- 51 minutes 40 secondsThe 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
MyinTuition College Cost Estimators
Hidden Tuition: An Insider’s Guide to College Pricing and Financial Aid - Levine
Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark
Guests: Phillip Levine, Ronné Patrick Turner
Production: Jack Purdy
11 November 2026, 11:00 pm - 24 minutes 7 secondsTalkin' 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
Build The Life You Want – Brooks, Winfrey
27 October 2026, 10:00 am - 39 minutes 35 secondsThe 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
Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark
Guest: Matt Lopez
Production: Jack Purdy
13 October 2026, 10:00 am - 32 minutes 54 secondsThe 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 secondsSeason 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 secondsThe 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
The Truth About College Admission w/Juan Espinoza
The Truth About College Admission w/Emily Pacheco
The Value of College - CGN Roundtable
"Gen Z Wants To Do Good" - Harvard/Making Caring Common
"Faster, Thinner" - The Hechinger Report
Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark
Production: Jack Purdy
30 June 2026, 10:00 am - 49 minutes 16 secondsThe 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
Hosts: Rick Clark, Brennan Barnard
Guests: Gary Clark, Moira McKinnon, Pamela Tan
Production: Jack Purdy
22 June 2026, 9:00 pm - 38 minutes 36 secondsThe 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
Visit Brennan & Rick in Boston
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 secondsThe 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
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 secondsThe 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
"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 secondsThe 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 - More Episodes? Get the App