Olivia Burd

Olivia Burd is a college counselor and consultant currently serving with Zenith Prep Academy, bringing extensive experience in school counseling, clinical counseling and highly selective college admissions. She combines a Masters degree in Counseling Psychology from the University of San Francisco, encompassing both School Counseling with PPS certification and Clinical Counseling credentials, with practical admissions experience as an Admissions Evaluator at Vanderbilt University, where she evaluated applications for all four undergraduate schools: the College of Arts and Science, Peabody College of Education and Human Development, Blair School of Music and the School of Engineering. Her training includes completion of UCLA Extension courses in Introduction to College Admissions Planning and Admissions Essay Writing, further strengthening her expertise in guiding students through the college application process.

Olivia incorporates her clinical counseling background into her college counseling practice to support students in achieving their post-secondary goals while developing their social-emotional toolkit through a strengths-based approach. She combines Narrative and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy with Motivational Interviewing techniques while maintaining a social justice-focused lens and continually strengthening multicultural competencies, including resources for students with disabilities and expanding identities. Her work with first-generation, English language learners, immigrant students and underserved populations reflects her commitment to equity and access in education.

Prior to her current role, Olivia served as the first Newcomer Counselor at LEAD Cameron, a zoned charter school in Nashville, where she developed relationships with immigrant students and their families, provided social-emotional and academic counseling, created school-wide curricula on topics like Black History Month and suicide prevention, and co-led student support groups. She has also completed internships and trainee roles with San Francisco Unified School District schools, providing academic and college counseling, transcript evaluation, four-year planning and college prep programming for first-generation and underrepresented students. Her diverse professional background includes digital communications, copywriting, journalism, marketing and entrepreneurship, giving her strong writing, research and communication skills that enhance her work with students on essays, branding and storytelling.