Twenty-five years ago today I was probably really stressed out about the college application and admissions process.  

Things have arguably gotten tougher since then for students trying to chart their futures. And the headlines this month don’t help.   

The U.S. Department of Justice charged 50 people last week in a multi-million-dollar scheme that allowed rich parents to cheat the college admissions system. By faking standardized test scores and bribing athletics officials, those parents managed to get their kids into elite schools like Georgetown, Stanford, Yale, and USC. 

But what if you don’t want to commit a crime but still want to succeed in life? What’s the plan? We’re going to discuss.  

With me this week: Michael Reilly, executive director of the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers; C.J. Farley, author of the new book Around Harvard Square, and the father of two teenagers; Adam Brownlee, an investment theory instructor at Western Kentucky University who has done the math on whether an Ivy League degree is worth the cost; and CNBC wealth editor Robert Frank.  

Also on the podcast: Frank Calderoni is the CEO of software company Anaplan, and he’s the former CFO of companies including Cisco, Red Hat and SanDisk.