Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast

Sometimes, the best way to ensure that everyone taking a test is compared fairly is to make sure that not everyone takes the test the exact same way. Testing accommodations are meant to level the playing field in the case of disability or differences. Amy and Mike invited accommodations expert Bailey Graham to describe common mistakes in applying for ACT accommodations.

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. What accommodations are available to test takers?
2. What is the right timeline for requesting accommodations?
3. How important is professional documentation in the application?
4. What are common missteps in applications?
5. What chronic or sudden medical issues may warrant accommodations?

MEET OUR GUEST

Bailey Graham is the Senior Accommodations Analyst at ACT, Inc. and has been there for three years. She has an undergraduate degree in psychology and a dual Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology and Art Therapy from Adler University in Chicago. Bailey has had over a decade of experience working in the developmental disabilities field and has operated in several different roles ranging from direct service provision, case management, compliance, counseling, and program development & management. Prior to working at ACT, she served as a Disability Specialist at the University of Illinois at Chicago, where she helped hundreds of students with disabilities navigate the college experience. Bailey currently lives with her husband and one year old son in the Iowa City area. When she’s not working, Bailey can be found reading books curled up with her pets and cultivating her houseplant collection.

Send your questions about ACT accommodations to [email protected] or 319-337-1332.

LINKS

ACT Accommodations

RELATED EPISODES

RECEIVING TESTING ACCOMMODATIONS

TEST PREP FOR STUDENTS WITH ACCOMMODATIONS

HOW TO READ A PSYCH-ED REPORT

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros. If you’re interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, feel free to get in touch through our contact page.

Everybody recognizes that four or more years of college costs a lot of money, but few know exactly how much will be required or where they’ll be finding that money. Even worse, far too few applicants realize how many scholarships are available to industrious students. Amy and Mike invited scholarship expert Dave Peterson to share 12 must-see scholarships.

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. What elements make a scholarship worth looking at?
2. What makes replicability so valuable in the scholarship process?
3. Which specific scholarships should all applicants consider?
4. What connects all of these scholarships?
5. What can future applicants do to prepare for scholarship success?

MEET OUR GUEST

Dave Peterson, The Scholarship Coach, is the father of a rising college junior who, to date, has won over $80,000 in scholarships. Because of his son's success with scholarships, people started asking him for advice on how their children could win scholarships. These questions prompted Dave to write the book DEBT-FREE COLLEGE: Proven Strategies for Winning Scholarships and Other Tools to Help You Avoid Student Loan Debt. Dave shares a new scholarship opportunity every day on his podcast and Substack called "Your Daily Scholarship." He provides one-on-one coaching for students and families to help them find and win scholarships to achieve their debt-free college dreams.

Find Dave at [email protected].

LINKS

Cameron Impact Scholarship

The Gates Scholarship

Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation

GE Reagan Foundation Scholarship

Elks Most Valuable Student Scholarship

Chick-fil-A Community Scholars

Foot Locker Scholar Athletes Program

Equitable Excellence Scholarship

Burger King Foundation Scholarship

Taco Bell Foundation Live Más Scholarship

Daughters of the American Revolution Scholarships

VFW Voice of Democracy Scholarship

RELATED EPISODES

HOW TO WIN LOCAL SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS

FOUR SCHOLARSHIP MYTHS

COMMON MISTAKES IN SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS

WHAT IS SCHOLARSHIP DISPLACEMENT?

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros. If you’re interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, feel free to get in touch through our contact page.

Entering the halls of higher education for the first time can feel momentous and exciting, which is true. What is also true is how challenging life can be at the next level of education, especially if you aren’t ready for what lies ahead. Amy and Mike invited educator Scott Lutostanski to share how to be a successful college freshman.

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. In what critical way does life at college differ from the high school experience?
2. What is the definition of success for a college freshman?
3. Why is engagement so critical for new college students?
4. What types of students tend to struggle in college?
5. What strategies can lead to success in all dimensions of college life?

MEET OUR GUEST

Scott Lutostanski began his career as a Special Education teacher in Chicago Public Schools. While working in special education, Scott also earned a Master’s degree in Community Counseling from Argosy University and became a Licensed Professional Counselor. For six years, he worked at a private counseling practice in the suburbs of Chicago. He specialized in providing executive function coaching, academic coaching, and individual counseling for high-achieving, underperforming students.

Scott combines his unique expertise in special education, school administration, and therapeutic counseling to foster meaningful relationships with clients. His main goal is to help direct students along the path to self-directed learning, executive function skill sets, personal growth, and independence.

