The Truth about College Admission
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 eac...
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Est. listeners per new episode within ~30 days
900 to 8.1K🎙 Monthly cadence·78 episodes·Last published yesterday - Monthly Reach
Unique listeners across all episodes (30 days)
1K to 9K🇺🇸100% - Active Followers
Loyal subscribers who consistently listen
400 to 3.6K
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| Date | Episode | Description | Length | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/27/26 | 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 | 24m 07s | ||||||
| 10/13/26 | 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 | 39m 35s | ||||||
| 9/29/26 | 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 ... | 32m 54s | ||||||
| 9/15/26 | 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 | 29m 34s | ||||||
| 6/30/26 | 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 ... | 32m 24s | ||||||
| 6/22/26 | 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 ... | 49m 16s | ||||||
| 5/19/26 | 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 & R... | 38m 36s | ||||||
| 5/5/26 | 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:... | 57m 06s | ||||||
| 4/13/26 | 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?" -... | 33m 58s | ||||||
| 3/17/26 | 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 Gues... | 33m 07s | ||||||
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| 3/4/26 | Special Edition: Rick Clark on the College Admissions Process Podcast | In a cross-post special, Rick heads to the College Admissions Process Podcast hosted by John Durante to talk about building a class, AI, how to best use the Common Application, and other tools families can use in the admissions process. LINKS CAP Episode Link Truth About College Admissions Newsletter Host: John Durante Guest: Rick Clark TACA Production: Jack Purdy | 50m 00s | ||||||
| 2/17/26 | The Truth About Scoir - Gerry McCrory & Ashley Smith | Rick and Brennan are joined by Gerry McCrory and Ashley Smith from Scoir to talk about the platform, their recent data reports, advice for juniors beginning the admission process, and tools on Scoir that everyone from families to counselors can use. LINKS: Truth About College Admission Newsletter "Getting into college is getting easier" - The Hechinger Report Scoir Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark Guests: Gerry Mcrory, Ashley Smith Production: Jack Purdy | 36m 53s | ||||||
| 1/27/26 | The Truth About Dream Schools - Jeff Selingo | Brennan and the new Vice Provost of Enrollment Management at Georgia Tech, Rick Clark, are joined by friend of the podcast Jeff Selingo to talk about his new book, Dream School. Their conversation details why Jeff was inspired to write the book, how to get a sense of the resources on campus when visiting schools, misconceptions about college value, and how life has been going through the college admissions process with his daughter. LINKS: The Truth About College Admission Newsletter "... | 40m 30s | ||||||
| 1/13/26 | 2026 Preview Show | Returning from their winter breaks, Brennan and Rick go through their items to watch for in 2026, books they're reading, tips for the current application cycle, their words for the year, and preview a couple guests who will be on the show this semester. LINKS: Brennan Barnard on Forbes The Application Trail 12-Hour Walk "AI is scoring college essays" – LA Times Truth About College Admission Newsletter Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark Production: Jack Purdy | 33m 26s | ||||||
| 12/30/25 | The Truth About Success - Denise Pope | Brennan and Rick are joined by Denise Pope, Ph.D., the co-founder and Strategic Advisor at Challenge Success (and Senior Lecturer at Stanford University) to talk about her work in researching student mental health, what families may be getting wrong about what they think colleges want to see in the admissions process, and advice for students to improve well-being in high school and beyond. LINKS: Challenge Success "A 'Fit' Over Rankings: Why College Engagement Matters More Than Selectivity"... | 29m 52s | ||||||
| 12/18/25 | The Truth About Exploring Schools - Lisa Keegan | Brennan and Rick are joined by Lisa Keegan, Vice Provost for Enrollment Strategy at William & Mary, to talk about her role at William & Mary and how they approach admissions in their context, understanding the culture of a school, and what juniors can think about this upcoming spring. LINKS: Making a (College) List - The Application Trail Building a College List Part II: Outside the Echo Chamber - The Application Trail Truth About College Admission Newsletter Hosts: Brennan Barnar... | 35m 21s | ||||||
