Robert Ritacca is a Graduate Coach with more than fifteen years of experience helping students in Asia and beyond win places at highly selective undergraduate and graduate programs. He earned his MBA at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, concentrating in advanced business communications, strategic writing, finance, and macroeconomics, then moved to Beijing in 2010 to learn Chinese and gain post-graduate work experience.
He began his career at KPMG as a Manager of Macro Research and Foreign Direct Investment in the Global China Practice, where he co-created and authored China 360, KPMG’s monthly review of the Chinese economy, and wrote senior management research that ran in the Financial Times, Fortune, China Daily, and USA Today. He went on to head macro and real estate research for Savills in South China, leading a team of five analysts and briefing media and government on the Guangdong Greater Bay Area. As an admissions officer at the University of Chicago he examined over 500 applications per year and assisted with entrance interviews. In 2020 he left his corporate career to advise students full time, and since 2010 has helped at least 160 students reach their target programs, with a 90% admission rate to target and reach schools.
That research and writing career shapes the way he coaches. As a Graduate Coach, Robert works on essay fit, flow, and structure alongside interview strategy, and teaches students to communicate strategically rather than simply to complete an application. He advises applicants at the bachelor’s, MBA, and PhD levels across the United States, the United Kingdom, China, and Thailand, where he is now based.
