Podcast appearances and mentions of scott jaschik

In his final days in the newsroom, editor and co-founder of Inside Higher Ed and host of The Key, Doug Lederman, sits down with editor-in-chief Sara Custer to discuss his nearly 40-year career in higher education and what he plans to do next. Doug talks about his work as a journalist over four decades, including leading Inside Higher Ed for the past 20 years. Doug shares what kept him up at night when he and Scott Jaschik started a new, independent media company in 2003 and the big breaks along the way that helped establish Inside Higher Ed as a trusted source of news for universities and colleges across the country.  Doug and Sara discuss the future of IHE and how its role to both explain higher education to readers and hold it to account is more critical now than it has ever been. "I don't think us journalists would be writing about higher education if we didn't think it was important,” he says. Hosted by Sara Custer, editor in chief of Inside Higher Ed. This episode is sponsored by the Gates Foundation. Follow us on  Apple Podcasts   Google Podcasts    Spotify  

Scott Jaschik, formerly of Inside Higher Ed, joins the podcast to talk about what he sees as the top 10 leading trends shaping higher education this year and his predictions for what's ahead. But first, the hosts dive into the chaos happening in Congress this week, as the House tries to carry on without a Speaker while facing a looming shutdown. They also look at what the new gainful employment rule means for institutions and give a sneak peek at the changes ahead for the Carnegie Classifications. Tweet suggestions, links, and questions to @ACEducation or podcast@acenet.edu. Here are some of the links and references from this week's show: Kevin McCarthy Ousted as House Speaker in Historic Vote Reuters | Oct. 4, 2023   Congress Narrowly Averts Shutdown as House Democrats Help Pass Stopgap Bill The New York Times (sub. req.) | Sept. 30, 2023   Game On, Again, for Gainful Employment Inside Higher Ed | Sept. 27, 2023   Reflection on a Year Studying Carnegie's Basic Classification and a Look Ahead Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education I Sept. 21, 2023    Interview:   What Voters Think of the Affirmative Action Ruling Morning Consult | July 11, 2023   Judge Allows Grant Program for Black Female Entrepreneurs to Continue The Washington Post (sub. req.) | Sept. 26, 2023   Students of Color Are Not Ok. Here's How Colleges Can Support Them. The Chronicle of Higher Education (sub. req.) | July 6, 2020   Looming Enrollment Cliff Poses Serious Threat to Colleges BestColleges | Jan. 27, 2023   College Cost Transparency Initiative   Hundreds of Colleges Vow to Boost Transparency in Financial Aid Offers The Hill | Sept. 27, 2023   Biden-Harris Administration Begins Discharges for 804,000 Borrowers With $39 Billion in Automatic Loan Forgiveness as a Result of Fixes to Income-Driven Repayment Plans U.S. Department of Education | Aug. 14, 2023   Biden Administration Moves Ahead With New Plan to Cancel Student Debt CNBC | Sept. 29, 2023   West Virginia University Makes Wide-Ranging Cuts to Academic Programs and Faculty The Associated Press | Sept. 15, 2023   Community Colleges Face Low Enrollment, Dismal Completion Rates PBS | Apr. 3, 2023

Scott Jaschik, cofounder and former chief executive officer and editor of Inside Higher Ed, leads the conversation on the changing landscape of college and university admissions criteria. FASKIANOS: Welcome to CFR's Higher Education Webinar Series. I'm Irina Faskianos, vice president of the National Program and Outreach here at CFR. Today's discussion is on the record and the video and transcript will be available on our website, CFR.org/Academic. As always, CFR takes no institutional positions on matters of policy. We're delighted to have Scott Jaschik with us today to discuss the changing landscape of college and university admissions criteria. Mr. Jaschik was a cofounder and former chief executive officer and an editor at Inside Higher Ed, a media company and online publication that provides news, opinions, resources, and events focused on colleges and university topics. He previously served as editor for the Chronicle of Higher Education and was a former board member of the Education Writers Association. And he's a leading voice on higher education issues, publishing articles in the New York Times, the Boston Globe, Washington Post, Salon, and elsewhere. So, Scott, thank you very much for being with us today. There's a lot here to cover, I thought maybe you could give us context and set the stage of the current trends in college and university admissions, as well as the role and importance of international students and scholars at U.S. universities. JASCHIK: Sure. Thanks very much for the invitation. And it's great to speak to CFR people. And it's great particularly because you're a group whose interests extend far beyond higher education. And it just goes to show, higher education is important to every society and everyone, really. So I think this is a great opportunity for me to talk to you. And mainly, I'm excited to hear what the attendees have to say about these issues. But briefly, to give an overview. The big issue, and I want to say a few—one thing, in terms of setting the context. Admissions, talking about college admissions, can vary hugely depending on who you are talking about—by student, by institution, and so forth. So I'm going to talk, for instance, at the beginning about affirmative action. And I'll talk about the institutions that are most affected by the recent Supreme Court decision on affirmative action. But then I'm going to talk about a trend in the rest of higher ed, direct admissions, and how that affects people in higher ed. And then at the end, I'll throw in a few comments on the international students. So on affirmative action, the big news was this summer the Supreme Court ruled six to three that colleges—that two colleges in particular, Harvard and UNC Chapel Hill, were not following the law with respect to how they used affirmative action in admissions. It was a very strong decision, a very thorough decision, but one that greatly upset most people in colleges. The general public generally is a little bit skeptical of affirmative action. But in higher ed, there is very strong support for affirmative action. Now, it's important to remember that this decision will directly affect maybe two hundred institutions. Now, it may indirectly affect many more down the road. I'll talk about that in a minute. But it's important to remember, at most colleges—you know, you read these stories every year about how under 5 percent of applicants get into Harvard, Yale, and whatever. Well, most colleges admit most applicants. And I'll just repeat that, because it's really important to remember. Most colleges admit most applicants. I think that is largely lost in the coverage of late on affirmative action. And it's really important, if you have an opportunity, to shout that out to the world. Because even if a student doesn't feel comfortable applying to an elite college or university, it's important to always say that there is a place in higher ed for that student, and for all students. But on higher ed, this is a big decision for higher education because most of the top colleges in the country have used affirmative action in admissions. They don't maybe want to talk about it now, but they have used it for their admissions processes. And now they can't. And, you know, there's really a lot of skepticism about what it will be like. Now, the expectations are based on the University of California, the University of Michigan, and the University of Texas, because in prior court rulings and in state votes they do not use affirmative action. And if you expect them to follow—to follow what's going to go on, people will predict a major decline for Black students, Latino students. White students actually are not going to gain a lot. Asian students will gain. But that's based on those past examples. There's a big question mark this year which is about the admissions tests that in the past were required of all students, but now they aren't. And test-optional admissions truly took off during the pandemic, because there was a period of time when students literally couldn't take the SAT or ACT. But a secondary reason, and arguably, I think, the more important reason, colleges dropped the test-optional—or, went test-optional, is this decision. They knew it was coming and this gives them a lot more flexibility. So do I expect to happen what happened with the University of California? I would say yes, but, because nobody really knows what the impact will be of test-optional admissions. Now, very quickly, some other things on affirmative action to remember. Many colleges are adding essays specifically to reach students who are minority students or who have particular experiences that colleges want to have. And this is, again—remember, even if a college asks, are you Black, Latino, or whatever, they cannot use that information when they evaluate students. So that will be totally invisible to the colleges. The Supreme Court decision explicitly said that students can write about their experiences in life and how that affects them for higher ed. But the Court's going to be watching very carefully and wants to make sure that anything that the students say is not just a way to go back to considering students differently, as the Court said, on the race and ethnicity. Also, there's a group working to create a new system to evaluate students' character, because character is something that many people cite but they don't really have a way to cite it. That's the kind of thing that we're seeing. Now, there are other issues too. Legacy admissions, in which colleges favor the children of alumni or relatives, that is under real tight scrutiny right now. There was nothing in the Supreme Court decision to say they couldn't do legacy admissions, but many colleges are uncomfortable given that they cannot use the systems they came up with to help Black, and Latino, and Asian American students get into college. They are uncomfortable with legacy admissions because it primarily helps white students get into college. And that's not something they want to do. Similarly, early decision is something that is very controversial, because it primarily helps white students. Now what's unknown is two things. One is the final rule, so to say, on admissions. That's going to be decided not by anything I say or that anyone else says, but it's going to be back in the courts. I would be absolutely certain it will return to the courts. And they will, you know, hash that out. Also, there's the question of financial aid. Some colleges award—and this is many more colleges—award financial aid in part based on race and ethnicity. Is that legal? We don't yet know. Some players on both sides have offered their opinions, but that will be a huge decision that will come down. Now I want to talk about another issue in higher ed that's going on, which is direct admissions. And if you're not familiar with direct admissions, in direct admissions students do not apply to colleges. Students simply fill out a form, which includes their transcript, any test scores they want to submit, and roughly where they want to go to college. I don't mean institution names, but, like, I live in Connecticut and these are the—and I want to go to college near my home. It's important to remember, most college students go to college near their homes. So and then after that, colleges will look at the application that they filled out. And colleges will admit those students. Now direct admissions is very popular among all the institutions that I wasn't talking about before, because it is a good way to recruit more low-income students, who seem to really like this system. But direct admissions has primarily been used on a small scale. And that—we have to see what will happen as it goes to a larger scale. So that is something still to find out. And then on international students, with international students most colleges very much want international students. But there are key things that may make it difficult to recruit them. One is foreign—the foreign relations, as your group well knows. I mean, you've got the war in Russia and Ukraine, which didn't send a lot of foreign students to the United States, but they sent some. And, interestingly, some of the colleges in New York City have both Russian and Ukrainian students at the same college. And they are dealing with issues related to that. But the most students have come from China. And our relations with China are, frankly, pretty bad right now, I would say. And that raises real questions about which students will come. My guess is that the top universities are not going to have a loss in foreign students, or at least not a substantial loss. But it's important to remember, foreign students are enrolling at every type of college and university. And they may be affected at institutions that aren't as competitive in admissions. So that's my rough answer to your question. Have at it. FASKIANOS: Fantastic. Thank you so much. And now we're going to go to all of you for your questions and comments. And please use this as a forum too to share best practices. (Gives queuing instructions.) So I'm going to take the first written question from Edie Gaythwaite, professor at Valencia College in Orlando, Florida: The issue of essays is now the use of AI-generated essays being submitted. So how do you see the admissions process moving forward with this in mind? JASCHIK: That's a great question. And it's something that's getting a lot of attention right now. And I'm going to answer first for what's going to happen this year, and then I want to talk about the future. Right now, this is making a lot of people in admissions very nervous, because every day someone does a story on—on the way AI can be used to write essays. Colleges don't know. So they are nervous. Now, some of the services that colleges use to detect plagiarism can also be used, they say, to maybe detect the use of AI. So that's one possibility. Others are suggesting that colleges should instead of using regular essays, should require an essay that is handwritten and was graded by a high school teacher, and to turn it in with the high school teacher's grades. Now that's a little—there's something odd about that, in that that assumes that the student didn't use AI in high school, which, you know, who knows if that's true. But the reason I would say not to get a huge panic this year, is that a bunch of colleges are working on the issue. I suspect that by the end of this year, they are going to have better ways to deal with AI than they do right now. So I would say, you know, watch. But remember—and the other thing I would say is to remember past examples. Remember, when Wikipedia first started? There were people saying, no college student is ever going to write his or her own essay again. They're all going to come from Wikipedia. Well, they're not. And so because a lot of people figured out how to use Wikipedia, and how not to use Wikipedia. So I don't mean to sound like a Pollyanna, but there may be a better way coming. FASKIANOS: Our next question comes from Beverly Lindsay. Beverly, please identify yourself and ask your question. Q: Can you hear me? FASKIANOS: We can. We can. Q: Great. Beverly Lindsay, University of California, multicampus. Hello, Scott. Good to hear your comments. I have something that wasn't quite covered. Because I have been at two major research universities, actually more, but two in particular. They actually have informal legacy admits. And I would like your speculation on how that will continue. The second part of the question relates to HBCUs, particularly the ones that are known as the Black Ivies. I was at two of them. And I also know that they are concerned about having more diverse students from different economic backgrounds. Could you comment on that as well? Thank you. JASCHIK: Sure. Those are very good questions. So, first, on the informal legacies, which is something I have heard about. And I, in fact, did a story about a university that said it was eliminating legacy admissions, but it turned out they weren't. They still had legacy admissions. And that's because legacy admissions is something that colleges like to talk about with their alumni, but maybe not with the public. It strikes me that informal legacy admissions really doesn't make sense. If you believe in legacy admissions, defend it. But informal strikes me as inappropriate, frankly. Now, on the HBCUs, and particularly, the so-called top HBCUs, there's interesting developments with regard to affirmative action. When California eliminated affirmative action way back when, more Californians started to go to Morehouse, and Spelman, and other very good HBCUs. And we are going to see more of this in the next year, I think. But at the same time, I would caution against assuming that HBCUs can provide the answers to everything here. Morehouse and Spelman, despite being great colleges, to not have the financial aid that Harvard and Stanford have. They just don't. There's not enough money there. And it's a different kind of experience, a great experience for some students. But financially and otherwise, there are limits to what they can do. Now, if Morehouse and Spelman could grow by a thousand students, well, that would sound wonderful. But I don't think they can grow by a thousand students, at least not immediately. So this year, I think we're going to be watching what goes on at those colleges. So I hope I've answered. FASKIANOS: Great, thank you. I'm going to take the written question from Todd Barry, who is professor at Hudson County Community College? Excuse me. How safe is it geopolitically for U.S. professors to teach abroad? JASCHIK: How what is it? FASKIANOS: Safe is it. JASCHIK: Oh, how safe? I think it really depends on the country. In lots of countries it is totally safe, in that—you know, you have to be realistic. What is—how safe is it to teach in the United States is a legitimate question, in some parts of the country. To go abroad, there are real issues if the country is not secure, it does not have an adequate system for making sure that people are protected. And also, there are issues related to the potential in other countries for anti-American thought to happen and to be a cause of concern. At the same time, there are many countries where you will find yourself welcome. And I think it's great for American college professors to look for those places and to go abroad. They will learn as much as they will teach. So I think that's, you know, that's great. FASKIANOS: Great. Don Habibi has raised his hand, and also written a—written a question. But, Don, I think you've put your hand down, but I'd love you to ask it yourself, if you could unmute yourself. Q: OK. Yes. Hi. Yeah, my question was triggered by the first AI question. And that is, what's to prevent—or how do you check a student who writes a fabulous story of their overcoming adversity or their combat experience, or whatever it is that, you know, would just sort of bring them to the top of the applicant pool. And the likelihood of fact checking that sort of thing is pretty small. And I mentioned in the question that several times reporters won Pulitzer Prizes for reporting on stories, and they made them up. FASKIANOS: And Don is—can you give us your affiliation? Q: I'm a professor at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. FASKIANOS: Thank you. JASCHIK: Yes, that is a real concern. And it's not just in admissions. Colleges are worried about that issue in the essays they will assign to students to write after—you know, after they're enrolled. There, they—some people are arguing for in-person writing. You know, in class, where the students will be forced to write it down. Now, some students say they can't write a long, handwritten essay anymore, because all they can do is type. And I have some sympathy for them, but that's what they're saying. It goes back to what I said before. Colleges are working on solutions to this and going to try. I would say that a good admissions counselor should be able to see some things that come out in their applications. Also, some colleges are changing their essays so that they are more about the college you are applying to, to make it more difficult to use a copied essay. FASKIANOS: Thank you very much. The next question we'll take from Melissa McGinnis, assistant director of admissions at Yale University's Jackson School of Global Affairs: What are your thoughts on how these affirmative action issues impact graduate admissions for professional programs, not PhD? JASCHIK: Sure. Yeah, well, I'll tell you about both. In law schools, medical schools, business schools, it is the same thing. That there's no expectation that this decision doesn't apply. And they have got to redo their systems and procedures just like their undergraduate counterparts do. PhD programs actually are interesting, though, because in many colleges and universities, those decisions are done by the department level. And it is more difficult to control a department than it is to control a whole school. You know, you may have six members of the English department or whatever deciding on admissions. But they can't use race. That's just—and if they do they're going to get sued. So that's just the rules. FASKIANOS: Great, thank you. We have a raised hand from Sneha Bharadwaj. Excuse me if I did not pronounce it correctly, but you can correct me. Q: OK. So my name is Sneha Bharadwaj. I'm from Texas Woman's University here in Dallas, Texas. I was following up on other questions you answered regarding the holistic admission process. And I'm wondering, beyond the handwritten essay, are there any talks about video interviews or uploading video prompts, where you hear from that person? And if