FAQs From Students and Families

You want to feel prepared, supported, and able to make positive and productive decisions. We’re happy to help.

  • Sessions are in-depth online conversations between you and Dr. Caroline Connolly.

    This structure allows us to explore your particular habits, strategies, and decisions. We relate these to evidence-supported approaches associated with positive outcomes. We delve into how we can bridge any gaps between these.

    We help you develop intentionality and metacognition to move forward with agency, resourcefulness, and confidence.

    The tone of these sessions is warm and conversational, while also academically-minded and applied.

    There are no group sessions available at this time.

  • Dr. Caroline Connolly was an Ivy League educator and advisor at the University of Pennsylvania.

    For fourteen years, she was the Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Psychology. She also became a Senior Scholar in Penn’s Positive Psycholgy Center.

    Dr. Connolly taught and advised thousands of students over two decades. In this time, she simultaneoulsy acted as a faculty mentor for student groups, fostering leadership skills among undergraduate students.

    Her areas of instruction include various positive, social, and developmental psychology courses that emphasize issues pertinent to student life and well-being (e.g., positive psychology, positive education, friendship, achievement, emerging adulthood).

    Through The Education Workshop, she supports students in higher education and connects them with insight on well-being, learning, and social-emotional development, helping them apply this to their own growth and success.

  • Many families see the needs of their student in more than one program. It’s completely normal to be unsure of what you would benefit from most, or even where to start.

    If you’re going into higher education soon, or you recently started, it makes sense to begin with the HIgher Education Workshop. This provides a solid foundation to prepare you.

    On the other hand, you may see a program that sounds like a good fit, but you want to learn more about it first.

    Let’s start a conversation to understand your specific situation and goals. From there, we can recommend a program to meet you where you are, and support where you’d like to go.

  • The Higher Education Workshop is a natural starting point. This gives you a grounded and practical foundation to thrive. This is designed for students beginning higher education, as well as students who feel they didn’t start off strong.

    This program guides you through a broad arc of higher education, including first semester preparation, community belonging, mentorship and leadership development.

    We fill gaps in skill and knowledge, while building your confidence to navigate what lays ahead. Students may use this as a launch point to further develop their skills and knowledge through other programs.

    On the other hand, you may want to jump right into a specific program that feels more relevant to your circumstances. This may be the best fit for your needs! Let’s connect to find the best program for you.

  • Yes. Working remotely means you can access expert, 1:1 guidance with Dr. Connolly regardless of where you're located. You can be at home, on campus, or anywhere in between. There's no commute, no scheduling around travel, and no geographic barrier between you and the support you need.

    This also means sessions fit more naturally into your life. You can show up focused and ready, without the friction of getting somewhere. This is especially advantageous during demanding academic stretches and transitions.

  • Each structured Student Program has a focused curriculum of skills and knowledge. These discussion-based sessions help you reflect upon your own habits, and integrate effective practices into your everyday life.

    These programs provide a comprehesive skill set, and they counter the concern that ‘you don’t know what you don’t know’.

    Open Mentor Sessions, on the other hand, have no structure nor curriculum. You can book these individual sessions as you need to discuss specific concerns, or sound out ideas for your future.

    This flexibilty facilitates high impact, low-commitment mentorship across an open-ended period of time. This approach is best suited to four profiles of students:

    1. Students with concise goals who want to maximize their time effectively.

    2. Students who want an enduring mentorship relationship that is accessable at any point throughout their education.

    3. Students who would benefit from guidance, but are reticent to join a specific Student Program.

    4. Students who value mentorship, but their schedule cannot accommodate the structure of a Student Program. This occurs most frequently for students with intense demands already built into their schedules (e.g., students pursuing careers in medicine, student athletes, student entrepreneurs).

  • These programs help students who range from “struggling” to “thriving”. Each program is tailored to the specific student.

    There is much valuable insight in psychology and education that you can benefit from. Why not support yourself during this life stage with the best resources you can?

    If you’re not sure if this is a good fit for you, feel free to reach out and schedule a free consultation.

  • We emphasize process and growth over quick fixes.

    Through engaging conversations, you will learn about contemporary insights from psychology and education.

    In these one-on-one discussions, you will learn to apply these to your own life in specific, practical ways. This can develop new perspectives and habits, while bolstering self-awareness, resourcefulness, and confidence.

  • No. The Education Workspace focuses on how students think, learn, and make decisions. We develop skills and knowledge, bolstering self-awareness, resourcefulness, and confidence.

    While this sounds similar to therapy, the emphasis, approach, and expected outcomes aren’t the same as therapy.

    Dr. Connolly is not a clinical psychologist, and The Education Workshop doesn’t diagnose nor treat mental health concerns.

    If you have concerns about mental health, we implore you to prioritize connecting with a mental health professional.

  • These sessions are intelligent-minded discussions. Like any conversation, you don’t need to share something you don’t want to.

    We’ll discuss your habits, decisions, and we’ll work outward from there. You’re not expected to “tell your whole story”. You are asked to be open, but nothing is forced in these sessions.

  • You’re not the only one who feels that way, even if it seems like other people have it all figured out. We will start from where you are now.

    These programs are designed for students who are learning how to manage school, life, and big transitions.

    Dr. Connolly has worked with thousands of students at various stages of preparedness. She’s seen it all, and she’s happy to meet each student where they are.

  • The goal is to reduce stress over time by giving you tools and strategies that actually work for you. We want to build your skills in your ability to manage your life.

    Sessions are structured and time‑limited. You can choose when you start a program, and when to schedule each session. That said, don’t start a program when you’re heading into exam season! When you feel ready, we’re here.

  • No. Sorry. These programs equip you with knowledge and strategies to guide you. This, in turn, helps build your self-confidence and agency to make decisions.

    We can share insight about decision-making and purpose and other relevant areas, but we won’t make decisions for you. Decisions are hard, but we’re happy to work alongside you through this.

  • Each session is one-on-one between you and Dr. Caroline Connolly, with the exception of the final session where your parents/caregivers are encouraged to participate.

    In some programs, you will have activities to complete in your own time, and your parents/caregivers may be requested to complete complementary activities on their own to stimulate discussion and reflection. This is an option, it is not required.

  • We’re glad you asked!

    Check the our page: Preparing for Your Student Session.

  • By the end, you’ll have specific tools, language, and next steps you can keep using.

    In some cases, students choose to continue with another program (for example, moving from the High Education Workshop into the Learning & Achievement Bootcamp). We’ll talk together about what makes sense for you.

  • You can reach out via our contact page (link above). Dr. Connolly typically responds the next business day.

  • After an initial consultation, you’ll receive a transparent quote, with no hidden costs.

Quick Links to Student Programs