Brennan and Rick are joined by Anna Follenbee, the Associate Director (and soon to be Director) of College Counseling at Gilman, to talk about the current period in admissions of students choosing a college, advice for what to do now in that selection process, what parents can do to be supportive, the dynamics of the waitlist, and the importance of college responsiveness in this period.

LINKS

Truth About College Admission Podcast

Private College 529 Plan

"Choosing a College: Is It Right?" - The Application Trail

"Choosing a College: Advice From Admission Experts" - The Application Trail

"Ask This Before You Choose a College" - The Application Trail

Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

Guest: Anna Follensbee

Production: Jack Purdy

Brennan and Rick are joined by Kelley Lips, Associate Vice Provost of Enrollment at Emory University, to talk about how Emory's pathways provide more opportunities for students to start and finish college compared to the normal four-year track, why colleges offer different tracks, and advice for high school juniors and seniors considering different start term options.

LINKS

Truth About College Admission Newsletter

Emory University and Oxford College

Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

Guest: Kelley Lips

Production: Jack Purdy

In a cross-post special, Rick heads to the College Admissions Process Podcast hosted by John Durante to talk about building a class, AI, how to best use the Common Application, and other tools families can use in the admissions process.

LINKS

CAP Episode Link

Truth About College Admissions Newsletter

Host: John Durante

Guest: Rick Clark

TACA Production: Jack Purdy

Rick and Brennan are joined by Gerry McCrory and Ashley Smith from Scoir to talk about the platform, their recent data reports, advice for juniors beginning the admission process, and tools on Scoir that everyone from families to counselors can use.

LINKS:

Truth About College Admission Newsletter

"Getting into college is getting easier" - The Hechinger Report

Scoir

Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

Guests: Gerry Mcrory, Ashley Smith

Production: Jack Purdy

Brennan and the new Vice Provost of Enrollment Management at Georgia Tech, Rick Clark, are joined by friend of the podcast Jeff Selingo to talk about his new book, Dream School. Their conversation details why Jeff was inspired to write the book, how to get a sense of the resources on campus when visiting schools, misconceptions about college value, and how life has been going through the college admissions process with his daughter.

LINKS:

The Truth About College Admission Newsletter

"Clark Named Vice Provost of Enrollment Management" - Georgia Tech

Jeff Selingo's website

Buy Dream School 

List of Harvard 1L Institutions

Future U Podcast

Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

Guest: Jeff Selingo

Production: Jack Purdy

Returning from their winter breaks, Brennan and Rick go through their items to watch for in 2026, books they're reading, tips for the current application cycle, their words for the year, and preview a couple guests who will be on the show this semester.

LINKS:

Brennan Barnard on Forbes

The Application Trail

12-Hour Walk

"AI is scoring college essays" – LA Times

Truth About College Admission Newsletter

Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

Production: Jack Purdy

Brennan and Rick are joined by Denise Pope, Ph.D., the co-founder and Strategic Advisor at Challenge Success (and Senior Lecturer at Stanford University) to talk about her work in researching student mental health, what families may be getting wrong about what they think colleges want to see in the admissions process, and advice for students to improve well-being in high school and beyond.

LINKS:

Challenge Success

"A 'Fit' Over Rankings: Why College Engagement Matters More Than Selectivity" - Challenge Success

Time Management Worksheet - Challenge Success

"Go Wilde For College Admission In The New Year" - The Application Trail

The Truth About College Admission Newsletter

Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

Guest: Denise Pope, Ph.D.

Production: Jack Purdy

Brennan and Rick are joined by Lisa Keegan, Vice Provost for Enrollment Strategy at William & Mary, to talk about her role at William & Mary and how they approach admissions in their context, understanding the culture of a school, and what juniors can think about this upcoming spring.

LINKS:

Making a (College) List - The Application Trail

Building a College List Part II: Outside the Echo Chamber - The Application Trail

Truth About College Admission Newsletter

Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

Guest: Lisa Keegan

Production: Jack Purdy

Today we highlight Brennan Barnard's visit to the Office Hours podcast where him and host Will Geiger talk about the myth of the "dream school" and how to frame the college search process before diving into the AI transformation happening in the college admissions world.

LINKS:

Truth About College Admissions Newsletter

Office Hours Podcast

Office Hours Host: Will Geiger

Office Hours Guest: Brennan Barnard

TACA Host: Rick Clark

TACA Production: Jack Purdy

Today, we divert off the beaten path for The Truth About Admission Podcast as we highlight Rick Clark's appearance on the Something Personal podcast, where he goes into his lessons learned from multiple decades of working in college admissions, how to pay for college, and his advise on keeping perspective during the college search process.

LINKS:

Truth About College Admission Newsletter

Something Personal Podcast Feed

Something Personal host: Amy Laburda

Something Personal guest: Rick Clark

TACA Production: Jack Purdy