that is something that's in the talks or is being considered, because I think we're all in the same boat of wondering how this holistic admissions is going to work. JASCHIK: Right. Well, and Texas Woman's University is a great example. It is a—it is a university in Texas that has men, for those who are not familiar with it. It is not—does not just admit women. And it's—and in recent years, it's become quite popular and is growing with more people using holistic admissions to get in. So, you know, to do an interview for everyone, on the one hand, it makes perfect sense. You meet the people, find out about them, find out about their interests, et cetera. But in most colleges, and I don't know if this is true of Texas Woman's University, that is a major undertaking, to interview everyone, even via Zoom. And most college admissions offices will be hard stretched to interview every student. Also, there have been charges that admissions interviews favor or don't favor minority students. They are said to favor them, if colleges want to admit more minority students. They are said to disfavor them when the students don't have the same expertise in doing interviews as wealthier students do. And most of the wealthy students are white students. So it is something that they are looking at, but I am not sure it will work at very many institutions this year. Q: Thank you. FASKIANOS: Thank you. So I'm going to take the next question from Kurt Schmoke, who is the president of the University of Baltimore: Which states are using direct admissions? And will this spread to other states? JASCHIK: Great question. Nice to have a president here. And so, there are not any statewide requirements, but Minnesota is the state to look at. In Minnesota, they made it possible for any college that wanted to, to use direct admissions. And most of the colleges opted in in part. One college opted in entirely. They said, that's the way you're going to apply to get into that college. Most colleges, though, are doing it on a piecemeal basis, admitting just some students. And I'm curious, does the University of Baltimore—did you use direct admissions? FASKIANOS: Kurt, if you want to unmute and respond, that would be great. We'd love to hear your experience. Q: Sure. The closest that we have to that is dual enrollment programs that allow students to obtain X number of credits. And it usually is with the community college, some with high schools. But now I'm quite interested in this direct admissions. So I'll take a look at what Minnesota is doing. JASCHIK: Right. You should do that. In Minnesota, the colleges that definitely didn't do it were the flagship University of Minnesota campus and Carleton College. You know, again, colleges that get tons of applicants don't need to, but it was all the other colleges. And if you search on Inside Higher Ed's website, you'll find a bunch of stories on the players in direct admissions, EAB, the common app, et cetera. There are places you can go. Niche does direct admissions. There are places that would love to talk to you, I'm sure. Q: Good, thank you. FASKIANOS: I'm going to take the next written question from Kevin Collymore, who is an assistant dean of retention and persistence programs at the University of San Francisco: How will institutions handle donor gifts, scholarships intentioned for students of color moving forward? FASKIANOS: Very carefully. (Laughs.) They will have to say that a gift cannot be used by the college specifically for minority students. In fact, some think the best way will be for colleges to work with outside groups, and to say: Don't give us the money. Give it to the such-and-such foundation. And then that group may decide to give financial aid to minority students at the University of San Francisco, or any university. But this is very much in play right now, in that I think it's one of the issues about which there will be a court ruling soon. FASKIANOS: Thank you. I'll take the next question from Mahmood Khan, a professor at Virginia Tech: Can you comment on anything that can be done about the time to get a U.S. visa? Students cannot join because they didn't get visas on time. So I guess they couldn't come this semester. JASCHIK: That is a terrible problem. And it has been a big issue this year. Many of the—going back to the pandemic—at the height of the pandemic, no one wanted to come to the United States. (Laughs.) And the United States didn't really want them. Everyone was viewed as a threat, really, to the health of others. Since then, officially, they've opened up. But students from certain countries report incredible delays in getting their visas. And particularly these are students trying to travel to the United States from countries where there are many Muslim students, or many Muslim people and Muslim students. And they say they're not rejected, but they just—it just takes forever for them to fill out and to get an answer. Now, why this is sort of—it's subject to debate. Many of the people who work in processing visas say they are working as fast as they can, looking for the information they need, et cetera. Many in higher education view that very skeptically. And they see students who they cannot think of a good reason why that student should be denied a visa. And it just lingers. Some colleges have taken to educating students abroad for their first semester when they can't get in. But that is something that only some colleges can do. And also, it denies the students what they're seeking, which is a real experience at Virginia Tech, or any college. FASKIANOS: Thank you. Beverly Lindsay has her hand—I don't know if that's a residual from your last question or if you had a follow-on comment. OK. I'm going to move on, then. I'm going to take the next question from Michael Strmiska, a professor of world history at the Orange County Community College: Do you think that the ban on affirmative action in student admissions might eventually apply to academic employment? I teach in a community college with very low representation of non-white faculty and I think if the Supreme Court or other powers signaled that any diversity motivated hiring among minority faculty could come under dispute this would hamper or even halt our very slow progress toward creating a more diverse faculty. JASCHIK: You're absolutely right. And many colleges do use affirmative action in hiring. The court decision itself did not speak to that. However, if you look at the justices on the court today and imagine a case involving academic hiring reaching them, it is hard for me to imagine the six justices would not also object to affirmative action in hiring. And that would be very limiting in terms of who colleges have to hire. Now, there is some leeway in that academic hiring decisions are mainly made at the department level, with some administration involvement. I don't know if that will work. But I think you're right to see that as a potential problem ahead. FASKIANOS: OK. The next question is from Galia Benitez, an associate professor of international relations at Michigan State University: You began the discussion by asserting that the number of Black and Latino students was going to decline. How do you see the actual class environment for professors and for minority students already in the system or in the future who form part of a minority would be teaching and learning in a less diverse environment? In short, what would be the consequences of these new admissions rules and learning? JASCHIK: The consequences aren't good. We are already seeing racial incidents on campuses that sort of relate to the Supreme Court decision. And when the Supreme Court has taken up these issues in the past, they have similarly been incidents about race on campus. In terms for learning, again, I think it's going to be very negative because students look to a diverse student body to learn, for all the reasons that Justice Sandra Day O'Connor wrote back in 2003 still apply. Well, or I think they should still apply. They aren't. They don't apply because of the recent Supreme Court decision. I think it's going to be tougher for faculty members who are truly committed on those issues. FASKIANOS: Thank you. I think Beverly has re-raised her hand, so I'm going to try again. Beverly, I'll give you a few minutes to—seconds to unmute yourself. You're still muted. There we go. Q: I don't know what's happening because I didn't have another question. There may be a technical problem, but since I'm on I will ask something else. FASKIANOS: OK. (Laughs.) OK. Q: Scott, with reference to the international students and the international faculty, as we know in many of the tier one, AAU major research universities, and the ones also in our neighboring countries like Canada with the University of Toronto which is also a member of AAU and McGill, for example. A number of the faculty and the PhD students in particular—this is one of my areas of research—are in the STEM fields, but they're from other countries. So how are we going to think of other ways to get diverse students, whether they're Canadians in Canada, or Americans in the United States, to be able to pursue some of these programs in STEM fields? JASCHIK: It's going to be very challenging. Look, in STEM fields international students are admitted not because only—in the past, haven't been admitted only because of affirmative action. They've been admitted—there aren't enough American students of any race or ethnicity to fill those classes. There aren't. And that is true at any university in the country, really. Now it's not that there aren't talented Americans, but they are not—they're just not in the right numbers to help. And so, you know, a bunch of things. When recruiting international students or recruiting any students, it's money. And here, the University of California, I'm less worried about than colleges that are not as high in the rankings as UC is. But, you know, it's money. And it's also—it's also mission. Why you come and do that. And it's really important that professors have good answers to questions—to both of those questions, because they are going to be asked. But, no, it's not going to be easy at all. FASKIANOS: Thank you. I'm going to go next to Beth Hillman. Beth, do you want to ask your question that you've written? Putting her on the spot. Q: Sure. I just—I'll read it there. So how will the new return on investment economic models influence student choices about institutions and programs? JASCHIK: Return on investment, I don't like the use of return on investment but I'm in a minority. And a lot of students and their parents love it. Look, return on investment is greater if you are a student in STEM at MIT than if you're a student in English at any college or university. That's just a fact. But to me what that misses is that in many areas the student studying English may have a perfectly good return on investment. And it's important for colleges to publicize the actual returns that students get. Look, students who study English, and history, and political science, and whatnot, are not, in fact, as a group, ending up working at Starbucks And they, they have the ability to get good jobs. Now, most of them, they get good jobs by not staying as a—in that field. I am a history major. I am not a historian. And most people don't seem to really understand that. But every year people will come up with more ways to rank colleges by return on investment. I don't really put too much in it. FASKIANOS: Thank you. Please raise your hands if you have more questions. I see none—no more raised hands or written questions, but we'd love to hear from you. So I do have a couple, though. I wanted to ask you a little bit about how do you think the U.S. higher education admission strategies is affecting our image in the world, our global standing? JASCHIK: That's a really important question. Look, most people abroad would love to attend a great American college or university. They felt that way during the Trump administration, during the Biden administration, during the Obama administration. They want a U.S. college. Now, that doesn't mean that they favor the U.S. in terms of what the U.S. is doing around the world, but they do value American colleges and universities. There's no doubt about that. And so, in fact, I'd say it's a real loss that the U.S. doesn't act with more on that, because—you know, potentially it's a great, great reason to come to the U.S. FASKIANOS: And what resources do you recommend for higher ed leaders and administrators to better understand how to promote equitable missions, processes, or to navigate now what's this current landscape? JASCHIK: Read Inside Higher Ed—(laughs)—and, you know, pay attention to the issues. If you are at an elite institution, there's a set of questions that you have about early admissions, about legacy admissions. You know, why are you continuing those policies if they are specifically resulting in—(coughs)—excuse me—in the admission only of white students? Align your financial aid to admitting more low-income students. You can base it on income, not race and ethnicity. Totally legal. And, you know, why aren't more colleges doing that? If you are a less-wealthy institution, and an institution of less stature, I would raise the same question, particularly about merit aid—so-called merit aid, is what I would call it. Because merit aid is really aid for those who don't really need aid. And, you know, why do you do these policies that don't—that don't actually improve things in terms of your student bodies? FASKIANOS: Thank you. I'm going to take the next question from Todd Barry. Again, it's Hudson County Community College: Will any of President Biden's debt forgiveness programs be upheld by the courts? And will college rankings involve more companies to become more diverse? JASCHIK: Companies? FASKIANOS: Todd, do you want to just clarify that second part of your question? Thank you. Q: Yes, thank you. Will there be more organizations that put out college rankings rather than just the two that do so already? JASCHIK: Ah, OK. FASKIANOS: Thank you. Q: Thank you. JASCHIK: I suspect there will be. I've yet to find a ranking that I truly like, because I personally believe that college—the way to pick a good college is not to look at what somebody else said are the rankings of colleges. It's just not a good way. But it may be a good way for some people to make a lot of money, so the rankings will continue. I'm sorry. I just forgot. What was the first part of that question? FASKIANOS: The first part was—let me pull it back up—will any of President Biden's debt forgiveness programs be upheld by the courts? JASCHIK: Ah, yes. I don't know. (Laughs.) The most recent of his debt relief things are being challenged. And I don't know. I really don't know if he'll be successful. It depends which judges the cases are before to tell. Yet, I think I saw—I read this weekend, four million have applied for the most recent debt relief, with more expected to. That's a lot of people. FASKIANOS: I'm going to take the next question from Amanda Shanor, assistant professor of legal studies and business ethics at University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School: Why haven't universities used First Amendment arguments to defend their admissions policies? And should they do so in the future? JASCHIK: I don't think that that argument would carry the day with the current Supreme Court. I just don't. They were—if you read the decision, if you listened to the arguments that were made, they were wholly committed to getting rid of affirmative action. It may help in the future with a different Court, but I think we have the current court for a while. FASKIANOS: I'm going to take the next written question from Edie Gaythwaite, again, a professor at Valencia College: To build off the global conversation, do you see institutions actively recruiting international students as admission applications decline? JASCHIK: Definitely. Many colleges—most colleges have some international recruitment strategy. Now, at—at Valencia, I don't know what your strategy is. But, you know, many Florida colleges, they are trying to—they have a tremendous advantage in Latin America, as opposed to Europe and the Middle East. That may be something that they are trying. All types of colleges are pushing for more students. And it makes perfect sense. They should definitely recruit more. FASKIANOS: OK. And then we're going to take the next question from Sneha again, from Texas Woman's University: How does removing scholarships and merit aid impact enrollment and retention? JASCHIK: It depends what institution you're at. Many institutions use merit aid to get students who wouldn't otherwise attend. And that's just a reality. Most students are making their choice based on a combination of factors, both the academic quality of the institution and the money. And so shifting it is a risky business. Now, some colleges that are more prestigious have managed to eliminate merit aid. But the main problem for colleges that are not in the elite is that they are trying to get some students who wouldn't come, to come. And they're very nervous about eliminating merit aid for that reason. FASKIANOS: And now that the—the pandemic is in the rearview mirror, have the admissions or the matriculation from international students—is that going up again? JASCHIK: Slightly. The big study comes out, I think, in December. So we don't know yet for this year. FASKIANOS: Mmm hmm. Great. OK, so I'm doing a final call for questions from the group. Oh, I think—oh, one more from Kurt Schmoke: Do you think that the Court's exemption of military academies will undermine their rationale for ending affirmative action? JASCHIK: You know, that's really interesting. And the group that led the campaign against affirmative action, they are right now seeking plaintiffs at all the military academies. So I don't think it's going to last long. And I don't know. The court may have left it in place because they truly believe it. But in reading the overall decision, I would have a hard time imagining them voting to uphold it anywhere. FASKIANOS: Thank you. We have a raised hand from Dena Bateh at NYU. Q: Yes. You pronounced that perfectly correct, thank you. My question is somewhat related, but maybe just on an alternative tangent. And it's something that I'm going to be doing some research on. So I do teach at NYU, but I am an administrator at another institution. And I've noticed—I'm in New York City, of course. And I've noticed the pattern of referring to students as consumers or customers has been a prevalent topic. And I can't even tell you how that boils my blood rather than, say, learner. So that's my research topic. But I'm wondering, how is this being addressed? You know, to uphold the standards of higher education, what are your thoughts on moving forward beyond a Google certification or just certificates that will get students who are—who have not pursued higher education to a certain point, but then they're going to need to return? What are your thoughts on that, I think, in general will be. JASCHIK: So I share your distaste, I guess, for calling students consumers. Look, you know, in a real higher ed environment, professors are teaching and they're also testing students on what they've done, period. But there are some areas where a more consumer approach can work. I did a story about fifteen to twenty years ago about—I wanted to take an online course. And I sent off emails of my interest, didn't say it was for journalism, to some nonprofit and for-profit places. And the for-profit places clearly saw me as a customer. And they wrote immediately—I mean, within an hour—and said, what can we do to help you? Blah, blah, blah. That spirit should be prevalent at any college, particularly that's going to get a lot of low-income students. That's how they will get more low-income students. So in some areas thinking about students as consumers is OK, but I hope they don't do it overall. FASKIANOS: OK. I'm going to take the last question for Babafemi Akinrinade: In Washington State, minority students will number white students in a few years. Will the Supreme Court decision impact the efforts of colleges to recruit these minority students, especially as the state is worried about declining birth rates, while other states are poaching students from Washington State. And Babafemi is with Western Washington University. JASCHIK: So it shouldn't. Look, it's great if Washington State has great numbers of students. They should shout out to the world. More colleges should go and recruit. That's just the fact of life. In the United States today, at Harvard—which was in this decision—they are a majority minority institution. So it didn't really help them out, but it can help—but lots of colleges can recruit students of all kinds, in Washington State and elsewhere. And thanks so much for your invitation to speak today. And I hope you found it useful. FASKIANOS: We did indeed. Thank you very much, Scott Jaschik. I appreciate it. And to all of you for your questions and comments. We enjoyed this conversation. We will be posting the video and transcript online afterwards if you want to review it and share it with your colleagues. You will receive an invitation to our next Higher Education Webinar under separate cover. In the meantime, I encourage you to follow @CFR_Academic on X, formerly known as Twitter, and visit CFR.org, ForeignAffairs.com, and ThinkGlobalHealth.org, for research and analysis on global issues. We also have a dedicated series for students and professors, so professors can invite their students to join the Academic Webinar series. And the first one of this semester is next Wednesday at, I believe, 1:00 p.m. So I hope you will join us for that. If you haven't gotten an invitation, please do email us at CFRacademic@CFR.org. Again, thank you all for being with us today. We look forward to your continued participation in our program series. (END)

Scott Jaschik, cofounder and former chief executive officer and editor of Inside Higher Ed, leads the conversation on the changing landscape of college and university admissions criteria. FASKIANOS: Welcome to CFR's Higher Education Webinar Series. I'm Irina Faskianos, vice president of the National Program and Outreach here at CFR. Today's discussion is on the record and the video and transcript will be available on our website, CFR.org/Academic. As always, CFR takes no institutional positions on matters of policy. We're delighted to have Scott Jaschik with us today to discuss the changing landscape of college and university admissions criteria. Mr. Jaschik was a cofounder and former chief executive officer and an editor at Inside Higher Ed, a media company and online publication that provides news, opinions, resources, and events focused on colleges and university topics. He previously served as editor for the Chronicle of Higher Education and was a former board member of the Education Writers Association. And he's a leading voice on higher education issues, publishing articles in the New York Times, the Boston Globe, Washington Post, Salon, and elsewhere. So, Scott, thank you very much for being with us today. There's a lot here to cover, I thought maybe you could give us context and set the stage of the current trends in college and university admissions, as well as the role and importance of international students and scholars at U.S. universities. JASCHIK: Sure. Thanks very much for the invitation. And it's great to speak to CFR people. And it's great particularly because you're a group whose interests extend far beyond higher education. And it just goes to show, higher education is important to every society and everyone, really. So I think this is a great opportunity for me to talk to you. And mainly, I'm excited to hear what the attendees have to say about these issues. But briefly, to give an overview. The big issue, and I want to say a few—one thing, in terms of setting the context. Admissions, talking about college admissions, can vary hugely depending on who you are talking about—by student, by institution, and so forth. So I'm going to talk, for instance, at the beginning about affirmative action. And I'll talk about the institutions that are most affected by the recent Supreme Court decision on affirmative action. But then I'm going to talk about a trend in the rest of higher ed, direct admissions, and how that affects people in higher ed. And then at the end, I'll throw in a few comments on the international students. So on affirmative action, the big news was this summer the Supreme Court ruled six to three that colleges—that two colleges in particular, Harvard and UNC Chapel Hill, were not following the law with respect to how they used affirmative action in admissions. It was a very strong decision, a very thorough decision, but one that greatly upset most people in colleges. The general public generally is a little bit skeptical of affirmative action. But in higher ed, there is very strong support for affirmative action. Now, it's important to remember that this decision will directly affect maybe two hundred institutions. Now, it may indirectly affect many more down the road. I'll talk about that in a minute. But it's important to remember, at most colleges—you know, you read these stories every year about how under 5 percent of applicants get into Harvard, Yale, and whatever. Well, most colleges admit most applicants. And I'll just repeat that, because it's really important to remember. Most colleges admit most applicants. I think that is largely lost in the coverage of late on affirmative action. And it's really important, if you have an opportunity, to shout that out to the world. Because even if a student doesn't feel comfortable applying to an elite college or university, it's important to always say that there is a place in higher ed for that student, and for all students. But on higher ed, this is a big decision for higher education because most of the top colleges in the country have used affirmative action in admissions. They don't maybe want to talk about it now, but they have used it for their admissions processes. And now they can't. And, you know, there's really a lot of skepticism about what it will be like. Now, the expectations are based on the University of California, the University of Michigan, and the University of Texas, because in prior court rulings and in state votes they do not use affirmative action. And if you expect them to follow—to follow what's going to go on, people will predict a major decline for Black students, Latino students. White students actually are not going to gain a lot. Asian students will gain. But that's based on those past examples. There's a big question mark this year which is about the admissions tests that in the past were required of all students, but now they aren't. And test-optional admissions truly took off during the pandemic, because there was a period of time when students literally couldn't take the SAT or ACT. But a secondary reason, and arguably, I think, the more important reason, colleges dropped the test-optional—or, went test-optional, is this decision. They knew it was coming and this gives them a lot more flexibility. So do I expect to happen what happened with the University of California? I would say yes, but, because nobody really knows what the impact will be of test-optional admissions. Now, very quickly, some other things on affirmative action to remember. Many colleges are adding essays specifically to reach students who are minority students or who have particular experiences that colleges want to have. And this is, again—remember, even if a college asks, are you Black, Latino, or whatever, they cannot use that information when they evaluate students. So that will be totally invisible to the colleges. The Supreme Court decision explicitly said that students can write about their experiences in life and how that affects them for higher ed. But the Court's going to be watching very carefully and wants to make sure that anything that the students say is not just a way to go back to considering students differently, as the Court said, on the race and ethnicity. Also, there's a group working to create a new system to evaluate students' character, because character is something that many people cite but they don't really have a way to cite it. That's the kind of thing that we're seeing. Now, there are other issues too. Legacy admissions, in which colleges favor the children of alumni or relatives, that is under real tight scrutiny right now. There was nothing in the Supreme Court decision to say they couldn't do legacy admissions, but many colleges are uncomfortable given that they cannot use the systems they came up with to help Black, and Latino, and Asian American students get into college. They are uncomfortable with legacy admissions because it primarily helps white students get into college. And that's not something they want to do. Similarly, early decision is something that is very controversial, because it primarily helps white students. Now what's unknown is two things. One is the final rule, so to say, on admissions. That's going to be decided not by anything I say or that anyone else says, but it's going to be back in the courts. I would be absolutely certain it will return to the courts. And they will, you know, hash that out. Also, there's the question of financial aid. Some colleges award—and this is many more colleges—award financial aid in part based on race and ethnicity. Is that legal? We don't yet know. Some players on both sides have offered their opinions, but that will be a huge decision that will come down. Now I want to talk about another issue in higher ed that's going on, which is direct admissions. And if you're not familiar with direct admissions, in direct admissions students do not apply to colleges. Students simply fill out a form, which includes their transcript, any test scores they want to submit, and roughly where they want to go to college. I don't mean institution names, but, like, I live in Connecticut and these are the—and I want to go to college near my home. It's important to remember, most college students go to college near their homes. So and then after that, colleges will look at the application that they filled out. And colleges will admit those students. Now direct admissions is very popular among all the institutions that I wasn't talking about before, because it is a good way to recruit more low-income students, who seem to really like this system. But direct admissions has primarily been used on a small scale. And that—we have to see what will happen as it goes to a larger scale. So that is something still to find out. And then on international students, with international students most colleges very much want international students. But there are key things that may make it difficult to recruit them. One is foreign—the foreign relations, as your group well knows. I mean, you've got the war in Russia and Ukraine, which didn't send a lot of foreign students to the United States, but they sent some. And, interestingly, some of the colleges in New York City have both Russian and Ukrainian students at the same college. And they are dealing with issues related to that. But the most students have come from China. And our relations with China are, frankly, pretty bad right now, I would say. And that raises real questions about which students will come. My guess is that the top universities are not going to have a loss in foreign students, or at least not a substantial loss. But it's important to remember, foreign students are enrolling at every type of college and university. And they may be affected at institutions that aren't as competitive in admissions. So that's my rough answer to your question. Have at it. FASKIANOS: Fantastic. Thank you so much. And now we're going to go to all of you for your questions and comments. And please use this as a forum too to share best practices. (Gives queuing instructions.) So I'm going to take the first written question from Edie Gaythwaite, professor at Valencia College in Orlando, Florida: The issue of essays is now the use of AI-generated essays being submitted. So how do you see the admissions process moving forward with this in mind? JASCHIK: That's a great question. And it's something that's getting a lot of attention right now. And I'm going to answer first for what's going to happen this year, and then I want to talk about the future. Right now, this is making a lot of people in admissions very nervous, because every day someone does a story on—on the way AI can be used to write essays. Colleges don't know. So they are nervous. Now, some of the services that colleges use to detect plagiarism can also be used, they say, to maybe detect the use of AI. So that's one possibility. Others are suggesting that colleges should instead of using regular essays, should require an essay that is handwritten and was graded by a high school teacher, and to turn it in with the high school teacher's grades. Now that's a little—there's something odd about that, in that that assumes that the student didn't use AI in high school, which, you know, who knows if that's true. But the reason I would say not to get a huge panic this year, is that a bunch of colleges are working on the issue. I suspect that by the end of this year, they are going to have better ways to deal with AI than they do right now. So I would say, you know, watch. But remember—and the other thing I would say is to remember past examples. Remember, when Wikipedia first started? There were people saying, no college student is ever going to write his or her own essay again. They're all going to come from Wikipedia. Well, they're not. And so because a lot of people figured out how to use Wikipedia, and how not to use Wikipedia. So I don't mean to sound like a Pollyanna, but there may be a better way coming. FASKIANOS: Our next question comes from Beverly Lindsay. Beverly, please identify yourself and ask your question. Q: Can you hear me? FASKIANOS: We can. We can. Q: Great. Beverly Lindsay, University of California, multicampus. Hello, Scott. Good to hear your comments. I have something that wasn't quite covered. Because I have been at two major research universities, actually more, but two in particular. They actually have informal legacy admits. And I would like your speculation on how that will continue. The second part of the question relates to HBCUs, particularly the ones that are known as the Black Ivies. I was at two of them. And I also know that they are concerned about having more diverse students from different economic backgrounds. Could you comment on that as well? Thank you. JASCHIK: Sure. Those are very good questions. So, first, on the informal legacies, which is something I have heard about. And I, in fact, did a story about a university that said it was eliminating legacy admissions, but it turned out they weren't. They still had legacy admissions. And that's because legacy admissions is something that colleges like to talk about with their alumni, but maybe not with the public. It strikes me that informal legacy admissions really doesn't make sense. If you believe in legacy admissions, defend it. But informal strikes me as inappropriate, frankly. Now, on the HBCUs, and particularly, the so-called top HBCUs, there's interesting developments with regard to affirmative action. When California eliminated affirmative action way back when, more Californians started to go to Morehouse, and Spelman, and other very good HBCUs. And we are going to see more of this in the next year, I think. But at the same time, I would caution against assuming that HBCUs can provide the answers to everything here. Morehouse and Spelman, despite being great colleges, to not have the financial aid that Harvard and Stanford have. They just don't. There's not enough money there. And it's a different kind of experience, a great experience for some students. But financially and otherwise, there are limits to what they can do. Now, if Morehouse and Spelman could grow by a thousand students, well, that would sound wonderful. But I don't think they can grow by a thousand students, at least not immediately. So this year, I think we're going to be watching what goes on at those colleges. So I hope I've answered. FASKIANOS: Great, thank you. I'm going to take the written question from Todd Barry, who is professor at Hudson County Community College? Excuse me. How safe is it geopolitically for U.S. professors to teach abroad? JASCHIK: How what is it? FASKIANOS: Safe is it. JASCHIK: Oh, how safe? I think it really depends on the country. In lots of countries it is totally safe, in that—you know, you have to be realistic. What is—how safe is it to teach in the United States is a legitimate question, in some parts of the country. To go abroad, there are real issues if the country is not secure, it does not have an adequate system for making sure that people are protected. And also, there are issues related to the potential in other countries for anti-American thought to happen and to be a cause of concern. At the same time, there are many countries where you will find yourself welcome. And I think it's great for American college professors to look for those places and to go abroad. They will learn as much as they will teach. So I think that's, you know, that's great. FASKIANOS: Great. Don Habibi has raised his hand, and also written a—written a question. But, Don, I think you've put your hand down, but I'd love you to ask it yourself, if you could unmute yourself. Q: OK. Yes. Hi. Yeah, my question was triggered by the first AI question. And that is, what's to prevent—or how do you check a student who writes a fabulous story of their overcoming adversity or their combat experience, or whatever it is that, you know, would just sort of bring them to the top of the applicant pool. And the likelihood of fact checking that sort of thing is pretty small. And I mentioned in the question that several times reporters won Pulitzer Prizes for reporting on stories, and they made them up. FASKIANOS: And Don is—can you give us your affiliation? Q: I'm a professor at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. FASKIANOS: Thank you. JASCHIK: Yes, that is a real concern. And it's not just in admissions. Colleges are worried about that issue in the essays they will assign to students to write after—you know, after they're enrolled. There, they—some people are arguing for in-person writing. You know, in class, where the students will be forced to write it down. Now, some students say they can't write a long, handwritten essay anymore, because all they can do is type. And I have some sympathy for them, but that's what they're saying. It goes back to what I said before. Colleges are working on solutions to this and going to try. I would say that a good admissions counselor should be able to see some things that come out in their applications. Also, some colleges are changing their essays so that they are more about the college you are applying to, to make it more difficult to use a copied essay. FASKIANOS: Thank you very much. The next question we'll take from Melissa McGinnis, assistant director of admissions at Yale University's Jackson School of Global Affairs: What are your thoughts on how these affirmative action issues impact graduate admissions for professional programs, not PhD? JASCHIK: Sure. Yeah, well, I'll tell you about both. In law schools, medical schools, business schools, it is the same thing. That there's no expectation that this decision doesn't apply. And they have got to redo their systems and procedures just like their undergraduate counterparts do. PhD programs actually are interesting, though, because in many colleges and universities, those decisions are done by the department level. And it is more difficult to control a department than it is to control a whole school. You know, you may have six members of the English department or whatever deciding on admissions. But they can't use race. That's just—and if they do they're going to get sued. So that's just the rules. FASKIANOS: Great, thank you. We have a raised hand from Sneha Bharadwaj. Excuse me if I did not pronounce it correctly, but you can correct me. Q: OK. So my name is Sneha Bharadwaj. I'm from Texas Woman's University here in Dallas, Texas. I was following up on other questions you answered regarding the holistic admission process. And I'm wondering, beyond the handwritten essay, are there any talks about video interviews or uploading video prompts, where you hear from that person? And if that is something that's in the talks or is being considered, because I think we're all in the same boat of wondering how this holistic admissions is going to work. JASCHIK: Right. Well, and Texas Woman's University is a great example. It is a—it is a university in Texas that has men, for those who are not familiar with it. It is not—does not just admit women. And it's—and in recent years, it's become quite popular and is growing with more people using holistic admissions to get in. So, you know, to do an interview for everyone, on the one hand, it makes perfect sense. You meet the people, find out about them, find out about their interests, et cetera. But in most colleges, and I don't know if this is true of Texas Woman's University, that is a major undertaking, to interview everyone, even via Zoom. And most college admissions offices will be hard stretched to interview every student. Also, there have been charges that admissions interviews favor or don't favor minority students. They are said to favor them, if colleges want to admit more minority students. They are said to disfavor them when the students don't have the same expertise in doing interviews as wealthier students do. And most of the wealthy students are white students. So it is something that they are looking at, but I am not sure it will work at very many institutions this year. Q: Thank you. FASKIANOS: Thank you. So I'm going to take the next question from Kurt Schmoke, who is the president of the University of Baltimore: Which states are using direct admissions? And will this spread to other states? JASCHIK: Great question. Nice to have a president here. And so, there are not any statewide requirements, but Minnesota is the state to look at. In Minnesota, they made it possible for any college that wanted to, to use direct admissions. And most of the colleges opted in in part. One college opted in entirely. They said, that's the way you're going to apply to get into that college. Most colleges, though, are doing it on a piecemeal basis, admitting just some students. And I'm curious, does the University of Baltimore—did you use direct admissions? FASKIANOS: Kurt, if you want to unmute and respond, that would be great. We'd love to hear your experience. Q: Sure. The closest that we have to that is dual enrollment programs that allow students to obtain X number of credits. And it usually is with the community college, some with high schools. But now I'm quite interested in this direct admissions. So I'll take a look at what Minnesota is doing. JASCHIK: Right. You should do that. In Minnesota, the colleges that definitely didn't do it were the flagship University of Minnesota campus and Carleton College. You know, again, colleges that get tons of applicants don't need to, but it was all the other colleges. And if you search on Inside Higher Ed's website, you'll find a bunch of stories on the players in direct admissions, EAB, the common app, et cetera. There are places you can go. Niche does direct admissions. There are places that would love to talk to you, I'm sure. Q: Good, thank you. FASKIANOS: I'm going to take the next written question from Kevin Collymore, who is an assistant dean of retention and persistence programs at the University of San Francisco: How will institutions handle donor gifts, scholarships intentioned for students of color moving forward? FASKIANOS: Very carefully. (Laughs.) They will have to say that a gift cannot be used by the college specifically for minority students. In fact, some think the best way will be for colleges to work with outside groups, and to say: Don't give us the money. Give it to the such-and-such foundation. And then that group may decide to give financial aid to minority students at the University of San Francisco, or any university. But this is very much in play right now, in that I think it's one of the issues about which there will be a court ruling soon. FASKIANOS: Thank you. I'll take the next question from Mahmood Khan, a professor at Virginia Tech: Can you comment on anything that can be done about the time to get a U.S. visa? Students cannot join because they didn't get visas on time. So I guess they couldn't come this semester. JASCHIK: That is a terrible problem. And it has been a big issue this year. Many of the—going back to the pandemic—at the height of the pandemic, no one wanted to come to the United States. (Laughs.) And the United States didn't really want them. Everyone was viewed as a threat, really, to the health of others. Since then, officially, they've opened up. But students from certain countries report incredible delays in getting their visas. And particularly these are students trying to travel to the United States from countries where there are many Muslim students, or many Muslim people and Muslim students. And they say they're not rejected, but they just—it just takes forever for them to fill out and to get an answer. Now, why this is sort of—it's subject to debate. Many of the people who work in processing visas say they are working as fast as they can, looking for the information they need, et cetera. Many in higher education view that very skeptically. And they see students who they cannot think of a good reason why that student should be denied a visa. And it just lingers. Some colleges have taken to educating students abroad for their first semester when they can't get in. But that is something that only some colleges can do. And also, it denies the students what they're seeking, which is a real experience at Virginia Tech, or any college. FASKIANOS: Thank you. Beverly Lindsay has her hand—I don't know if that's a residual from your last question or if you had a follow-on comment. OK. I'm going to move on, then. I'm going to take the next question from Michael Strmiska, a professor of world history at the Orange County Community College: Do you think that the ban on affirmative action in student admissions might eventually apply to academic employment? I teach in a community college with very low representation of non-white faculty and I think if the Supreme Court or other powers signaled that any diversity motivated hiring among minority faculty could come under dispute this would hamper or even halt our very slow progress toward creating a more diverse faculty. JASCHIK: You're absolutely right. And many colleges do use affirmative action in hiring. The court decision itself did not speak to that. However, if you look at the justices on the court today and imagine a case involving academic hiring reaching them, it is hard for me to imagine the six justices would not also object to affirmative action in hiring. And that would be very limiting in terms of who colleges have to hire. Now, there is some leeway in that academic hiring decisions are mainly made at the department level, with some administration involvement. I don't know if that will work. But I think you're right to see that as a potential problem ahead. FASKIANOS: OK. The next question is from Galia Benitez, an associate professor of international relations at Michigan State University: You began the discussion by asserting that the number of Black and Latino students was going to decline. How do you see the actual class environment for professors and for minority students already in the system or in the future who form part of a minority would be teaching and learning in a less diverse environment? In short, what would be the consequences of these new admissions rules and learning? JASCHIK: The consequences aren't good. We are already seeing racial incidents on campuses that sort of relate to the Supreme Court decision. And when the Supreme Court has taken up these issues in the past, they have similarly been incidents about race on campus. In terms for learning, again, I think it's going to be very negative because students look to a diverse student body to learn, for all the reasons that Justice Sandra Day O'Connor wrote back in 2003 still apply. Well, or I think they should still apply. They aren't. They don't apply because of the recent Supreme Court decision. I think it's going to be tougher for faculty members who are truly committed on those issues. FASKIANOS: Thank you. I think Beverly has re-raised her hand, so I'm going to try again. Beverly, I'll give you a few minutes to—seconds to unmute yourself. You're still muted. There we go. Q: I don't know what's happening because I didn't have another question. There may be a technical problem, but since I'm on I will ask something else. FASKIANOS: OK. (Laughs.) OK. Q: Scott, with reference to the international students and the international faculty, as we know in many of the tier one, AAU major research universities, and the ones also in our neighboring countries like Canada with the University of Toronto which is also a member of AAU and McGill, for example. A number of the faculty and the PhD students in particular—this is one of my areas of research—are in the STEM fields, but they're from other countries. So how are we going to think of other ways to get diverse students, whether they're Canadians in Canada, or Americans in the United States, to be able to pursue some of these programs in STEM fields? JASCHIK: It's going to be very challenging. Look, in STEM fields international students are admitted not because only—in the past, haven't been admitted only because of affirmative action. They've been admitted—there aren't enough American students of any race or ethnicity to fill those classes. There aren't. And that is true at any university in the country, really. Now it's not that there aren't talented Americans, but they are not—they're just not in the right numbers to help. And so, you know, a bunch of things. When recruiting international students or recruiting any students, it's money. And here, the University of California, I'm less worried about than colleges that are not as high in the rankings as UC is. But, you know, it's money. And it's also—it's also mission. Why you come and do that. And it's really important that professors have good answers to questions—to both of those questions, because they are going to be asked. But, no, it's not going to be easy at all. FASKIANOS: Thank you. I'm going to go next to Beth Hillman. Beth, do you want to ask your question that you've written? Putting her on the spot. Q: Sure. I just—I'll read it there. So how will the new return on investment economic models influence student choices about institutions and programs? JASCHIK: Return on investment, I don't like the use of return on investment but I'm in a minority. And a lot of students and their parents love it. Look, return on investment is greater if you are a student in STEM at MIT than if you're a student in English at any college or university. That's just a fact. But to me what that misses is that in many areas the student studying English may have a perfectly good return on investment. And it's important for colleges to publicize the actual returns that students get. Look, students who study English, and history, and political science, and whatnot, are not, in fact, as a group, ending up working at Starbucks And they, they have the ability to get good jobs. Now, most of them, they get good jobs by not staying as a—in that field. I am a history major. I am not a historian. And most people don't seem to really understand that. But every year people will come up with more ways to rank colleges by return on investment. I don't really put too much in it. FASKIANOS: Thank you. Please raise your hands if you have more questions. I see none—no more raised hands or written questions, but we'd love to hear from you. So I do have a couple, though. I wanted to ask you a little bit about how do you think the U.S. higher education admission strategies is affecting our image in the world, our global standing? JASCHIK: That's a really important question. Look, most people abroad would love to attend a great American college or university. They felt that way during the Trump administration, during the Biden administration, during the Obama administration. They want a U.S. college. Now, that doesn't mean that they favor the U.S. in terms of what the U.S. is doing around the world, but they do value American colleges and universities. There's no doubt about that. And so, in fact, I'd say it's a real loss that the U.S. doesn't act with more on that, because—you know, potentially it's a great, great reason to come to the U.S. FASKIANOS: And what resources do you recommend for higher ed leaders and administrators to better understand how to promote equitable missions, processes, or to navigate now what's this current landscape? JASCHIK: Read Inside Higher Ed—(laughs)—and, you know, pay attention to the issues. If you are at an elite institution, there's a set of questions that you have about early admissions, about legacy admissions. You know, why are you continuing those policies if they are specifically resulting in—(coughs)—excuse me—in the admission only of white students? Align your financial aid to admitting more low-income students. You can base it on income, not race and ethnicity. Totally legal. And, you know, why aren't more colleges doing that? If you are a less-wealthy institution, and an institution of less stature, I would raise the same question, particularly about merit aid—so-called merit aid, is what I would call it. Because merit aid is really aid for those who don't really need aid. And, you know, why do you do these policies that don't—that don't actually improve things in terms of your student bodies? FASKIANOS: Thank you. I'm going to take the next question from Todd Barry. Again, it's Hudson County Community College: Will any of President Biden's debt forgiveness programs be upheld by the courts? And will college rankings involve more companies to become more diverse? JASCHIK: Companies? FASKIANOS: Todd, do you want to just clarify that second part of your question? Thank you. Q: Yes, thank you. Will there be more organizations that put out college rankings rather than just the two that do so already? JASCHIK: Ah, OK. FASKIANOS: Thank you. Q: Thank you. JASCHIK: I suspect there will be. I've yet to find a ranking that I truly like, because I personally believe that college—the way to pick a good college is not to look at what somebody else said are the rankings of colleges. It's just not a good way. But it may be a good way for some people to make a lot of money, so the rankings will continue. I'm sorry. I just forgot. What was the first part of that question? FASKIANOS: The first part was—let me pull it back up—will any of President Biden's debt forgiveness programs be upheld by the courts? JASCHIK: Ah, yes. I don't know. (Laughs.) The most recent of his debt relief things are being challenged. And I don't know. I really don't know if he'll be successful. It depends which judges the cases are before to tell. Yet, I think I saw—I read this weekend, four million have applied for the most recent debt relief, with more expected to. That's a lot of people. FASKIANOS: I'm going to take the next question from Amanda Shanor, assistant professor of legal studies and business ethics at University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School: Why haven't universities used First Amendment arguments to defend their admissions policies? And should they do so in the future? JASCHIK: I don't think that that argument would carry the day with the current Supreme Court. I just don't. They were—if you read the decision, if you listened to the arguments that were made, they were wholly committed to getting rid of affirmative action. It may help in the future with a different Court, but I think we have the current court for a while. FASKIANOS: I'm going to take the next written question from Edie Gaythwaite, again, a professor at Valencia College: To build off the global conversation, do you see institutions actively recruiting international students as admission applications decline? JASCHIK: Definitely. Many colleges—most colleges have some international recruitment strategy. Now, at—at Valencia, I don't know what your strategy is. But, you know, many Florida colleges, they are trying to—they have a tremendous advantage in Latin America, as opposed to Europe and the Middle East. That may be something that they are trying. All types of colleges are pushing for more students. And it makes perfect sense. They should definitely recruit more. FASKIANOS: OK. And then we're going to take the next question from Sneha again, from Texas Woman's University: How does removing scholarships and merit aid impact enrollment and retention? JASCHIK: It depends what institution you're at. Many institutions use merit aid to get students who wouldn't otherwise attend. And that's just a reality. Most students are making their choice based on a combination of factors, both the academic quality of the institution and the money. And so shifting it is a risky business. Now, some colleges that are more prestigious have managed to eliminate merit aid. But the main problem for colleges that are not in the elite is that they are trying to get some students who wouldn't come, to come. And they're very nervous about eliminating merit aid for that reason. FASKIANOS: And now that the—the pandemic is in the rearview mirror, have the admissions or the matriculation from international students—is that going up again? JASCHIK: Slightly. The big study comes out, I think, in December. So we don't know yet for this year. FASKIANOS: Mmm hmm. Great. OK, so I'm doing a final call for questions from the group. Oh, I think—oh, one more from Kurt Schmoke: Do you think that the Court's exemption of military academies will undermine their rationale for ending affirmative action? JASCHIK: You know, that's really interesting. And the group that led the campaign against affirmative action, they are right now seeking plaintiffs at all the military academies. So I don't think it's going to last long. And I don't know. The court may have left it in place because they truly believe it. But in reading the overall decision, I would have a hard time imagining them voting to uphold it anywhere. FASKIANOS: Thank you. We have a raised hand from Dena Bateh at NYU. Q: Yes. You pronounced that perfectly correct, thank you. My question is somewhat related, but maybe just on an alternative tangent. And it's something that I'm going to be doing some research on. So I do teach at NYU, but I am an administrator at another institution. And I've noticed—I'm in New York City, of course. And I've noticed the pattern of referring to students as consumers or customers has been a prevalent topic. And I can't even tell you how that boils my blood rather than, say, learner. So that's my research topic. But I'm wondering, how is this being addressed? You know, to uphold the standards of higher education, what are your thoughts on moving forward beyond a Google certification or just certificates that will get students who are—who have not pursued higher education to a certain point, but then they're going to need to return? What are your thoughts on that, I think, in general will be. JASCHIK: So I share your distaste, I guess, for calling students consumers. Look, you know, in a real higher ed environment, professors are teaching and they're also testing students on what they've done, period. But there are some areas where a more consumer approach can work. I did a story about fifteen to twenty years ago about—I wanted to take an online course. And I sent off emails of my interest, didn't say it was for journalism, to some nonprofit and for-profit places. And the for-profit places clearly saw me as a customer. And they wrote immediately—I mean, within an hour—and said, what can we do to help you? Blah, blah, blah. That spirit should be prevalent at any college, particularly that's going to get a lot of low-income students. That's how they will get more low-income students. So in some areas thinking about students as consumers is OK, but I hope they don't do it overall. FASKIANOS: OK. I'm going to take the last question for Babafemi Akinrinade: In Washington State, minority students will number white students in a few years. Will the Supreme Court decision impact the efforts of colleges to recruit these minority students, especially as the state is worried about declining birth rates, while other states are poaching students from Washington State. And Babafemi is with Western Washington University. JASCHIK: So it shouldn't. Look, it's great if Washington State has great numbers of students. They should shout out to the world. More colleges should go and recruit. That's just the fact of life. In the United States today, at Harvard—which was in this decision—they are a majority minority institution. So it didn't really help them out, but it can help—but lots of colleges can recruit students of all kinds, in Washington State and elsewhere. And thanks so much for your invitation to speak today. And I hope you found it useful. FASKIANOS: We did indeed. Thank you very much, Scott Jaschik. I appreciate it. And to all of you for your questions and comments. We enjoyed this conversation. We will be posting the video and transcript online afterwards if you want to review it and share it with your colleagues. You will receive an invitation to our next Higher Education Webinar under separate cover. In the meantime, I encourage you to follow @CFR_Academic on X, formerly known as Twitter, and visit CFR.org, ForeignAffairs.com, and ThinkGlobalHealth.org, for research and analysis on global issues. We also have a dedicated series for students and professors, so professors can invite their students to join the Academic Webinar series. And the first one of this semester is next Wednesday at, I believe, 1:00 p.m. So I hope you will join us for that. If you haven't gotten an invitation, please do email us at CFRacademic@CFR.org. Again, thank you all for being with us today. We look forward to your continued participation in our program series. (END)

The new academic year is underway, and Inside Higher Ed Co-founder Scott Jaschik shares story ideas for enterprising journalists. Among his top picks: Legacy admissions in the wake of the Supreme Court's ruling on race-conscious college admissions, the risks and rewards of ChatGPT, and looming budget cuts once federal pandemic aid runs dry.

The new academic year is underway, and Inside Higher Ed Co-founder Scott Jaschik shares story ideas for enterprising journalists. Among his top picks: Legacy admissions in the wake of the Supreme Court's ruling on race-conscious college admissions, the risks and rewards of ChatGPT, and looming budget cuts once federal pandemic aid runs dry.

Scott Jaschik, formerly Editor of Inside Higher Ed, joins FYI host Gil Rogers for a conversation celebrating Scott's career and contributions. Scott goes over some of the peaks of his career in Higher Ed journalism, his history at Inside Higher Ed, from the strangest stories to the most challenging, and what he thinks the future will bring.For Your Institution Podcast is a production of Mongoose Research. Intro | 0:00The History of Inside Higher Ed | 1:20Scott's Highlights From Inside Higher Ed | 3:15Navigating COVID | 5:36Scott's Strangest Story | 7:08Merging With Times Higher Ed | 10:01The Future of Higher Ed | 12:46AI In Higher Ed | 14:30Summary & Closing | 17:01 RELEVANT LINKS:Inside Higher Ed WebsiteScott Jaschik on LinkedInScott's Articles on Inside Higher Ed

Host Andrew Xu sits down with Substack writer and housing policy analyst Darrell Owens, to discuss the causes of San Francisco's homelessness crisis, the non-partisan nature of NIMBYism, and the debate surrounding affirmative action. References "Seeking clarity in Cali's homelessness crisis, with Darrell Owens" from Time to Say Goodbye "Unhoused and Unwell on Transit" by Darrell Owens, The Discourse Lounge "Black and Asian Hate in San Francisco" by Darrell Owens, The Discourse Lounge "The Look of Gentrification" by Darrell Owens, The Discourse Lounge "Fixing the police will take more funding, not less" by Matt Yglesias, Slow Boring "The Distraction & Distortion of Affirmative Action" by Darrell Owens, The Discourse Lounge "The Power of Race" by Scott Jaschik, Inside Higher Ed "MIR Meets: William Deresiewicz" by Blaise Brosnan, The McGill International Review

What's next at selective colleges in Maryland, now that the U.S. Supreme Court has said they can't consider race when they choose students? We ask Professor Julie J. Park of the University of Maryland and Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed: What's the value of diversity? And how can schools achieve it?   Links:What the Supreme Court Rejection of Affirmative Action Means   What Could Colleges Do Without Affirmative Action?  Affirmative action's end spells more isolation for students of colorSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode you will hear:   (19:12) Mark and Julia discuss an article written by Scott Jaschik that appeared in Inside Higher Ed on 5-15-2023 entitled, “Admission Offices, Cautiously Start Using AI” https://www.insidehighered.com/news/admissions/2023/05/15/admissions-offices-cautiously-start-using-ai#:~:text=What%20the%20Experts%20Say,from%20North%20Shore%20College%20Consulting.   (48:52) Mark and Lisa will answer a Speakpipe question Laura from DC sent in; she wants advice to try to figure out which admitted students in the ED pool are not athletes.    (56:48) Lisa continues her interview with Dr. Louis Newman about his book,    Thinking Critically in College: The essential handbook for student success   Preview of Part 2 o   Dr. Newman talks about what the 4 essential critical thinking skills for college are o   Dr. Newman shares some excellent examples of how we can apply critical thinking to our every day life o   Dr. Newman talks about the danger of confirmation bias and how that can hinder us from accepting the truth     (01:07:57) The recommended resource is Collegetables.info   (01:17:30) Mark and Lisa discuss their visit to High Point University on 5/9/2023 for the College Spotlight, Part 1 of 2.   You can also use this for many other purposes: 1) Send us constructive criticism about how we can improve our podcast 2) Share an encouraging word about something you like about an episode or the podcast in general 3) Share a topic or an article you would like us to address 4) Share a speaker you want us to interview 5) Leave positive feedback for one of our interviewees. We will send your verbal feedback directly to them and I can almost assure you, your positive feedback will make their day. Speakpipe.com/YCBK is our preferred method for you to ask a question and we will be prioritizing all questions sent in via Speakpipe. If you have a question for one of our upcoming interviews with admissions professionals, here is a list of admissions professionals who we will interview in 2023 or 2024 Confirmed interviews not yet completedBard-Mackie Siebens Rice University-Tamara Siler American University-Andrea Felder Pitzer College-Yvonne Berumen Chapman University-Marcela Meija-Martinez Connecticut College-Andy Strickler* Trinity College-Anthony Berry* College of the Atlantic-Heather Albert* Spelman College-Chelsea Holley* Scripps College-Victoria Romero* Saint Louis University-Daniel Wood-(Interview is about transfer admissions, Daniel is a transfer counselor) Colby College-Randi Arsenault* University of Georgia-David Graves* University of Minnesota-Keri Risic Cornell University-Jonathon Burdick Oberlin College-Manuel Carballo Carleton College-Art Rodriguez Swarthmore-Jim Bok Joy St. Johns-Harvard Duke-Christoph Guttentag Florida State-John Barnhill Southern Methodist University-Elena Hicks Johns Hopkins-Calvin Wise Cornell University-Shawn Felton Haverford College-Jess Lord UAspire-Brendan Williams Yale University-Moira Poe Bard College Baylor University Butler University California Institute of Technology-Ashley Pallie Colorado School of Mines Creighton University University of Puget Sound- Robin Aijian Dartmouth College-Lee Coffin   To sign up to receive Your College-Bound Kid PLUS, our new monthly admissions newsletter, delivered directly to your email once a month, just go to yourcollegeboundkid.com, and you will see the sign-up popup.   Check out our new blog. We write timely and insightful articles on college admissions:   Follow Mark Stucker on Twitter to get breaking college admission news, and updates about the podcast before they go live. You can ask questions on Twitter that he will answer on the podcast. Mark will also share additional hot topics in the news and breaking news on this Twitter feed. Twitter message is also the preferred way to ask questions for our podcast:   https://twitter.com/YCBKpodcast   1. To access our transcripts, click: https://yourcollegeboundkid.com/category/transcripts/ 2. Find the specific episode transcripts for the one you want to search and click the link 3. Find the magnifying glass icon in blue (search feature) and click it 4. Enter whatever word you want to search. I.e. Loans 5. Every word in that episode when the words loans are used, will be highlighted in yellow with a timestamps 6. Click the word highlighted in yellow and the player will play the episode from that starting point 7. You can also download the entire podcast as a transcript   We would be honored if you will pass this podcast episode on to others who you feel will benefit from the content in YCBK.   Please subscribe to our podcast. It really helps us move up in Apple's search feature so others can find our podcast.   If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful!   If you want to help more people find Your College-Bound Kid, please make sure you follow our podcast. You will also get instant notifications as soon as each episode goes live.   Check out the college admissions books Mark recommends:   Check out the college websites Mark recommends:   If you want to have some input about what you like and what you recommend, we change about our podcast, please complete our Podcast survey; here is the link:     If you want a college consultation with Mark or Lisa or Lynda, just text Mark at 404-664-4340 or email Lisa at or Lynda at Lynda@schoolmatch4u.com. All they ask is that you review their services and pricing on their website before the complimentary session. Their counseling website is: https://schoolmatch4u.com/

In this episode you will hear:   (10:54) Mark and Dave discuss a Scott Jaschik article in Inside Higher Ed that ran on 3/26/2023 entitled, “The Role of Politics in Where Students Want to Go to College.”   (49:47) Lisa answers a speakpipe question from an anonymous listener who has a number of questions about how the pandemic has impacted the motivation and mental health of her daughter and she is asking what steps she should take next.      (01:06:36) We start a brand-new interview with Dr. Christine Gangelhoff who is an expert on all things related to studying music in college. Lisa interviews Christine in this interview you do not want to miss, Part 1 of 3   (01:19:25) The recommended resource is the best resource Mark knows of to help students understand the differences between the culture of one college versus another, and it's the newly revised zeemee.com   (01:32:32) Lynda Doepker has her first College Spotlight and it is about a recent visit she had to Loyola University Chicago, Part 1 of 2   We now have set up audio recordings in your own voice for any question you send in for our “question from a listener” segment. In order to send us an audio message, just go to speakpipe.com/YCBK. You can also use this for many other purposes: 1) Send us constructive criticism about how we can improve our podcast 2) Share an encouraging word about something you like about an episode or the podcast in general 3) Share a topic or an article you would like us to address 4) Share a speaker you want us to interview 5) Leave positive feedback for one of our interviewees. We will send your verbal feedback directly to them and I can almost assure you, your positive feedback will make their day. Speakpipe.com/YCBK is our preferred method for you to ask a question and we will be prioritizing all questions sent in via Speakpipe. If you have a question for one of our upcoming interviews with admissions professionals, here is a list of admissions professionals who we will interview in 2023 or 2024 Confirmed interviews not yet completed Bard-Mackie Siebens Rice University-Tamara Siler American University-Andrea Felder Pitzer College-Yvonne Berumen Chapman University-Marcela Meija-Martinez Connecticut College-Andy Strickler* Trinity College-Anthony Berry* College of the Atlantic-Heather Albert* Spelman College-Chelsea Holley* Scripps College-Victoria Romero* Saint Louis University-Daniel Wood-(Interview is about transfer admissions, Daniel is a transfer counselor) Colby College-Randi Arsenault* University of Georgia-David Graves* University of Minnesota-Keri Risic Cornell University-Jonathon Burdick Oberlin College-Manuel Carballo Carleton College-Art Rodriguez Swarthmore-Jim Bok Joy St. Johns-Harvard Duke-Christoph Guttentag Florida State-John Barnhill Southern Methodist University-Elena Hicks Johns Hopkins-Calvin Wise Cornell University-Shawn Felton Haverford College-Jess Lord UAspire-Brendan Williams Yale University-Moira Poe Akil Bello of Akilbello.com Bard College Baylor University Butler University California Institute of Technology-Ashley Pallie Colorado School of Mines Creighton University University of Puget Sound- Robin Aijian   To sign up to receive Your College-Bound Kid PLUS, our new monthly admissions newsletter, delivered directly to your email once a month, just go to yourcollegeboundkid.com, and you will see the sign-up popup.   Check out our new blog. We write timely and insightful articles on college admissions: https://yourcollegeboundkid.com/category/blog/ Follow Mark Stucker on Twitter to get breaking college admission news, and updates about the podcast before they go live. You can ask questions on Twitter that he will answer on the podcast. Mark will also share additional hot topics in the news and breaking news on this Twitter feed. Twitter message is also the preferred way to ask questions for our podcast:   https://twitter.com/YCBKpodcast   1. To access our transcripts, click: https://yourcollegeboundkid.com/category/transcripts/ 2. Find the specific episode transcripts for the one you want to search and click the link 3. Find the magnifying glass icon in blue (search feature) and click it 4. Enter whatever word you want to search. I.e. Loans 5. Every word in that episode when the words loans are used, will be highlighted in yellow with a timestamps 6. Click the word highlighted in yellow and the player will play the episode from that starting point 7. You can also download the entire podcast as a transcript   We would be honored if you will pass this podcast episode on to others who you feel will benefit from the content in YCBK.   Please subscribe to our podcast. It really helps us move up in Apple's search feature so others can find our podcast.   If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful!   If you want to help more people find Your College-Bound Kid, please make sure you follow our podcast. You will also get instant notifications as soon as each episode goes live.   Check out the college admissions books Mark recommends:   Check out the college websites Mark recommends:   If you want to have some input about what you like and what you recommend, we change about our podcast, please complete our Podcast survey; here is the link:     If you want a college consultation with Mark or Lisa or Lynda, just text Mark at 404-664-4340 or email Lisa at or Lynda at Lynda@schoolmatch4u.com. All they ask is that you review their services and pricing on their website before the complimentary session. Their counseling website is: https://schoolmatch4u.com/

One of the most eagerly anticipated sessions at EWA's Higher Education Seminar is Scott Jaschik's look ahead into the world of higher education. He's one of three co-founders of Inside Higher Ed, and he's a highly sought after expert on postsecondary education.  Host and Public Editor Kavitha Cardoza turns over EWA Radio to Scott this week for his list of top stories he thinks reporters should keep an eye on this year.  Heads up, it includes affirmative action, mental health and TikTok!

One of the most eagerly anticipated sessions at EWA's Higher Education Seminar is Scott Jaschik's look ahead into the world of higher education. He's one of three co-founders of Inside Higher Ed, and he's a highly sought after expert on postsecondary education.  Host and Public Editor Kavitha Cardoza turns over EWA Radio to Scott this week for his list of top stories he thinks reporters should keep an eye on this year.  Heads up, it includes affirmative action, mental health and TikTok!

This is a podcast version of a Niche Screenside Chat with Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed. We chatted about what trends Scott is seeing emerge for 2023 and how to address them. Some of the big topics were AI, the supreme court decision coming on race in admissions, financial aid and discounting, and how the economy might affect enrollments. The full recording and resources are available at niche.bz/webinar. In the Enrollment Insights Podcast, you'll hear about novel solutions to problems, ways to make processes better for students, and the questions that spark internal reflection and end up changing entire processes.

