Episodes

Working on your Yale University supplemental essay? Host Beth Heaton will be joined by Amy Alexander, College Coach colleague and former Yale admission officer, to discuss their supplement. In another segment, Karen Spencer, another colleague, will be there to go over the University of Michigan supplement. Then Stacey MacPhetres, College Coach Finance Expert, will go over the Who, What, and Why of merit scholarships.

Are you applying to the University of California system? If so, you probably already know that they have their own application and require four essays. And those essays are a very important piece of the application evaluation! Host Sally Ganga will be joined by College Coach colleagues Steve Fernandez-Brennan and Alexandra Rendon to discuss how to approach them. Both have extensive experience advising students on this application, and Alex even worked for UC San Diego! So tune in. In addition, C...

Curious how Artificial Intelligence is impacting college admissions? Host Ian Fisher will be chatting with College Coach colleagues Zaragoza Guerra and Nial Rele about what the short term and long term impacts might be. Continuing with the tech theme, he’ll be joined by Michelle Smoley, College Coach Finance Expert, who, in honor of Cyber Security Awareness Month, will provide tips for young adults on protecting their personal and financial information online.

Wondering whether you should apply Early Decision or Early Action and trying to understand the financial implications of both? Host Beth Heaton will be interviewing College Coach finance expert Chrissy Foran to help you answer those questions. In addition, College Coach admissions counselor and Texas resident Zaragoza Guerra will be discussing the University of Texas at Austin application. And last but not least, Megan Stubbendeck of the test prep organization Arborbridge will be joining Beth to...

Are you applying for financial aid? Can’t figure out what the FSAID is? College Coach finance consultant Jess Mosley will be joining host Shannon Vasconcelos to answer that question and explain how to sign up for it. Shannon will also be interviewing Ann Marano, Executive Director of the Colleges That Change Lives, a non-profit organization that champions colleges that might not be name brands but provide a transformational experience for students.

Have you ever wondered how college admission officers and counselors guide their children in their college search? If so, listen to this show! Host Sally Ganga will be interviewing a whole panel of College Coach admissions counselors who have already sent or are about to send kids to college; they are happy to talk about and give advice based on personal experience. In addition, College Coach finance expert Jess Mosley will be explaining how to prepare now to complete the CSS Profile on October ...

Seniors, are you working on your Common Application? Host Ian Fisher will be interviewing colleague Kristine Sawicki, formerly of Stanford University, about how to make your Common Application shine. We have something for your sophomores and juniors too! You may be wondering how to make the most of high school. We’ll be addressing purposeful goal setting instead of just wish making. And parents, are you looking for an out in repaying Parent PLUS or cosigned private loans? It’s not easy…but we’ll...

Are you sending your senior to college in the fall? If so, join host Sally Ganga to hear Jan Combs, college finance expert at College Coach, give tips on what you should be doing right now to prepare for that tuition bill. Then, former college counselor at the American School of Madrid Marj Southworth will be discussing applying to colleges outside of the United States. (Hint: there’s more than just study abroad!) Interested in getting more involved at your high school? Considering starting your...

Have you heard of the Coalition for College? Curious to learn more? Host Ian Fisher will be joined by Liz Cheron, CEO of Coalition for College, to discuss the application's role in the college admission landscape. Then, he and College Coach education finance expert Beth Feinberg-Keenan will discuss the ABCs of applying for financial aid; in other words, what do all those acronyms stand for?

Host Sally Ganga is lucky enough to welcome Kimberly Ortiz, who came to College Coach from Harvey Mudd College, and previously, Cal Tech, to discuss college supplemental essays. Sally will also be joined by colleague Alex Rendon, formerly of UC San Diego, to discuss the application activity list, and Michelle Clifton, to give us a very important update on student loan repayment.

Paying for college has been tough for a while now, but high interest rates are making it even tougher. Host Ian Fisher is joined by College Coach finance expert Alex Bickford to discuss what your options are. In addition, he will be digging into the details of rolling over your Common Application account if you opened it before the official August 1 start date for the 2024-2025 year with colleague Mary Sue Youn, and discussing the various college application process trackers used by high schools...

Did you know that August is Wellness Month? And that financial wellness is a thing? Our colleague Michelle Smoley, college finance expert, is here to discuss financial wellness tips for those heading to college with host Shannon Vasconcelos. Shannon will then be answering listener questions with College Coach colleague Kara Courtois. We answer listener questions regularly, so remember to submit yours to us; you can find us on social media platforms.

