About
Andrea Rifkin
After a highly successful business career as co-owner of Weight Watchers of Southern California, Ms. Rifkin recognized the need for targeted college and career counseling for over-stressed high school students and their families. In 2001 she founded ‘Choices College and Career Counseling’, a private, highly-personal educational consulting service where students learn about the college selection and application process. For seven years she has been a member of the UCLA Freshman Admissions Committee, reading hundreds of applications for the UC school; and the past three years has sat on the Student Aid Committee for the Santa Barbara Scholarship Foundation reviewing applicants for merit awards. She formerly hosted Cox Communications ‘Line to Learning’, a cable television education show in Santa Barbara. She is an executive board member for Higher Education Consultants Assn., a national organization for college counselors.
Recently she was chosen as the college-bound counselor for the Caesar Chavez Leadership Institute, a community organization founded at SB Junior High School that fosters academic excellence for Latino students, in conjunction with the UCSB Gevirtz Graduate School of Education. Ms. Rifkin holds an undergrad degree in Communications from Cal State Northridge, a graduate degree in business from Pepperdine, and another master’s degree in counseling from Antioch University. She is married to Fred Rifkin, who served for 12 years on the SB District School Board – they have two grown children.Andrea Rifkin, M.B.A., M.A., has worked as a college-bound counselor at a large public high school helping students unravel the complex college search and application process. She was appointed as a member of the prestigious UCLA “Freshman Selection Committee” in 2000 and has been applications reader for UCLA admissions since that time. She has valuable insights on applying for admissions and experience working on an admissions committee.
She is a certificated college-bound counselor, a specialized designation currently only offered by UCLA. Her experience covers financial aid, scholarship and merit money search, extensive work with personal assessments and important tools used in both college and career counseling. Additionally, she holds an M.A. degree in “Career Counseling and Personal Development”, and an MBA degree.
As a career counselor, Ms. Rifkin has worked with mid-life career-changers and career seekers alike. She is a member of Higher Education Counselors Association, Western Association of College Admissions Counselors, and the National Career Development Association.
After many years in the business world, she recognized a great need for counseling young people to not only prepare for college, but to think beyond and find a suitable career. She believes there is a right college and career match for every student; her specialty is helping young people find that match.
