he tossed the slides and spoke from the heart. What emerged became a core philosophy he now shares with every student:
Lean In. Step Up. Stand Out.
- Lean into discomfort—asking for help, writing publicly, launching a workshop.
- Step up and advocate for yourself.
- Stand out by being uniquely you.
“These aren’t taught in high schools,” he said. “They’re barely taught in business schools. But they’re all monetizable. They’re all AI-proof. And they’ll set you apart.”
Mentorship as Co-Creation
“Mentorship isn’t top-down,” Dan told me. “It’s co-creative. The moment a student says, ‘Dan, that advice doesn’t apply to me,’ I know it’s working. It sharpens me. And it shows they’re thinking for themselves.”
He calls his method time folding—bringing students insights he wishes he had in his 20s, while they’re still in middle or high school.
“If it works, they save decades,” he said. “If not, I’ll gladly refund their misery.”
Teaching at UCLA and Beyond
Dan has been invited to guest lecture at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, where he shares his insights on mentorship, leadership, and the power of storytelling.
His approach resonates with families and educators, entrepreneurs, and thought leaders across industries.
More parents are taking note:
“We hired Dan Ulin to work with not just one, but two of our children. He has an exceptionally unique, really creative approach to helping young people build self-confidence, find their voices as writers, and focus their thinking when it comes to the college application essay and interview processes. As a direct result of the work they did with Dan, our son and daughter both ended up getting into their first choices of top schools and are excelling in their studies. We couldn’t possibly be happier, and neither could our kids.”
— Lisann and Rob Gould
The Bold Guarantee
Dan isn’t cheap. But he doesn’t shy from accountability.
He guarantees that every student he works with will get into one of their top three schools—or he offers continued mentorship through grad school or a refund.
“I’ve never missed,” he told me. “And that’s not a brag on me. That’s a brag on my students.”
It’s Not the School That’s Elite—It’s the Student
I once asked Dan what “elite” really means in Elite Student Coach. His answer stuck with me:
“Elite doesn’t modify the school. It modifies the student.”
It’s not about chasing logos. It’s about preparing students to show up fully—wherever they go. To take initiative. Communicate. Serve. Lead. And create a ripple effect.
Why This Works—and How You Can Apply It
Dan Ulin’s method isn’t just helping students get into elite schools. It’s an LDT masterclass:
- Learn who you are by writing your story clearly.
- Do the work by teaching others through workshops and peer mentorship.
- Teach by leading with service, not self-promotion.
This is the same model we follow at BlitzMetrics—and it’s how we train young adults in digital marketing, leadership, and personal branding.
Dan’s coaching starts with clarity: Is this the right fit? Are the parents aligned? Will the student lead? That’s solid GCT—Goals, Content, Targeting—built into every mentorship.
If you’re a parent, educator, or youth coach trying to help young leaders stand out for the right reasons, ask yourself:
- Are we just checking boxes?
- Or are we building something real?
Next Steps
Want to learn how Dan gets 100% of clients through referrals, without funnels or gimmicks?
→ Apply LDT to your mentorship or coaching model.
And if you’re curious whether your student is a fit for Dan’s program, you can explore more at EliteStudentCoach.com.
Let’s build students, not just resumes.
Dennis Yu is a former search engine engineer who has spent a billion dollars on Google and Facebook ads for Nike, Quiznos, Ashley Furniture, Red Bull, State Farm, and other organizations that have many locations.
He has achieved 25% of his goal of creating a million digital marketing jobs because of his partnership with universities, professional organizations, and agencies. Companies like GoDaddy, Fiverr, onlinejobs.ph, 7 Figure Agency, and Vendasta partner with him to create training and certifications.
Dennis created the Dollar a Day Strategy for local service businesses to enhance their existing local reputation and make the phone ring. He’s coaching young adult agency owners who serve plumbers, AC technicians, landscapers, roofers, electricians in conjunction with leaders in these industries.
Mr. Yu believes that there should be a standard in measuring local marketing efforts, much like doctors and plumbers need to be certified and licensed. His Content Factory training and dashboards are used by thousands of practitioners.
Dennis Yu
Dennis Yu is a former search engine engineer who has spent a billion dollars on Google and Facebook ads for Nike, Quiznos, Ashley Furniture, Red Bull, State Farm, and other organizations that have many locations.
He has achieved 25% of his goal of creating a million digital marketing jobs because of his partnership with universities, professional organizations, and agencies. Companies like GoDaddy, Fiverr, onlinejobs.ph, 7 Figure Agency, and Vendasta partner with him to create training and certifications.
Dennis created the Dollar a Day Strategy for local service businesses to enhance their existing local reputation and make the phone ring. He's coaching young adult agency owners who serve plumbers, AC technicians, landscapers, roofers, electricians in conjunction with leaders in these industries.
Mr. Yu believes that there should be a standard in measuring local marketing efforts, much like doctors and plumbers need to be certified and licensed. His Content Factory training and dashboards are used by thousands of practitioners.