About IHL

The Institute for Higher Learning (IHL) is one of the country's premier boutique educational consulting firms. IHL was founded in 1996 by Mayssoun Bydon and is comprised of a team of education professionals, academics, researchers, writers, consultants and graduate students who have developed a unique approach to advising students on every aspect of their academic and professional careers. Since our founding, we have worked with nearly 2,000 students.

There are two main ways that IHL helps students: (i) standardized exam and subject tutoring and (ii) college and graduate school admissions consulting.

• Standardized Exam and Subject Tutoring 
  • Expert tutoring for all undergraduate and graduate standardized entrance exams and board exams 
  • IHL also provides subject tutoring for high school, undergraduate and graduate coursework, with a special emphasis on law school courses
• College and graduate school admissions consulting
  • IHL specializes in providing comprehensive consulting services for students applying to college and graduate school
  • Individualized attention - we work with only a limited number of students during each application cycle

By specializing in both test preparation and admissions consulting services, IHL offers a comprehensive advisory solution for any student applying to college or graduate school.

We have offices in New York City next to Grand Central Station and in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on the University of Michigan's central campus. You don't have to live near one of our offices to take advantage of our services. We also work remotely with a large number of students from all around the country and the world via Skype, WizIQ and other online tutoring platforms. IHL is a national brand with widespread scope and presence in all major markets.

History/Evolution

IHL founder Mayssoun Bydon began tutoring while an undergraduate in the Honors College at the University of Michigan. While preparing for both the ACT and the LSAT, she realized that she had a knack for breaking down standardized tests and developing sophisticated methodologies that any student could apply to perform at a higher level. She also discovered a true passion for teaching and mentoring students and helping them achieve their academic and professional goals.

While in law school at the University of Michigan, Mayssoun spent her spare time developing a proprietary methodology and curriculum for the LSAT. She also established IHL at that time. After practicing corporate law for a couple of years, she decided that her real passion was to work with students and thus she decided to focus on IHL full-time.

She proceeded to open the company's Ann Arbor office in 2001, at which time she brought on Chad Biggert, IHL's Executive Director. IHL began by offering tutoring for the LSAT and the SAT / ACT, as well as admissions consulting services for students applying to law school and undergraduate programs. Over time, IHL expanded its services to include the tutoring of other graduate and board exams, subject tutoring for undergraduate/graduate courses, and consulting on applications to all academic schools and programs.

Given its elite reputation around the country and strong student interest, IHL opened a physical office in New York City in 2007. Currently, IHL works with students from all over the country, and Mayssoun herself splits time between Ann Arbor and New York City. As IHL continues to grow, we are considering opening new offices in other cities.

IHL Mission

You, the student, are special and unique, best served by a bespoke approach to both tutoring and admissions advice. At IHL, we have both a passion and a true talent for teaching and mentoring students. We are our students' principal advocates and we understand their strengths and weaknesses. Our goal is to help each student maximize his or her potential and achieve academic and professional success. All of our success in this business is owed to the success of our students.

The foundation of IHL's business model is client service and sophisticated advice. IHL does not take a cookie-cutter approach to working with students. We start by truly getting to know each student and their goals and dreams. We believe that an individualized plan and mutual trust are necessary for any effective tutoring and mentoring relationship.

IHL works with only 100 to 200 students a year, to ensure that we maintain our high level of service and intimate client focus. We take a team-based approach to everything we do. Mayssoun Bydon and our Executive Director, Chad Biggert, take great care in pairing students with the right tutor(s) or consultant(s). Chad spends the vast majority of his time interacting with students and their families, communicating with tutors and consultants, and monitoring student files to ensure that each student is proceeding according to plan. Our entire administrative team takes great joy in getting to personally know our students and supporting them through their time with us. Ultimately, service is at the heart of what we do and our mission is to help our students maximize their academic and professional potential.

Every student with whom we work becomes part of the IHL family. The sole reason for our success is the referrals and word-of-mouth business that we receive from our alumni. Over the years, we have had the pleasure of working with multiple members of the same family countless times. The fact that a family would seek our counsel for multiple family members as well as close friends speaks volumes about our brand, business ethics and commitment to our students. We are proud to do the work we do.

If you are interested in learning more about IHL and our service offering, please do not hesitate to reach out to us by phone at (212) 889-8378 or (734) 623-8378. To enroll, please click here.