Meet our team, committed to your best learning experience and education goals.
Dr. Ajay Amar, founder of Austin LSAT Prep and Austin Elite Prep for GRE test prep, holds a doctorate in physics from the University of California at Berkeley and an MBA from MIT's Sloan School of Management. Physics majors make the highest LSAT scores on average, according to the test-maker, but Dr. Amar has found that by following his learning methodology, students from all types of majors can do well on the LSAT exam.
Dr. Amar holds experience in the corporate world as well as academia. A veteran of the semiconductor industry, he led his organizations with an integrated vision of strategy and risk-benefit analytical thinking. Dr. Amar has always credited his education as being the basis for his professional success, and in 2008, spurred by his love of teaching, he began preparing students for graduate school admissions exams.
Dr. Amar has a long-time commitment to academic excellence. In his early years at the University of California, he worked as teaching assistant to Owen Chamerlain, a renowned Nobel Laureate. He subsequently won Berkeley's prestigious Outstanding Graduate Student Instructor award.
A published researcher, Dr. Amar has taught and mentored students who have gone on to law schools and other graduate programs. He has been a speaker at the ASAP (Achieving Success in the Application Process) pre-law weekend on behalf of the Council on Legal Education Opportunity (CLEO). His abiding belief in the value of a high-quality education is the foundation of our company.
Elaine Conces, the VP of Graduate Programs, has been with Austin LSAT Prep since its inception, collecting a wealth of knowledge about law school programs and their admissions policies along the way. Originally the head of marketing, she began helping our students with the application process in 2010. Since then, she has assisted numerous students in gaining admission to a range of schools, primarily JD, MBA, MPA, and MS programs, including all of the top ranked Texas law schools.
Elaine brings an extensive editorial background to her work with our students. She has published research on consumer markets; led teams of professional writers in their coverage of business and technology topics at D&B Hoovers and semiconductor firms; and managed the content programs for multinational corporate websites. However, she believes her unique talent lies in how she successfully guides our students to tell their best stories through compelling written essays.
Natalie McCauley taught at Austin LSAT Prep in 2016 after earning her master’s in Environmental Law and Sustainable Development at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. Natalie graduated magna cum laude from New York University in International Relations and Environmental Studies in 2015. While at NYU, she studied in Florence, Paris, London, Dakar, Abu Dhabi, Accra, and Mumbai. Natalie scored a 172 on the LSAT. After graduating from Harvard Law School, she is now pursuing a diplomatic career at the UN, focusing on international law.
A native Austinite, Nathan Palmer spent a decade out West and overseas before coming to Austin LSAT Prep. He performed two years of volunteer missionary work in New Zealand before taking up a double major in philosophy and psychology at Brigham Young University, where he received a four-year academic scholarship and graduated magna cum laude. He subsequently completed an MS in psychology (also from Brigham Young University). Nathan served as a high school math teacher with Teach for America and as an adjunct psychology professor at the University of Texas at Brownsville. He also directed a philanthropic foundation. Nathan achieved a 173 on the LSAT. He left Austin LSAT Prep to attend Harvard Law School and is now a graduate.
