Tutoring, test prep & alternative schools
Books and taxes for college admissions consultants.
A junior-year package paid in one lump sum, essay coaching billed by the hour every fall, associate consultants paid a cut of each family, and a slow spring after decisions come out. Gus sorts it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
September made $11,200. Three families paid for the full junior-to-senior package this month, so I spread that income across the work still ahead instead of counting it all now.
- Two-year package paymentMulti-year packages
- Essay coaching hoursHourly coaching
- Associate consultant payoutAssociate pay
- Common App premium accountApplication tools
- Client management softwareScheduling software
Why your books are different
College admissions consulting books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees invoices and a slow spring. Your practice sells multi-year packages that get worked off over two admissions cycles, pays associates a cut of the families they handle, and lives and dies by essay season. When the books do not know that, a big signing month hides a thin year ahead.
-
1
Multi-year packages get booked as one lump of income
A family pays $6,000 in the fall of junior year for a package that runs through senior year decisions, and if that lands as this month's revenue, the following year of ongoing work shows nothing to match it.
What we doSpreads package revenue across the months of work it actually covers, so neither the signing month nor the following year is distorted. -
2
Associate consultants paid a percentage look like plain contractors
An associate who works your client roster, follows your process, and uses your templates is often an employee even when paid a percentage of what each family pays, and treating that pay like a simple 1099 split can miss the mark.
What we doFlags associate pay against the schedule and structure of the work, so the question of employee versus contractor gets asked before it becomes a habit. -
3
Application fees paid on a family's behalf get mixed with revenue
Some consultants front application fees or testing registration for a family and get reimbursed later, and if that reimbursement is booked as income, revenue looks inflated for money that was never really yours.
What we doKeeps reimbursed pass-through costs separate from consulting revenue, so the top line reflects only what you actually earned. -
4
The slow spring looks like a bad year
Once decisions come out in the spring, new client signings drop off hard until the next junior class starts looking for help, and a single quiet quarter can look like the business is struggling when it is just the calendar.
What we doTracks revenue against the admissions cycle so a normal spring lull does not get mistaken for a real slowdown.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a college admissions practice.
Set up once around the admissions calendar. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Multi-year packagesJunior-to-senior year packages paid up front or in installments.
- Hourly coachingEssay coaching and interview prep billed by the hour.
- Single-service feesOne-time services like a college list review or a resume polish.
- Reimbursed pass-through costsApplication or testing fees fronted for a family and paid back.
Money out
- Associate payWages or a revenue share for other consultants working with your families.
- Application toolsPremium Common App or Coalition App tools, and college research databases.
- Scheduling and client softwareThe system tracking families, deadlines, and essay drafts.
- Marketing and referralsA website, local school outreach, and parent referral incentives.
- Professional membership duesIndependent educational consultant association dues and training.
- Liability insuranceCoverage for advising families on a high-stakes decision.
What we watch for you
- Active client roster
Families currently under a package or retainer. The base your ongoing revenue rests on.
- Package revenue remaining
Money already collected for work not yet delivered across the admissions cycle.
- Associate pay share
What associates earn against total revenue, since it usually scales with each family they serve.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things college admissions consultants ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
No. I spread it across the months of work the package actually covers, so this signing month and next year's work both show up honestly.
That depends on how much she follows your process versus running her own. I flagged it so the accountant can walk through it with you.
No, that is a reimbursement, not revenue. I keep pass-through costs like that separate so your real earnings stay clear.
The tax side
The tax side of a college admissions practice.
Most of what goes wrong here is counting a package too early and misreading an associate's pay. Fix the timing and the classification, and the rest follows.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Deferred package revenueA multi-year package paid up front is not fully earned the day it is paid, and good books recognize it across the months of advising work it actually covers.
- Associate classificationAn associate consultant who follows your process, uses your templates, and works your client list is often an employee, even when paid a revenue share rather than a flat wage.
- Self-employment taxA solo consultant taking profit directly, without running payroll, owes self-employment tax of 15.3 percent on top of regular income tax, up to the Social Security wage base of $184,500.
- The pass-through deductionMost solo and small practices can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when package revenue is tracked cleanly across the cycle.
Deductions college admissions consultants miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Common App premium account
- College research database access
- Client management software
- Professional association dues
- Continuing education and conferences
- Liability insurance
- Marketing and referral gifts
- Home office for advising calls
- Business phone and video tools
- Card processing fees
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A college admissions consulting year, kept every month.
Deadlines drive your calendar more than seasons do. Gus keeps the year's swings organized alongside it. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Between deadlines
Regular decision deadlines just passed and a quiet stretch begins. Last year's return gets started and the monthly set-aside gets planned.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed, right as decisions come out and the year's busiest new-signing wave begins.
- July
Summer essay season check-in
Where you stand as summer essay coaching ramps up for the new senior class, and whether the spring's signings changed what you will owe.
- October
Before early deadlines
Early action and early decision deadlines hit in the fall. Gus looks at any equipment or software worth buying before December.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for college admissions consultants. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions college admissions consultants ask first.
I sell a package that spans junior and senior year. How does Gus book that?
He spreads the payment across the months of advising work the package covers, so neither the signing month nor the following year is thrown off by a lump sum.
My associate consultants get a cut of each family instead of a salary. Does that change anything?
It changes how the pay gets classified. Gus tracks the structure of the work and flags it, so you and the accountant can settle whether it should run through payroll.
Do I need to send a 1099 to my associates?
If they are not on payroll and you pay any one of them $2,000 or more this year, yes, a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps that list running.
Spring is always my slowest quarter. Is that a problem?
No, that is the normal shape of this business once decisions come out. Gus tracks revenue against the admissions calendar so a quiet spring reads as what it is.
My invoicing has been scattered across email and a spreadsheet for two years. Can Gus catch up?
Yes. Send what you have and he sorts it into one clean set of books. Most consultants know exactly where they stand within a week.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
More in tutoring, test prep & alternative schools
We keep books for the business next door too.
- Chess instructors & chess clubs
- Educational therapists
- ESL schools for adults
- Executive function coaches
- Homeschool co-ops & hybrid schools
- Kids coding schools
- Microschools
- Reading & dyslexia specialists
- Special education advocates
- STEM & robotics centers
- Language schools
- Math learning centers
- Montessori schools
- Online tutoring businesses
- Private K-12 schools
- SAT / ACT test prep
- Private tutoring companies
- Bartending schools
- CPR & first aid training companies
- Dog grooming academies
- Drone pilot training schools
- Firearms instructors & concealed carry classes
- Insurance licensing schools
- Massage therapy schools
- Medical coding & billing schools
- Notary & loan signing training
- Acting classes & studios
- Art academies & portfolio prep
- DJ & music production schools
- Film & theater camps
What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever