Podcast Episodes

In this week's episode you will hear Question Number 1 From a Listener : Julia and Mark answer a question from Sapna and Sivan, two high school students about what is the proper way to use the Additional Information Section of the Common App Question Number 2 From a Listener : Jennifer Mandel joins Mark [...]

Introduction : Mark explains what holistic admissions is, how it works and some of the areas of holistic admissions that are often misunderstood Part 2 of 3. Mark shares a few insights from the counseling room on what to do if your financial situation definitely changes. Lynda interviews J Hall, a college Dean in Oklahoma [...]

In this week's episode you will hear Question 1 (3:02): Hillary and Mark answer a question from Dale from Virginia. Dale wants to know how the demographic cliff will impact admission decisions (Length 13 minutes) Question 2 (16:40): Lisa and Lynda answer a question from a mom from California who wants to know if Columbia [...]

Introduction : Mark explains what holistic admissions is, how it works and some of the areas of holistic admissions that are often misunderstood. Lynda interviews J Hall, a college Dean in Oklahoma City and the author of the book, “College Unpacked” - Part 2 Preview: J Hall continues giving tips to parents when they drop [...]

In this week's episode you will hear Question from a Listener (2:04): Number 1 - Susan and Mark answer a question from a listener who wants to know what her student can do to prepare for a career in architecture (Length 17 minutes) This week’s interview (19:26): Interview 1-Mark Stucker interviews Jennifer Mandel from Milwaukee [...]

Introduction : Mark answers a question from a student from Texas and she wants to know why I have soured on BS/MD programs Lynda interviews J Hall, a college Dean in Oklahoma City and the author of the book, “College Unpacked” - Preview: J gives his backstory and like me, he came to college related [...]

In this week's episode you will hear Question from a Listener (2:02): Number 1 - Hillary joins me to discuss a question from a student named Saul from New Hampshire, Saul wants to know, he has heard that some schools use likes and shares to test demonstrated interest and he wants to know if this [...]

Introduction : Mark shares a letter from a listener with extensive medical school admissions experience. Mark shares a lesson from the counseling room about knowing what your career is going to be when you are still a teenager. Mark shares what rising seniors should be doing now. Mark shares some Personal Statement tips. Mark interviews [...]

In this week's episode you will hear Question #1 from a listener (2:50): Julia joins me to answer a question from Cortnie from Connecticut and she wants to know if it is true that sometimes a college blacklists a high school they are not happy with. (Length 17 minutes) Question #2 from a listener (19:04): [...]

Introduction : Mark shares a story from a meeting he had with a mom in Orange County, CA. Mark talks about the dispute Harvard University is currently facing. Mark interviews John Pollard, Dean of Admissions of Franke Honors College at the University of Arizona, Understanding Franke Honors College, Part 1 of 2 - Preview: Friends, [...]

In this week's episode you will hear Question #1 from a Listener (2:24): Julia joins me to answer a question from a dad from North Carolina who wants to know if there is a way of figuring out class rank or a proxy for it when it is not explicitly listed. (Length 14 minutes) Question [...]

Introduction : Mark shares four things from his Texas trip he thinks will be of interest to our listeners. Mark shares why he does not think high schools should rank students. Mark interviews John Pollard, Dean of Admissions of Franke Honors College at the University of Arizona. John gives an overview of Honors Colleges in [...]