About Me
Welcome! I'm Stephanie Coco Palermo, a writer, editor, and language coach. I apply over 20 years of professional experience to help students craft standout college application essays that edge out the ever-growing competition in university admissions cycles.
EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND
I hold an Honors BA in Communication from the University of Ottawa, where I received two scholarships (mobility and entrance), and an MA in International Affairs from NPSIA at Carleton University, which, at the time, was the second-ranked international affairs school in North America, outperforming all Ivy League schools, according to a study published by the College of William and Mary (2007). I have also been a visiting scholar at McGill University, Concordia University, and Saint Paul University. In 2007, I was one of two students selected from a pool of 100 students to participate in an exchange program at the New Asia College, Chinese University of Hong Kong, where students from Yale, Oxford, USC, UCLA, Rice, and other top-tier institutions were among my peers. I hold multiple training certificates, including English second language certification, and a diploma in Creative Entrepreneurship.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
I have written and edited content for The Ottawa Hospital, Lise Watier, Times Square.com, L’Oreal, Agogus, MTLBlog, the United Nations (Health and Sanitation Aspects of Flood Management), and other publications in the private and public sectors.
I began writing in a professional capacity in 2005 as Editor of Army News, a division of the Maple Leaf, the Canadian Department of National Defence’s internal newspaper. I later worked as a Program Officer at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Federal Secretariat, where I edited official materials for Prime Minister Stephen Harper and received the Deputy Minister’s Award for Service (2009), before becoming an English program director at a local language training institute where I trained teaching staff, devised English training programs for various companies, evaluated the language skills of 1000+ employees across several companies, and coached high-level executives at Hershey’s (US and Canada), Gildan, Ubisoft.
In 2017, I started offering my services to individuals and companies alike under the banner of my consulting agency, Stephanie Coco Palermo English Language Success Services, where a large part of my client base sought standardized test preparation (IELTS, TOEFL, CELPIP, and Duo Lingo), as well as preparation for college admissions.
My clients have been admitted to esteemed institutions that include Columbia (MBA), USC, Yale (MBA), UNC-Chapel Hill (including a client who was awarded the Morehead-Cain Scholarship), NYU, University of Miami, UCLA, McMaster, McGill, University of Toronto, York, and others.
ASSOCIATIONS
I am the former VP Mentorship of the United Nations International Civil Aviation Organization’s Toastmasters Club (2017-2021), which I represented in local competitions.
I am a member of the Association of English Teachers of Quebec (ATEQ).