Michael Goran, J.D. - Director & Educational Consultant

Michael Goran founded IvySelect to serve high-ability students and student-athletes seeking admission to selective and highly-selective colleges. Mr. Goran's background as an Ivy League graduate and as a member of the Secondary School Committee and Admissions Interviewer for the University of Pennsylvania lends a real-world experience that is fundamentally important in navigating the admissions and college match process at top tier and other top 100 colleges.

In addition to being a UCLA Certificated College Counselor, he has been an investment real estate consultant and a practicing attorney. Mr. Goran brings the skill set he honed as a lawyer - advocacy, counseling, research and writing - together with an educational consultant specialist's background, training and experience to the selective college admissions process. His legal experience also provides an invaluable added dimension for the law school applicant.

Mr. Goran's background as an award-winning writer translates into expert help for the student in shaping essays and personal statements. As the father of a college student, he brings a parent's compassion and understanding of the pressures inherent in the process. He maintains memberships and participates in conferences in a number of organizations that contribute to his ongoing professional development. Mr. Goran visits colleges throughout the country, with an emphasis on top tier and other top 100 schools. Finally, he serves on an ongoing basis as a pro bono college counselor at Calabasas High School, a National Blue Ribbon School.

Qualifications: Skills, Knowledge & Experience

• Superior Education
  • Ivy League Graduate: University of Pennsylvania, Dean's List With Distinction
  • Top-Tier Law School Graduate: Emory University
  • Certification in College Counseling from UCLA
  • Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA) Summer Training Institute

• Superior Writing Abilities
  • Editor: Harcourt, Brace & Jovanovich
  • Postgraduate Writing Program: UCLA School of Theater, Film & Television; Professional Program in Screenwriting
  • Winner, UCLA School of Theater, Film & Television Screenwriting Award
  • First-Place Winner, American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers Legal Writing Competition

• Superior Credentials, Insights & Professional Development
  • Admissions Interviewer, University of Pennsylvania
  • Member, Secondary School Committee, University of Pennsylvania
  • Member, Western Association for College Admission Counseling (WACAC)
  • Member, Higher Education Consultants Association (HECA)
  • Member, National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC)
  • Associate Member, Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA)
  • Member, American Bar Association
  • Member, New York Bar
  • Admitted to Practice, United States District Court, Southern District of NY
  • Admitted to Practice, United States District Court, Eastern District of NY
  • Pro bono College Counselor, Calabasas High School, a National Blue Ribbon School
  • Colleges Recently Visited: UCLA, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, USC, Claremont McKenna College, Stanford University, Georgetown University, George Washington University, American University, University of Maryland-College Park, Johns Hopkins University, University of Delaware, University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University, Rutgers University, New York University, Columbia University, University of Texas - Austin
  • Exploring College Options Seminar: Duke, Georgetown, Harvard, Penn & Stanford
  • Conferences: Regional Admission Counselors of California, WACAC, University of California Counselor Conference, NACAC, IECA

• Superior Skills & Philosophy
  • Research, organization, good listener, understand high-school students (not only as a counselor, but as a parent - son recently went through process)
  • Fervent about academic success of students in garnering a top college best fit
  • An impassioned advocate & caring professional to help the student realize their goals
  • Make a match that complements the student's emotional, personal & academic needs
  • Highest ethical standards
  • Loyalty that translates into a bond of trust
  • Professional insight into what it takes to be successful in the narrow strata of the highly-selective college admissions process
  • Minimize stress inherent in college admissions process
  • Parents need not be the "admissions police" - we serve as a buffer to sustain family harmony
  • Keep communications open
  • Involved throughout the process

Bill McClain, M.Ed., Ed.D. - Athletic Consultant

Dr. Bill McClain, an experienced tennis coach and educator, has developed three NCAA Division I college tennis programs, which produced: 14 All-Americans, numerous individual conference singles and doubles champions, four conference team championships, an NCAA Indoor Team Championship, and a 310-118 dual match record. His teams were ranked in the NCAA Top 10 three times and the Top 20 nine times. He is proud of his record in achieving 100% graduation rate for student-athletes recruited during his two decades of college coaching by motivating students to excel academically. His students have gone on to achieve prominence as successful professionals, businessmen and athletes.

Dr. Bill has coached three U.S. Junior Davis Cup Teams, which included three national junior champions, two NCAA singles champions and numerous All-Americans. He has developed and coached many sectionally and nationally ranked junior players, including a National Junior Girls' Champion. Bill has assisted many of these players in obtaining opportunities to play college tennis at top-tier universities such as Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth and Duke.

He is both coach and educator, holding a Masters in Education, majoring in guidance and counseling. Bill also holds a Doctorate in Education from the University of Alabama, where he coached men's tennis under the athletic director, the legendary Bear Bryant. He has also been the men's tennis coach at the University of South Carolina and Southern Methodist University. Among his many professional affiliations, Bill has been Vice-President of the NCAA Tennis Coaches Association, Chairman of the NCAA All-American Selection Committee and is currently a member of the United States Professional Tennis Association, with a Pro 1 Rating. In addition to being the Athletic Consultant for IvySelect, Bill is Director of Tennis at The Warner Center Club in Woodland Hills, California.