The College Prep Podcast

August means back to school for many students. Even if you don’t return to school until September, there are some planning issues you may want to work through now. Gretchen shares what she considers key issues for academic planning in the month of August. On the college admission side of things, August signifies the start of application season. High school seniors can begin submitting applic...

Over the years, Megan has tried a lot of approaches to helping students choose careers and college majors, but she still doesn’t feel there is an ideal approach. In this summer episode, she and Gretchen outline what they do know about how to help students reflect about future careers, and where they still feel off. The post 433: I Wish I Knew How to Best Offer Career Counseling to Students a...

This summer Gretchen is unpacking 9 totally valid cognitive challenges that she wishes she’d known more about earlier in her career. Today we look at the limitations of selective attention and the constraints of mental effort and selective attention. To download the full list of nine barriers to student learning, go to www.gretchenwegner.com/challenges The post 432: I Wish I Knew: How to Hel...

This summer Gretchen is unpacking 9 totally valid cognitive challenges that she wishes she’d known more about earlier in her career. Today we look at the ineffective learning strategies and students’ struggles to transfer learning. To download the full list of nine barriers to student learning, go to www.gretchenwegner.com/challenges. The post 430: I Wish I Knew: How to Talk to Student...

When Megan started out working on college admissions, she had know idea how many parents are micromanaging their kids’ college experience. In this summer episode, she shares some stories about the lengths parents seem to go to shield their students from difficulty. The post 429: How Many Parents Micromanage Their Kids’ Education?! appeared first on The College Prep Podcast .

This summer Gretchen is unpacking nine totally valid cognitive challenges that she wishes she’d known more about earlier in her career. Today we look at the barriers of Insufficient prior knowledge and misconceptions, and how they impact student learning. To download the full list of nine barriers to student learning, go to www.gretchenwegner.com/challenges . The post 428: Beware Insufficien...

Megan had no idea what the actual cost of college Greek life is until some family friends shared their experiences. In this episode she shares what she wishes she’d known earlier, and shocks Gretchen with some of her facts. The post 427: The Actual Cost of Greek Life appeared first on The College Prep Podcast .

This summer Gretchen is unpacking 9 totally valid cognitive challenges that she wishes she’d known more about earlier in her career. Today we look at the issue of Fear and Mistrust and how it impacts student learning. To download the full list of nine barriers to student learning, go to www.gretchenwegner.com/challenges . The post 426: How Much Students Fear & Mistrust Teachers appeared...

Early decision has significant benefits, which Megan didn’t know fully about until her own daughter went through the college application process. Here Megan shares what she wishes she’d known about the power of an early decision application in the right circumstance. The post 425: Early Decisions Has Significant Personal Benefits appeared first on The College Prep Podcast .

The whole point of going to college is to get a job, right?! Yet families often forget to evaluate their prospective college’s career services. Join podcast parent Lydia Schulz as she details everything she learned about how colleges help students get jobs. Specifically, the crew discusses: the two most important areas to evaluate in a college’s career services department, what has changed over th...

What can families and educators be considering as we slide into June and July? Megan and Gretchen share a short checklist of important tasks to consider this summer related to college admissions and academic skill development. Specifically they discuss: what college admissions tasks each high school grade level can do how to reflect about the past year to set yourself up for success next year what...

The question Megan is asked th most is, “what’s the different between the ACT and SAT, and which one should I take?” Megan answers this question, walking listeners through the following: What colleges want in regards to standardized testing What’s on each of the tests What Megan likes about the SAT and ACT, respectively How can you find the test that’s best for you Th...

How much can a student’s behavior truly change after a semester of coaching? In today’s episode, Gretchen walks us through a sixteen year old’s reflections about how he has grown as a result of academic coaching. The following eight ideas resulted from a brainstorm during this young man’s final coaching session, during which he and Gretchen reviewed what he has learned and what habits he would lik...

Megan talks with Coach Rob– David Robinson from Scholar Champion Athlete Recruiting– as he outlines some key issues to understand college athletic recruiting process. Listen as they discuss: How coaches view the process How what you see on tv represents only 5% The need to assess your talent and how to do a backwards assessment When to start the process Why most prospective college ath...

What is a school psychologist in a public school in Los Angeles seeing in regards to teacher and student burnout? Guest expert Kendrea Hart and Gretchen Wegner speak openly and vulnerably about teacher and student burnout including: what Kendrea’s seeing in teachers and students in her own school and across the country the unique challenges of teachers not being able to close the door to pro...

The end of the school year presents challenges: exams, prom, award ceremonies, and all the unique challenges that come with it. That means April is really our last month of normal– the last month for students to dig into their routines, work to improve habits, and put themselves on a solid footing heading into the end of year business. Gretchen outlines strategies to maximize this “nor...

You’ve probably heard you should balance your college list with sure thing, competitive, and reach schools. Throw in financial safety and maybe some scholarship options. This is all good advice. But it feels a little dry. Are there some ideas you could add to your search that might broaden your possibilities and maybe add new and promising options? Listen as Megan suggests some new ideas for...

If you have a high school junior or senior, you’ve probably seen the college admissions marketing machine in action. Colleges are spending about $1 million dollars each year to attract new students and there are some things you need to understand. On today’s episode, Megan shares: The reasons the college search process is dependent on marketing and branding The different ways that colleges m...

Preparing for college is not just about academics! Megan and Gretchen discuss a host of easy-to-create, growth-filled experiences that help students gain the skills necessary for independent living on a college campus. For example: social skills and how to meet new people independence and the importance of spending a week away from home how to assume more responsibility practice communicating dire...

The excitement of the new year has worn off. Summer is still too far away and many students fall into a March slump. Gretchen walks us through strategies to stay focused during this challenging part of the school year. Listen in as she discusses specific tips for students, educators, and academic coaches building their businesses. The post 411: How To Handle March’s Sudden Student (and Educa...

Gretchen is hot off of a speaking gig all about note taking, and was impressed with the good questions the high schoolers asked her. Hear her answers, and take your note taking to the next level. What if you can’t tell what’s more important to write down? What if you don’t have time to hone your notes? If your grades are already good, should you take notes? What if you lose your...

Would you benefit from extra time on the SAT, or other accommodations? Megan breaks down everything you need to know about accommodations on college prep testing. Together with Gretchen, she discusses: who can receive testing accommodations what accommodations are possible how should families approach this process common reasons why your request for accommodations might be denied and more! The pos...

Too often educators teach specific note taking strategies like Cornell Notes without teaching students WHY they work. Tune in to hear Gretchen outline a straightforward approach to helping take better notes. Specifically, she discusses: Review the Study Cycle, which summarizes the three steps the brain needs to learn Understand where good note taking fits into the Study Cycle (hint: encoding!) Dis...

Recently the New York Times shared an article questioning how binding early decision admissions truly are to families. Megan shares more about the controversy that erupted, and shares her own two cents about how families can navigate early decision with integrity and smarts. Specifically she and Gretchen discuss: What Early Decision (ED) is and what does “binding” really mean? How to u...

It’s the start of a new semester, which means time to hone your study skills!! Tune in while Gretchen breaks down her three step study cycle, and explains how to use a very specific study tool to rock your learning and teaching. Specifically, she and Megan discuss: An overview of the science of learning in three easy steps Why a white board is such a good study tool How to use a white board...