Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast

Ready to learn the history, philosophy, and practice of an experienced professional in the test prep industry?

MEET OUR GUEST

Meet Marina Yalon, who has spent over 15 years in the education sector, p…

Ready to learn the history, philosophy, and practice of an experienced professional in the test prep industry?

MEET OUR GUEST

Meet Alex Robayo, whose background in advanced Physics gave him the tools…

Ready to learn the history, philosophy, and practice of an experienced professional in the test prep industry?

MEET OUR GUEST

Meet Susan Powers, the founder and CEO of Woodlands Test Prep, a tutoring…

The various versions of high school admissions tests may be even more confusing than those for college or graduate school. For the first in a series on HS admissions tests, Amy and Mike invited educa…

Most parents and educators seek to become the wind filling their children’s proverbial sails, but unwittingly become hurricanes driving them way off course. Amy and Mike invited authors William Stixr…

When Kant asserted that experience without theory is blind, but theory without experience is mere intellectual play, he might have been talking about education. Amy and Mike invited educator Jonathan…

The college experience is influenced not only by choice of major but by when that major is chosen.  Amy and Mike invited educator Lisa Marker-Robbins to provide strategies for selecting a college maj…

When a highly selective school receives ten or more times as many applications as available seats, the applicant pool seems like an anonymous, homogenous horde. How can any single student hope to sta…

A calculator on a high stakes test fits the classic definition of a double-edged sword: formidable in the hands of an expert but a liability for those who don’t know how to use it. Amy and Mike invit…

While standardized testing and multiple-choice items tend to go hand in hand, there’s a whole world of innovative assessment options beyond the classic stem-key-distractor paradigm. Amy and Mike invi…

For many students, acceptance to college represents the last set of academic admissions hoops they’ll ever need to jump through. A whole new circus, however, awaits those hoping to earn advanced degr…

College applicants are often asked to demonstrate levels of interest that imply devotion, reverence, and unshakeable commitment. But do all schools reciprocate that respect? Amy and Mike invited IEC …

Fraternities seem synonymous in the minds of most Americans with the classic college experience. But are the preconceived notions of these groups always positive or consistent with reality? Amy and M…

Both College Board and ACT offer the opportunity to order copies of certain official test dates. Should students or teachers take advantage of this offer? Amy and Mike invited educator Haley Seeley t…

Landing on the waitlist of your top-choice school can sometimes feel more agonizing than outright rejection. But, as Cicero assures us, while there's life, there's hope! Amy and Mike invited admissio…

We often frame college as a place young adults go to find themselves. Ironically, those teens who already have a strong sense of who they are and what they stand for are the ones with the most succes…

In theory, anyone can identify as a tutor. In practice, not just anyone can be an amazing tutor. Experience, training, passion, and many more factors make a difference. Amy and Mike invited education…

A great book makes both teaching and learning easy. Such a shame that writing a great educational book is anything but easy! Amy and Mike invited educator and author George Rimakis to share the pros …

Most of us understand at least intuitively how challenging the road to becoming a doctor is. Few realize, however, how hard just gaining admission to medical school can be. Amy and Mike invited educa…

Nobody doubts the efficiency of never putting off until tomorrow what you can do today. Why, then, is executing that strategy so difficult? Amy and Mike invited academic coach Maggie Wray to explain …