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

In this episode you will hear: (10:41) In this week’s news segment, an article from New York Times, “What Admissions Officers Really Want”, by Paul Tough. At the center of this article is the story of Trinity College’s enrollment manager, Angel Perez, who is hired with two really big and competing priorities of: building a racially and socially economic diverse student body; and digging the school out of a terrible financial deficit.     (26:59) We are in Chapter 102 of 171 Answers and Mark let’s us know whether or not wealthy families should complete the FAFSA application.   (36:30) This week’s question is from Johanna in Pennsylvania and she wants to know how to guide a child who has a learning disability, such as dyslexia, in figuring out what their best college fit. We discuss a number of steps a parent should take when a student has a learning difference and most of what we discuss applies to other learning differences besides dyslexia.   Listeners who want to hear more on this topic should go back and listen to episode 73: here is a link:   (45:59) Mark is in the second and final part of his interview with Travis Hornsby, founder of the country’s top student loan debt resource: Student Loan Planner, Part 2.   (56:13) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is another outstanding admissions blog that discusses some of the cutting-edge admission strategies.   (1:08:48) College spotlight: Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:    If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: (08:35) In this week’s news segment, an article from nitrocollege.com, “Why College Students Should Work, But Only 12 Hours”, by Libby Miller. Research done by the Department of Education about working while you are in college. Miller weighs the pros and cons of students working while in college and suggests that students take an honest assessment of their capacity to handle work outside of their college courses. We also look at the various types of work available when you are in college.     (16:37) We are in Chapter 101 of 171 Answers and we’re talking through how your child would be considered an independent or dependent student. We go through the tests to let you know whether you are an independent or a dependent student and we debunk a common myth about who is an independent student.   (26:31) This week’s question is from Karen in CA and she wants to know how to weigh asking teachers who know your child best to write their letters of recommendation, but may not be that experienced in writing in compared to a teacher who is newer and not as proven as a recommendation writer but the newer teacher is the one your student has the better relationship with.   (40:40) Mark kicks off his interview with Travis Hornsby, founder of the country’s top student loan debt resource: Student Loan Planner, Part 1.   (49:41) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is one of his absolute favorite admission blogs. . Mark describes the six different sections of this blog.   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:   If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: Special announcement: We open our podcast by celebrating our 100th episode with a special announcement. You can now listen to all of our interviews as stand alone entities by clicking the following link:   We have also grouped all of our interviews by categories so you can easily access past interviews in areas of interest. Please share this resource with anyone who you feel would benefit from this invaluable resource.   Mark also shares 28 guests who are leaders in their fields who have promised to come on our podcast either in 2020 or 2021.   (12:29) In this week’s news segment, an article from UT News, “Growth in Texas Drives UT Austin Automatic Admission to Top 6 Percent”. Due to a mandate by the state, UT Austin began automatic admissions for eligible Texas students in the top 6 percent of their high school graduating class beginning in the summer and fall of 2019. We have talked about admissions by the numbers and we introduce the term, “Formulaic Admissions” but it is the first time we have discussed auto admission through a percent admission plan. It goes to show all of the various ways schools can decide who they will admit.     (21:10) We are in Chapter 100 of 171 Answers and Mark explains what the FAFSA4caster is and how it can be used as a tool for college financial planning.   (28:54) Bonus content for this week includes great news on a higher education bill in Congress that impacts millions of families.  Mark shares many of the changes and the irony of what prompted these changes to get through Congress.   (38:04) Mark has a very special 1-part interview with Rick Clark and Brennan Barnard authors of the recent release: “The Truth about College Admissions”. Brennan is the Director of College Counseling at the Derryfield School and he is a prolific writer for the Washington Post, Forbes etc. Rick Clark has ben the Director of Admissions at Georgia Tech for over 15 years. He has also worked in number of other colleges. Both guests return to your show. Brennan was interviewed on episodes 39-41 and Rick was interviewed on episodes 49-51, but they are here to discuss a very exciting book that they co-authored. Some of the questions Rick and Brennan answer in this interview are: How did you meet and how did your friendship emerge? What are you hoping to contribute with this book? Rick shares one area that he and Brennan disagreed on as they wrote the book? Rick and Brennan discuss four main areas that divide families in the college admission process. Mark shares that The Truth About College Admissions is the best book he has read on the topic of not letting wedge issues divide your family through the college admissions process.  