Your College Bound Kid | Admission Tips, Admission Trends & Admission Interviews

In this episode you will hear: Nathan Grawe and Mark discuss how demographic changes are impacting colleges-3 of 3 Mike Bergin is the founder of Chariot Learning in Rochester, NY. We discussed changes going on in the ACT-3 of 3 Recommended Resources JG Talks: Helping prospective and current college students achieve success Colleges that allow self-reporting of test scores Colleges that Allow Self-Reporting of SAT and ACT Scores Great source for questions about finances and college Edvisors: Financial Aid, Student Loans, Scholarships and Money Management FAFSA Walkthroughs Mark recommends Kentucky Higher Ed Association (short version) HB 257 FAFSA Walkthrough for 2027-2028 College Aid...

In this episode you will hear: Nathan Grawe and Mark discuss how demographic changes are impacting colleges-2 of 3 · Nathan shares how parents need to be more attentive to which schools are struggling · Nathan talks about how much of a threat to college how public sentiment is has become more anti-college than ever before · Nathan explains why a lower percentage of college students are going students these days · Nathan weighs in on the topic, should students dismiss the humanities because the average starting pay is lower or are the humanities underrated and undervalued · Nathan talks about whether the us can address its d...

In this episode you will hear: (04:30) Nathan Grawe and Mark discuss how demographic changes are impacting colleges-1 of 34 (25:22) Mike Bergin is the founder of Chariot Learning in Rochester, NY. We discuss changes going on in the ACT-1 of 3 Recommended Resources JG Talks: Helping prospective and current college students achieve success Colleges that allow self-reporting of test scores Colleges that Allow Self-Reporting of SAT and ACT Scores Great source for questions about finances and college Edvisors: Financial Aid, Student Loans, Scholarships and Money Management FAFSA Walkthroughs Mark recommends Kentucky Higher Ed Association (short version) HB 257 FAFSA Walkthrough for 2027-2028 College Aid...

In this episode you will hear: Chis joins Mark to discuss an article that appears in the NY Times entitled, "Trump Moves to Strip Tax Exemption From Schools That Aid Minority Students". The article was written on September 3rd by Andrew Duehren and Michael C. Bender Tara Williams-Advice for Students who Struggle in School because of learning differences-1 of 3 Part 3 of 3 µ Tara talks about how important it is that students do what they love µ Tara talks about what advice she has for college counselors who have kids who struggle with ADHD, Autism, and executive functioning µ Tara talks about the pros and...

In this episode you will hear: (04:46) Hillary joins Mark to discuss a question from a listener: How can I know if a college has a strong alumni network. (22:38) Tara Williams-Advice for Students who Struggle in School because of learning differences Part 2 of 3 µ Tara talks about how important it is that students do what they love µ Tara talks about what advice she has for college counselors who have kids who struggle with ADHD, Autism, and executive functioning µ Tara talks about the pros and cons of AI for students who struggle in school due to learning differences µ Tara talks about her book, "The...

In this episode you will hear: Tara Williams-Advice for Students who Struggle in School because of learning differences-1 of 3 µ Lisa gives an overview of Tara's background and Tara adds some additional details about how she helps students be more organized µ Tara talks about the difficulties that neurodivergent students have when they transition to college; she shares the academic challenges and the social challenges µ Tara talks about a few of the accommodations that are approved for college, but many of them are not requiring student self-advocacy µ Tara talks about what her company does to help students who are struggling with organization and...

In this episode you will hear: (11:40) Chris Gruber, Dean of Admissions, Davidson College-Why Davidson College is Special Preview for Part 2 ¢ Chris talks about where Davidson is going over the next 5 years ¢ Chris talks about Richmond and Davidson are different ¢ Chris explains how fraternities and sororities and Eating houses are different at Davidson versus other colleges ¢ Chris talks about how the change from the Southern conference to the Atlantic 10 conference, a much more competitive athletic conference, has impacted Davidson ¢ Chris talks about what Davidson needs to do to become an even better college ¢ Chris talks about what are some things that Davids...

In this episode you will hear: (06:40) Roshan Fernandez of the Wall Street Journal discusses two articles he wrote recently about cheating in college and how hard it is to get off the waitlist. µ Roshan Fernandez gives his journalism background, and he explains why he loves being a journalist µ Roshan explains how he comes up with his stories µ Roshan and I discussed one of the articles he wrote about how The Fraud Squad at Cal Tech will catch you if you lie on your application µ Roshan talks about the VIVA software that Cal Tech uses to help them identify fraud µ We discu...

