Dr.Neil

All About Dr.Neil

Yale alumnus, Cambridge MPhil, PhD from UC Berkeley.  15 years of UC teaching experience. Acclaimed New York Times and Scholastic writing coach with a proven record of guiding global students into top schools and universities.

Dr. Neil grew up on the East Coast of the U.S. and in the Caribbean, immersed in multilingual, multicultural environments from a young age. His experience adapting to new countries gave him a deep appreciation for the power of language, communication, and cultural understanding.

Currently a Teacher of Special Programs for the Bay Area Writing Program at UC Berkeley, he helps to train school educators and professors to teach writing to their students.  He began his teaching career at UC Berkeley, where he taught undergraduate writing, literature, and foreign languages, and later at UC Davis, specializing in critical thinking and academic composition. He is especially known for helping international students overcome the academic challenges of American universities through one-on-one mentorship.

As a writing coach for all New York Times student contests, including the Summer Reading Contest, STEM Essay, Editorial, and Review contests, Dr. Neil has consistently led students to national recognition. From 2020-2022 alone, an average of 11 of his students each year received finalist or honorable mention distinctions, with four winning the top prize out of tens of thousands of applicants. Half of his students receive Gold Keys, Silver Keys, or Honorable Mentions in the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards every year.  Many students choose to study with Dr. Neil for years, not just a term, and they have gone on to receive National Gold medals and Portfolio awards from Scholastic, as well as selection by the prestigious YoungArts council and acceptance to Iowa Young Writers' Studio.  

Dr. Neil has served as a curriculum consultant for TAL Education, one of the world’s largest educational companies. From 2018-2020, he piloted an innovative interdisciplinary humanities program in Beijing, integrating comparative literature, debate, film analysis, and writing. He later co-developed comprehensive KET and PET English prep materials for Cambridge exams and narrated a series of dramatized ESL fairy tales for young learners.  He also produced an interdisciplinary program for TAL students accepted to Tsinghua University.  

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In the corporate sector, Dr. Neil is a certified business communication trainer with Learnship and Cartus (Realogy Group), providing language and culture coaching to professionals at companies like Google and Chevron. He supports adult learners in mastering workplace communication, including email writing, presentations, and cross-cultural fluency.

A passionate mentor, Dr. Neil guides middle and high school students through the college admissions process in the U.S., U.K., and Canada. He identifies students’ unique strengths early and works with them to develop portfolios and personal statements that reflect their full potential. His holistic approach focuses on finding the “right-fit school,” not just the most prestigious name.  

Dr. Neil is a graduate of The Hotchkiss School’s Centennial Class, holds a B.A. from Yale University, an M.A. in Theology from the Graduate Theological Union, an MPhil from Cambridge University (King’s College), and a PhD from UC Berkeley.