If you drive by Dr. Deborah Bedor’s Lloyd Neck home late at night, chances are you will notice a light on in the back of the house. “It is probably me working on the future of one of my students,” said the two-time best-selling author and CEO of College Admission Central, a college advising firm that has served Ivy, top-tier, and celebrity pre-college students for nearly three decades. “My profession is my journey and working with kids is my passion. If the student is willing, we go on a unique ride together.”

It all started with one word. “I said Yes! - that magical word that begins all exciting adventures,” Deborah explains, referring to her early days of college advising. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa and Summa Cum Laude from the University of Pennsylvania and taught language, literature, and writing on campus in Philadelphia and in New York City while pursuing her doctorate. She also helped students with their college applications and quickly realized she had a natural talent and a sense of purpose in her work. Word quickly spread about her talents and success with college acceptances, and when professors and friends asked her to guide and advise their children, her response was a resounding yes! 

The Brooklyn-born native, who graduated from Roslyn High School, had always been able to think outside of the box. She was a writer, ancient literature researcher, and Juilliard-trained classical singer who knew just enough to be dangerous in a few languages. “I had a rigorous academic background but a non-formulaic lens toward life,” Deborah shared. This “lens” is something she utilized when advising a broad range of students across the globe. Whether the student is pre-law, pre-med, an artist, an engineer, a young inventor, or anything in between, she believes the secret to college admissions is to tap into each student's unique talents and granularly help build them; that way, students will stand out to admissions and learn something about themselves in the process. to find a way to make them stand out. “I began to teach my students how to present their value to college, how to write so they could invite admissions into their talents and differentiate themselves,” she explains, adding that most guidance counselors simply don’t have the time and resources to provide this level of service. “That differentiation is the name of the game for me. I work to reveal students’ intellectual and leadership gifts and guide them to create meaningful and award-winning projects that provide unique value to their communities, the nation, and sometimes the world.” 

While this may seem overwhelming and stressful to high school students, Deborah helps students adapt to the changing college admissions field and succeed by providing them with the necessary tools. “Part of my journey with students is to get them to understand that if they stay in their comfortable little universe, taking their honors and AP classes, joining the volleyball team and yearbook, that’s wonderful…but they’ll be living their high school career according to the movie playing in everyone else’s mind,” she explains, adding “And you know what? Their applications will look like everyone else’s, too. Instead, she encourages students to evolve in intellectually fascinating ways in high school because that is what college admissions officers are seeking. 

Deborah is also able to offer her clients a unique service by tapping into her personal connections. Her students benefit from collaborating with her colleagues from MIT, Stanford, and the Ivies, who are specialists in everything from Computer Science to Artificial Intelligence to Debate, Medicine, and the Arts. “I bring their mentorship to my students whenever possible because students need mentors, now more than ever,” said Deborah, noting she speaks before or mentors between 7,500-and 10,000 students each year by giving talks, running workshops at Harvard and Columbia on topics like student entrepreneurship, and presenting admissions boot camps at national conferences, as well as in her private practice. 

Her expertise also reached a larger audience through her best-selling books. Her first book, Getting IN by Standing OUT: The New Rules for Admission to America's Best Colleges, was a great introduction to her work and paved the way for her latest book, The Exceptional Applicant: For College Admission, You Don't Have To Be Perfect, You Just Have To Be Original. “This book is like a download of almost everything I do with my students; I think high schoolers across the country need to know about the ever-evolving college admissions process so they can learn to be adaptable,” Deborah said, adding that this book is significantly longer and features guest chapters from experts in major subject areas. “It's an anthology of mentorship with tons of big ideas and passion projects that will help students launch their own and become more interesting minds and more imaginative stewards of this world, which is very important to me.”

Another source of pride for Dr B is her involvement in the development of the Laureate Certification Program for Advanced Science Research Writing. Before speaking at a STEM  conference nine years ago, she was chatting backstage with several Nobel Laureates in the Sciences about how they could inspire STEM students and help elevate them to the next level. “That day, in the green room, we brainstormed and later created what is now the Laureate Certification. For the first time in history, Nobel Prize winners are certifying dedicated high school STEM students in advanced science research writing,” Deborah said, pointing to the completion certificate which is signed by a Nobel Prize winner in Physiology or Medicine at the end of the 10-week course.

Deborah’s career success can also be attributed to the unwavering support of her husband of 38 years, Victor Urbach, who serves as the Chief Technology Officer for College Admission Central. “She is super smart and super kind and does wonderful work with students,” said Victor, a mechanical engineer who runs a successful e-commerce venture. “Helping kids achieve the greatest heights possible is what she is all about.” The couple is proud of their long, strong marriage, and together, they have raised two now adult sons, who both attended Ivy League universities and have gone on to forge their own distinct paths. Jourdan is a Yale graduate who was a Julliard violin prodigy and social entrepreneur and is currently a Managing Partner at a company that helps fund and grow solutions for sustainable enterprises. Their younger son, Alec, who ran with the Olympic torch in London 2012, is a Princeton graduate who recently completed his MBA at Johns Hopkins, is on the marketing team at Cometeer, and has directed digital marketing for high-profile clients like Deepak Chopra and Jeff Walker. 

The couple raised their children in Roslyn, but once their boys were in college, they embarked on a new adventure. “Victor and I sought out the water, nature, osprey, and hawks, so we built here on Lloyd Neck,” said Deborah. “We absolutely love it here.” And when the light is not on in the back of the house, you will likely find her soaking in the nature and beauty of Lloyd Neck while on walks, reading endlessly, entertaining friends at her home, or cuddling up to Stoli, the family’s Siberian cat that she refers to as the College Admissions Cat. As for her future, she plans on creating new professional collaborations that produce unique educational certifications for the next generation of students and continuing her commitment to helping students navigate the ever-changing admissions process. “I love the unexpected that every student brings; I thrive on it.”