In this episode you will hear: (04:28) Lisa and Lynda give advice to a parent who is having a hard time missing their student who is away at college (18:06) Andy joins Mark to answer a Frequently asked question, "How do colleges actually find students". This is the deepest dive we have ever done on Student Search. Part 3 of 3 Preview for Part 3 q Andy explains how Slate is used by admissions officers and how Slate helps Search q Andy discusses the three different models that are out there when it comes to how a college implements Student Search that he referred to...

In this episode you will hear: Susan Tree and Mark Stucker discuss the following question, what does a parent do if they feel that your student is about to select a college, and you believe they are not selecting the best college for them-1 of 3 Andy joins Mark to answer a Frequently asked question, "How do colleges actually find students". This is the deepest dive we have ever done on Student Search. Part 2 of 3 Preview for Part 2 q Andy explains how Slate is used by admissions officers and how Slate helps Search q Andy discusses the three different models that...

In this episode you will hear: (18:45) Chris Teare and Mark Stucker discuss an article that appeared in the Atlantic on August 30th, entitled, "A Society of Cheats"; the article is written by John Paul Rollert (44:37) Andy joins Mark to answer a Frequently asked question, "How do colleges actually find students". This is the deepest dive we have ever done on Student Search. Part 1 of 3 Preview for Part 1 q Andy explains what Student Search is, aka Proactive Recruitment q Mark explains some of the various ways that colleges find and recruit students, and Mark and Andy discuss why Student Search is...

In this episode you will hear: Andy joins Mark to answer a Frequently asked question, "Do colleges give a student less money if they apply by using Early Decision because they know the student has to come, and doesn't have any leverage, so why lead with your best financial aid or merit-based scholarship offer? Mark and Christina interview Adam Miller, The VP of Enrollment at Whitman College, Part 3 of 3 Understanding Whitman's Ten Percent Promise Preview for Part 3 ¢ Christina compliments Whitman for their courage to be bold ¢ Mark shares a few very specific things that he likes about Whitman's plan ¢ Mark mak...

In this episode you will hear: (10:16) Hillary joins Mark to answer a question from a school-based counselor who wants to know if she can make advocacy calls for her students to colleges. (35:36) Mark and Christina interview Adam Miller, The VP of Enrollment at Whitman College, Part 2 of 3 Understanding Whitman's Ten Percent Promise ¢ Adam explains why Whitman still accepts the CSS Profile instead of having their own individual, separate form ¢ Adam explains why they ended up going up with 10%, as opposed to 11 or 12 or 13 percent, for what they would ask families to pay for tuition ¢ Christina asks what happens if your app...

In this episode you will hear: (10:32) Susan joins Mark to answer a question about how to transfer to a new high school from the 11th grade to the 12th grade when the transferring was because of bullying. (41:36) Mark and Christina interview Adam Miller, The VP of Enrollment at Whiman College, Part 1 of 3 Understanding Whitman's Ten Percent Promise ¢ Adam explains what the 10 Percent Promise Is ¢ Adam explains how assets are usually handled at most of Whitman's peer schools and how that differs from Whitman is doing ¢ Christina asks Adam what he learned from the six years when they were doing full tax...

In this episode you will hear: (04:44) Mark interviews Mitch Gordon and Jennifer Ziegenfus-Verto Education Part 5 of 5-Preview v Mitch talks about how safe the sites that the students are at are v Jen talks about how a visit she took from Boulder to the London site, and it was transformational for her understanding of the magic of Verto v Mitch talks about whether a student or parent can visit an overseas site before they commit v Mitch tells us more about how Parents Days work v Jen talks about where someone who is interested in Verto should go next to...

In this episode you will hear: Mark interviews Mitch Gordon and Jennifer Ziegenfus-Verto Education Part 4 of 5-Preview v Mitch talks about how hard covid was extremely hard on Verto and he talks about what was it that allowed Verto to survive and then thrive through Verto v Mitch talks about what residential environment is like for students v Mitch talks about the course offerings are that are available at each location v Mitch talks about how they added several stem heavy partners and how they wanted certain courses to be provided so they added these courses v Mitch talks about...

