Empowered Access
Counseling at the intersection of adolescent development and college admissions.
Empowered Access
Counseling at the intersection of adolescent development and college admissions.
Welcome to Empowered Access
The college admissions process doesn't have to be something you survive.
For a lot of families, it feels that way: a gauntlet of deadlines, rankings, and anxiety, with a teenager in the middle who's either shutting down or spiraling. It doesn't have to be that way.
When it's done right, this process is one of the most meaningful things a young person goes through. It asks them to figure out who they are, what they care about, and where they want to go next. That's not a burden. That's an invitation.
I'm here to help your family accept it.
WHO I AM
I'm Lizette Paredes — and I actually like teenagers.
I know that sounds like a low bar. It's not.
I've spent nearly two decades working directly with adolescents — understanding how they think, how they grow, how motivation works, and how identity forms during exactly these years. I also understand how college admissions works from the inside.
Most college counselors specialize in one or the other. I work at the intersection of both.
That means I'm not here to engineer your student's application or manufacture a version of them that looks good on paper. I'm here to help them figure out who they actually are — and then help them communicate that, clearly and compellingly, to the colleges that are the right fit.
WHAT I BELIEVE
Your student is the main character of this story.
Too much of the college counseling industry is built around fear — fear of falling behind, fear of the wrong school, fear of a future that doesn't include a brand-name institution. That fear sells a lot of test prep and résumé padding. It doesn't serve students.
The families I work with want something different. They want their teenager to come out of this process with more self-knowledge, more confidence, and a college list that actually fits — not just one that looks impressive at a dinner party.
Some of my students end up at Princeton or Yale. Some end up at Cal Poly Humboldt or Cal State Long Beach — and those are exactly the right schools for them. The goal is never the ranking. The goal is the fit.
WHAT I DO
I guide students and families through the entire process — starting with the student, and building outward from there.
I do this through my signature framework, The Empowered Path:
- Discover — Identify strengths, interests, values, and goals
- Explore — Research academic and extracurricular opportunities, majors, careers, and campuses that align
- Plan — Build a personalized roadmap for high school and college applications
- Achieve — Execute with structured guidance, accountability, and support
Whether through ongoing Membership, focused Senior Year Support, or full Comprehensive Support, every engagement is grounded in this student-centered approach.
WHY FAMILIES CHOOSE EMPOWERED ACCESS
They want someone who understands teenagers — not just admissions.
They want clarity without hype. Structure without micromanagement. Strategic positioning without résumé engineering.
They want their student to grow through this process, not just get through it.
And they want to work with someone who genuinely believes this can be one of the best experiences of their teenager's high school years — because when it's done right, it is.
Ready to find out if we're a good fit?
Schedule a free consultation. We'll talk about where your student is, where they're headed, and whether Empowered Access is the right support for this season.
Contact Me
How can I help?
I understand that each student's situation and needs are unique to them, especially when it comes to college counseling and college preparation. Tell me more about what you're looking for, and I will get back to you soon with some ideas for educational guidance.
