Getting In: A College Coach Conversation

One of the most important parts of the Common App is the section in which students list their activities. Involvement outside the classroom is a major selection component for many universities, and this is the primary opportunity to share the depth and breadth of that involvement. We'll offer tips for these 10 entries to maximize their impact. In other segments, we'll go over what you need to know about FERPA and one of our educators will share her experiences studying engineering in a liberal arts college.

COVID-19 looms large for all of us this year, including high school students. For many, it might be tempting to write their essays about their experiences—but should they? We'll talk through this question and offer our perspective as former admissions officers who have read tens of thousands of admissions essays over the years. In other segments, we'll go over how students can help themselves financially this summer and hear about one of our expert's experiences selecting her college and studying abroad in London.

There are some executive functioning skills that are essential to student success. Michael Delman, founder of Beyond BookSmart, joins us to go over those skills and share tips for how to develop them. We'll also look at how to find scholarships based on your intended major. In Office Hours, we have a suggested timeline and plan for rising seniors to make the most of their summer by tackling some of the biggest pieces of the college process during this time off from school.

For some students, one of the biggest challenges of transitioning from high school to college is adjusting to the expectations of college level writing. Cassie Hemstrom of the UC Davis University Writing Program joins the show with tips. In our second and third segments, we're answer listener questions related to college finance and admissions.

With the pandemic disrupting in-person classes and raising the question of whether or not students will be on campus this fall, some families are investigating distance learning. Join us to learn more about who might flourish in distance learning and what to look for in the options available. We'll also go through what parents need to know about borrowing money to pay for college, and a College Coach educator will share his personal experience with a post-graduate year of study between high school and college.

COVID-19 has disrupted many things in our world this year, including many high school students' summer plans. We'll be talking through how to adjust your activities with social distancing and cancellations in mind. For all those juniors who took the PSAT this past fall, we have information on how those scores will relate to scholarships available to students. Finally, if all the changes in admissions this year has you looking for assistance beyond our podcast, we have thoughts about how to evaluate your options.

News articles, parents, and college themselves can often focus on the importance of earning As in high school classes. But the reality is that many, many of the students applying to college every year are earning Bs and Cs. We'll discuss considerations and college pathways for those students, who are far more common than those earning straight As. In Office Hours, we're answering your college admissions questions.

With next fall's plans pretty a giant question mark, many families are trying to understand what online study versus on-campus study will do to their costs. We'll share what you need to know about funding an online education. In other segments, we'll offer some standardized testing advice as test dates are cancelled and more colleges opt to go test optional in the coming year. Finally, we'll revisit computer science, this time with Rich Bischoff of Case Western offering the college perspective.

This week's show is all for the underclassmen, from mapping out a plan for your high school coursework to understanding the what and why of participating in extracurricular activities throughout your secondary school years. Finally, we have some financial advice for parents of ninth and tenth graders to follow as they prepare to pay for college in a few years.

With schools closing and COVID-19 impacting high school instruction across the country and world, some secondary schools are moving to a pass/fail grading scale for the second half of the year. We will discuss the impact of that change when it comes time to apply to college. We'll also offer suggestions for activities med school (and other health science) hopefuls can work on while they are stuck at home. Finally, we'll discuss different ways to fund your college choice beyond the financial aid award.