With higher ed departments prepping for a new year, it's the perfect opportunity for a forecast. Scott Jaschik, Editor at Inside Higher Ed, runs down the Top Ten Higher Ed Stories for 2023.

Andy Borst,  Director of Undergraduate Admissions at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, shares tips on nurturing and managing relationships with the media (with hat-tips to Scott Jaschik and Eric Hoover). Andy also shares his morning routine (itself a pro tip) as well as the origins of his name, which we somehow accidentally trip over early in the episode. Rapid DescentWalkout song:  Know Your Enemy by Green DayBest recent read: The Black Family's Guide to College Admissions by Tim Fields and Shereem Herndon-BrownEager to read next: Campus Economics: How Economic Thinking Can Help Improve College and University Decisions by Sandy Baum and Michael McPhersonFavorite podcast(s): The Truth About College Admission, the  new podcast by Rick Clark and Brennan Barnard. Favorite thing to make in the kitchen: Crab boilWhat he uses to take and keep notes: leather-bound notebook stuffed with Post-it notes.Memorable bit of advice: No-one owns the university loyalty.Bucket list: Write a book about college admission.Theme music arranged by Ryan Anselment.

In an interview that originally aired in April 2022, Inside Higher Ed Editor Scott Jaschik highlights the news stories he believes will have an outsized impact on higher education in the months and years to come. Jaschik is joined on the podcast by Carla Hickman, whose take on these issues is informed by her role as head of EAB's Research division. The two explore issues ranging from the massive challenges facing community colleges to the game-changing legal fight over affirmative action in admissions.

In this episode you will hear:   (18:05) Vince Garcia makes his debut as one of our co-hosts in our monthly rotation for our “In the News” segment. Mark and Vince discuss an Inside Higher Ed article by Scott Jaschik entitled, “How Stevens Tech attracts applicants and students”. The 4/25/2022 article looks at some of the strategic decisions one NJ school did to upgrade the academic caliber of their student body while expanded their diversity.     (32:58) Diana from Wisconsin sent us an outstanding list of questions that are all designed to get some guidance about the transition to college. Mark and Lisa acknowledge that the transition to college is an area that we haven't adequately covered. Mark and Lisa answer half of Diana's questions in this episode and the other half next Thursday in episode 231. how much spending money should we give our student each month should we tie spending money to grades or offer any incentive related to grades. Conversely, if grades are poor, should we take away spending money. mid-term grades - and any type of progress grades - how should we as parents be involved in progress grades so we can try to be helpful if any advocacy or tutoring needs to happen before it's too late at the end of the semester? end of semester grades - will these be shared with us as parents? If they are not good, will there be any consequences, or what would happen?   (01:01:30) Our interview is with Karen Kristof, a 30+ year admission veteran who has worked at five colleges. Karen is the Dean of admissions at Colorado College. Karen will address three different topics over for three consecutive Thursdays. In this week's episode Karen answers the question, how do colleges evaluate a transcript. Preview-How admission officers evaluate a transcript   Karen gives her backstory Karen tells us what selective schools look for when they evaluate a transcript Karen shares some of the mistakes students make with their course selection   (01:13:22) The Recommended Resource is one of the best books I have ever read about college admissions. I have listened to it three times in the last three months. I strongly recommend the audiobook which is informative and entertaining: The name of the book is, "Valedictorians at the Gate: Standing Out, Getting In, and Staying Sane While Applying to College" by Rebecca Munsterer Sabky, Eliza Foss. Sabky did admissions at Dartmouth for 13 years. Her honesty about the business side of admissions is refreshing and enlightening.   (01:34:44) Our College Spotlight is The University of Michigan, Part 1 of 2     Please send in your questions either on Twitter at @YCBKpodcast using the Messages tab (this is our preference) or via email at for the 25 admissions interviews we are doing in the summer and fall. Our interviews are with the following people at the following schools: Confirmed interviews Bard-Mackie Siebens Mercer-Kelly Holloway Oregon State-Jon Boeckenstadt (Interview about a range of admission topics)-July 19th Reed-Milyon Truelove- Rice University-Tamara Siler St Johns College-Benjamin Baum-This interview is on June 8th University Pittsburgh-Tom Becker- American University-Andrea Felder Texas Christian University (TCU)-Heath Einstein-This interview is on July 6th Michigan State University-John Ambrose-This interview is on June 10th Pitzer College-Yvonne Berumen Chapman University-Marcela Meija-Martinez Connecticut College-Andy Strickler* Trinity College-Anthony Berry* Trinity University-Justin Doty-(interview about athletic recruitment process for DIII schools)-July 15th College of the Atlantic-Heather Albert* Spelman College-Chelsea Holley* Scripps College-Victoria Romero* Saint Louis University-Daniel Wood-(Interview is about transfer admissions, Daniel is a transfer counselor) University of Connecticut-Vern Granger* Colby College-Randi Arsenault* Hamilton College-Peaches Valdes* University of Georgia-David Graves* Washington University St Louis-Ronne Turner University of Rochester-Robert Alexander* University of Delaware-Darrell Edmonds     To sign up to receive Your College-Bound Kid PLUS, our free quarterly admissions deep-dive, delivered directly to your email four times a year, just go to yourcollegeboundkid.com, and you will see the sign up on the right side of the page under “the Listen to our podcast icons”   Follow Mark Stucker on Twitter to get breaking college admission news,  and updates about the podcast before they go live. You can ask questions on Twitter that he will answer them on the podcast. Mark will also share additional hot topics in the news and breaking news on this Twitter feed. Twitter message is also the preferred way to ask questions for our podcast:   https://twitter.com/YCBKpodcast   To access our transcripts, click: https://yourcollegeboundkid.com/category/transcripts/ Find the specific episode transcripts for the one you want to search and click the link Find the magnifying glass icon in blue (search feature) and click it Enter whatever word you want to search. I.e. Loans Every word in that episode when the words loans are used, will be highlighted in yellow with a timestamps Click the word highlighted in yellow and the player will play the episode from that starting point You can also download the entire podcast as a transcript   We would be honored if you will pass this podcast episode on to others who you feel will benefit from the content in YCBK.   Please subscribe to our podcast. It really helps us move up in Apple's search feature so others can find our podcast.   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com.   If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful!   If you want to help more people find Your College-Bound Kid, please make sure you follow our podcast. You will also get instant notifications as soon as each episode goes live.   Check out the college admissions books Mark recommends:   Check out the college websites Mark recommends:   If you want to have some input about what you like and what you recommend we change about our podcast, please complete our Podcast survey; here is the link:     If you want a college consultation with Mark or Lisa, just text Mark at 404-664-4340 or email Lisa at lisa@schoolmatch4u.com. All they ask is that you review their services on their website before the complimentary session. Their counseling website is: https://schoolmatch4u.com/

Standardized testing is a normal part of the school year, but what does this data really tell us about how children are performing? Today, Akilah Alleyne from the Center for American Progress, joins us to talk about standardized testing in local schools. Many families invest considerable time and money to make sure their student performs well on these college entrance exams, but several universities are doing away with requiring them for entry. Later, Scott Jaschik, Editor and Founder of Inside Higher Ed joins us to talk about this. First we talk to a Newtown CT resident about how the latest school shooting in Uvalde reignites the trauma felt by the community since 2012. GUESTS: Carol Ann Davis - Poet and Professor at Fairfield University Akilah Alleyne - Associate Director of K through 12 Education, at Center for American Progress, in Washington, D.C. Scott Jaschik -  Editor and Founder of Inside Higher Ed Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode you will hear:   (07:45) In this week's “In the news” segment,  Mark and Dave discuss a February 14th, 2022 article,  by Scott Jaschik that appeared in the Inside Higher Ed. The article is entitled, “Does calculus count too much in admissions.” The article presents a pretty compelling case that there is a lot of resistance to the weight placed on calculus in admissions decisions. Mark and Dave look at why study after study can report that statistics or data science is more correlated with life sciences and other course work but that has had little effect on the primacy of calculus.     (30:48) Question from a listener-   Question 1   How common is it on today's campuses that they give “credit” for AP/IB but still require a distribution requirement in the same subject area? I am trying to minimize unnecessary stress for my kid.    Bobbi from Ohio   Question 2   Victoria applied early admission 2 to Auburn. We thought it would be an easy "yes" with her 4.7 unweighted GPA after senior year. However, she applied test optional because her score is 1260 on the SAT. Auburn deferred her. The college counselor at our school and I were completely shocked when they did not accept her. Our college counselor called the admissions officer for our area. She said they did not look at anything except grades and test scores. They did not consider anything else in the application. The Auburn admissions officer encouraged Victoria to send in her test scores. She said her full file would be considered for admission in March.    In hindsight, Victoria remembers our tour guide at Auburn in July hinting that Auburn says it is test-optional, but not really. She didn't say it that way, but Victoria realizes now that was meant what she meant.   Victoria sent in her scores in late February and was accepted on March 4th.     Unfortunately, the delay caused her to miss out on Auburn scholarship opportunities.  We wish we had known they were not really tested optional? How common is it for colleges to tell you that they are test-optional but they really aren't completely test-optional?    Melinda from NC   Question 3-   Are all hooks equal or do some count more than others? How can we know which ones count the most    (Anonymous question asker)   (01:06:55) Our interview is with Chris Gruber-Vice President and Dean of Admissions & Financial Aid at Davidson College-"How the pandemic forced Davidson to examine its own admission biases and make changes" Part 2 of 2   (01:22:15) Our recommended resource for episode 221 is the Documentary “Try Harder”. Lisa and Mark were both transfixed watching this documentary and they cannot recommend “Try Harder” more highly. The documentary looks at how the pressure students at Lowell High School feel to go to a prestigious college and the impact this pressure has on their self-esteem and mental health.   (01:40:45) Our College Spotlight looks at, “Understanding Danish Universities” with International Specialist Kevin Newton (Part 2 of 2)   To sign up to receive Your College-Bound Kid PLUS, our free quarterly admissions deep-dive, delivered directly to your email four times a year, just go to yourcollegeboundkid.com, and you will see the sign up on the right side of the page under “the Listen to our podcast icons”   Follow Mark Stucker on Twitter to get breaking college admission news,  and updates about the podcast before they go live. You can ask questions on Twitter that he will answer them on the podcast. Mark will also share additional hot topics in the news and breaking news on this Twitter feed:     To access our transcripts, click: https://yourcollegeboundkid.com/category/transcripts/ Find the specific episode transcripts for the one you want to search and click the link Find the magnifying glass icon in blue (search feature) and click it Enter whatever word you want to search. I.e. Loans Every word in that episode when the words loans are used, will be highlighted in yellow with a timestamps Click the word highlighted in yellow and the player will play the episode from that starting point You can also download the entire podcast as a transcript   We would be honored if you will pass this podcast episode on to others who you feel will benefit from the content in YCBK.   Please subscribe to our podcast. It really helps us move up in Apple's search feature so others can find our podcast.   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com.   If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful!   If you want to help more people find Your College-Bound Kid, please make sure you subscribe to our podcast. You will also get instant notifications as soon as each episode goes live.   Check out the college admissions books Mark recommends:   Check out the college websites Mark recommends:   If you want to have some input about what you like and what you recommend we change about our podcast, please complete our Podcast survey; here is the link:     If you want a college consultation with Mark or Lisa, just text Mark at 404-664-4340 or email Lisa at lisa@schoolmatch4u.com. All they ask is that you review their services on their website before the complimentary session. Their counseling website is:

Inside Higher Ed Editor Scott Jaschik highlights the news stories he believes will have an outsized impact on higher education in the months and years to come. Jaschik is joined on the podcast by Carla Hickman, whose take on these issues is informed by her role as head of EAB's Research division. The two explore issues ranging from the massive challenges facing community colleges to the game-changing legal fight over affirmative action in admissions.

In this episode you will hear:   (15:58) In this week's “In the news” segment,  Mark and Dave discuss a March 14th, 2022 article,  by Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed, “New York Bill would ban legacy admissions and Early Decision”? This legislation would ban legacy and Early Decision from both public schools like the SUNY and CUNY schools and the private schools like Fordham, Syracuse, University of Rochester, Cornell, Columbia, Barnard, Union and St. Lawrence. Mark and Dave discuss whether they think these practices are likely to survive over the next 5-10 years and if they don't, what alternatives would colleges use in their place.       (45:08) Listener question: What's the point of demonstrating interest if you know you're applying ED? Isn't that already good enough? Do we still need to click on every email, register for virtual visits, etc.? It's the season for eighth-graders to choose their first high school classes. Any insights into best practices in this process?   I know that multiple kids in college starting in 2024-2025 will not result in division of the EFC by the number of kids any longer.  Do you have suggestions on how I can find out whether a FAFSA college will continue to divide the EFC or whether they will embrace the new change? Also, when would Net Price Calculators be required to be updated to reflect this change?   (01:12:12) Our interview is with two MIT admission officers (Chris Peterson and Kellen Manning) who also have other roles at MIT. Chris aka Petey and Kellen provide great insights into “Understanding MIT” Part 1 of 2   (01:22:12:) Our recommended resource for episode 218 is Campus Pride. Campuspride.org assesses whether a college is LGBTQ friendly and supportive.   (01:38:55) Our college Spotlight is Franklin and Marshall College (F & M)   Part 2 of 2   To sign up to receive Your College-Bound Kid PLUS, our free quarterly admissions deep-dive, delivered directly to your email four times a year, just go to yourcollegeboundkid.com, and you will see the sign up on the right side of the page under “the Listen to our podcast icons”   Follow Mark Stucker on Twitter to get breaking college admission news,  and updates about the podcast before they go live. You can ask questions on Twitter that he will answer them on the podcast. Mark will also share additional hot topics in the news and breaking news on this Twitter feed:   https://twitter.com/YCBKpodcast   To access our transcripts, click: https://yourcollegeboundkid.com/category/transcripts/ Find the specific episode transcripts for the one you want to search and click the link Find the magnifying glass icon in blue (search feature) and click it Enter whatever word you want to search. I.e. Loans Every word in that episode when the words loans are used, will be highlighted in yellow with a timestamps Click the word highlighted in yellow and the player will play the episode from that starting point You can also download the entire podcast as a transcript   We would be honored if you will pass this podcast episode on to others who you feel will benefit from the content in YCBK.   Please subscribe to our podcast. It really helps us move up in Apple's search feature so others can find our podcast.   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com.   If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful!   If you want to help more people find Your College-Bound Kid, please make sure you subscribe to our podcast. You will also get instant notifications as soon as each episode goes live.   Check out the college admissions books Mark recommends:   Check out the college websites Mark recommends:   If you want to have some input about what you like and what you recommend we change about our podcast, please complete our Podcast survey; here is the link:     If you want a college consultation with Mark or Lisa, just text Mark at 404-664-4340 or email Lisa at lisa@schoolmatch4u.com. All they ask is that you review their services on their website before the complimentary session. Their counseling website is: https://schoolmatch4u.com/

In this episode you will hear:   (13:40) In this week's “In the news” segment,  Mark and Dave discuss a Feb 22nd, 2022 article,  by Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed, “Are recommendation letters a Form of Discrimmination”?   https://www.insidehighered.com/admissions/article/2022/02/22/colleges-consider-whether-recommendations-are-fair     (37:00) Mark continues with a bonus content section. Mark shares with Lisa what he believes would surprise our listeners if they were to be a college admissions officer. Part 3 of 3     (01:16:10) Our interview is with two MIT admission officers (Chris Peterson and Kellen Manning) who also have other roles at MIT. Chris aka Petey and Kellen provide great insights into “what can a student learn from a college's social media presence”. Part 2 of 2   (01:25:56) Our recommended resource for episode 217 is The Twitter feed of the VP of Enrollment at Oregon State: Jon Boeckenstedt: @   (01:34:07) Our college Spotlight is Franklin and Marshall College (F & M) https://www.fandm.edu/   To sign up to receive Your College-Bound Kid PLUS, our free quarterly admissions deep-dive, delivered directly to your email four times a year, just go to yourcollegeboundkid.com, and you will see the sign up on the right side of the page under “the Listen to our podcast icons”   Follow Mark Stucker on Twitter to get breaking college admission news,  and updates about the podcast before they go live. You can ask questions on Twitter that we will answer on the podcast. Mark will also share additional hot topics in the news and breaking news on this Twitter feed:     To access our transcripts, click: https://yourcollegeboundkid.com/category/transcripts/ Find the specific episode transcripts for the one you want to search and click the link Find the magnifying glass icon in blue (search feature) and click it Enter whatever word you want to search. I.e. Loans Every word in that episode when the words loans are used, will be highlighted in yellow with a timestamps Click the word highlighted in yellow and the player will play the episode from that starting point You can also download the entire podcast as a transcript   We would be honored if you will pass this podcast episode on to others who you feel will benefit from the content in YCBK.   Please subscribe to our podcast. It really helps us move up in Apple's search feature so others can find our podcast.   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com.   If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful!   If you want to help more people find Your College-Bound Kid, please make sure you subscribe to our podcast. You will also get instant notifications as soon as each episode goes live.   Check out the college admissions books Mark recommends:   Check out the college websites Mark recommends:   If you want to have some input about what you like and what you recommend we change about our podcast, please complete our Podcast survey; here is the link:     If you want a college consultation with Mark or Lisa, just text Mark at 404-664-4340 or email Lisa at lisa@schoolmatch4u.com. All they ask is that you review their services on their website before the complimentary session. Their counseling website is: https://schoolmatch4u.com/

This is a podcast version of a Niche Screenside Chat with Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed. We chatted about what trends Scott is seeing emerge for 2022 and how to address them and answered audience questions. Show notes are available on the Enrollment Insights Blog at niche.bz/podcast. In the Enrollment Insights Podcast, you'll hear about novel solutions to problems, ways to make processes better for students, and the questions that spark internal reflection and end up changing entire processes.