Interested in Dartmouth? We’re lucky enough to welcome Lee Coffin, Vice-President and Dean of Admission and Financial Aid, here to discuss all things about the College. He previously worked in admissions at Tufts and Connecticut College, and has served as an adjunct lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, so his perspective is both broad and deep. Host Ian Fisher will also be talking with Alex Gonzalez, College Coach Finance expert, about searching for scholarships during the summe...

Parents, do you have a student heading off to college in the fall? Your tuition and fees are likely due! Listen in to find out more about paying that important bill. You’ve probably heard of Georgetown, but did you know there are other fine Jesuit colleges in the US? College Coach colleague Nicole Doyle, alumna and former admission officer at the College of Holy Cross in Massachusetts, will be talking about the values that Jesuit schools are known for and the Jesuit college experience. Last, bra...

Do you like Portland, Oregon? Thinking you might like to go to college there? If so, listen in, as host Shannon Vasconcelos will be interviewing colleague Sara Calvert-Kubrom, alumna and former admission officer at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, about the institutions in the area. There many fine ones, not just Reed, Lewis & Clark, and the Oregon publics! Then, Shannon, Sara, and Zachary Gries, college finance expert at College Coach, will be answering listener questions. We address listener...

Join our host Sally Ganga as she speaks with several special guests for a deep dive on Skidmore College. Sally talks with Janessa Dunn, the Director of Admissions, and Maggie Besthoff, a Skidmore student, about what life is like at Skidmore. Finally, Sally is joined by special guest Klaudia Wiacek to discuss possible career pathways for English majors. Tune in!

Does the idea of touring every college on your list overwhelm you? Listen in to this episode, as host Beth Heaton will be joined by College Coach admissions consultant Marissa Salazar who joined us from the Colorado College admission office. She will be bringing the most up to date tips of questions you should ask and what to look out for during your visit. In addition, educational finance expert Beth Feinberg-Keenan will be there to discuss what to ask when you’re trying to figure out how to pa...

Confused about the differences between Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), and Dual Enrollment? Curious about whether one is better in terms of admission or receiving credit once you’re enrolled in college? Each one is a little different and has pros and cons, so host ian fisher will be joined by College Coach admissions consultants Kristine Sawicki, formerly of Stanford University’s admission office, Michael Yager, former high school private counselor, and Zaragoza Guerra...

In the continuation of our Deep Dives series, host Sally Ganga speaks with representatives from Hamilton College, a private liberal arts college in New York, to learn more about life at Hamilton.

Does most of what you know about college and the college admission process come from friends, neighbors, and acquiantainces? Does the college admission process and higher education in general seem a bit scary as a result? If so, please listen to this podcast. Our host, Elizabeth Heaton, will be talking with colleagues Julia Jones and Blair Dixon regarding rumors about the application process and colleges in general. In addition, College Coach Financial Aid consultant Alex Gonzalez will be addres...

We have an exciting guest today: our host Shannon Vasconcelos will be joined by Sean Fochtman of Michigan State University. He’ll discuss his insights from working with students in the College of Engineering as well as his current role as Director of Alumni Venture Support within MSU’s Burgess Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. In addition, Shannon will be chatting with College Coach expert and parent of high school students Karen Spencer about whether there is ever a time to be a he...

How does college admissions and paying for college intersect? Listen to this show to find out. Host Ian Fisher will be talking with colleague Gabbi Tobias about how to use social media to research colleges. It can be a very handy tool for this! He will also be talking with colleague Kyra Tyler about whether colleges look at the social media accounts of applicants. In addition, College Coach finance expert Jennifer Willcox is going to discuss how social media outlets and groups may be a good plac...

Will you be attending a reception or a college campus and have a chance to meet with an admissions officer? Have you heard that all questions are good questions? Well, maybe not. Our host Beth Heaton will be talking with former admissions officer and high school college counselor Lisa Albro about questions not to ask. For the seniors, College Coach colleagues Kennon Dick and Jan Combs, of our admissions and college finance teams respectively, will be reviewing what to expect when transitioning t...

Are you considering studying abroad in college? Listen in as our host Shannon Vasconcelos chats with colleague Elyse Krantz about the pros and cons. Then, Shannon with be answering listener questions with College Coach colleagues Alexandra Rendon of the admission team and Zachary Gries of the college finance team.