College 4 ALL

Often, when the relief occurs after submission students forget there are still a lot of next steps.  Listen to this quick podcast so you can be on the right mindset on the timeline towards your future!

I was so lucky to visit Duke University.  It is everything you heard and more - minus the outdated dorms.  But the energy, intellect, and beauty are all there.  One of the most diverse campuses in North Carolina.  So Go, Blue Devils.

Let's get schooled with Get Schooled!  A non-profit organization focused on helping youth to get ahead whether it be for a job, college or BOTH!  A program that does NOT sell young adults' data, information or privacy like those other programs who say they are giving "free" scholarships or other information but do not.  Due to Get Schooled's long legacy since 2010, they are funded by grants and even have partnerships with other schools due to their great work.  Don't believe me? Listen to the show and then follow them on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/getschooled/?hl=en and TEXT THEM at 33-55-77 for free and real support.  Let's Get Schooled!

Santa Monica College aka SMC has transferred more students to UC campuses than any other college in the country — for 33 years straight. SMC is also tops in transfers to USC and LMU, and the top feeder west of the Mississippi to the Ivy League Columbia University.   SMC offers the same lower-division courses as UC, California State University, and other four-year campuses at a fraction of the cost. Students who start at SMC can save thousands of dollars while benefitting from rigorous smaller classes, personalized counseling, and great professors whose focus is teaching — not research.   Santa Monica College’s academic excellence is driven by professors with distinguished credentials, representing the best in their fields: award-winning artists, scholars, authors, scientists…you name it. They teach at SMC because they believe in the power of the student-teacher connection. Counselors and staff in 55 offices and programs at SMC form the largest student support network in California to meet your needs, and ensure that you get to your goal of transfer or a career, ASAP. From the Veterans Success Center to Guardian Scholars, EOPS, Black Collegians, Latino Center, and many more — SMC is here to help you succeed. The breadth of choices at SMC is mind-blowing! From the liberal arts to STEM, accounting to film production, SMC’s career- and transfer-oriented programs rival the nation’s best universities. New courses are constantly being created, and career education courses are developed with direct input from industry advisors. In the past 10 years alone, SMC faculty crafted over 300 new courses in 58 subject areas, and the list keeps growing.Santa Monica College’s beautiful campuses are a stone’s throw away from the Pacific Ocean, the world-famous Santa Monica Beach, the Santa Monica Pier, Third Street Promenade, and more. We’re located in the gorgeous city of Santa Monica — a top destination for tourists worldwide. Need we say more? Well three students do as we interview them to get their honest perspective of the one and only SMC!

Everyone needs to plan early for college admissions, which means financial aid.  We are lucky to have Paul Martin from College Money Method.  Paul works with all types of families to address their concerns about the crazy maze called college financial aid.  He is thorough, knowledgeable, and empathetic to various situations as a person who has benefited from financial aid.  Listen and subscribe to learn much more from the College Money Method from Paul Martin.

From California to Texas, we get a chance to interview a transfer student at one of the most selective and desired campuses in the nation: the University of Texas, Austin.  Teresa, a psychology major from the Bay Area, speaks about her experiences on campus.  The University of Texas, Austin, is the state's flagship public research university.  There are 8 different campuses, with locations in Arlington, Austin, Dallas, El Paso, Permian Basin, Rio Grande Valley, San Antonio, and Tyler.But this one is pretty hard to get into as an incoming freshman. Besides requiring the SAT or ACT exam now, they often recommend four years of English, Mathematics, Science, and Social Science. So be prepared if you are not from that state to have difficulty getting in. As Teresa mentions, it is different from most public universities for transfer students because it is always about spaces.  The campus has 51,000 students, with a huge Longhorn sports team pride, and houses one of the 14 Presidential Libraries called the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library, administered by the National Archives and Records Administration. Within its walls, the library holds over 45 million pages and many more artifacts about the LBJ administration.  The campus was founded in 1883 and has a long tradition to stand out and has cultivated the city of Austin into an amazing city - but listen to Teresa and listen from her point of view.

You gotta take the time to visit some colleges to understand what you like and what you need and what you need to avoid.  Give yourself a moment to hear from students about their experiences with great tips when they visited six colleges (small, big, and medium) and their experiences when they visited campuses like UCLA, Whittier College, Cal Poly Pomona, Loyola Marymount University, University of Southern California AND Chapman University.

We got answers to the many questions that are out there on admissions. They are also changing to listen so our world can be college 4 all!

As college admissions get earlier and earlier, the time to start college begins now. Listen to tips on how and what you can search for so you can draft your college list NOW!

It is time for every senior in the country to look on what they have not done and what they need to get done like: Final draft list of collegesTheir requirements for admissions, interviews, rep visits and financial aid (check this one!)Drafts of statements for each application and for each campus (there will be a lot)Check with recommenders (two core teachers, counselor and outside recommender if desired)Check your emails -- they can see if you read your emails or notGet connected with your repsTriple check your list that there are challenge, possible and likely campuses for admissions and paying for collegeGood luck!