| 12/2/25 | Special Edition: Brennan Barnard on Scholarship360's Office Hours | Today we highlight Brennan Barnard's visit to the Office Hours podcast where him and host Will Geiger talk about the myth of the "dream school" and how to frame the college search process before diving into the AI transformation happening in the college admissions world. LINKS: Truth About College Admissions Newsletter Office Hours Podcast Office Hours Host: Will Geiger Office Hours Guest: Brennan Barnard TACA Host: Rick Clark TACA Production: Jack Purdy | 34m 04s | ||||||
| 11/13/25 | Special Edition: Rick Clark on Palisades Hudson’s Something Personal Podcast | Today, we divert off the beaten path for The Truth About Admission Podcast as we highlight Rick Clark's appearance on the Something Personal podcast, where he goes into his lessons learned from multiple decades of working in college admissions, how to pay for college, and his advise on keeping perspective during the college search process. LINKS: Truth About College Admission Newsletter Something Personal Podcast Feed Something Personal host: Amy Laburda Something Personal guest: Rick Cla... | 49m 11s | ||||||
| 10/28/25 | The Truth About ROI - Emily Roper Doten | Rick and Brennan are joined by Emily Roper Doten, Dean of Admissions at Brandeis University, to talk about her experiences in helping develop liberal arts programs for the current job economy and how her career leading up to Brandeis has influenced her ability to be a leader in her space. LINKS: Truth About College Admissions Newsletter "Brandeis Pours $25M Into Careers-Focused Liberal Arts" - Inside Higher Ed Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark Guest: Emily Roper Doten Production: Jack Pu... | 35m 03s | ||||||
| 10/14/25 | The Truth About Standardized Testing in 2025 | Rick and Brennan are joined by Jed Applerouth, founder of Applerouth Education, to talk about the origins of Applerouth, the differences and simlarities between the SAT and ACT, how to decide when is enough test prep, why the science section is leaving the ACT, and how to best approach standardized testing. LINKS The Truth About College Admission Newsletter Jed Applerouth Bio Applerouth Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark Guest: Jed Applerouth Production: Jack Purdy | 38m 24s | ||||||
| 9/30/25 | The Truth About Admission Strategies - Ken Anselment | Rick and Brennan are joined by Ken Anselment, Vice President for Enrollment Management at RHB, to talk about his journey in higher ed, learnings at RHB, how schools approach early decision, and how high schoolers now can approach the pace they attack the admissions process. LINKS Truth About College Admission Newsletter Ken Anselment Bio The Admissions Leadership Podcast Rick Clark on The Admissions Leadership Podcast Climbing The Admissions Leadership Peak - Anselment "Why Did I Say "Yes" ... | 44m 16s | ||||||
| 9/16/25 | The Truth About AI and Essay Reading - Juan Espinoza | To kick off the season, Brennan and Rick are joined by returning champion, Juan Espinoza (Vice Provost for Enrollment Management at Virginia Tech), to dive into how Virginia Tech has adopted artificial intelligence to help with the essay reading process, how that has affected their timeline, and his advice to students approaching the essay writing process this fall. LINKS The Truth About College Admission Newsletter Juan Espinoza Humans And AI Collaborate To Review College Admission E... | 35m 46s | ||||||
| 9/9/25 | Season 4 Trailer | Rick and Brennan are back from summer vacation and ready for the FOURTH(!) season of The Truth About College Admission Podcast. Today, the pair recap their summers, preview a format update to the episodes this season, and reflect on a word they're thinking about for the upcoming admissions cycle. LINKS Brennan's Substack: The Application Trail The Truth About College Admission Newsletter Hosts: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark Production: Jack Purdy | 14m 28s | ||||||
| 8/1/25 | Season 3 Summer Bonus with College Parent Central | In our Season 3 bonus episode, Rick and Brennan visit the College Parent Central podcast with Elizabeth Hamblet and Vicki Nelson to talk about communication during the college search, realistic expectations, how schools evaluate prospective students, how college is an opportunity, and focusing on long term relationships with family. See the video version here Hosts: Elizabeth Hamblet, Vicki Nelson Guests: Brennan Barnard, Rick Clark Production (TACA cut): Jack Purdy | 46m 54s | ||||||
| 6/17/25 | The Truth About Season 3 - Finale | In the Season 3 finale of The Truth About College Admission, Rick and Brennan go over their favorite episodes from the season, what news items in higher education have caught their eyes lately, and what this summer they will be keeping tabs on as we head into the 2025-2026 college admission cycle. Links: Loper Scoir The Truth About College Admission Newsletter June Essay webinar with Shereem Herndon-Brown and Allison Slater Tate The Truth About Navigating the Admission Process - Dr. Ramon B... | 28m 28s | ||||||
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