Meet the Staff

Dr. Jim Overton began his professional career as a psychologist with the South Carolina Department of Mental Health, and later worked with Family Services of Columbia. From 1983 – 2008 he worked as a school counselor at Spring Valley High School in Columbia, SC, one of the state’s premier high schools. While there, he actively assisted students in the college search and application process and maintained a constant focus on the best possible outcome for students in both academic advising and college admissions counseling.

Beyond the many students he helped in the college search and application process, his accomplishments include numerous presentations to parents and students on choosing and applying to colleges and identifying scholarship and financial aid opportunities.

Following his retirement from the public school system in 2008, he founded College Consultants of South Carolina, LLC to continue working with high school students and their parents in the college search and application process. His remains committed to working to find colleges that fit for each individual student, colleges where they will be the most successful.

Dr. Overton draws on his training and experience as an experienced counselor to assist families and students in handling the transition from high school to college and assuming a greater degree of independence in their lives. He has served on the Board of Directors for the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA), has been Chair of the IECA Membership Committee and has also served as a member of the IECA Education and Training, Ethics and Nominating Committees. He is also a Professional Member of the Higher Education Consultants Association (HECA).  In addition, he retired from the US Army Reserve as a Lieutenant Colonel in 1996.