The Truth about College Admission

This week Angel Pérez, CEO of the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC), joins Rick and Brennan for a conversation about his personal journey of experiencing burnout and a discussion of his article where he shared how he found personal and professional joy again. Angel shares insights for college applicants, parents, and professionals who may also be experiencing burnout, and important reminders and resources (see below) for those learning to put themselves first again as they find their way out of the "fog". Resources: Angel Pérez's Article: One CEO's Story of Executive BurnoutMore about Angel  PérezNACACNACAC Committee on Mental Health and Equity in the Transition to Postsecondary EducationAmerican School Counselor AssociationSchoolSafety.gov

This week, Allison Slater Tate joins Rick and Brennan to gives tips on supportive messaging and expectation setting between families and their students, as well as reminders about reprioritizing student contentment in college selection. Allison Slater Tate is a college counselor and a freelance writer and editor in Florida specializing in parenting and college admissions. Check out these pieces on Grown & Flown and MSNBC for more from Allison.

In this episode, Rick and Brennan are joined by Angela Duckworth, co-founder, chief scientist, and a board member of Character Lab and Rosa Lee and Egbert Chang Professor at University of Pennsylvania.  Angela shares insights on character development for high school students and finding inner confidence in times of self-doubt, as well as important reassurances for students in the midst of receiving college admission decisions. Learn more about Angela's work

This week, Rick and Brennan discuss their goals and priorities for the year, as well recent pieces on priorities juniors might have as they prepare for their admission experience ahead.College Admission Year In Preview: A PlaylistJuniors, College Admission Is A Stereogramemail your questions: holisticadmission@gmail.com

Happy Festivus 2022! In our final episode of 2022, we walk through a few of the issue as we see them in college admission, including:College SearchGrade InflationSelf- Reported GradesMore on our two different perspectives on a variety of issues:Forbes 2022HuffPost 2017

Co-authors Tim Fields (Senior Associate Dean, Emory University) and Shereem Herndon-Brown (CEO and Founder, Strategic Admissions Advice)join the podcast to discuss their new book: The Black Family's Guide to College Admission: A Conversation about Education, Parenting, and Race.  Shereem and Tim have extensive experience working with families on the high school side, and making admission decisions in colleges and universities. In this conversation, they do a phenomenal job laying out good questions for families to ask, practical insight about the admission process, as well as tips for students and parents on essays, making the college choice, and much more. 

This week University of Pennsylvania's Vice Provost and Dean of Admissions, Whitney Soule shares insights on the intentions behind schools' carefully crafted essay prompts, and how students can approach those essays as a way to introduce their character. She discusses Penn's new short answer prompt that invites students to express gratitude to someone that they haven't thanked, an exercise intended to provide Penn a glimpse of how the student relates to others, and to provide students a feel-good reflection on the impact of others in their lives.  The Daily Pennsylvanian article featuring Whitney Soul. More on the University of Pennsylvania here.

This week, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign's Director of Admissions, Andy Borst shares insights on how academic major plays into the review of an application,  the shaping of an incoming class, and a Kung Fu Panda spoiler. He points students to the importance of asking their questions of the schools they are considering- and encourages colleges to display more detailed and differentiated data. One of the best in the business, we hope you will enjoy this one. Inside Higher Ed article featuring Andy BorstMore on the University of Illinois here.

This week, Agnes Scott College's Director of Admissions, Miya Walker shares insights on how students can think about not only where they will succeed, but more importantly where they will thrive. She helps students and families focus on getting a sense of belonging by pausing to ask what is most important to them-- and looking for a true community, i.e. a place where they will find clubs, organizations, faculty, and other support. And some truly phenomenal advice for parents and supporting adults on how to support and advocate for their students without driving the process. Inside Higher Ed article featuring Miya Walker. More on Agnes Scott College here.

Rachelle Hernandez, vice provost for student affairs at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, joins the podcast to discuss helping students think about colleges where they will be "excited to go." In addition to her work in higher education over the last 25 years, Rachelle's own son is currently a senior in high school, so this conversation, and the terms often used in college admission, are personal. Rachelle discusses the concept belonging, and focuses on the importance of choices and options for students in their search.  Additionally, she talks about the term "safety" schools and why that label is not accurate, or helpful. She suggests great questions for students and families to ask as they look for good matches in their  college search and selection experience. Rachelle's professional accomplishments are too extensive to capture here, but suffice it to say she brings a wealth of experience, including prior roles at University of Minnesota and University of Texas. She is committed to and focused on student success and access as well as "fostering and supporting an engaged student educational experience and cultivating student connection and belonging in co-curricular and academic spaces." It's always a pleasure to spend time with the inimitable Rachelle Hernandez, so we hope you'll enjoy this one.