In this episode you will hear: (08:53) Mark interviews Mitch Gordon and Jennifer Ziegenfus-Verto Education Part 3 of 5-Preview  Jen and Mitch talk about the growth of students who are now choosing Verto as their first choice and how, increasingly, students are starting with Verto as their first-choice option  Mitch explains the college counseling that Verto provides for students who want to start with Verto, and how they have their own version of the Common App  Jen talks about how incredibly important it is for Verto to have an academic team and an academic advisory board so Verto can have the right classe...

In this episode you will hear: Mark interviews Mitch Gordon and Jennifer Ziegenfus-Verto Education Part 2 of 5-Preview v Jennifer goes in some depth explaining when and how a university recommends the Verto option for students v Mitch explains what he means by the "glass half full" approach to when a student gets a Verto offer v Mitch talks about more selective colleges have partnered with Verto in recent years v Mitch talks about the experiential learning that happens at Verto v Mitch explains how he had his epiphany of how college can be a great benefit to the colleges v...

In this episode you will hear: (22:15) Mark interviews Mitch Gordon and Jennifer Ziegenfus-Verto Education Part 1 of 5-Preview v Mitch Gordon shares his backstory v Mitch is a serial entrepreneur with all of his ventures being related to students having overseas experiences; he shares a few of his other educational ventures v Jennifer Ziegenfus give her fascinating backstory, and friends, you should have your student listen to Jennifer's background because it is textbook case for why I don't think students need to have it all figured out at 18, in terms of what they want to do with their lives v Mitch...

In this episode you will hear: Mark interviews Dr. Rick Barth, Director of Undergraduate Admissions Part 4 of 5 and 5 of 5 µ Rick talks about extracurriculars, and whether they are part of the application decision µ Rick talks about the times when work impresses the admissions officers µ Rick talks about the difference between "in state and out of state" applicants µ Rick shares the number of instate vs out of state applicants, and he shares the acceptance rate for instate vs out of state applicants µ Rick gives the numbers for Fall admit, summer admit and the bridge program µ Rick talks about how transfer admission works and he...

In this episode you will hear: (11:38) Mark and Christina answer a question from a listener about how, "checking the box" impacts admissions at a "Need-Aware" college (34:06) Mark interviews Dr. Rick Barth, Director of Undergraduate Admissions Part 3 of 5 Preview of Part 3 of 5 µ Rick talks about how Clemson ranks students, even when they do not provide a class rank, and he talks about the quality controls they put in place to make sure they are as accurate as possible µ Rick talk about the way in which Clemson profiles how students have done from different high schools at Clemson and how this factors in...

In this episode you will hear: Mark and Carter debate an article Brennan Barnard wrote in Forbes entitled: "College Admissions Maxing: A Troubling Trend Mark reads the article before part 2 of the debate Mark interviews Dr. Rick Barth, Director of Undergraduate Admissions Part 2 of 5 Preview of Part 2 of 5 µ Rick Barth explains the impact of the two football national championships µ Rick talks about engineering at Clemson and especially the automotive engineering, as it is the only program of its kind in the country µ Rick talks about Clemson's Bridge Program with Tri-County; he describes the program and discusses the strengths and challenges of...

In this episode you will hear: (17:44) Mark and Carter debate an article Brennan Barnard wrote in Forbes entitled: "College Admissions Maxing: A Troubling Trend (44:36) Mark interviews Dr. Rick Barth, Director of Undergraduate Admissions Part 1 of 5 Preview of Part 1 of 5 µ Rick Barth shares his backstory µ Rick mentions several reasons why students should consider Clemson and he mentions some of Clemson's marquee programs µ Rick explains how Clemson admits by major µ Rick explains how the undeclared/undecided major works at Clemson µ Rick opens up and shares the most competitive majors, at Clemson, Rick often refers to these majors as the limited enrollment majors µ Rick s...

In this episode you will hear: Mark and Chris have a good back and forth discussion about the book "Class Matters" and the theory that race-based affirmative action got it all wrong and what we should have been discussing the last 50 years was class-based affirmative action" Mark interviews New York Times bestselling author, Bill Deresiewicz on his book, "Excellent Sheep" Part 2 of 2 Preview of Part 2 of 2 µ Bill talks about the balance, and he talks when students pursuing the professions he is often critical of makes a lot of sense µ Bill talks about whether he has challenged Yale with his conclusions µ Bil...

