The College Metropolis Podcast: College Admissions Talk for High School Students and Parents

#029 - Today we talk about something very important in the college admissions process, creating a system that allows you to maintain the many documents and information that will be part of your college application. This is especially true for juniors, who suddenly find themselves having to gather a great many important documents that will be part of their college applications, all with their own and different deadlines. We share with you why this is so important. Maintaining a system for organization reduces the level of anxiety in students. Additionally, regardless of how qualified a student is and how much that student meets the admission requirements for a great college or university, if he or she is not organized, don’t gather the right necessary documents, and don’t turn them in by the many deadlines, that student will have the same chances for admission as someone who is totally unqualified for admission.  We want you to be successful and because of that we will give you ways to maintain the organization you need in this hectic process, and very importantly, one that helps you maintain important deadlines. You can find the show notes for this episode at https://collegemetropolis.com/29. You can also help us a lot by writing a positive review for our show and leaving us a 5-star rating. In doing so, you will make it easier for other parents to find our show. Thank you!

#028 - Today on the show, we are joined by a very special guest, Kristina Campos. She is the experienced parenting coach, teen expert, and founder of The Impactful Parent. Kristina shared with us 10 very important tips that parents need to share with their kids as they get ready to go to college. These are very important pieces of practical advice that kids will be able to easily put into practice to avoid many of the negative situations that kids may encounter in college and beyond. This is an episode Jankel and I truly enjoyed, not just as co-hosts of this podcast, but as parents of a young man who will soon be heading off to college. Knowing how to deal with those occurrences will help our kids make the right decisions, stay the course, and most importantly, remain safe. Kristina explains the importance of helping our kids envision some of the negative scenarios they will likely encounter I college while on their own, and guiding them through some of the likely responses they can bring to each of those situations. That is a great exercise that will prepare our kids to properly respond to those likely threatening occurrences. Kristina also provided an important free resource, a downloadable PDF titled, “50 Skills Your Child Needs to Learn Before Leaving for College.” We have the links to the free PDF, as well as links to The Impactful Parent’s website, social media pages, and podcast on our show notes for this episode. You can find these at https://collegemetropolis.com/28. We urge you to please help our show by writing a positive review for our show and leaving us a 5-star rating. In doing so, you will make it easier for other parents to find our show. Thank you!

#027 - Welcome to another special episode of The College Metropolis Podcast. Today, we are stepping away from our normal episode line-up to make you aware of important information that will affect you if you are a high school student planning to go to college, or if you are the parent of one. We will go over president’s Biden’s Plan for Education Beyond High School, the document in which he spelled out what he intends to do help students get a higher education. Although the document is lengthy, I dissect only the areas that will affect high school students. Those are the areas that I consider to be the most important and consequential parts of the document as they regard your or your kid’s college future. You may be surprised to hear that the president’s plan includes free tuition for community colleges and state universities, as well increasing the amount of the Pell grant everyone will receive, even doubling it. This is not an episode about politics, that is something I will never allow on the College Metropolis. This is about informing you about important benefits that may be coming your way soon. You can find the show notes for this episode at https://collegemetropolis.com/27. You can help us a lot by writing a positive review for our show and leaving us a 5-star rating. In doing so, you will make it easier for other parents to find our show. Thank you!

#026 - This episode is very important because in it we present a way for high school students to create a well thought out plan of action to prepare for the SAT.  The SAT is extremely important, especially to gain admission into the more selective schools. We introduce Khan Academy as that great tool to help students prepare for the test. In addition to being absolutely free, it is the official SAT prep partner for The College Board, the organization that puts together the SAT. Jankel and I go over the best ways to use Khan Academy, and some of the most important features of the website, including the ability for a student to upload PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT10, PSAT8/9, or older SAT scores to Khan Academy, or take a diagnostic test to receive a customized preparation plan that focuses on strengthening the areas in which that student may not be so strong. They can also receive a personalized 16-week preparation calendar based on the date in which the SAT will be taken. We go over the many features of Khan Academy, including those made especially for parents, so they can be informed of the progress their kids are making.  You can find the show notes for this episode at https://collegemetropolis.com/26. If you would like to help us reach more high school students and their parents, you can do so by writing a positive review for our show and leaving us a 5-star rating. That will go a long way in ensuring the podcast platforms help others find us more easily. Thank you!

#025 - This is a special and timely episode that will give you important information to help you manage your college admission path within the changes brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. You will understand how most college admissions departments are gearing up for the next academic year, the pressures that are guiding what they do, and the ways that can be used to give you an advantage. We also discuss whether you should take the SAT, which has been made optional for admission into most colleges and universities. We talk about the importance of requesting a Professional Judgement Review to receive more financial aid, what to do after you receive an acceptance and before you commit to a school, and the two plans you should have for the fall of 2021. Additionally, we will go over the most recent changes from The College Board, the disappearance of the Optional SAT Essay and the SAT Subject Tests. You can find the show notes for this episode at https://collegemetropolis.com/25. You can also help us a lot by writing a positive review for our show and leaving us a 5-star rating. That will help us reach out to more parents and students. Thank you!

