DENVER -- A lot of parents think they need to know someone to get their child in a good college, that there's a secret to getting a scholarship.

Perhaps all they need is a college coach. College coaches have been around for more than 20 years but nowadays they're growing in popularity for today's busy families.

A lot off high school students and their parents feel like running away from selecting a college.

"The number of colleges out there is crazy," said Kimberly Shigeno.

Kimberly is just steps away from completing her college enrollment.

"I found a college that I'm really happy with," said Kimberly.

Kimberly and her parents credit Brad Barnes, a college coach, with helping them find the right university.

"My job is actually to help get kids prepared," Barnes said.

And that's any kid -- not just those with over-the-top grades or athleticism.

Kimberly, for example, is a 3.0 student who likes to run.

"Well-rounded student, strong volunteer work, and she had athletics under her belt -- though she's not a star athlete, either. She's not the No. 1 runner on her team," Barnes said.

Still, Barnes guided Kimberly in finding the right school for her.

"So she was the one who filled out those college applications and he just double-checked her," said Josie Shigeno, Kimberly's mom.

"We did very little," said Jeff Shigeno, Kimberly's dad.

"Yeah, we didn't do a whole lot. She did it all," Josie said.

The Shigenos hired Barnes because they were overwhelmed with the college enrollment process.

"We didn't know what to do, what to expect, how to do it, when to do it, and we didn't have the time to do it," Jeff said.

"And he came up with this list and we thought, 'Wow. We didn't even know half of these schools existed,'" said Josie.

Barnes said it's all about finding the right fit for the student emotionally and for the parents financially.

"She's going to attend Drury University in Missouri," said Barnes.

"She ended up with a full tuition scholarship. So, her mom and I will be paying for essentially room and board and that's it," said Jeff.

"She literally gets to go to a nice private school for less than what it would have cost her to go to a state school," said Barnes.

"It has everything I like. It's small. It just fits me," Kimberly said.

"They have a great way of narrowing your list down. So instead of working with 2,100 schools you're now looking at five to 10," said Todd Rinehart, with the University of Denver.

Many universities, such as DU, work with college coaches all the time but stress you don't have to have a coach to find the right school.

"Many of the resources that are provided by a counselor or a coach are also available for free on many Web sites," said Rinehart.

"Do you need me? No, you don't. Nobody really needs me, but what I bring to the table is a plan of attack," Barnes said.

For the Shigenos, paying for a college coach was money well spent.

"(My husband) goes, 'This is very reasonable, very reasonable.' And it was," Josie said.

"It was definitely an investment that was well worth it," said Jeff.

"Yes, because what we're coming away with has more than paid what we paid to Brad," Josie said.

Barnes charges between $1,500 and $2,500, depending on how many students in the family he's working with. He can start with students as early as 9th grade or when they're juniors in high school.

Some college coaches are certified others are not.

Additional Information:

College Coach Brad Barnes
709 Clarkson
Denver, CO 80218
(303) 837-0872

Other Resources:

IECA, Independent Educational Consultants Association
CollegeInColorado.com
CollegesOfDistinction.com
CampusTours.com
CollegeBoard.com
CollegeConfidential.com
CareersAndColleges.com
PrincetonReview.com
CollegeView.com
Free Education For Federal Student Aid