Find Scott at [email protected].

LINKS

Your First Year of College: 25 Tips to Help You Survive and Thrive in Your Freshman Year

RELATED EPISODES

THE UNWRITTEN RULES OF COLLEGE SUCCESS

WHAT TO DO WHEN A STUDENT STRUGGLES IN COLLEGE

GALLUP ALUMNI SURVEY AND THE SIX COLLEGE EXPERIENCES THAT DRIVE SUCCESS

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros. If you’re interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, feel free to get in touch through our contact page.

Ready to learn the history, philosophy, and practice of an experienced independent educational consultant?

MEET OUR GUEST

A college and graduate school admissions advisor, Stuart Nachbar founded Educated Quest in 2014 to help students and their families consider academic options for majors, minors, and various career paths, college costs, resume building, essay development, and admissions interviews.

Stuart is a member of the Higher Education Consultants Association (HECA), the New Jersey Association for College Admission Counseling (NJACAC), the Pennsylvania Association for College Admission Counseling (PACAC) and the Education Writer’s Association (EWA). In 2021 he earned the distinction: Certified Educational Planner (CEP). The American Institute of Certified Educational Planners (AICEP) awards this credential to professionals, working independently or in schools, who have achieved the highest level of competence in educational planning. Only the best and most experienced counselors qualify to become CEPs. Stuart is one of only 13 professionals in New Jersey who holds this distinction.

Stuart has worked around higher education for more than three decades as an urban economic development professional, software marketing executive, writer and admissions advisor. Before starting Educated Quest, he was Senior Vice President of College Central Network (CCN), a provider of Web-based applications to college career centers. For 11 years he helped grow the company’s client base from zero to relationships with over 600 schools. After leaving CCN he penned Defending College Heights, a murder mystery around the death of a U.S. Army recruiter during the Second Gulf War. He is completing a college admissions guide, The Good College, that he hopes to release in Fall 2022.

Stuart has a BA in Political Science and an MBA in Marketing from Rutgers University, a Master of Urban Planning from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as well as a Certificate in Digital Media Marketing from NYU. He completed his Certificate in College Counseling (with Distinction) from UCLA Extension. He and his wife, Carol, live in Central New Jersey.

Stuart first appeared on our podcast in episode 78 to discuss What Exactly Is A Good College?

You can find out more about Stuart at [email protected].

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros. If you’re interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, feel free to get in touch through our contact page.

Now that college admissions is moving back into a test-preferred environment, students don’t have to struggle with the choice of whether or not to take a college entrance exam but rather which one. Amy and Mike invited educator Susan Powers to weigh the important factors in choosing between the digital SAT and the ACT.

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. Why should students give thought to which test they want to take?
2. How are the ACT and digital SAT different?
3. How does the ACT Science section play into a decision about which test to take?
4. Should you prepare for both the ACT and digital SAT?
5. Are there any general rules for what types of students are better suited to either test?

MEET OUR GUEST

Susan Powers is the founder and CEO of Woodlands Test Prep, a tutoring company based in the Houston area that improves students’ scores, supports students’ academic success, and helps families navigate the college admissions testing process with much less stress.

Susan started teaching SAT and GMAT classes for Kaplan in 1994 as a hobby while an executive for a large oil and gas equipment company, doing strategy and acquisitions. The arrival of children put hobbies on hiatus, and she was able to return to tutoring in 2011, founding Woodlands Test Prep. The company has grown from a solopreneur to a larger company with multiple tutors. Susan delights in all aspects of the business from tutoring to curriculum and resource development to process improvement to hiring those few rare gems and teaching them how to help students too!

Susan was a National Merit Scholar and has a B.A. in French and a B.B.A. in Finance from Southern Methodist University and an M.B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin, focusing on entrepreneurship. She lives in the country with her partner, Joe, and three dogs, a cat, and a parrot named Monkey. Her two children now live adventurous lives in the mountainous West. She loves to travel around the world, play day-long board games, sing, write poetry, garden, and read a couple of books at a time.

Susan is a member of the Board of Directors of the National Test Prep Association. She first appeared on the podcast in episode 231 in a Test Prep Profile.

Susan can be reached at www.woodlandstestprep.com.

LINKS

Meet the Digital SAT

RELATED EPISODES

WHY PRACTICE TESTS MATTER SO MUCH

NEW SAT TEST SPECIFICATIONS

THE NEW DIGITAL SAT EXPERIENCE: A STUDENT PERSPECTIVE

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros. If you’re interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, feel free to get in touch through our contact page.