Everything, in plain terms.
Fees, timelines, Oxbridge, and the US system — grouped so you can read only the part you came for.
Updated August 2026
A consultant answers every enquiry, usually within one working day.
Working with us
How the relationship runs, from the first call to the final offer.
How do you match our family with a consultant?
Every family is paired with one dedicated Strategist who stays with you from the first call to the final offer. We match on target course, university group and your child’s temperament — an applicant for Cambridge Engineering works with someone who read that degree and has interviewed for it. Every Clavis Strategist is an Oxford, Cambridge or top U.S. college graduate.
Do you work online or in person?
Both, and most families use a mix. Sessions run over video by default.
How involved are parents in the process?
As involved as you would like to be. Upon agreement, we can send a written summary after every session so you always know where things stand, and we hold check-in calls with parents alone to talk candidly about progress.
How many students do you take each year?
We cap each cycle deliberately, at around forty families, so that no consultant carries more than eight applicants at once. When a track is full we say so rather than stretch.
Is our work with you confidential?
Entirely. We never publish a student’s school or results, and the messages families have sent us are published with names changed, attributed only by role, country and outcome.
Fees and investment
What we charge, what it includes, and what we will not promise.
How are your fees structured?
All of our programmes are entirely tailored to the individual whose development we’re aiding. We charge per programme rather than per hour, so nobody watches the clock during a session. The fee depends on the track and how long we work together, and the full programme is sent in writing before you commit to anything. For a very limited number of students, in specific circumstances, hourly packages may be offered.
What is included in a programme?
Each programme is tailored exactly to the client’s needs, preferences, profile and resources, both temporal and material. As an example, a programme can include: Academic positioning, Strategist tutorial sessions, written feedback on every draft, admissions test planning, two or more full mock interviews with a subject specialist, and a shortlisting exercise with you and your child. None of that is billed as an extra.
When do we pay?
In two instalments: the first when we begin, the second at the start of the application term. We do not ask for the full fee up front.
Do you guarantee a place?
No, and we would be wary of anyone who does. What we can promise is a candidate who arrives at interview genuinely prepared, and an application that represents your child accurately.
Is the first conversation free?
Yes. The first call runs about forty-five minutes, covers your child’s position honestly, and ends with our view on whether we are the right people to help. You can arrange one here.
Early Development
Mentoring for younger students, long before an application is due.
Is this only for families with Oxbridge in mind?
No. The Early Development programme is about helping a child find what genuinely interests them; where that leads is their decision, made years from now. It happens that students who spend those years exploring properly tend to become strong candidates anywhere — but that is a consequence, not the purpose.
How is this different from regular tutoring?
A tutor works within a syllabus towards an exam. A mentor works outside one, towards a question your child has not been asked yet: what do you actually find interesting, and how far can you take it? The two sit comfortably alongside each other.
What does a session actually look like?
Usually an hour, one to one, with the same mentor each time: a conversation about something read or made since the last session, followed by whatever it opens up. Between sessions there is reading, a project, or a problem to sit with — never busywork.
What subjects do you cover?
All of them, and deliberately more than a school offers — the sciences and humanities on the curriculum, and also the fields a child will never meet at school: philosophy of mind, economics, architecture, linguistics, law, computation. Breadth is the point.
How does this connect to your admissions programmes?
Naturally. Students who begin here at thirteen or fourteen usually move into an admissions programme in Year 12, often with the same person guiding them — by which point the personal statement writes itself from years of real interest rather than from scratch.
Oxbridge and UK applications
Timing, personal statements, admissions tests and interviews.
When should we start?
For the application itself twelve to eighteen months before the UCAS deadline is the comfortable window, which for most students means the spring of Year 12. For immersive and transformative intellectual development and growth earlier is better.
It is already Year 13. Is it too late?
No. We take a small number of late-stage families each autumn for personal statement work, admissions test preparation and interview practice — the parts of the process where weeks still count.
Who writes the personal statement?
Your child does, always. We ask the questions that surface the right material and then edit line by line for structure and evidence; admissions tutors can spot a statement written by an adult, and it costs applicants dearly. Our personal statement examples show what strong work looks like.
How do you prepare for admissions tests?
What does interview preparation involve?
Typically, two recorded mock interviews with a specialist who has interviewed for the subject, plus supervision-style practice at thinking aloud. The aim is a candidate who is comfortable being stretched, not one who has memorised answers. Our bank of Oxbridge interview questions shows the kind of thing that comes up.
Ivy League and US applications
How the American process works, and how to run both at once.
How do US applications differ from the UK?
The UK asks you to prove depth in one subject; the US asks who your child is across four years of school. It is a rather holistic assessment that stretches far beyond the intellectual fit. That changes the essays, the reference strategy and the timeline, often by a full year. Our US admissions programme covers the difference in detail.
Can we apply to the UK and the US in the same cycle?
Yes, and many of our families do. The two calendars collide in October and November, so we map the whole year in advance to keep Common App deadlines clear of Oxbridge interviews.
Do SAT or ACT scores still matter?
At a growing number of selective universities, yes again. In those, where the tests remain optional, a strong test can nonetheless tip the scales in your favour. We decide university by university with you, based on the target list and how your child’s score sits against the published mid-range.
How many US universities should we apply to?
Usually eight to twelve, balanced across reach, target and likely admits. A longer list rarely improves the outcome and always dilutes the essays. The published acceptance rates are a useful reality check when you build the list.
What do US admissions officers look for beyond grades?
Sustained commitment with something to show for it: a research paper, a small business, a competitive record. Depth in two or three areas reads far better than a list of clubs. Each U.S. college tends to have its own preferences and ideal candidate profiles. Therefore choosing informedly and tailoring each application is essential.
Every enquiry answered within, on business days
Where every one of our consultants read their degree
Our Mayfair office and registered Hong Kong office
Our son has received his Cambridge offer, and I would like to express my deepest gratitude for everything you’ve done for us throughout this process. The amount of anxiety and stress you’ve saved us from is immeasurable, and your advice and guidance were invaluable.
PhilipParent · Hong KongOffer — Human, Social and Political Sciences, Cambridge
Ask us directly.
Tell us your child’s year group and target course and we will reply with a considered answer, not a brochure.