Seniors it is time to get ready to work on your college applications before applications open up and deadlines approach.There is a lot you can do like statements, interviews, research and so much more. Let's just listen and for more information go to www.college4all.com.

Lots of changes are moving fast and forward in college admissions due to the decisions made this June by the Supreme Court of the United States aka SCOTUS. The world of college admissions will be transforming again. Some individuals in society do not know what has happened, many outlets are not talking about it extensively, many discussions are happening behind close doors and individuals are trying to adapt, pivot and understand.Here is a reflection.

On June 29, 2021, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) made the decision to stop allowing college admissions across the nation to use Affirmative Action. Since 1978, the Supreme Court has upheld the use of affirmative action as one factor for admissions until today even though colleges throughout time have proven time and time again that the use of holistic admissions has many factors not just one. On this day, it is important that we all understand that research and data have shown time and time again that diversity (race, experience, background, and ideas) benefits not one, but ALL.We need to continue to move onward and upward TOGETHER despite the decision. As colleges must follow the law like how the UC's and Cal States did when CA voters voted to ban affirmative action in our public system -- it is imperative for all of us to remind students to still honor the stories of students who have illustrated their passions despite it all, demonstrate their strengths despite it all and rise above despite it all. WE MUST! So everyone can get a fair shot and rise above so we as a nation can rise. Bob Schaeffer, a long-time warrior and advocate for equity took some time to discuss college admissions, testing, affirmative action, and more. He shared his wisdom with us on the ongoing changes in college admissions in this interview. Bob has served as Public Education Director of FairTest, since its founding in 1985, and is a member of its Board of Directors. Previously, he was Editorial Writer at the NBC-TV affiliate in Boston, Research Director of the Massachusetts Legislature’s Joint Committee on Human Services and Elderly Affairs, and worked for several years as a research associate at the Education Research Center of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is author of Standardized Tests and Teacher Competence (School Voices, Fall, 1996) and coauthor of Standing Up to the SAT (ARCO/Simon & Schuster, 1989). He has also coauthored many FairTest publications, includingTesting Our Children: A Report Card on State Assessment Systems, Standardized Tests and Our Children: A Guide to Testing Reform, Implementing Performance Assessments, The SAT Coaching Cover-Up, Test Scores Do Not Equal Merit, and Sex Bias in College Admissions Tests: How Women Lose Out.

It is time to get starting in writing your personal statement. The key thing to is to start writing, but if you need a little bit more help. Here are just tips on how to start. So let's get going.

Welcome to Rice University in Houston, Texas. This urban campus is located in 300-acre tree-lined area with the most breathtaking research and innovative opportunities. Since 1912, the university has produced doctorates and continued to create impressive numbers. Rank top 20 university in the United States.Top 10 schools with resources per the Wall Street Journal and Timers HIgher Education.Amazing in quality in life as well as "race/class interaction" per Princeton Review. The close instructor contact along with amazing peer opportunities allows for a great amazing research opportunities in this NCAA Division I campus. So let's listen and learn from some of their students.

It is summer time! Time to rest.Time to connect.Time to have fun.Time for college. Yes, college. Let's make sure you have volunteer, internships or work lined up along with showing your curiosity in subject areas and fields, virtual tours, virtual interviews, research and getting that Common App and Personal Statements done. Let's go!

We have our wonderful expert in financial aid, Dino Koff, who is the Director of Financial Aid at Dartmouth College. He will address the critical question of how to afford college! As college cost increases, active research on the different aspects of financial aid is critical as understanding the limits for both colleges and families. In addition, tips will be addressed, and questions will be answered. Families will also learn about some of the changes from the changes on FAFSA, beginning with the 2024-2025 application seasno from the Simplification Act. Learn, listen, and let's move forward and onward TOGETHER!

Welcome to Regis University where we get interview a current student on campus to learn more about this Jesuit university that has been recognized as a college of distinction on Business, Nursing, Equity and Inclusion, Military Support. It has been long recognized for being a career readiness for their first generation college student. With an enrollment of over 6000 students with almost 100,000 alums that is an impressive number. Close to transportation to get you into downtown Denver but still provides activities on campus even with their local pub on campus. The one thing that is honored time and time again is the connection students make with their professors. It is an intimate classroom that allows students to connect with their instructors. At the same time being a "Ranger" also means you get access to days like Welcome Week, Ranger Week, Snow Week, Christmas Tree Lighting and more. So listen and learn about Regis University!

Are you the first person in your family attending college? Are you and your older siblings are the first? Whether you are first or not, learn about how being one of the few and creating a "road never traveled" can feel alone, frustrating, hard AND SO REWARDING! Listen to our host and our guests who are all First Gen!

There are a lot of instructions, information, facts and details. IT IS OVERWHELMING which creates a crazy roller coaster ride for any future prospective college admissions. Thus many topics and critical steps often are overlooked like: verification, additional required documentation and many more. Let's listen to a senior who just went through this process who is going to tell you what she didn't know and wished she knew ahead. SYou are lucky that you are listening to this podcast now!