In this episode you will hear:   (07:36) In this week's “In the news segment, an October 25th, 2021 article by Scott Jaschik of “Inside Higher Ed”, “Do applicants lie about their race?” The website intelligent asked 1250 white adults whether they lied about their race when they applied to college. Mark and Dave discuss the results of the survey. Dave and Mark also give their opinion on the content and substance of the article.       (29:46) Dr. Lisa Rouff takes the lead in her discussion with Mark about the pitfalls of perfectionism and how it impacts students. Part 2 of 2     (46:51) Mark interviews Matt McGann, the Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at Amherst College. Matt helps us to understand, “Amherst College” This is part 2 of 2:   Preview of Part 2   Matt tells us what the 5 College Consortium is and he gives a very brief overview of each of the 5 colleges in the consortium Matt shares the benefits of being at a school that gives you access to the 5 College Consortium Matt tells us what Amherst admissions officers are looking for beyond the three basic things every college wants: Is this a good student, is this a good citizen and will this student plug in and contribute. You don't want to miss his insightful answer I put Matt on the hot seat and you will learn about a  side of Matt that didn't come out in the formal part of the interview   Matt's discussion of Amherst will serve as our College Spotlight.   (54:46) Our recommended resource for episode 201 is Ron Lieber's book, “The Price You Pay for College: An Entirely New Roadmap for the Biggest Financial Decision Your Family Will Ever Make”   The book does a pretty good job at removing the shroud of secrecy about how decisions about what you will be asked to pay actually works,  so you and your child are not blindsided by an unaffordable offer from a college.     Follow Mark Stucker on Twitter to get breaking college admission news,  and updates about the podcast before they go live:     To access our transcripts, click: Find the specific episode transcripts for the one you want to search and click the link Find the magnifying glass icon in blue (search feature) and click it Enter whatever word you want to search. I.e. Loans Every word in that episode when the words loans is used, will be highlighted in yellow with a timestamps Click the word highlighted in yellow and the player will play the episode from that starting point You can also download the entire podcast as a transcript   Feel free to pass this podcast on to others who you feel will benefit, even if they are not a YCBK listener.   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: .   If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! Check out the college admissions books Mark recommends:   Check out the college websites Mark recommends:   If you want a college consultation with Mark or Lisa, just text Mark at 404-664-4340. All he asks is that you review the services on their website first. Their counseling website is: https://schoolmatch4u.com/

In this episode you will hear:   (12:32) In this week's “In the news segment, an October 4th, 2021 article by Scott Jaschik of “Inside Higher Ed”, “Can young alumni get colleges to drop legacy admissions” Dave and Mark and a very special first time guest join them for this discussion. To celebrate episode 200 this special guest also joins Mark and Dave for a second article by Melissa Korn of the Wall Street Journal entitled: “Amherst Drops admissions advantage for children of alumni”       We previously discussed legacy admissions on episodes 121 and 180. Here is the article I referenced in the podcast that appeared in the Atlantic by the President of Johns Hopkins:     (40:00) Dr. Lisa Rouff takes the lead in her discussion with Mark about the pitfalls of perfectionism and how it impacts students. Part 1 of 2     (58:03) Mark interviews Matt McGann, the Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at Amherst College. Matt helps us to understand, “Amherst College” This is part 1 of 2:   Part 1-Preview Preview of Part 1   Matt gives us an overview of Amherst college Matt explains what the Liberal Arts actually are and he explains why the term, “Liberal Arts” is such poor marketing Matt tells us what he thinks Amherst does very well compared to other schools that students look at, and of course, Amherst has done research on this and he shares that research with us. Matt highlights two things in particular that Amherst does very well, based on their research Matt talks about the percentage of students on campus at Amherst Matt shares the things that Amherst needs to do to be an even better college.   Matt's discussion of Amherst will serve as our College Spotlight.   (01:05:50) Our recommended resource is the podcast, “Motley Fool Answers”. The podcast does one or two episodes a year on college money but the monthly Mailbag episodes are chalked full of great financial advice to help every family with their finances.   Follow Mark Stucker on Twitter to get breaking college admission news,  and updates about the podcast before they go live:     To access our transcripts, click: Find the specific episode transcripts for the one you want to search and click the link Find the magnifying glass icon in blue (search feature) and click it Enter whatever word you want to search. I.e. Loans Every word in that episode when the words loans is used, will be highlighted in yellow with a timestamps Click the word highlighted in yellow and the player will play the episode from that starting point You can also download the entire podcast as a transcript   Feel free to pass this podcast on to others who you feel will benefit, even if they are not a YCBK listener.   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: . If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! Check out the college admissions books Mark recommends:   Check out the college websites Mark recommends:     If you want a college consultation with Mark or Lisa, just text Mark at 404-664-4340. All he asks is that you review the services on their website first. Their counseling website is: https://schoolmatch4u.com/

In this episode you will hear:   (07:50) In this week's “In the news segment, a  September 20th article by Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed, “Admissions Survey in a Wild Year” This article looks at the results of a survey that over 200 colleges completed that looks at how covid impacted admissions in 2020. Dave shares some of the key findings from the survey and then Mark and Dave discuss two very interesting takeaways from the survey     (27:32) Mark and Lisa and Sylvia answer three questions that listeners who completed our questionnaire wrote on the questionnaire:   Question 1)  You talk about all the great resources like college reviews and course catalogs to help students learn about schools. What if your student refuses to engage with any of those resources or won't do the things they need to do to complete their applications?   Question 2)  What is the right balance of parent involvement vs student ownership in this process?   Question 3) What to do if your kid doesn't do a lot of activities?   (01:09:26) Mark interviews Kevin Newton who founded, “An Education Abroad”. Mark knows Kevin because if someone comes to Mark and asks, can you help me go to college at a place other than Canada or the US, Mark turns that family over to Kevin to work with. Kevin talks about going overseas for college (beyond one year of study abroad) in this interview. Here is an outline of Part 2 of 2:   Kevin Newton of “An Education Abroad” discusses the University of Edinburgh in Scotland; he explains how their admissions process works Kevin explains how Americans are perceived in the UK and other International schools Kevin explains whether your extracurricular activities matter for International schools Kevin shares more reasons why students go to university in another country   No college spotlight this week   (01:16:43) We have two recommended books by Dennis Stemmle this week that help college students with time management and procrastination:    Procrastination Solutions For College Students: The Underground Playbook For Overcoming Procrastination And Achieving Peak Performance Time Management Secrets for College Students: The Underground Playbook for Managing School, Work, and Fun   Follow Mark Stucker on Twitter to get breaking college admission news,  and updates about the podcast before they go live:   To access our transcripts, click: Find the specific episode transcripts for the one you want to search and click the link Find the magnifying glass icon in blue (search feature) and click it Enter whatever word you want to search. I.e. Loans Every word in that episode when the words loans is used, will be highlighted in yellow with a timestamps Click the word highlighted in yellow and the player will play the episode from that starting point You can also download the entire podcast as a transcript   Feel free to pass this podcast on to others who you feel will benefit, even if they are not a YCBK listener.   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: . If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! Check out the college admissions books Mark recommends:   Check out the college websites Mark recommends:     If you want a college consultation with Mark or Lisa, just text Mark at 404-664-4340. All he asks is that you review the services on his website first. His website is: https://schoolmatch4u.com/  

In this episode you will hear:   (17:23) In this week's “In the news segment, a July 21st, 2021 Inside Higher Ed article by Scott Jaschik about how colleges tours have changed in the age of covid. The article looks at six colleges in different regions of the country and it looks at how they have made significant changes to how they do tours. Dave and Mark discuss these changes and they chime in with their thoughts.     (37:05) Mark and Lisa answer the following question:   Where do late bloomers go to college? When I read about college admissions and listen to your podcast, the featured examples are usually solid high school students with good GPAs and test scores. What about amazing kids who bloom later and perhaps don't show as well in high school?   (57:13) This is the first time we ever have a double interview on the podcast. We start with Eric Furda who spent over 25 years in high-level leadership at both Columbia and Penn, but this week I ask Eric a series of questions about his recently released book that he co-authored with Jacques Steinberg entitled, “A College conversation: A Practical Companion for Parents to Guide Their Children Along the Path to Higher Education” (01:31:26) Our second interview is an update from Kristen Mosley about how her scholarship search is going now that she is at Spelman. Kristen has a big announcement for all of us.   (01:27:28) Recommended resource: Look at the poll results at niche.com to their question, what one word best describes your school.     Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: . Music is by SENA HERO/Victor-Alan Weeks. If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful!

Using federal pandemic rescue funds, Coppin State University will wipe out $1 million in student loan balances and offer a $1200 credit for the fall semester. We speak with the HBCU's President, Dr. Anthony Jenkins. He says the pandemic pushed some students to pause their education or drop to part time, "We saw one constant factor and that was finances. And so we wanted to use these dollars to help put our students in a stronger position and allow them to do something that is very important to them, and that's finish what they started.” Plus, Scott Jaschik, editor of Inside Higher Ed, with an update on college enrollment and COVID safety measures. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode you will hear:   (12:58) In this week's “In the news segment”, a June 1st, 2021 article from Scott Jaschik of  Inside Higher Ed. The article is entitled, “Legacy Admissions Banned in Colorado”   ” The article looks at the research that led to the decision by the governor of Colorado to become the first state to ban legacy admissions. Dave and Mark present the argument for and against legacy admissions. Mark and Dave share their view on this topic and it is a view that may surprise our listeners. Mark draws heavily off a 2019 article in the New York Times entitled, “End Legacy College Admissions”     (35:20) This week is bonus content week. In episode 175 Lisa and Mark discussed what a student and parent should do in elementary and middle school. In today's episode, Mark and Lisa discuss what a student should do in the 9th and 10th grade. Mark shares 10 things he believes students should do and Lisa comments on the three or four that really resonated with her. Dr. Lisa Rouff draws off over 25 years as clinical psychologist to provide some prescient insights based on her practice. Mark turns to parents and shares four things parents can do and once again, Lisa has some sage advice.     (01:09:42) This week's interview is with Christina Lopez, the Dean of Admission at Barnard college, the highly selective women's college that is one of the undergraduate colleges of Columbia University. Christina's topic is, should a student discuss their mental health challenges in their admission application: Christina shares her backstory She shares how her theater background helps her in admissions I introduce the topic of whether a student should communicate their mental health challenges in their admission application Christina candidly shares her own challenge with depression and anxiety; how it impacts her on her job and how she has learned to still excel on her job. Christina relates her own struggles to the struggle's students are facing with the stress of the college process and the challenges of doing well in school and applying to college in the middle of covid-19 Christina explains how she got so comfortable sharing her own struggles publicly   (01:19:12) Recommended resource: The Facebook private group College Admissions Counselors. The group brings admissions counselors and college counselors together in one place. The group has almost 18000 members. It is a private group that is only for who can prove they are in the profession.   College Spotlight: returns next week with the Trinity College-Dublin 2 plus 2 program with Columbia   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: . Music is by SENA HERO/Victor-Alan Weeks. If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! EXCITING OPPORTUNITY We are excited to announce that Your College-Bound Kid and School Match 4U are putting together panels of current undergraduates, so parents, students and college counselors can ask the students about their college experiences. This is an excellent way to get beyond the marketing from the colleges and to learn what the student experience is really like. This survey will help us to know which colleges you are interested in meeting students from; it will also let us know what are the best days for us to host these panels.  https://tinyurl.com/preferences4studentpanels

In this episode you will hear:   (07:02) In this week’s “In the news segment”, an article from Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed. The article is entitled, “Test-optional admissions yields benefits.” The article looks at  on the topic was published in the American Educational Research Journal. The paper, by Christopher T. Bennett, who is finishing up his doctorate at Vanderbilt where he is studying this issue. The article examines the impact of test-optional admissions on nearly 100 private colleges that adopted their policies between 2005-06 and 2015-16. Mark and Dave discuss the results of Bennett’s research and Dave asks a lot of pertinent questions about how this relates to the recent wave of schools that have chosen to go “test-optional”.    (29:02) This week’s question is Bonus content. Every 5th episode Mark shares something that is burning on his heart. This week, we look at what you should be doing if you have a parent in elementary or middle school. The focus is not on how to get your kid in a selective college, although the advice Mark and Lisa give would help with this, but more as a by-product. Mark and Lisa draw on their own experience having had kids go through both of these phases.   (56:14) Mark interviews Vince Garcia and they look at why the University of California colleges were so difficult to get in this year. Mark and Vince draw a lot of their commentary from the following article which ran in the LA Times: In this final segment Mark and Vince discuss: which UC’s students have the best chance of being admitted at The yield of the UC’s and how this impacts the wait list We turn to the CSU’s and we talk about why their admission experience was so different from the CU’s Vince shares some the fields where the CSU’s have great programs Vince shares some of the underrated CSU’s and UC’s  (3 of 3)   (01:05:06) Recommended resource: The book, I’m going to college-Not You and the subtitle is, “Surviving the college search with your child”. Jennifer delanty is the former dean of admissions at Kenyon College   (01:15:53) College Spotlight: Trinity University ()   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: . Music is by SENA HERO/Victor-Alan Weeks. If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! EXCITING OPPORTUNITY We are excited to announce that Your College-Bound Kid and School Match 4U are putting together panels of current undergraduates, so parents, students and college counselors can ask the students about their college experiences. This is an excellent way to get beyond the marketing from the colleges and to learn what the student experience is really like. This survey will help us to know which colleges you are interested in meeting students from; it will also let us know what are the best days for us to host these panels. https://tinyurl.com/preferences4studentpanels

In this episode you will hear:   (12:10) In this week’s news segment, an article from Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed. The article looks at the ways in which former Temple business school dean, , manipulated the data in order to help Temple climb up in the rankings. Mark and Dave have a conversation about what students and parents can learn from this debacle.      (29:20) This week’s question is from a dad in Georgia and he wants to know how easy will it be for his daughter to switch majors if she gets to college and realizes that English or Journalism is no longer what she wants to study. YCBK is blessed to have Dr. Lisa Rouff take over for Anika as a regular to have a conversation with Mark in the question from a listener. Shout out to Lisa as this is her inaugural episode.   (41:49) Mark continues his interview with Mark Kantrowitz -The New Simplified FAFSA – Part 4 of 4 Mark Kantrowitz can be reached on Twitter @mkant and Mark’s website is StudentAidpolicy.com   (48:56) Recommended resource: unigo.com. A great source for college reviews, college scholarships, college data and answers to challenging questions.    (59:26) College spotlight: Clemson University,   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: . Music is by SENA HERO/Victor-Alan Weeks. If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! EXCITING OPPORTUNITY We are excited to announce that Your College-Bound Kid and School Match 4U are putting together panels of current undergraduates, so parents, students and college counselors can ask the students about their college experiences. This is an excellent way to get beyond the marketing from the colleges and to learn what the student experience is really like. This survey will help us to know which colleges you are interested in meeting students from; it will also let us know what are the best days for us to host these panels.  https://tinyurl.com/preferences4studentpanels

In this episode you will hear:     (10:01) In this week’s news segment, an article from Inside Higher Ed “Do Top Colleges Favor Applicants Who Are Extremely Wealthy” by Scott Jaschik. Article reports that 29 percent of students at Brown and Dartmouth are from private high schools. Other Ivies are also high. Is this the way colleges should admit students? Mark and Dave have a real nuanced discussion about this article. What they say may surprise you.     (42:43) We’re in chapter 168 of 171 Answers – why students should be careful when changing colleges. Mark shares when it is a good idea to transfer and when it is a bad idea to transfer.   (59:12) This week’s question is from Allison in Ohio and she wants to know how admission offices review twins in the college admissions process. Mark shares the various approaches that college admissions offices take to twins and triplets. Mark shares what the elephant is in the room any time twins apply.   (01:11:49) Mark wraps up his interview with Julia Hutchinson a high school senior from Wisconsin - A creative approach to learning what the students are like at the colleges on your list (Part 3 of 3)   (01:22:07) Recommended resource: Transferology makes transferring easy. It helps you know whether your credits will count at the schools you are considering transferring to. Mark strongly recommends any transfer student utilize this website.   (01:29:48) College spotlight: Baylor University ()   Mark has a big announcement about a new approach the podcast will take beginning on episode 172 and Mark also introduces what he is calling, “The Big number”   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: . Music is by SENA HERO/Victor-Alan Weeks. If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! To access and best utilize the transcripts of each podcast, please do the following: Go to  Click the Transcripts tab, from the top menu by the Episodes tab Click on the transcript for the specific episode you are interested in, just click on the image or by the word “Transcript” You will see a Share icon, a download option, a link to Apple podcast and you will see a magnifying glass Use the magnifying glass to search for any word. If that word was used in the episode, it will show up, highlighted in yellow. You will also see a timestamp so you can see the exact minute and second this word was spoken. If you click the word highlighted in yellow, the podcast player will start playing right at that word. You can stop it from playing by clicking the pause button.  Note: The transcription accuracy is about 90%, so you will see some spelling errors and errors in translation going from voice to print. We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, so please send us your ideas for college spotlights, articles for discussion and recommended resources. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:   If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: (08:24) In this week’s news segment, an article from Inside Higher Ed “Applications Tank in State That Require SAT or ACT”, by Scott Jaschik. Florida public schools have resisted the calls to go test optional and now many Florida schools are seeing a major decline in applications.   (21:35) We’re in chapter 152 of 171 Answers and we’re discussing whether transfer students get as much financial aid as freshman applicants.   (33:58) This week’s question is from Elizabeth in Georgia and she wants to know how to answer the question posed by the CSS Profile: ‘enter the amount your parents think they will be able to pay for your college expenses   (46:16) In this week’s interview, College Student Chika Nwosu reflects on her freshman and sophomore year at the University of Miami, Part 2 of 4.   (50:46) Recommended resource: The book, The College Visit Journal: Campus Visits Demystified by Danielle Marshall. The book is a great place to record and store all your notes from your campus visits in one place. Bonus section: Why are elite colleges getting so many early applications this year (Part 2)   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! To access and best utilize the transcripts of each podcast, please do the following: Go to  Click the Transcripts tab, from the top menu by the Episodes tab Click on the transcript for the specific episode you are interested in, just click on the image or by the word “Transcript” You will see a Share icon, a download option, a link to Apple podcast and you will see a magnifying glass Use the magnifying glass to search for any word. If that word was used in the episode, it will show up, highlighted in yellow. You will also see a timestamp so you can see the exact minute and second this word was spoken. If you click the word highlighted in yellow, the podcast player will start playing right at that word. You can stop it from playing by clicking the pause button.  Note: The transcription accuracy is about 90%, so you will see some spelling errors and errors in translation going from voice to print. We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, so please send us your ideas for college spotlights, articles for discussion and recommended resources. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:   If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

COVID-19 swept through some colleges and universities this fall as schools reopened with a variety of approaches. Beyond the headlines, however, higher education and post-secondary training have been profoundly affected by the pandemic in other ways. Our two guests on this podcast fill us in on the challenges ahead and the role legislators will play in dealing with state colleges and universities. Our first guest is Jamie Merisotis, president and CEO of the Lumina Foundation, a private foundation that is a major player in supporting efforts to expand higher education and post-secondary learning. He discusses how the pandemic has affected the world of higher education, how it has laid bare the need for more post-secondary training and how legislators can play a role. Our second guest is Scott Jaschik, editor of the news website Inside Higher Ed. Jaschik gives us an up-to-date assessment of reopening efforts at colleges and universities around the country and discusses the fiscal landscape state legislators will face in the wake of the pandemic.         Resources Inside Higher Ed Lumina Foundation OAS Episode 111 Transcription

