Frequently Asked Questions

BrightKey is an independent education consulting service for international and expat families. We help with school selection, university admissions (UK, Australia, Asia, Europe), and career discovery. Founded by Priscilla Han, based in Tokyo.

We take a research-informed, multi-country approach. Unlike consultants who focus on one country or system, we help families navigate across UK, Australian, Asian, and European education systems. We don't ghostwrite — we guide and review. And we've published an independent university guide that accepts no payments from institutions.

Families at every stage — from choosing a preschool (age 0-5) to university admissions (16-18), career discovery (15-18), and adult career transitions (22+).

Yes. While most of our clients are expat families in Asia (Singapore, Tokyo, Hong Kong), we serve families worldwide who are navigating international education systems.

No ethical consultant can guarantee admission. We guarantee a rigorous, strategic process that maximizes your child's chances and ensures every application represents their best self.

Our deepest expertise is in UK, Australian, Asian (Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan), and European university systems. For US-specific holistic admissions, we work with specialist partners.

Ideally 12-18 months before application deadlines. This allows time for strategic planning, profile building, and multiple rounds of essay review. However, we also help families who start later with accelerated support.

It depends on the target country and your child's strengths. A-Levels are preferred by UK universities (85% of Oxbridge entrants take A-Levels). IB Diploma is the most universally accepted globally. We help families make this decision based on their specific situation.

Yes. Scholarship strategy is part of our comprehensive university admissions package. We help identify relevant scholarships, prepare applications, and meet deadlines.

Free 30-minute discovery call. Strategy session: $299. University application package: from $1,800 per school. Comprehensive guidance (up to 5 schools): $4,500. Tokyo school advisory: $600.

Yes. Every engagement starts with a free 30-minute discovery call via WhatsApp or video. No commitment required.

After the discovery call, we agree on scope and timeline. For university admissions: we start with profile assessment and strategy, then move to school shortlisting, essay development (2-3 rounds of review), interview preparation, and submission tracking.

No. Priscilla reviews and gives expert feedback — she doesn't ghostwrite. Your child owns their narrative. Priscilla's role is to sharpen it, challenge it, and ensure it lands with admissions reviewers.

It's our transparent alternative to commercial rankings (QS, THE, Shanghai). We evaluate 173 universities across 15 countries on 6 dimensions that matter to families: network strength, employability, teaching quality, curriculum relevance, institutional health, and student experience.

We accept no payments from universities, use no reputation surveys, and present tier profiles (S/A/B/C/D) instead of misleading ordinal ranks. We're transparent about our methodology and honest about limitations. We also include post-study work visa pathways — something no commercial ranking measures.

No. We do not accept payment for rankings placement. Universities can submit verified public data to improve their profile's completeness, but tier assignments are calculated from data, not negotiated.

Top options include ASIJ (American), BST (British), Nishimachi, St. Mary's, KIST, and Seisen. The best choice depends on your preferred curriculum (American, British, IB), budget (¥2M-4M/year), location, and whether you plan to stay long-term or repatriate.

Each ward in Tokyo runs a points-based lottery for daycare (hoikuen) places. Your score depends on work status, household income, existing childcare arrangements, and other factors. Applications are typically due in November-December for April entry. We help families understand the scoring system and maximize their chances.

Yes. Japanese public schools must accept all resident children regardless of nationality or language ability. Many schools in Tokyo have support programs for non-Japanese speakers. However, the transition is challenging without language preparation.

It depends on your child's career goals. In consulting, investment banking, and academia, prestige creates measurable advantages through on-campus recruiting pipelines. In tech, startups, and most of the general economy, skills and experience matter far more than university name. We wrote a detailed guide on this: brightkey.co/en/rankings/when-prestige-matters

Some do, some don't. 26% of firms recruit from fewer than 30 schools (Fortune/Veris Insights, 2026). But in tech, 53% of employers have removed degree requirements entirely. The answer is industry-specific, not universal.