Program Overview
GYEL is the only youth program operating within the United Nations system, designed by college admissions officers, educators, diplomats, and industry leaders. (https://gyel.org/college-admissions-and-gyel/)
Verified UN System Integration
Third-Party Validation
Unmatched Speaker Access
Program Statistics
Administrative Details
Overall: 4.0/5 – Exceptional UN credentials with operational challenges but highest accessibility among elite programs
This program is ideal for families who understand that in today’s competitive college admissions landscape, institutional validation and credentialing can be as important as the learning experience itself. Just as many view undergraduate education as a necessary credential for career entry rather than purely for knowledge acquisition, GYEL provides a prestigious signal that opens doors.
The recommendation letters, verified completion certificate, and the ability to list UN system participation on college applications represent tangible assets that differentiate students in the admissions process. While the program does offer substantial content and learning opportunities, pragmatic families recognize that the primary return on investment comes from the credentialing and signaling access rather than the curriculum itself.
This mirrors the reality of higher education where employers often value the institution’s name on the diploma more than specific coursework completed. For families focused on optimizing college admissions outcomes, the program’s UN affiliation and resulting application enhancement justify the investment.
When evaluating leadership programs, we typically recommend several alternatives:
University-Based Programs (Yale Young Global Scholars, Stanford Pre-Collegiate, Harvard Summer School, etc.)
Corporate-Sponsored Leadership Programs (Bank of America Student Leaders, QuestBridge, Coca-Cola Scholars)
Standard Non-Profits (Boys/Girls State, Model UN, HOBY, Congressional Award)
We have a unique insight into GYEL’s operations through our UN advisor role partnerships/relationships, which allows us to resolve issues and provide detailed guidance. However, we are not able to influence or control program admissions outcomes. Importantly, our college consultants, managers or president at Zenith receive no financial incentives for program recommendations from GYEL.
Customer Service & Administrative Expectations
Important: Please be aware this is not the same experience you would expect from a well-funded private sector organization. As with most entities tied to intergovernmental organizations, NGOs, United Nations, governments, and diplomatic bodies, operational efficiency differs from private sector standards. This does not indicate a lack of commitment – rather, it reflects the inherent nature of non-profit, public sector, and diplomatic organizations.
Our Actual Experience: In our experience, GYEL performs above average compared to most government, NGO, and non-profit entities. While administrative issues do arise, they have consistently resolved all concerns and delivered the necessary documentation for college applications, which remains the primary objective.
Please note that staff members are dedicated individuals committed to the program’s mission. However, non-profit and public sector organizations typically cannot match private sector compensation, which affects their ability to attract the same caliber of talent as a Silicon Valley company with significant funding. These professionals choose mission-driven work over higher-paying private sector positions.
What This Means for You:
Real Examples:
Alex’s daughter was in the 7th grade when she began her college prep guidance with Zenith Prep Academy. Although Alex attended a Top 30 university in the US himself, he realized how challenging the admissions process had become, and was unsure of what classes, activities, and competitions would help his daughter best explore her passions and find her area of interest. He was looking for a highly customized strategy for his daughter to build the right extracurricular profile so she’d be able to stand out from the tens of thousands of other students with similar academics. Alex has been so happy with his relationship with Zenith that he’s looking forward to signing up his younger kids when they’re old enough.
Lana had quickly realized her son’s school wasn’t challenging or engaging enough for him. He was a very bright, driven, and articulate student who had specific fields that he was interested in. He and Lana wanted to know how he could further his interests in these fields through more advanced classes and different competitions, projects, activities,
and more.
Although Robert attended high school and college in the US, given that his son went to a hyper–competitive high school (ranked top 100 in the United States), he wanted a highly customized strategy and plan for their son to further his academic interests and build the right extracurricular profile to stand out from his peers in their high school and in the college applications.
Given that his son was doing well academically, Rajesh wanted guidance on resources, programs, and classes that could provide his son with exposure to different fields and majors – in turn helping him identify his interests and turn his passions into activities, helping him attract the attention of his choice universities.
Manisha’s daughter was an 11th grader when they started working with our college counseling team. A first–generation parent, she turned to Zenith to guide her daughter toward how to best use the one year they had left before college applications, highlighting her daughter’s strengths and interests to ultimately help her shine on college applications. With Zenith’s help, Manisha’s daughter gained acceptance into her dream university.
Victoria's daughter was a 9th grader who, apart from her involvement in sports, hadn't engaged in any academic or extracurricular activities. Although Victoria went to a top 15 university herself, she realized how much college admissions had changed over the years and turned to us for guidance and our expertise in helping her daughter discover her true passions, nurture her interests, and develop a competitive profile for the top universities she was looking to attend.
