Getting In: A College Coach Conversation

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, such as Naviance, Scoir, and Maia. They all offer different functionalities that can help with the college application process, so listen in.

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 summer.

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, brand new College Coach colleague Scott Alexander, former admission officer at Bates College, will be discussing colleges in and near Portland, Maine. (Be sure to catch our Portland, Oregon colleges episode from last week, July 11th, if you want to hear about both coasts!)

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 questions about once every two months, so feel free to submit your own on one of our social media pages or on our website, coll.coach/gettinginquestions.

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 pay for it all!

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, previously of MIT and Cal Tech's admission offices, for a full discussion.

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.