#024 - On this episode, we continue uncovering the steps every high school junior should take to succeed in the college admission process. We go over one of the most important components of the college application, scores from the standardized test. This is one of the 3 kings of the college admission process, the other two being the courses students take in high school and the grades they receive in those courses. We highlight the different elements that make up the SAT and the ACT, the two standardized tests generally accepted by universities and colleges. We also talk about the differences between the two tests, and the advantages students can gain from those differences. One of the biggest differences is in the math section, with one exam having half the number of questions, whose level of complexity does not exceed math problems found in an Algebra II high school course. We also talk about whether standardized exams will be permanently eliminated from the college admission process, and the one thing every student in high school should be afraid of when getting ready to take the SAT or the ACT. Here is a hint. It has nothing to do with the exams themselves. You can find the show notes for this episode at https://collegemetropolis.com/24. You can also help us a lot by writing a positive review for our show and leaving us a 5-star rating. In doing so, you will make it easier for other parents to find our show. Thank you!

#023 - Today, we begin a series of episodes about the junior year of high school, one of the most influential in the college admission process. There is a lot that goes on in the eleventh grade that gives college admissions people a good idea of the ability of an applicant to handle the workload that is typical in a college or university. Because of that it is important that high school students do well in the junior year. We will talk about the importance of high grades and standardized test scores, especially when applying to the more selective schools. We shed light on the importance of registering for and taking the PSAT/NMSQT early in the junior year, general sources of help to get better grades, the need to do well in courses from which a student will gather letters of recommendation, and the relation between grades and financial aid. We also highlight an often overlooked factor in college admissions; college admissions people make a decision on whether or not to grant admission to an applicant based on incomplete information. We will tell you all about it. We end our episode by sharing the details of a trip I recently took with my 14-year-old son, in which we toured a large university. That was a very valuable experience for him, based on the vision he was able to gain from it. You can find the show notes for this episode at https://collegemetropolis.com/23. You can also help us a lot by writing a positive review for our show and leaving us a 5-star rating. In doing so, you will make it easier for other parents to find our show. Thank you!

#022 - Today, we analyze the last four of seven steps that high school sophomores should take to build a strong college application. We will go over the different types of official Preliminary SAT assessments and the different ways in which students benefit from them. You will gain an understanding of the PSAT10, the PSAT/NMSQT, and the importance of the SAT in your college admission process.  You will also get to know different ways in which sophomores can create their own SAT practice strategy. We also share the value Khan Academy offers high school students as they prepare for the SAT and the different preliminary assessments. The episode begins by highlighting the importance of parents practicing intentional parenting. I tell the story of the time my mother practiced intentional parenting by telling me something as she took me to school on my first day of first grade. That comment made a huge difference in my life, as it set the foundation for everything I achieved in college. You can find the show notes for this episode at https://collegemetropolis.com/22. You can also help us a lot by writing a positive review for our show and leaving us a 5-star rating. In doing so, you will make it easier for other parents to find our show. Thank you!

#021 - Today, we analyze the first three of seven steps that high school sophomores should take to build a strong college application. We will go over the importance of grades and ways students can earn a grade point average above 4.0. You will learn about the first three items that all college admission officers look at in each application to decide whether a student should continue in the selection process. You will also uncover the story that your grades tell about your kid and the one thing no college or university wants to see in an applicant. At the beginning of the episode I share my communication with my son’s high school guidance counselor. You will be amazed at how easy it is to ensure your kid is enrolled in the right courses as a college-bound student. You will also learn about the 4 things students should do during each year of high school to ensure they maximize their college preparation. You can find the show notes for this episode at https://collegemetropolis.com/21. You can help us a lot by writing a great review for our show and leaving us a 5-star rating. In doing so, you will make it easier for other parents to find our show. Thank you!

#020 - This episode is the first in a series that will take you through all the steps your kid should take during each year of high school, to build a strong college application in all areas, and maximize the chances for admission. The freshman year is a very important one. College admission officers look at what each student has accomplished during all the years of high school, not just the junior and senior years. We will go through a combination of 11 very important steps and things you should keep in mind to make sure your kid begins to build the portions of the college application that begin during the freshman year, strongly. You can find the show notes for this episode at https://collegemetropolis.com/20. You can help us a lot by writing a great review for our show and leaving us a 5-star rating. In doing so, you will make it easier for other parents to find our show. Thank you!