Service to School Stories

This week, we have S2S Applicant turned Ambassador, Kelton Johnsen joining us on the podcast. Kelton is a US Army veteran, community college transfer, and current student at the University of Chicago. Kelton shares about exploring his options in higher ed, changing course on degree plans during the admissions process, paying it forward to help fellow veterans as an Ambassador, and much more.  Main...

Today we are joined on the podcast by LtCol Trivius Caldwell. Trivius is a graduate of HBCU Tuskegee University & highly accomplished officer in the US Army. Trivius earned his Masters degree from Auburn University, taught at West Point, and is currently a PhD candidate at Duke University while serving on active duty. Join us as Trivius shares about his journey in academics, pursuing a PhD whi...

Today’s episode welcomes the highly accomplished Adrian Perkins. Adrian is a graduate of West Point, field artillery officer veteran of the US Army, bronze star recipient, Harvard Law School graduate, and Tillman Scholar. Following his military service and law school, Adrian served as Mayor of his hometown in Shreveport, LA, and was Louisiana’s 2020 democratic nominee for Senate with endorsement f...

In the final episode for Season 3, we’re joined by our admissions colleague, Paul Sunde. Paul is the Director of Undergraduate Admissions at Dartmouth College, a role he’s held for more than a decade as part of his 20+ years working at Dartmouth. We dive into the key components of admissions packages, ways veterans can demonstrate academic preparedness, the role of non-academic learning, dispel co...

This week, we welcome S2S Applicant Mo Han to the podcast. Mo is a US Army veteran, immigrant, transfer, and first generation college student, and current student at Stanford University. Mo shares how his experience in the military pushed him to pursue pre-med at Stanford, struggles in the admissions process & how we overcame them, the college search process, and more.  Main Topics  Mo’s backg...

It's Thanksgiving break for the S2S team & what a better way to spend it than taking a look back at GI Bill benefits & ways for veterans to fund education? This conversation with veteran transition expert, Tyrone Hewitt, dives into education & service benefits that veterans have to leverage for their education. We talk about the Post 9-11 GI Bill, Yellow Ribbon, VR&E, and much...

Today’s episode dives into a topic that affects all service members in or considering higher education - veteran education policy. We’re joined by Will Hubbard, VP for Veterans and Military Policy at Veterans Education Success (VES). Veterans Education Success works on a bipartisan basis to advance higher education success for veterans, service members, and military families, and to protect the in...

Today we are joined by Service to School veteran applicant, Ayleen Villareal. Ayleen is a US Air Force veteran, first generation college student, and current student at Harvard University. Ayleen brings her unique experiences to the conversation as we discuss navigating the application to Harvard, finding admissions support for applying to an Ivy League institution, working with S2S, and more.  Ma...

We’re joined today by Cornell University’s Senior Associate Director of Admissions, Kyle Downey, for a discussion about what it takes to support the whole student veteran from admissions to campus & beyond. We chat about Cornell’s history of supporting student veterans, earning the Purple Heart University designation, evaluating applications based on unique considerations facing veterans, and...

Today’s episode takes listeners on the journey of today’s guest, Ricky Holder. Ricky is an enlisted Navy Veteran, first generation college student, recent graduate of the University of Chicago, and a Marshall Scholar pursuing his masters at Oxford University. We talk about overcoming adversity, finding ways to stand out in the admissions process, the power of telling your story, the path to the Ma...

Today’s episode explores an important college admissions topic - academic preparation. We sat down with Ryan Pavel, CEO of Warrior-Scholar Project to discuss different opportunities to prepare yourself as a veteran for the rigors of college. We touch on bringing military experiences to the classroom in meaningful ways, balancing confidences & overcompensation in new environments, all about War...

Today we are joined by Service to School applicant, Subin Kim. Subin is a veteran of the US Army, community college transfer student, and current student at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Subin brings a unique perspective to the conversation as we discuss building a strong academic profile, the admissions process, transferring from community college to MIT, finding a community on cam...