In this episode you will hear: (09:56) Mark and Chris discuss an article that appeared in the Wall Street Journal recently entitled, "The Fraud Squad at Caltech Will Catch You If You Lie On Your Application" (36:22) Mark interviews New York Times best selling author, Bill Deresiewicz on his book, "Excellent Sheep" Part 1 of 2 Preview of Part 1 of 2 µ Bill Deresiewicz gives his backstory and his transparency is at times riveting µ Bill explains the circuitous path he took to get to where he is now µ Bill explains his disenchantment as a professor at Yale University, and he explains the genesis of the book, "Exc...

In this episode you will hear: Mark and Chris answer a question from a dad from Denver about applying early. Update on our new website, YouTube Channel and our new Instagram Christina and Mark interview Andrea Saadi on how experts evaluate whether a college's financials are stable Preview of Part 3 of 3 µ Andrea discusses how Athletic expenses impacts colleges budget µ Andrea gives her opinion on whether she is expecting Widespread closures µ Andrea discusses How the report she generates is used µ Andrea gives her opinion on Forbes College Financial Grades µ Andrea gives us more signs to look for to know if signals a col...

In this episode you will hear: (04:23) Mark and Hillary discuss a few reasons so many colleges are dropping their custom prompts, aka supplemental college essays Update on our new website, YouTube Channel and our new Instagram Admissions Tip, Admissions Vernacular and Big Number (32:41) Christina and Mark interview Andrea Saadi on how experts evaluate whether a college's financials are stable Preview of Part 2 µ Andrea gives us some things to look for to know whether a college is really in trouble µ Andrea shares some of the factors that she looks at when she is doing an assessment of whether a college is fi...

In this episode you will hear: We play three messages that listeners sent in Mark and Hillary share a tip that can really make your activity list stand out Update on our new website, YouTube Channel and our new Instagram Christina and Mark interview Andrea Saadi on how experts evaluate whether a college's financials are stable Preview of Part 1 µ Andrea gives her background µ Andrea assesses the financial challenges colleges are facing µ Andrea distinguishes between a budget crunch and a budget crisis Recommended Resources JG Talks: Helping prospective and current college students achieve success Colleges that allow self-reporting of test scores Col...

In this episode you will hear: (03:30) Mark and Christina answer a question from a listener who wants to know how colleges are coping with their enrollment challenges (34:16) Mark shares an admissions tip, an admission vernacular and a big number Update on our new website, YouTube Channel and our new Instagram (50:20) Jed Applerouth answers questions listeners sent in about the ACT and the SAT Preview for Part 2 µ Jed answers a question about when the ACT will improve its Digital exam µ Jed answers the question, does a higher math score mean the ACT is likely to be the better test, but the AC...

In this episode you will hear: Mark answers a question Barbara from California sent in about an idea for the SAT and the ACT. Update on our new website, YouTube Channel and our new Instagram Jed Applerouth answers questions listeners sent in about the ACT and the SAT Preview for Part 2 µ Jed talks about the return to required standard testing µ We talk about grade inflation µ Jed answers a question from a listener who wants to know what Jed thinks about the Classical Learning Test? µ Jed answers a question from a listener about whether to submit scores µ Jed answers a question about...

In this episode you will hear: (05:14) Christina Lopez joins Mark to discuss a question from a mom from south Florida about how colleges will view their family's full-pay status in the admissions process (17:55)Jed Applerouth answers questions listeners sent in about the ACT and the SAT Part 1 of 3 µ Jed answers the question, should students take the ACT with Science now that it is optional? µ Jed goes over the major changes with the ACT and the SAT µ Should students take the ACT on paper or digital? µ Jed talks about if the ACT is making inroads into the SAT's market share? Recommended Reso...

In this episode you will hear: Susan Tree joins Mark to take a very thoughtful question from Katie who wants to know if we think it is just too risky to get a liberal arts or humanities degree when STEM degrees lead to higher pay. Mark interviews Owen Blight, Dean of Admissions and Acting Associate VP of Enrolment at Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island-4 of 4 Mark and Owen continue to discuss how Providence makes admission decisions. We close with Owen going on the hotseat in our lightning round. Recommended Resources JG Talks: Helping prospective and current college students achieve...