In this episode you will hear: (08:41) In this week’s news segment, an article from Insider Higher Ed, “2020 Survey of Admissions Leaders: A Mess of a Year” by Scott Jaschik.  A new Gallup survey reveals heightened concerns among colleges and universities meeting their enrollment goals that was already difficult prior to COVID-19.   (39:38) We’re in chapter 141 of 171 Answers and we’re talking about how endowments impacts the resources a college has to invest in its students.   (56:42) This week’s question is from Suzanne in Oregon and she is asking Mark to address how high school dual credit programs are evaluated by colleges.   (01:13:20) Mark concludes his interview with Sam Prouty, Director of Admissions at Middlebury College in Part II of II on a spotlight on the college.   (01:19:39) Recommended resource: Mark’s favorite resource for helping students and parents with the 2021-22 FAFSA; it is a complete FAFSA Walkthrough by Utah Higher Education Assistance Authority (UHEAA); here is the link:   College spotlight: none   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! To access and best utilize the transcripts of each podcast, please do the following: Go to  Click the Transcripts tab, from the top menu by the Episodes tab Click on the transcript for the specific episode you are interested in, just click on the image or by the word “Transcript” You will see a Share icon, a download option, a link to Apple podcast and you will see a magnifying glass Use the magnifying glass to search for any word. If that word was used in the episode, it will show up, highlighted in yellow. You will also see a timestamp so you can see the exact minute and second this word was spoken. If you click the word highlighted in yellow, the podcast player will start playing right at that word. You can stop it from playing by clicking the pause button.  Note: The transcription accuracy is about 90%, so you will see some spelling errors and errors in translation going from voice to print. We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, so please send us your ideas for college spotlights, articles for discussion and recommended resources. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:   If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: (06:04) In this week’s news segment, an article from Inside Higher Ed, “The Return of the Campus Tour”, by Scott Jaschik.  There are some in-person campus tours that are back in operation – though with several new rules to preserve the safety of visitors. Mark and Dave discuss how to navigate yourself through the new world of college tours.   (18:45) We are in Chapter 136 of 171 Answers and Mark talks us through ways to lower costs for students who are already enrolled in college. Mark and Anika discuss six or seven cost saving tips for current college students.   (33:41) This week’s question asks if there are advantages to applying as soon as possible to colleges. Mark discusses Early Action, Early Decision, Regular Admission, Rolling admission, admission for athletes and applying early and scholarships.   (47:42) Mark interviews Lisa Przekop in part 1 of 2 on the topic of “Understanding the University of California at Santa Barbara”. Lisa has been in admissions at UCSB for 35 years so we couldn’t have a better guest to address this topic.   ( 53:01) Recommended resource: The book, by    College spotlight: none this week   (2: 01:02:45) But we do have a second interview for the first time: Mark kicks off his interview with Lauren Williams, college daughter of YCBK co-host Dave Williams, in ‘How to be creative with your extracurriculars in the age of COVID-19’   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! To access and best utilize the transcripts of each podcast, please do the following: Go to  Click the Transcripts tab, from the top menu by the Episodes tab Click on the transcript for the specific episode you are interested in, just click on the image or by the word “Transcript” You will see a Share icon, a download option, a link to Apple podcast and you will see a magnifying glass Use the magnifying glass to search for any word. If that word was used in the episode, it will show up, highlighted in yellow. You will also see a timestamp so you can see the exact minute and second this word was spoken. If you click the word highlighted in yellow, the podcast player will start playing right at that word. You can stop it from playing by clicking the pause button.  Note: The transcription accuracy is about 90%, so you will see some spelling errors and errors in translation going from voice to print. We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, so please send us your ideas for college spotlights, articles for discussion and recommended resources. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:   If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: (10:46) In this week’s news segment, an article from Inside Higher Ed by Scott Jaschik that discusses the variety of creative ways colleges are recruiting without students visiting their campuses. Mark and Dave have a robust discussion of this article     (37:57) We are in Chapter 114 of 171 Answers and we are in the final part of how to find merit scholarships. Mark and Anika talk about specific websites students and parents can go to in order to find merit scholarships.   Mark also recommends the following resource to help students identify which schools are the most generous with their merit scholarships:     (56:08) This week’s question is from Kisha in OH and she wants to know if her son should take the ACT in his sophomore year since he isn’t strong in geometry and fears that he won’t retain the information.   (01:05:21) Mark kicks off is interview with Taylor King, Assistant Director of Admissions at Columbus State. This three-part interview helps us understand what a Regional Public University is and who is a good match for a Regional Public University.   (01:11:46) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is Go to commonapp org, search for any college you are interested in and on their main page, you will see a hyperlink that says virtual tour, click this link   (01:19:15) College spotlight: The University of Cincinatti   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? We would be most grateful! We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click:   If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: (05:25) In this week’s news, an article from Insider Higher Ed, “Judge Upholds Harvard’s Admissions Policies”, by Scott Jaschik. Federal Judge Allison Burroughs of the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts has ruled that Harvard’s approach to affirmative action does not discriminate against Asian Americans. Judge Burroughs says that Harvard is admitting very qualified applicants of color who are adding valuable diversity to the campus and that Asian-Americans are not being discriminated against. Judge Burroughs accepted Harvard’s argument that when everyone in the applicant pool is imminently qualified. Judge Burroughs said that it is not illegal for a college to emphasis non-academic factors in their evaluation. We discuss this decision and we talk about where things go from here.     (21:44) We are in chapter 90 of 171 Answers and Mark answers whether or not colleges have access to knowing all of the schools where your child applies. We talk about three different sources that many people believe can let a school know where else applicants are applying for admission in addition to their college. For each of these three sources we talk about whether this is true or whether it is urban folklore. We also discuss whether applicants should let admissions officers or interviewers know where else they are applying.     (27:23) Our special bonus content segment discusses about a half dozen recent changes to the Common Application for the 2019-2020 year. Mark likes each and every one of these changes for the current year. The Common App releases its changes in August every year.   (52:55) Mark kicks off his interview with Peter Van Buskirk, Founder of Best College Fit, and Former VP of Enrollment at Franklin and Marshall, in “Understanding how colleges act as businesses in ways that are not in your best interest”- Part 1. Peter has over 40 years of experience in college admissions and he does not hold back. Mark is confident that this will be one of the most illuminating interviews we have had in our 20 ½ months of the “Your College-Bound Kid” podcast. Mark tells our listeners, this is not an interview that you are going to want to miss. This is Part 1 of 4 interviews that will air on 10/17, 10/24, 10/31 and 11/7.   (01:01:10) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is the Common App’s 27 minute long webinar about what is new with the Common App for 2019-20. Mark opens up by sharing two additional changes to the Common App that he didn’t mention in the Bonus content discussion but then he shares this webinar which covers additional changes for the year. The webinar opens by giving a great statistical overview of the Common App. It answers questions like, how many students use the Common App; how many applications are filed every year and so much more, but the meat of the webinar is an even fuller description of changes than the ones Mark covers earlier in this episode:     (01:13:28) Our College Spotlight for the week is Hawaii Pacific University, aka as HPU.   Don't forget to send your questions related to any and every facet of the college process to: questions@yourcollegeboundkid.com If you enjoy our podcast, would you please do us a favor and share our podcast both verbally and on social media? The more people that subscribe to our podcast the more our podcast will appear at the top when people search for college admissions podcasts. We would be most grateful if you can share Your College-Bound Kid with your friends. ! We are excited to give our listeners a chance to play a role in shaping what topics we discuss, as well as what guests we have on our podcast. You can let your voice be heard by completing this survey. Just put the following link in your browser and give us your honest feedback. We thank you in advance. Every episode of Your College-Bound Kid will align with a chapter from the book 171 Answers to the Most-Asked College Admission Questions. To get a copy go to Amazon and click: If you want to place a bulk order, you will save money by purchasing this book at 171answers.com. Every penny goes to The Atlanta Mission, a Christian organization that helps over 1000 homeless residents every day.  If you want to see what future episodes will discuss in the book chapter section,  just go to 171answers.com and then click the red button "See exactly what 171 Answers covers"

In this episode you will hear: (5:28) In this week’s news, an article from Inside Higher Ed, “When Colleges Seek Diversity through Photoshop” by Scott Jaschik. Schools have been busted using Photoshop to add students of color into their marketing materials in places where the original photo was taken with a white student. Though the practice is deemed unethical, research has proven that over 75 percent of colleges appeared to over represent black students in their admissions publications. Most schools also over-represent Asian students. This is a major concern because many students rely on a university’s image to make their enrollment decisions. Others argue more pragmatically, how are they going to attract a more diverse applicant pool unless they depict them in pictures. Mark and Anika discuss the pros and the cons of this practice.     (21:57) We are in Chapter 80 of 171 Answers and Mark shares advice for non-traditional students applying for college.    (38:50) Mark covers a bonus topic this week as we talk about the push for test-optional schools, one year after the University of Chicago’s decision. There have been 41 schools who have decided to no longer test scores since the University of Chicago went test-optional in early 2018. We have a discussion about who these schools are; are they all very similar or are they quite different. Mark also speculates what the future has for the test-optional movement.     (59:23) Mark interviews Daniel Greene, a parent and dedicated listener to Your College-Bound Kid in “Understanding how the Trello app can help you stay organized in the college process”. Daniel shares how he uses the Trello app; how his son uses the Trello app and what his wife thinks about the Trello app. Daniel then generously offers to demo the Trello app for every one of our listeners who wants to see the Trello app in action.     (71:54) Mark’s recommended resource of the week is He's Not Lazy: Empowering Your Son to Believe In Himself Adam Price    (1:29:03) Our College Spotlight for the week is Stanford University (CA)   Daniel Greene has set up a Trello board for YCBK listeners; it is public at:  . Listeners can play around all they want with this Trello Board It also contains a card with information on how to contact me at c. 

Admit It sits down with Scott Jaschik (like classic) to discuss the Inside Higher Ed 2018 Survey of Admissions Directors. In this wide ranging conversation, we cover how the current political climate impacts college admissions, the Students for Fair Admissions vs. Harvard affirmative action court case, the state of the test optional movement, the increasing struggle to meet enrollment targets by May 1, and so much more.

Mike, Brandon, and Dan welcome Scott Jaschik, Co-Founder and Editor of Insidehighered.com, to the show. The group walks through a wide variety of topics concerning colleges and universities, from discuss dwindling enrollments and population changes in the Northeast to challenges emerging around international students. What are some of the biggest issues emerging on campuses today? Listen in to find out.

In 1983, U.S. News & World Report began to rank America’s colleges. More than 30 years later, they continue to release yearly lists of the “best” schools in the U.S. We talk with Inside Higher Ed’s Scott Jaschik and U.S. News’ Robert Morse about how these rankings have shaped how students select colleges in America.

In 1983, U.S. News & World Report began to rank America’s colleges. More than 30 years later, they continue to release yearly lists of the “best” schools in the U.S. We talk with Inside Higher Ed’s Scott Jaschik and U.S. News’ Robert Morse about how these rankings have shaped how students select colleges in America.

First, U.S. News releases its college rankings each year to much fanfare. But are they actually hurting higher ed? We ask journalist Scott Jaschik and U.S. News’ Robert Morse.  Then, there will be 10 billion people on the planet by 2050. That’s a lot of mouths to feed. Can we do it without destroying Earth’s resources? We talk with science writer Charles Mann about the different approaches to tackling this problem. Finally, you’ve heard the name Martin Shkreli, but there are many other executives responsible for hiking drug prices. We peek into the complex world of Big Pharma.

Welcome back to our new series entitled Looking to Next Year.  Today, we want to look at a well-known college recruitment practice and its ramifications.  That practice is the visiting of high schools by college admissions staff.  Maybe our discussion today won’t come as a surprise to you; but, whether it does or doesn’t, it’s a sad commentary on the U.S. in 2018.    1. A New Study Just a few episodes ago, we quoted from an article in Inside Higher Ed by Scott Jaschik, and today we find ourselves doing that again.  This article is forebodingly titled “Where Colleges Recruit . . . and Where They Don’t."  Here is the story: [F]or many colleges, reaching out to students in person at high school events is a key part of the recruitment process. And even for the [elite colleges], this is an important part of outreach and regularly results in applications from those who might not have otherwise applied. But where do the [colleges] go to recruit? A new study being presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association suggests that these visits favor those who attend high schools where family income is high. And these high schools are likely to be whiter than the population as a whole. Two of the researchers--Ozan Jaquette, an assistant professor of education at the University of California, Los Angeles, and Karina Salazar, a doctoral candidate at the Center for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Arizona--published a summary of their findings in The New York Times. (quoted from the article) So, let’s look at that opinion piece in The Times by Mr. Jaquette and Ms. Salazar.  They wrote about their findings, based on data from college visits--not any other kinds of student recruitment--made in 2017 by 150 colleges.  Here are some of those findings in their own words: The clearest finding from our study is that public high schools in more affluent neighborhoods receive more visits than those in less affluent areas. Only about a third of households across the country earn more than $100,000 annually, but nearly half of high schools receiving visits by private colleges and universities were in neighborhoods where average incomes were higher. Connecticut College visited neighborhoods with an average median household income of $121,578. Private colleges also disproportionately visited private high schools over public high schools. Andy Strickler, dean of admissions at Connecticut College, said the school targets high schools that have historically provided students, or other schools that have a similar profile. He said there was a good reason Connecticut College doesn’t always visit other areas: “There’s a trend for these students to stay closer to home for college.” (quoted from the opinion piece) I get that colleges understandably visit high schools that have sent students in the past or schools with demographic characteristics like those high schools.  I get that colleges need to recruit as cost-effectively as possible.  I get that kids in high schools in less affluent neighborhoods probably do “stay closer to home for college,” for better or worse.  But I still am a bit disappointed by all of it.  Nonetheless, let’s not single out Connecticut College.  There is a chart in the opinion piece that shows that plenty of other colleges do exactly the same thing--that is, visit high schools in neighborhoods with higher median incomes than high schools they don’t visit.  And, what’s worse, lots of those colleges are public universities.  Let’s look back at what Mr. Jaquette and Ms. Salazar write about that: While public research universities visited rich and poor neighborhoods nearly equally when recruiting in their home states, they visited the same affluent high schools targeted by private colleges when recruiting elsewhere. Most public colleges also visited far more high schools out of state than in-state. The median income of areas where the University of Pittsburgh recruited out of state, for example, was $114,000, compared with $63,000 for areas that were not visited. . . . The attention public universities lavish on wealthy out-of-state schools is a response to state policy. Over the past decade, many states have cut funding for higher education, forcing public universities to become more dependent on tuition revenue. Research shows that public universities responded by enrolling more out-of-state students, who often pay two to three times more than state residents. And of course, only well-off students can afford that. . . . In their out-of-state visits, our data also suggest, public universities were more likely to visit predominantly white public high schools than nonwhite schools with similar levels of academic achievement. For example, [in the Boston metropolitan area], the University of Colorado Boulder visited Dover-Sherborn Regional High School, which is 88 percent white and has about 154 students with proficient math scores, according to the federal Department of Education. But it did not visit Brockton High School, where just 21 percent of students are white but about 622 students have proficient math scores. “In order to be good stewards of our funding, we consistently recruit at schools that have historically given us applications,” said Colleen Newman, admissions director at Boulder. “Given our limited funding, we are unable to expand our traditional recruitment efforts to all regions and all high schools that have academically talented students.” (quoted from the opinion piece) Well, as loyal listeners know, I love recommending Boulder.  I think it is friendly to students from the East Coast and a great all-around university.  But I have to admit that I am not crazy about this recruitment strategy, though I understand the reasoning, of course.  Here are some more things I did not know, however.  I guess that I might have figured this out if I had thought about it, but I just never did.  I am wondering how much you have thought about this, parents.  Listen up: Colleges don’t treat recruitment lightly. It’s big business for colleges and the firms they hire. Most colleges identify prospects by purchasing lists of students and their backgrounds from the testing agencies College Board and ACT. They can also hire enrollment management consulting firms, which integrate data from the university with data on schools and communities. This helps them decide which schools should be visited and which should be targeted with emails and brochures. One consulting firm we spoke with even knows information about individual students such as their family income and net worth, and the value of their home. If colleges have all this data, why aren’t they better at targeting talented poor students and students of color? The most common explanation is that there aren’t enough of them applying (the so-called achievement gap). Another explanation we hear is that talented students don’t apply because they don’t have the right guidance (called “under-matching”). . . .   Our data [suggest] universities are determined to court wealthier students over others, and they expend substantial resources identifying and reaching them.  There are many students from poor communities who get excellent grades but end up going to a community college because no one bothers looking for them. If colleges are serious about increasing socioeconomic and racial diversity, they should look for merit everywhere, not just in wealthy, white communities. (quoted from the opinion piece)  It’s hard to disagree with that conclusion.  It’s especially hard to disagree with that conclusion for public universities, which have a mission to serve the taxpayers in their own states.  It’s concerning that public universities might be pricing themselves out of the market for the students who need them most in their home states--or even for the students who need them most from other states.  In putting together his article, Mr. Jaschik corresponded with Mr. Jaquette about his study.  Here is part of that correspondence:  Jaquette, via email, said there is a contradiction between colleges’ statements that they are doing everything possible to recruit low-income, disadvantaged students and the findings of the new study. “Scholarship on organizational behavior--on all types of organizations--finds that organizations publicly adopt goals demanded by the external environment,” he said. “But these public statements are poor indicators of actual organizational priorities. How they spend real resources is a better indicator.” (quoted in the article) In other words, colleges might say that they are looking hard to bring in more low-income students because it is the politically correct, or even morally correct, thing to say.  However, their actions (in this case, their spending habits) speak louder than words.                                                                          2. What Does This Mean for You So, what does this mean for you?  Possibly nothing, if you live in a relatively affluent neighborhood and your kid attends a high school with relatively affluent classmates.  The chances are good that college recruiters are going to come calling both now and in the fall. But if you don’t live in a relatively affluent neighborhood and your kid does not attend a high school with relatively affluent classmates, the chances are good that you are going to have to look harder to investigate colleges and make your kid known to them.  It might mean that you will need to visit colleges in order to get colleges to notice your kid (although I wish you didn’t have to until after your kid is accepted and you all are trying to make a final decision).  Oh, unless you live in one of the places identified in a 2012 study by Caroline M. Hoxby and Christopher Avery and cited by Mr. Jaschik in his article: [The study] found a tendency by colleges to recruit only at high schools where they will find a critical mass of talented low-income students and not the many others where academic achievement may be more rare. The high schools having success at placing students in competitive colleges are in large metropolitan areas (generally from 15 cities) and their students are “far from representative” of the academic talent among low-income students, the authors write.  So it’s not that colleges don’t recruit at low-income high schools, but they favor the magnet over the typical high school--even though there are many students with ability who do not attend magnet high schools. (quoted from the article) Indeed there are, and your kid might be one of them.  3. Happy Memorial Day Well, it’s hard to believe that Memorial Day is just around the corner.  We are going to celebrate next week, but we will be back with you on May 31with the best episode we have ever done.  Stay tuned! Find our books on Amazon! How To Find the Right College: A Workbook for Parents of High School Students (available as a Kindle ebook and in paperback) How To Explore Your College Options: A Workbook for High School Students (available in paperback) Ask your questions or share your feedback by... Leaving a comment on the show notes for this episode at http://usacollegechat.org/episode163 Calling us at (516) 900-6922 to record a question on our USACollegeChat voicemail if you want us to answer your question live on our podcast Connect with us through... Subscribing to our podcast on Google Play Music, iTunes, Stitcher, or TuneIn Liking us on Facebook or following us on Twitter Reviewing parent materials we have available at www.policystudies.org Inquiring about our consulting services if you need individualized help Reading Regina's blog, Parent Chat with Regina

