American Education LLP
Our knowledge and first-hand experience allows us to help our students find the right fit.
About Us
American Education LLP is an organization dedicated to assisting students and their families in the process of choosing and applying to universities in the United States.
A process perfected over time
Over two decades of collective experience guiding students through the labyrinth of college applications, our IECA-affiliated consultants have acquired an intimate familiarity with its thorny yet bountiful layout. Our solutions-oriented model is centered around ethics, confidentiality, service, and expertise.
The success of American Education LLP is predicated upon our extensive consulting experience, our deep knowledge of colleges, and our dedication to helping our clients. We regularly visit colleges across America in order to maintain an up-to-date and first-hand familiarity with the higher education landscape. We are also firmly devoted to client confidentiality. We will never divulge identifiable information about our students and families to outsiders, nor do we broadcast whom we advise. Furthermore, we use secure software that minimizes the possibility of data breaches. We work closely with our families in a highly personal process, and believe it is at their sole discretion to share their experiences with others.
With college admissions becoming more competitive every year, it is of crucial importance that our students have an ethically grounded, stress-free, and empowering experience. Every consultant at American Education is part of the Independent Educational Consultants Association, a selective organization that ensures its professional consultants operate ethically and competently within the growing field of educational consulting. We represent only our students and families, and do not take fees from universities, test prep companies, or any other institutions. Every decision is therefore made solely with our students’ interests in mind. Our reputation is everything to us, and this reputation is founded upon an unflinching dedication to ethical and student-centered conduct.
What we know
Gordon Kirtland
Gordon Kirtland, the founding partner, is an educational consultant specializing in helping students in Asia find the right American university. He regularly visits colleges and universities in the United States in order to keep up with the latest developments. Mr Kirtland was born and raised in Virginia. He was educated at the University of Virginia, earning B.A in Economics (with Distinction). He later received an MBA also from the University of Virginia.
Mr Kirtland is a Professional member of the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA), and participated in the IECA Summer Training Institute. Mr Kirtland was awarded a Certificate in College Counselling at the University of California, Los Angeles, in December 2007.
Mr Kirtland’s experience in Asia and placing students into US universities is personal as well as professional. He and his wife, originally from Penang, have two daughters who both studied in the US. He has helped numerous students and families with the process, so understands the complexities from living through the placement process, as well as helping others through the process.
Timothy Laas-Nesbitt
Timothy Laas-Nesbitt, partner of the firm, is an educational consultant specializing in US college admissions. He has helped hundreds of students from mostly Singapore, South Asia, East Asia, and the Middle East navigate the process of finding and applying to the right colleges and universities. His intimate consulting approach emphasizes both fit and results, and amalgamates knowledge-based and process-based consulting. He enjoys interacting with bright young students, devoted parents, fascinating colleges, and challenging creative essays. Tim is an Associate member of the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA) and regularly visits colleges and universities all over the world.
Born in Washington, D.C., Tim grew up mainly in the Netherlands, and split his adult life between five countries and three continents. He completed his B.A in Economics and English Literature at the University of Virginia (UVa) and his MSc in Economics from the University of Amsterdam (UvA), where he specialized in development and behavioral economics.
Having personally experienced the confusion that can befall foreign students in the face of the complex college admissions process, Tim derives a great deal of satisfaction from helping younger students contend with it in a structured, confident, and enjoyable manner.
Ian Cash
Ian Cash, associate of the firm, is an educational consultant specializing in university admissions counseling and creative writing tutoring. Over numerous admissions cycles Ian has helped hundreds of students from around Asia to find their best fit higher educational pathways and develop the necessary skills to craft high quality, personal applications. As an Associate member of the IECA, Ian frequently schedules visits to colleges and universities around the world.
Ian grew up in Princeton, NJ, and attended the Lawrenceville School. He received his BA from Johns Hopkins University, where he graduated with majors in both History and Political Science, receiving honors for his senior thesis in the former. During this time, Ian also began his fascination with admissions, spending three years conducting tours, creating new admissions programs, and interviewing prospective students as an admissions associate. After leaving Hopkins, Ian went on to earn a Master’s degree in history from SOAS, University of London, where he gained an intimate familiarity with the British system of higher education.
With ample experience and a firsthand perspective of the admissions process, Ian understands well the challenges students face in preparing for and applying to university, and draws great satisfaction from helping them to approach their applications with confidence and excitement.