To order bulk copies at a reduced rate, reach out to Katherine at krm@press.jhu.edu or you can get this excellent book on Amazon. I also strongly encourage you to follow Rick Clark's blog on Twitter (@GT Admissions). Brennan is also a prolific writer and I love to read Brennan's Mindful Admission articles. You follow Brennan (@BarnardBrennan) and you can read his excellent articles in Forbes and in the Washington Post   (52:07) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is an admission blog that Peter Van Buskirk writes for a company called Scoir. You can access this blog at Scoir.com. I also recommend other resources besides Peter’s blog that you can find at   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:   If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: (07:51) In this week’s news segment, an article from New York Times, “As Students Struggle With Stress and Depression, Colleges Act as Counselors”, by Brad Wolverton. This article dives into the efforts made by schools to address the increasing need for mental health services for college students. Wolverton shares several examples of how colleges are investing in their counseling staff and resources, forcing many schools to rethink their treatment strategies.     (19:31) We are in Chapter 99 of 171 Answers and we’re talking through what you need to know about the very-important FAFSA. Anika and Mark each share five or six important things everyone should know about the FAFSA.   (29:49) This week’s question is from Gail from New Jersey and she wants to know if it is a bad strategy to apply to one school in the early decision round – and wait for that decision, before applying to other schools. Anika begins by sharing her opinion and then Mark explains his view. Next, Anika and Mark share a bunch of questions we would like to ask Gail that are follow up questions to her question.   (43:19) Mark concludes his interview with Emily Griffin, Director of the Loeb Center for Career Exploration and Planning, at Amherst College in – How can you evaluate and fully utilize a college’s career center.   (54:47) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is the book, “Enough as She Is” by Rachel Simmons. The subtitle is, “How to Help Girls Move Beyond Impossible Standards of Success to Live Healthy, Happy, and Fulfilling Lives”. Mark regards this book as one of the most profound books he has read in his life. He does something he has never done before, he implores every parent of a daughter and every college counselor to purchase this book and read this book.   (01:08:19) This week’s college spotlight light is Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island.   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:   If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: (08:17) In this week’s news segment, an article from The Atlantic, “College Admissions Hysteria Is Not the Norm”, by Alia Wong. A focus on highly selective schools obscures the experience of the vast majority of American undergraduates. Ms. Wong wrote this piece as a great reminder to us all that the majority of students are not facing the ultra-stressful admissions process in trying to get into highly selective schools – which tends to dominate media headlines.     (27:39) We are in Chapter 98 of 171 Answers we we’ll be talking about why the EFC can sometimes say that families need to pay an outrageous amount of money. We talk about all of the reasons why the EFC is a false measure of what a family can actually afford to pay for college.   (43:21) This week’s question wants to know how boarding schools prepare kids for college. Anika shares her experience having had two kids attend boarding school and Mark shares how boarding schools uniquely prepare students for college but he also discusses some surprising ways in which boarding schools are overrated in their preparation for college.   (1:00:39) Mark continues his interview with Emily Griffin, Director of the Loeb Center for Career Exploration and Planning, at Amherst College in – How can you evaluate and fully utilize a college’s career center - Part II. Emily answers the following questions:   Is there a demand in the job world for students who get degrees in things like history, English, philosophy, etc. Emily shares the top skills that employers are looking for? How can you evaluate the various career centers as part of my college process? Can you trust the statistics career centers put out about the percentage of students with a job after 6 months?     (1:13:27) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is Department of Education’s Net Price Calculator Center:   (1:27:17) College Spotlight: UAB   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:   If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: (07:07) In this week’s news segment, an article from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, “Unkept Promises: State Cuts to Higher Education Threaten Access and Equity”, by Michael Mitchell, Michael Leachman, Kathleen Masterson, and Samantha Waxman. State funding for public two- and four-year colleges in the school year ending in 2018 was more than $7 billion below its 2008 level. This article makes the case that funding has only rebounded slightly for colleges and universities and why lawmakers need to reinvest in public higher education with increased funding and better financial aid policies.  We discuss which states have made the largest cuts and which states have increased tuition the most.     (24:52) We are in Chapter 97 of 171 Answers and Mark explains how your Expected Family Contribution is calculated and why it is important for you to understand. Mark explains the difference between the Federal Method and the Institutional Method. Mark also explains why EFC is such a confusing concept for people to properly understand.   (45:29) This week’s question asks if a student should leave the question about race and ethnicity blank on their college application. Mark shares the perspective a recently articulated by an AO at a highly selective school and Mark makes the point that a lot of times an AO will be very PC when this question is asked.   (57:10) Mark kicks off his interview with Emily Griffin, Director of the Loeb Center for Career Exploration and Planning, at Amherst College in – How can you evaluate and fully utilize a college’s career center - Part 1 In Part 1, Emily covers the following areas:   Emily starts off by sharing her backstory with all of its twists and turns “What services do college career centers provide?” What are the student facing vs employer facing components of the work of the Career Center   (01:05:37) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is The recommended resource for episode 97 is the following eight minute video that looks at the pros and cons of the three biggest MOOCS-Cousera, EdX and Udacity.   (01:19:58) The College Spotlight is Seton Hall University   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:   If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: (07:10) In this week’s news segment, an article from Wall Street Journal, “For Sale: SAT-Takers’ Names. Colleges Buy Student Data and Boost Exclusivity”, by Douglas Belkin. In 2017, the College Board recorded $100 million in revenue using the SAT to sell student test taker information to universities. The accusation is that these schools are buying names of students who don’t have a great chance of getting accepted. Belkin goes after schools for trying to beef up their application numbers that will allow them to reject more students to lower acceptance rates.  Mark shares his thoughts on this article and his perspective will likely surprise you.     (33:53) We are in Chapter 96 of 171 Answers and we’re describing the qualifications for student federal aid. We discuss five or six of the main qualifications that must be met in order to receive financial aid. We also define what financial aid is.   (47:04) One of the things we discuss is Satisfactory Academy Progress (SAP) and how this is a requirement for receiving financial aid. If you are interested in a detailed conversation about what SAP is and how it is measured, we discussed this for 16 minutes on episode 54 in the question section and we did a part 2 to this discussion on episode 55 in the question section.   A mom has asked Mark to outline his process when working with students. Mark explains that the process is going to be very different for a family that is looking for financial aid, grants and scholarships and the family that is not looking for financial assistance. Mark explains that the process will differ based on when a family starts and which services they hire me to do. Mark divides his process up into four different components 1) Confirming a major/career 2) Building a college list 3) Strategies to increase your chances of getting in 4) Strategies to get a great financial aid offer. I ask Mark several questions throughout the process. Mark was very reluctant to answer this question from a mom. He regards the podcast as his community service and he tries to keep it separate from his school counseling or his private college counseling, but after some reflection Mark hopes to help our college counselors who listen. He also hopes our families will be able to apply some of the approaches he uses to their own search. (01:05:20) Mark concludes his interview with author and college admissions expert Steven Antonoff in the final part of: Myths about College Admissions   (01:15:39) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is The Chronicle of Higher Education; their website is chronicle.com. (01:25:32) College Spotlight for the week: Denison U, OH Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:    If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: (07:40) In this week’s news segment, an article from Wall Street Journal, “Welcome to College Now Take a Year Off”, by Melissa Korn. Some colleges are offering financial aid to encourage admitted students to stay away for a year, so they can travel, volunteer, or pursue other passions before starting their college enrollment. This is best known as taking a gap year.  We discuss some of the reasons why Gap years are more popular than before. We talk about some of the recent trends when it comes to Gap years. As usual, Anika, asks great questions.     (20:08) We are in Chapter 95 of 171 Answers and we’re talking through the 5 main reasons why college costs are skyrocketing. Anika and I go through each of these reasons and we each have a comment on each of the reasons. The five reasons listed are the general consensus as being the main reasons amongst those who study this. What those who study this do not agree on is which of these reasons are the biggest culprits. Four of these reasons we discuss are actual costs and one reason is different, but some would argue that this other reason is as big a contributor as any to the high costs of college. We also share the hard, cold stats about the changes in the cost of college.   (32:33) It’s time again for some bonus content and Mark is explaining how colleges recruit your students through Student Search Service. We discussed this in episode 25, but we do a much deeper dive this time. We look at the admissions funnel. Mark shares over 20 factors colleges can choose to use as filters when they are buying lists of names. We discuss why Student Search and the ACT’s similar service is big business. We get into the numbers as we discuss why colleges rely on search and how much they actually spend on buying lists of names. This is the first of a two part discussion on Search. Next week, our article will resume this conversation. If you want to hear a thorough conversation of what serves as the core of most college’s recruitment strategy, this segment, coupled with what we will cover next week will provide that for you. (54:39) Mark continues his interview with author and college admissions expert Steven Antonoff in: Myths about College Admissions, Part 2   (01:05:15) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is Initialview.com; this is a great new innovative way to improve your interview skills. This is the website that helps students to tell their story:   (01:13:47) Instead of a College Spotlight, Mark does an overview of the College Board Forum he attended from November 6-8 in Washington, DC. Mark mentions some of the best workshops he attended but he really goes into some depth on the session he attended about Summer Melt.   