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The Truth about College Admission

The Truth about College Admission

Johns Hopkins Press

The college admission experience can be overwhelming and complicated. This podcast helps students and the adults who support them cut through the noise around searching for, applying to, and deciding on a college. In each episode, you can expect guests who are national experts working in the field of college admission and enrollment who will give you honest takes, helpful perspective, and in many cases some much needed levity and solace.

  • 51 minutes 40 seconds
    The Truth About College Affordability - Phillip Levine and Ronné Patrick Turner

    Live in Las Vegas, Brennan is joined by Phillip Levine, the Katharine Coman and A. Barton Hepburn professor of Economics at Wellesley College and Founder of MyinTuition Corp, and Ronné Patrick Turner, the Vice Provost for Enrollment Management at Washington University in St. Louis, to talk about the cost of college, how to aid affordability, pricing strategies, and take questions from the live audience.


    LINKS

    Truth About College Admission Newsletter

    Private College 529 Plan

    MyinTuition College Cost Estimators

    Hidden Tuition: An Insider’s Guide to College Pricing and Financial Aid - Levine

    WashU Financial Aid


    Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

    Guests: Phillip Levine, Ronné Patrick Turner

    Production: Jack Purdy

    11 November 2026, 11:00 pm
  • 24 minutes 7 seconds
    Talkin' Truth: October 2026 Check-In

    Brennan and Rick check in to talk about their latest thoughts of the admissions world, some advice for families in this upcoming busy season for seniors, and shoutout schools they are impressed with lately.


    LINKS

    Truth About College Admission Newsletter

    Berry College

    Furman Pathways Program

    Build The Life You Want – Brooks, Winfrey

    College Matters Podcast

    27 October 2026, 10:00 am
  • 39 minutes 35 seconds
    The Truth About Campuses - Matt Lopez

    Brennan and Rick are joined by Matt Lopez, the Vice President of Academic Enterprise Enrollment at Arizona State University, to talk about ASU's approach to enrollment, their various pathways to a degree both in person and virtually, and thoughts on return on investment.


    LINKS

    The Truth About College Admission Newsletter

    ASU London


    Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

    Guest: Matt Lopez

    Production: Jack Purdy

    13 October 2026, 10:00 am
  • 32 minutes 54 seconds
    The Truth About AI and Admission in 2026 - Chrissy & Justin Cerenzia

    Brennan and Rick are joined by the Cerenzia's, Chrissy (Senior Associate Director of College Counseling at The Episcopal Academy) and Justin (Buckley Executive Director of the Center for Teaching & Learning at The Episcopal Academy), to discuss what high school students can be thinking about when it comes to AI use, how it impacts the college search process, and what kinds of questions students are asking colleges during the search.


    LINKS

    Truth About College Admission Newsletter

    How To Choose a College in the Age of AI - Forbes

    Prosocial Possibilities - Christensen Institute

    Caltech Supplemental Materials, Research Papers and Publications

    Guidance for Ethical AI Use in College Applications - Edhub

    Two Reports Explore Gen Z, Purpose, And College Admission - Forbes


    Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

    Guests: Chriss Cerenzia, Justin Cerenzia

    Production: Jack Purdy

    29 September 2026, 10:00 am
  • 29 minutes 34 seconds
    Season 5 Trailer

    Brennan and Rick are back from full summers and ready to kick off Season 5 (!) of The Truth About College Admission Podcast. The pair dig into what they've been doing lately and what they're looking forward to this upcoming season, and dispel a couple admissions myths.


    The Truth About College Admission Newsletter


    Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

    Production: Jack Purdy

    15 September 2026, 10:00 am
  • 32 minutes 24 seconds
    The Truth About This Year in College Admission

    Brennan and Rick wrap up season three of The Truth About College Admission Podcast with their favorite moments from the season, what they are looking forward to this summer, what they want to see change in the next year in the college admission landscape, and their words of the year.


    LINKS:

    The Truth About College Admission Newsletter

    Private College 529 Plan

    The Truth About College Admission w/Juan Espinoza

    The Truth About College Admission w/Emily Pacheco

    Mattering - Wallace

    The Value of College - CGN Roundtable

    "Gen Z Wants To Do Good" - Harvard/Making Caring Common

    Arizona State London

    "Faster, Thinner" - The Hechinger Report


    Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

    Production: Jack Purdy

    30 June 2026, 10:00 am
  • 49 minutes 16 seconds
    The Truth About Summer College Visits - McKinnon, Tan, and Clark

    Rick is joined by Moira McKinnon (Director of College Counseling and Postecondary Planning at Burwick Academy), Pamela Tan (Director of Admissions at Cornell University), and Gary Clark (Associate Vice Chancellor for Enrollment Management at UCLA) to talk about the unique benefits that summer college visits can provide and how as parents being in the college admissions world has affected their outlook on the process.


    LINKS:

    Truth About College Admission Newsletter

    Private College 529 Plan


    Hosts: Rick Clark, Brennan Barnard

    Guests: Gary Clark, Moira McKinnon, Pamela Tan

    Production: Jack Purdy

    22 June 2026, 9:00 pm
  • 38 minutes 36 seconds
    The Truth About AI and Admission Review - Emily Pacheco

    Brennan and Rick are joined by Emily Pacheco, a Community Organizer for Imperial College London, to talk about AI through the whole application and admission process from how students can use it, how parents should approach guiding their students through using, how admissions offices have found useful ways in the admission process, and how college level leadership has reacted to AI's adaption.


    LINKS:

    The Truth About College Admission Newsletter

    Private College 529 Plan

    Visit Brennan & Rick in Boston

    EdHub

    CalTech Ethical Use of AI Policy

    Georgia Tech First Year Application Review Policy

    The Truth About AI and Essay Reading - TACA with Juan Espinoza

    "Why Transparency is the White Whale of College Admissions" - Chronicle


    Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

    Guest: Emily Pacheco

    Production: Jack Purdy

    19 May 2026, 10:00 am
  • 57 minutes 6 seconds
    The Truth About The College Finder - Dr. Steven R. Antonoff & Jay McCann

    Rick is joined by Dr. Steven Antonoff and Jay McCann, the authors of the The College Finder, 5th Edition, to talk about the purpose of their book, how prestige impacts the college search process, recogizing what fit can mean for students, and why counselors are so valuable to the college search process.


    LINKS

    The Truth About College Admission Newsletter

    Private College 529 Plan

    College Finder

    The Application Trail

    College Admission Speaker Series - Khan Lab School


    Host: Rick Clark

    Guests: Dr. Steven R. Antonoff & Jay McCann

    Production: Jack Purdy

    5 May 2026, 10:00 am
  • 33 minutes 58 seconds
    The Truth About Choosing a College - Anna Follensbee

    Brennan and Rick are joined by Anna Follenbee, the Associate Director (and soon to be Director) of College Counseling at Gilman, to talk about the current period in admissions of students choosing a college, advice for what to do now in that selection process, what parents can do to be supportive, the dynamics of the waitlist, and the importance of college responsiveness in this period.


    LINKS

    Truth About College Admission Podcast

    Private College 529 Plan

    "Choosing a College: Is It Right?" - The Application Trail

    "Choosing a College: Advice From Admission Experts" - The Application Trail

    "Ask This Before You Choose a College" - The Application Trail


    Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

    Guest: Anna Follensbee

    Production: Jack Purdy

    13 April 2026, 10:00 pm
  • 33 minutes 7 seconds
    The Truth About College Pathways - Kelley Lips

    Brennan and Rick are joined by Kelley Lips, Associate Vice Provost of Enrollment at Emory University, to talk about how Emory's pathways provide more opportunities for students to start and finish college compared to the normal four-year track, why colleges offer different tracks, and advice for high school juniors and seniors considering different start term options.


    LINKS

    Truth About College Admission Newsletter

    Emory University and Oxford College


    Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark

    Guest: Kelley Lips

    Production: Jack Purdy

    17 March 2026, 10:00 am
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