In this episode you will hear: (05:28) Guest host Chris Teare joins Mark to discuss a question from a mom who doesn't know what to do because her student is not excited to go to college. Mark shares an An Admissions Tip, An Admissions Vernacular and a Big Number (31:45) Mark interviews Owen Blight, Dean of Admissions and Acting Associate VP of Enrolment at Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island-3 of 3 Mark and Owen discuss some more perceptions of Providence but most of segment three is dedicated to talking about Providence College's admissions process. Recommended Resources JG Talks: Helping prospective and current...

In this episode you will hear: Carter and Mark take a question from Ben, a 10th grader in Texas. Ben wants to know how he can get a spike so he can be competitive in the most selective colleges? Mark reads an article from the Chronicle of Higher Ed about the "Higher Ed Budget Crunch" Mark interviews Owen Blight, Dean of Admissions and Acting Associate VP of Enrolment at Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island Mark shares some perceptions his students have had about Providence College, and Owen elaborates on the student perceptions Recommended Resources JG Talks: Helping prospective and...

In this episode you will hear: (03:06) Mark answers a question from a listener about, how to know if your test scores are good enough? (21:48) Hilary and Mark take a second question from a listener about whether a poor grade can be dropped from a transcript Mark reads an article from the Chronicle of Higher Ed about the "Higher Ed Budget Crunch" (35:08) Mark interviews Owen Blight, Dean of Admissions and Acting Associate VP of Enrolment at Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island Recommended Resources JG Talks: Helping prospective and current college students achieve success Colleges that allow self reporting of test...

In this episode you will hear: Updates on our YouTube Channel Christina Lopez discuss "double deposits", what are they, whey they occur and are they wrong? Mark reads an article from the Chronicle of Higher Ed about the "Higher Ed Budget Crunch" Mark and Christina discuss what is keeping chief enrollment officers up at night. They discuss how the Supreme Court's affirmative action decision has impacted college admissions. Recommended Resources JG Talks: Helping prospective and current college students achieve success Colleges that allow self reporting of test scores Colleges that Allow Self-Reporting of SAT and ACT Scores Great source for...

In this episode you will hear: (07:42) Mark and and Chris answer a question from Dave about whether to submit your test scores to a selective test-optional college Mark reads an article from the Chronicle of Higher Ed about the "Higher Ed Budget Crunch" (33:24) Mark and Christina discuss a question about the changes to the Parent PLUS loan Recommended Resources JG Talks: Helping prospective and current college students achieve success Colleges that allow self reporting of test scores Colleges that Allow Self-Reporting of SAT and ACT Scores Great source for questions about finances and college Edvisors: Financial Aid, Student Loans, Scholarships...

In this episode you will hear: Mark shares an important video he will be adding to the Your College-bound Kid YouTube channel in the next few months. Mark reads an article from the Chronicle of Higher Ed about the "Higher Ed Budget Crunch" (05:25) Mark interviews Micki Meyer, the Assistant VP for Student Affairs-3 of 3 § Micki gives us her six C framework for helping your kid to transition to college § Mark shares what helped him to transition to college and he asks Micki for her thoughts on a few other things that can help a student to transition to college § Micki tal...

In this episode you will hear: Mark gives an update on Your College-Bound Kid, YouTube Mark reads an article from the Chronicle of Higher Ed about the "Higher Ed Budget Crunch" (18:38) Carter Delloro joins Mark to answer a question from a listener about what an 8th grader can do now (39:37) Mark interviews Micki Meyer, the Assistant VP for Student Affairs-2 of 3 § Micki, gives advice her advice for a student who is not excited about going to college § Micki gives advice as to how much a parent should be involved when a student leaves for college, how much involvement is appropriate § Wha...

In this episode you will hear: We play several comments that listeners sent in about what is grinding their gears and Mark shares his thoughts on their messages Mark shares a major announcement about a change that is coming to Your College-Bound Kid Mark reads Part 5 of 11 articles the Chronicle for Higher Ed released o the dire financial crisis colleges face Mark interviews Micki Meyer, the Assistant VP for Student Affairs § Micki gives an overview § Micki talks about what students need to do over the summer before they arrive in college as a freshman, and she shares her 5 S's with us...