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:    If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear:   (06:59) In this week’s news segment, an article from Bloomberg, “The Coming College Enrollment Bust”, by Justin Fox. Economists predict that there will be shifts in enrollment numbers by the second half of the 2020s. There are indications that the top 50 elite schools will have more potential students than they do now, where community colleges and regional 4-year schools will face the more significant declines. We discuss why the college admissions community is treating this predicted demographic decline as a category 5 hurricane. We highlight the work of Nathan Grawe, an economist whose original work is being lauded as a breakthrough in understanding how Demographics impact higher education.     ( 23:30) We are in chapter 94 of 171 Answers and we describe the cost of attendance within two main categories, and Mark explains what Cost of Attendance is and why it is important exactly what it is. Mark explains that it is not only important to know what the school lists as its,  “cost of attendance” but also what your customized cost of attendance is for you. Mark recommends the following tool to use to compare aid awards from one school to another, but also to make sure that every item in the cost of attendance is being factored in. Compare your Aid Awards Calculator- We also discuss breathtaking research by U-Aspire and the New American foundation that shows that widespread inaccuracies and omissions are very common in the aid awards that students receive from college. That link for a summary of their findings is our also our Recommended Resource of the week. We discuss the various components of how cost of attendance is calculated and we show how the numbers can vary drastically from one student to another based on factors like lifestyle.   (41:37) This week’s question is from Kisha, a mom from Wayne, Indiana. She asks Mark to clarify ‘rules’ that she has heard about relating to paying out of state tuition in certain areas. .    Mark answers Kisha’s question but he has a much broader conversation about reciprocity agreements. This conversation answers questions such as: 1) What are reciprocity agreements 2) Why do colleges establish these agreements 3) Are they in other states besides Indiana and Ohio 4) How can you find out if you are eligible for one of these agreements 5) Where do you find these agreements? (50:54) Mark kicks-off his interview with best-selling author and college admissions expert Steven Antonoff in: Debunking the myth that there are only 20 great colleges, Part 1 Steven shares his background and how he got interested in college admissions He describes the three books he wrote He explains why the University of Denver is taking off and becoming such a great University Steven talks about the history, evolution, growth, respect and challenges in the relatively new career of Independent College Counseling We introduce our topic, “Debunking the myth that there are only 20 great colleges” and Dr. Antonoff shares the consequences of this myth.     (57:45) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is . This executive summary highlights the eight key findings of this comprehensive study. The study looked at the inconsistency and inaccuracies that abound in the financial aid awards that students receive. The other resource we highlighted in our discussion about “The Coming College Enrollment Bust” is Nathan Grawe’s momentous book,   (01:10:31) College Spotlight: University Puget Sound   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:   If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: (11:45) In this week’s news segment, an article from Wall Street Journal, “Colleges Rethink Athletic Special Admissions in Wake of Indictments”, by Melissa Korn and Brian Costa. The infamous William Rick Singer was exposed for targeting low profile sports to find coaches who would accept his bribes. The writers of this article suggest that these coaches were most vulnerable because of being the lesser paid among other coaches – such as football and basketball; and students in these sports are less likely to be tracked by school officials. Following the indictments of Mr. Singer, along with dozens of parents and coaches, schools are taking action to guard against this degree of fraudulent behavior. We look at what changes colleges are making in their athletic offices to prevent this from happening again.     (19:22) We are in chapter 93 of 171 Answers and Mark talks through the essentials for you and your child to not going crazy while working through the college admissions process.   (34:57) This week’s question is from Michele, a college counselor from Washington. She wants Mark to address how opting to not share test scores – at test optional schools - can actually be harmful when it comes to students who need merit aid. (51:21) Mark wraps-up his interview with Peter Van Buskirk, Founder of Best College Fit, and Former VP of Enrollment at Franklin and Marshall, in “Understanding how colleges act as businesses in ways that are not in your best interest”.   ( 1:00:21) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is Julie Lythcott-Haims Ted Talk on How to Raise a Successful Adult without overparenting. This 14 minute Ted Talk is the best Ted Talk Mark has seen     (1:11:20) College Spotlight: London Metropolitan College   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! Anika and I would like to thank everyone who has given us a 5 star review on Itunes. We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book,  “171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions.” To get a copy go to Amazon and click:    If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section of our podcast,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"