Today’s episode is all about GRE & GMAT test prep for graduate school admissions with test prep nonprofit, Smart with a Heart. We’re joined by Nafeez Amin (President of Sherpa Prep & co-founder of Smart with a Heart) and Smart with a Heart board members, Nick Maynes (West Point graduate, Berkeley Haas, Harvard Kennedy School, Chairman & Treasurer of SWAH) and Lindsey Chrismon (West Poi...

In today’s episode, we sit down for an uplifting conversation with Service to School applicant John Green. John is a US Navy veteran, community college transfer student, and first year student at Brown University. We talk about applying to college with a 2.5 high school GPA, perseverance through rejections, life passions sparking higher ed & career goals, and much more!  Main Topics  John’s ba...

In the final episode for Season 2, we’re joined by our colleague Tyrone Hewitt. Tyrone served 20+ years in the US Navy and is currently a Transition & Employment Counselor at Fleet and Family Support Center providing counseling, mentorship and information and resources to transitioning service members, veterans & spouses. We dive right into education and service benefits that veterans have...

We’re diving into all things in business today with our friend & colleague Brendan Aronson! Brendan is many things, including a US Naval Academy Grad, US Marine veteran, Wharton MBA Grad, and co-founder & current CEO of TheMilVet. Brendan shares about his experience as a serial entrepreneur, transitioning from the military to the business sector, deciding whether an MBA is right for you, t...

Today’s conversation brings together two of our partner institutions as we take a look at the ways a liberal arts education creates pathways to professional or graduate programs. Adam Sapp, Assistant Vice President & Director of Admissions at Pomona College, and Alex DiAddezio, Senior Assistant Director of Admissions at Williams College, bring their 13+ combined years of experience working wit...

This week’s conversation is all about veteran career opportunities & pathways. We sat down with Kandi Tillman, co-founder of 50Strong, and Tiffany Daugherty, HR Leader for Military Pathways Johnson & Johnson, for a great conversation driven by their mutual experience advising & supporting veterans in their military talent work. We dive into topics such as the key employment players you...

This week, we welcome S2S Applicant turned Ambassador, Alex Clark to the podcast. Alex is a former USAF intel analyst, UT Austin Law graduate, Teach for America alum, and current Associate Lawyer at Haynes & Boone. Alex shares how he learned the value of mentorship, his experience as a judicial clerk (& why others should do it too!), establishing a veterans network for his law firm, applyi...

Today’s episode explores a topic that is generating some buzz in the higher ed space - open curriculum. We sat down with our admissions colleagues Hira Byrne, Assistant Dean of Admissions at Amherst College, and Colleen Mallet, Director of Veterans Students Outreach & Support. We broke down the differences between each school’s open curriculum policy and the many opportunities provided to stud...

Today we are joined by Service to School veteran applicant & Ambassador, Alex Walsh. Alex is a US Navy veteran, student at Harvard University, and is currently working as a college completion coach with Americorps supporting American College Access Network. Alex brings his unique experiences to the conversation as we discuss navigating the application to Harvard as a transfer student, building...

We’re diving in today for a discussion about an alternative pathway to admissions for veterans - the Eli Whitney Students Program. We were joined by Patricia Wei, the Associate Director of Undergraduate Admissions at Yale University, and Alec Buffi, current third year student veteran at Yale. We chat about what the Eli Whitney Student Program is and what it is not, how the experience differs from...

Today, we sat down for a fantastic conversation with Service to School applicant & Ambassador, Shaun Cason. Shaun is a US Marine Corps veteran, community college transfer student, current student at Princeton University, and recently announced Sachs Scholar that will take him to study at Oxford University. We talk about the power of good mentorship in academia, balancing college life with a fa...

On today’s episode, we welcome the new Service to School CEO, Alec Emmert. Alec is a graduate of the US Naval Academy and US Navy veteran. He earned his Master of Science in Finance from Georgetown, went on to earn his MBA from The Wharton School before working as a consultant at McKinsey for two years. Alec has served as a S2S undergraduate Ambassador & used S2S support during his MBA applica...

Join us for a chat with Dan Savage for the final episode of season 1. Dan is a West Point graduate and infantry officer veteran, earned his Masters in Public Policy from Harvard, and has more than a decade supporting veterans and service members with their career journeys post-service at Syracuse University, LinkedIn, and more. This interview is jam-packed with tips and resources that Dan shares a...