This is the third episode in our series, Decision Time Again, because, of course, it is actually decision time for lots of parents and kids out there.  Although USACollegeChat is headquartered on the East Coast, we have some loyal listeners in California, and California colleges, including its public universities, are increasingly popular among students back here in the East.  So, with that in mind, we have today’s episode.  It is designed to make some of you feel better if your senior applied to a California college or two and did not get in.  It is also designed to help those of you just starting on the application process with your juniors in case you want to consider California public universities--or not. 1. The California System Although we have described California’s elaborate system of public higher education in many previous episodes and in our books, let me do it quickly one more time now.  California’s public higher education system has three tiers:  the University of California (abbreviated as UC), the California State University (abbreviated as CSU), and the California Community Colleges.  The most prestigious tier is the UC system, which has nine campuses (plus UC San Francisco, which offers only graduate and professional programs):  UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UCLA, UC Merced, UC Riverside, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, and UC Santa Cruz.  We have spoken many times about UC Berkeley, clearly one of our nation’s finest colleges, public or private, with its long history of excellence.  We have also spoken many times about UCLA, which has risen in prestige in the past 50 years, is increasingly popular nationwide, and, some say, is now as difficult to get into as UC Berkeley.  The other seven campuses are less famous outside of California, but that does not mean that they aren’t excellent schools in their own right.  The middle tier is the CSU system, which has 23 campuses, spread from Humboldt in the north to San Diego in the south.  Many of these colleges are not well known to those of us who are not from California, but that does not mean that they aren’t good schools.  The third tier is the California Community Colleges system, which comprises 114 colleges, with over 2 million students.  Understandably, these two-year institutions are attended mostly by California residents who live near the campus they are attending. Now, a note to California:  It is especially confusing to those of us who do not live in your state to wrap our heads around the fact that, for example, there is a UC San Diego; a CSU at San Diego, known as San Diego State University; and a University of San Diego, which is a private Catholic university.  So, those of you non-Californians interested in a California university, pay attention to what you are looking at. 2. College Acceptances in California That was a long introduction to the point of this episode, which is the runaway application numbers and crazy difficulty of getting into schools in the UC system, the top-tier system and the one that most out-of-staters are most interested in.  I came across an article recently in Inside Higher Ed, written by Scott Jaschik, with this sad headline:  “Wait-Listed, Rejected and Frustrated in California.”  Here is the opening to Mr. Jaschik’s article, which, though anecdotal, is quite revealing, even for those of us who are not Californians: [A] counselor said that he is seeing students either wait-listed or rejected from UC Davis or UC Santa Barbara--students with “straight A’s and maybe one or two B’s” and SAT scores above 1400 or near-perfect ACT scores. He has seen even stronger students--among the top of his school’s graduating class--getting rejected from UC San Diego. “Our San Diego decisions look like Berkeley and UCLA decisions from years past,” he said. “Students we told that ‘this was a likely school’ aren’t getting in.” Parents--many of whom rely on out-of-date senses of colleges’ competitiveness--are particularly shocked. “We are constantly working with parents who assume a B-plus student can go to Davis or Santa Barbara, and they can’t,” said the counselor. UCLA and Berkeley have for years been long shots for all applicants. They reject many students with perfect SAT scores and grade point averages. So while many applicants are crushed by rejections at those two campuses, their counselors aren’t surprised. The difference this year, counselors say, is that other UC campuses and some California State campuses have gone up significantly in competitiveness. . . .   A school counselor in Northern California said it is the “middle group” within the University of California where he is seeing change. He has a senior with straight A’s who was wait-listed at Santa Barbara. At Davis and San Diego, “students we assumed would be strong candidates are being wait-listed.” He said that, next year, he will be discouraging students from using any UC as a safety.  (quoted from the article) Well, there is a lot to unpack there.  First, there is the notion that kids in California are increasingly unable to use their own public higher education system as their fallback position, or safety schools.  We have often said, here at USACollegeChat, that the state public university campuses are great safety school choices for bright kids with good grades and good admission test scores.  And while we were always sure that no one could use UC Berkeley or UCLA as a safety, we would have thought that some of the UC campuses in that “middle group” would have been fine to use.  I guess we are going to need to rethink this strategy--at least for kids in California, which gives those kids just one more source of anxiety in the college search process. Second, there is the very real concern of high school counselors, who have somehow led a lot of kids astray while following norms they had trusted.  They will all have to recalibrate before next season’s application process so that there will be fewer unpleasant surprises. Third, there is the very real misconception of parents, “many of whom rely on out-of-date senses of colleges’ competitiveness.”  I just want to say to parents that I totally get this, because it happens to me all the time.  And, as we are fond of saying here at USACollegeChat, we do this for a living.  I am constantly amazed at admissions stories from colleges that I know were really nothing to write home about 40 years ago, colleges that were politely referred to as “party schools,” colleges that now no one can seem to get into.  I don’t want to name a bunch of those colleges here, but I can tell you that there are quite a few on my list.  This all just speaks to the growing competitiveness of college admissions.  Sometimes my college friends from Cornell and I sit around and wonder whether any of us could have gotten in to Cornell today.  So, parents and grandparents, this is not your college world any longer; it is a new college world, with higher expectations across the board. And fourth, I would like to say to all my young friends here in New York, who have just told me recently that they wanted to go to UC Berkeley, think again--because your chances are not good, no matter how smart you are.  Berkeley just turned down hundreds--really thousands--like you.  Does that mean you shouldn’t apply?  No, because you might get lucky.  But it does mean you shouldn’t expect to get in, you should have plenty of other college choices that you like a lot, and you should be happily surprised if it all works out in your favor. And how might California’s situation affect those of you who have kids recently wait listed at top colleges elsewhere?  Here is what Mr. Jaschik explains: . . . [Y]ields could be hard to predict for out-of-state colleges that recruit top students in California. Many Californians have in the past turned down top out-of-state institutions for UC campuses that charge a fraction of the cost of private institutions. Such students may not have the option going ahead.  (quoted from the article) In other words, California kids who might have turned down Cornell for Berkeley might need to pick up that acceptance to Cornell now, with Berkeley out of the running.  That means it is less likely that other kids on the wait list at top colleges will actually get in.  It might also mean that some of those colleges will find themselves overenrolled because most of the California kids they accepted might actually end up coming. 3. College Applications in California But, let’s back up the clock a minute to look at applications to these California universities, not just acceptances.  This is a story we have mentioned before, but never with quite this much data to support it.  Here are the facts, according to Mr. Jaschik’s article: . . . [The] numbers are available for total applications for the coming fall. And while UC campuses are edging up in total size, the application increases are much larger. Total (unduplicated) applications for undergraduate admission to the University of California were up 5.7 percent, but the largest increases were not at Berkeley, which was up only 4.6 percent. UC Riverside saw the largest percentage increase--12.2 percent.  Five UC campuses--Berkeley, Irvine, Los Angeles, San Diego and Santa Barbara--received more than 100,000 applications each. San Diego’s total is up 9.7 percent. Davis is not far behind at 95,000 applications, up 8.6 percent. (By way of comparison, Harvard University received just under 40,000 applications last year.) Application totals like those guarantee shrinking admit rates of the sort many applicants are experiencing this year.  (quoted from the article) Wow.  That’s a lot of applications, and I doubt they are going to start dropping off any time soon.  What does it all mean?  Well, for families in California, it means that you need to get out of your geographic comfort zone (and perhaps your financial comfort zone as well).  This is the advice we give most often to everyone looking at colleges, and it might be one reason that counselors in California are finding that kids are getting into prestigious schools in the East--more prestigious than some of the public universities they did not get into in California--precisely because they broadened their geographic scope and found some colleges that were anxious to diversify their own freshman classes with exotic creatures from California.  Can it get any worse?  Stay tuned for what will happen next year at this time. Find our books on Amazon! How To Find the Right College: A Workbook for Parents of High School Students (available as a Kindle ebook and in paperback) How To Explore Your College Options: A Workbook for High School Students (available in paperback) Ask your questions or share your feedback by... Leaving a comment on the show notes for this episode at http://usacollegechat.org/episode159 Calling us at (516) 900-6922 to record a question on our USACollegeChat voicemail if you want us to answer your question live on our podcast Connect with us through... Subscribing to our podcast on Google Play Music, iTunes, Stitcher, or TuneIn Liking us on Facebook or following us on Twitter Reviewing parent materials we have available at www.policystudies.org Inquiring about our consulting services if you need individualized help Reading Regina's blog, Parent Chat with Regina

In 1983, U.S. News & World Report began ranking America’s colleges. More than 30 years later, they continue to release annual lists of the “best” schools in the country. We talk with Inside Higher Ed’s Scott Jaschik and U.S. News’ Robert Morse about how these rankings have shaped how students select colleges in America.

First, U.S. News releases its college rankings each year to much fanfare. But are they actually hurting higher ed? We ask journalist Scott Jaschik and U.S. News’ Robert Morse. Then, there will be 10 billion people on the planet by 2050. That’s a lot of mouths to feed. Can we do it without destroying Earth’s resources? We talk with science writer Charles Mann about different approaches to tackling this problem. Finally, you’ve heard the name Martin Shkreli, but there are many other executives responsible for hiking drug prices. We peek into the complex world of Big Pharma.

We are in the fourth week of our new series, Researching College Options, and we spent time in our last episode talking about the SAT and ACT and their almost-unavoidable continuing role in college applications and admissions. Yes, we said that there are plenty of test-optional and test-flexible colleges, but the SAT and ACT are not dead and buried yet and won’t be any time soon, if ever. That topic was just about as inevitable as college applications season gets into full swing as this week’s topic, which is the super-important high school grade point average (GPA). Unfortunately, if your kid is about to be a senior, that high school GPA is pretty well locked in place at this point. A great fall semester might help a bit, but it won’t do much to change a GPA that is already based on six semesters of high school work and it won’t help at all if your kid is applying to a college under an Early Decision option and/or if your kid is applying to one or more colleges under an Early Action option by around November 1. Your kid’s current cumulative GPA is what it is, and now we have to help you and your kid think about how to deal with it. So, here are a few paragraphs of background from our first book, How To Find the Right College: A Workbook for Parents of High School Students: Unfortunately, there are no “high school grades optional” colleges that we know about. Certainly, most colleges will claim to look at the whole picture--a complete profile--of a student during the admissions process; nonetheless, that whole picture always includes high school grades. While there can be reasons that high school grades are lower than the student is capable of earning--such as difficult family situations or personal problems or trauma--those reasons would have to be explained compellingly in an essay or an additional letter of some sort to the college. In short, it is really very difficult to explain away mediocre or low high school grades. When a student has mediocre or low high school grades, it is ideal if that student happens to have high SAT or ACT scores. Then, the college can imagine that the student is bright, but perhaps had some reason for not performing as expected in high school classes. None of those reasons would be a great excuse, but some colleges will make an exception for such a student. However, most students who have mediocre or low high school grades do not have high SAT or ACT scores. For those students who have both mediocre or low high school grades and mediocre or low college admission test scores, the college choice with the highest cost-benefit ratio is probably a public two-year college--or maybe a public four-year college. By the way, great public four-year colleges can be just as difficult to get into as good private four-year colleges, so many of them are probably out of the running, too. If you look at the average high school GPAs of entering freshmen at many public state flagship universities, they are extraordinarily high--a 3.7 or 3.8 is not unheard of. Why again? Because many, many of the brightest students in a state want to attend--and do attend--the public state flagship university, for all the reasons we [have discussed before at USACollegeChat]. Understanding how important high school grades are in the college admission game is the first step, but it is one you should have taken with your senior several years ago. Parents of younger high school students, heed this early warning: Help your kid understand that there is really no way to make up for crummy--or even lackluster--high school grades when it comes time to apply to colleges. There just isn’t. So, let’s look again this week at what we call Step 13 in our new book, How To Explore Your College Options: A Workbook for High School Students--that is, Step 13 of getting the information that your kid needs to make good choices about where to apply. Finding out all of the information we call for in Step 13 will give you an idea about how likely it is that your kid will be accepted by a college if he or she decides to apply. Of course, no one can say for sure whether your kid’s grades or admission test scores or extracurricular and community service activities or letters of recommendation will be appealing enough to get him or her admitted to a particular college. But several academic hurdles stand between your kid and one or more colleges on his or her Long List of College Options (LLCO), and high school GPA is one of those hurdles. 1. High School GPAs of College Candidates So, we believe that your kid should find out the average high school GPA of admitted or enrolled freshmen in order to get a somewhat better grasp on whether he or she is likely to be admitted to that college. Here is what we wrote in our new book for kids like yours: For many, but not all, colleges, you will be able to find the full distribution of high school GPAs and the average high school GPA of the students enrolled in the freshman class by looking under C11 and C12 of the common data set on the college’s website. [You will probably need to search for “common data set” on the college’s website, and you might find that the data sets are available for several years.] You also might find [high school grades] on a Class Profile sheet on the website, but you will not find this information on College Navigator [the online resource provided by the National Center for Education Statistics]. [The] average high school GPA will be on a 4-point scale. For example, a great college might show an average high school GPA of 3.8, meaning that its enrolled freshmen did extremely well in their high school courses. As Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses have become increasingly popular and as more high schools have started to “weight” students’ grades in those courses (and sometimes in their own honors courses as well), there has been a rise in high school GPAs. In other words, when a student in a high school with weighted grades gets an A in a regular course, that A is worth a 4.0, or 4 points. But if a student in a high school with weighted grades gets an A in an Advanced Placement course, that A is worth a 5.0, or 5 points—that is, the grade has more “weight.” Whether your high school does or does not weight course grades is something that should be part of the high school narrative profile that your school’s counselor will send off to colleges with your high school transcript. That profile is helpful to colleges in judging your GPA. Nonetheless, one effect of all of this weighting of high school course grades appears to be that average high school GPAs of incoming freshmen are on the rise. We can tell this anecdotally by the fact that many colleges we profiled in our virtual college tour [back in Episodes 27 through 53 of USACollegeChat], including some not super-selective ones, post surprisingly high average GPAs well over a 3.5 for the incoming freshman class. So, look carefully at the average high school GPAs that colleges are putting out there and see how yours compares. And, remember, some colleges will not provide one. Well, that is a rather straightforward explanation of the high school GPA as one determinant in college admissions. As parents, it shouldn’t surprise you at all. But now let’s look at a newer explanation of that high school grade inflation, which we referred to, and its consequences. 2. The New Research on High School Grade Inflation This explanation comes to you from a July article in Inside Higher Ed, which is, in its own words, “the leading digital media company serving the higher education space. Born digital in the 21st Century at the height of the Internet revolution, our publication has become the trusted, go-to source of online news, thought leadership, and opinion over the last decade.” This article, by Scott Jaschik, is appropriately titled “High School Grades: Higher and Higher." Here is what Jaschik said about a new study, which was just released: The study . . . will be a chapter in Measuring Success: Testing, Grades and the Future of College Admissions, to be published next year by Johns Hopkins University Press. The two authors of the study are Michael Hurwitz, senior director at the College Board, and Jason Lee, a doctoral student at the Institute of Higher Education at the University of Georgia. . . . The research is on students who take the SAT, and the study argues that these are representative of high school students who enroll in four-year colleges. The data come both from the Education Department and from surveys the College Board conducts of students who take the SAT. A key finding is that, looking at cohorts of high school graduates who finished from 1998 to 2016, the average high school GPA went up from 3.27 to 3.38. Notably, the gains were unequal among high schools, and the differences appear to favor students from wealthier (and whiter) high schools than average. The study groups high schools by the magnitude of grade inflation. In the top decile of growth in average GPAs [meaning that the GPAs rose the most], black and Latino students made up only 22 percent of students on average, and only 32 percent of students were eligible for free lunch. But in the bottom decile of GPA growth [meaning that the GPAs rose the least], black and Latino enrollments were an average of 61 percent, and more than half of students were eligible for free lunch. The study finds that the average GPA at the high schools with the most grade inflation (top decile) has hit 3.56, while the average at places that haven’t seen much grade inflation (bottom decile, largely minority) is 3.14. . . . [T]he study finds similar grade inflation in . . . weighted and unweighted grades. . . . (quoted from the article, emphasis added) Well, that is quite a lot to process. It’s bad enough that grade inflation is taking place and skewing the way that everyone has to think about high school achievement. But it’s much worse to know that whiter and richer kids are disproportionately benefiting from what is already a lousy trend. You can draw your own conclusions about why that is happening. And here is one further surprising finding from the study: . . . [T]he authors find that the proportion of students with A averages (including A-minus and A-plus) increased from 38.9 percent of the graduating class of 1998 to 47 percent of the graduating class of 2016. . . . (quoted from the article) What? I was surprised--more like flabbergasted--to learn that almost 40 percent of students in the graduating class of 1998 had A averages (even considering that this was perhaps a somewhat select sample of that graduating class, like kids who took the SAT). Nonetheless, almost 40 percent seems high to me--or, more precisely, inflated already. The fact that the figure is now 47 percent is more arresting still. Do we really believe that almost half of the 2016 high school graduates--even half of the graduates who took the SAT--deserved A averages? That seems like a lot of kids to me. But hold on a minute. Here is something that you might be thinking, something that would make these fantastic grades happy news, according to the article: . . . [T]he authors acknowledge in their study [that] there could be a reason for the grade inflation that would make educators celebrate. What if students are smarter or are being better educated, and so are earning their better grades? The authors reject these possibilities, and cite SAT scores to do so. If students were learning more, their SATs should be going up, or at the very least remaining stable. But during the period studied, SAT averages (math and verbal, 1,600-point scale) fell from 1,026 to 1,002. . . . (quoted from the article) Oh, so it’s just grade inflation after all. Here is the wrap-up and bottom line from the article: While the authors said they didn’t think many educators would be surprised that grade inflation is present in high schools, they said it was important to look at the variation among high schools, a circumstance that has received less attention. High schools “most prone to grade inflation are the resourced schools,” Lee said, “the ones with the highest level of affluence.” For those at high schools without resources, generally with lower GPAs, grade inflation elsewhere “puts them at a disadvantage in the college admissions process.” (quoted from the article) So, this is one more instance of students from poorer communities--who are, as a matter of fact, disproportionately students of color--facing a tougher path to college. And this is one more instance of students from wealthier communities--who are, as a matter of fact, disproportionately white students--getting an undeserved break. 3. What Does It Mean for You What does all this mean for your kid, regardless of how well-to-do or not-well-to-do your high school community is? It means that the race for good grades has gotten harder to win. Average high school GPAs of admitted freshmen are impressive--sometimes literally unbelievably impressive--even at colleges that are not in the top tier. If you have a senior at home and it is too late to improve his or her GPA, then you need to be sensible in looking at how your kid stacks up against the students who are being admitted to colleges on your kid’s Long List of College Options. If you have a younger kid at home, remind him or her every day just how important high school grades are--no matter what four-year college he or she is aiming for. Find our books on Amazon! How To Find the Right College: A Workbook for Parents of High School Students (available as a Kindle ebook and in paperback) How To Explore Your College Options: A Workbook for High School Students (available in paperback) Ask your questions or share your feedback by... 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