Dr. Hannah Dow is a Graduate Coach with InGenius Prep with more than a decade of experience guiding students through the college admissions process. A published poet with two collections to her name, she holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania, an MA in English from Loyola Marymount University, an MFA in Poetry from UC Irvine, and a PhD in English and Creative Writing from the University of Southern Mississippi. Most recently, she served as an Assistant Professor of English and Creative Writing at Missouri Southern State University, where she taught creative writing (nonfiction, fiction, and poetry), literature, and composition, and served as the faculty advisor for the undergraduate literary journal.
Hannah’s professional path spans both higher education and individualized admissions coaching. Alongside her university career, she has spent over ten years as an independent college essay coach, guiding students through every stage of the writing process — from early brainstorming to polished final drafts — with results that include acceptances to Berkeley, UPenn, Princeton, and Vanderbilt. She has also served as an AP and SAT scorer and scoring leader and as an alumni interviewer for the University of Pennsylvania, collectively teaching and mentoring hundreds of students from diverse backgrounds across academic planning, personal writing development, and long-term educational advising.
What sets Hannah apart as a coach is the depth she brings to personal storytelling. Trained as a creative writer and honed as a university professor, she approaches the college essay not as a formulaic exercise but as a genuine act of self-expression. She takes time to understand each student’s interests, strengths, values, and lived experiences, offering feedback that is both precise and deeply encouraging — blending the meticulousness of a professional writer with the compassion of a seasoned advisor.
Hannah is especially skilled at helping students uncover the moments that reveal who they truly are and who they are in the process of becoming. Her ultimate goal is to empower students to craft essays that feel unmistakably their own: ones that reflect their personality and curiosity, or those ineffable qualities that only an effective piece of writing can capture.
