Description of Services:

• Interest, skills, aptitude and personality assessment for course work, career and major selection.
• Transcript evaluation and educational planning.
• Assistance in establishing academic short-term and long-term goals.
• Co-curricular identification, guidance and connection.
• Guidance on resume construction for colleges and internships.
• Assessment of college choices based on student’s interests.
• Recommendation letter preparation and development of references.
• Preparation for college visits and the admissions interview.
• Support with application preparation.
• Guidance in application essay writing.
• Ongoing support and consultation throughout the admission process.

The Professional Staff

Pam Brown Schachter, Ph.D. has over thirty years of college counseling, academic advisement and high school/college curriculum experience.  Her extensive curriculum experience has extended throughout California higher education with her involvement on many statewide advisory boards and committees. In addition to teaching freshmen orientation and career counseling courses at Marymount College, Palos Verdes, she has presented at numerous state conferences, college nights at local high schools, and for numerous independent college counselor tours.  Additionally, she has served as the coordinator for the honors program at Marymount College for the past eight years.

Pam holds a Ph.D. in higher education from UCLA with a focus on articulation and transfer advisement. She has visited numerous college and university campuses, particularly in the Western States.  She has also assisted students in preparing for transfer to many East Coast colleges in various majors.

Pam’s special interest is in assisting the community/two-year college student in four-year college selection and preparation.  She focuses on matching students to colleges and universities that facilitate the development of their personal and educational goals.

Pam has extensive knowledge about California higher education systems having been a student in the California Community College system and a graduate of two University of California campuses, and one California State University system campuses.  Pam has worked for Marymount College, Palos Verdes for over 30 years as a faculty member, academic advisor and articulation officer.  She founded the Advisement and Transfer Center at Marymount College in the early 1990s and directed the Career Center and College Placement Center in the 1980s. 

Pam has been a member of the Palos Verdes Peninsula community and South Bay area for over 30 years.  Her husband, Robert, and she have been very active in the local community, particularly when their children attended the Palos Verdes schools.  Pam continues to be committed to the community through various professional and community support organizations.