The Well-Trained Mind podcast

In this episode, Susan Wise Bauer and Susanna Jarrett finish their discussion about college admissions for homeschoolers with two homeschool college admissions experts, Holly Ramsey and Michele Evard.  * Holly Ramsey’s Website [https://www.thoughtfulhomeschooling.com/] * Michele Evard’s Website  [https://www.evardconsulting.com/] * Holly and Michele’s Book [https://www.collegeunmazed.com/homeschool] (Use promo code: HOMESCHOOL10 for 10% off the book and everything else College UnMazed sells) Show Notes:  * 2:06 Holly recommends Georgia Tech’s college admissions blog [https://sites.gatech.edu/admission-blog/] for ALL families in the college admissions process, regardless of whether or not you plan to apply to Georgia Tech. Here is the referenced article [https://sites.gatech.edu/admission-blog/2024/10/07/preparing-your-college-application-you-are-asking-the-wrong-questions/]about the “highschool hallway test.” * 7:58 Holly and Susan recommend creating a practice common app account [https://www.commonapp.org/].  * 11:40 Susan mentions her son’s homeschool transcript, which is available here [https://welltrainedmind.com/a/a-sample-high-school-transcript/?srsltid=AfmBOopIlBkRLXLcf1ZBdBMnxko1AIEzOuUk6wS0lt1gygBWnqTXOkuy] for your reference.  * 21:16 Susan mentions that the CollegeBoard has an article about creating a school profile. You can find it here [https://counselors.collegeboard.org/counseling/advising/school-profiles/create].  * 45:05 Holly recommends the College Unmazed College Data Organizer [https://www.collegeunmazed.com/cdo], a free tool for comparing colleges.  * 54:50 Holly recommends using the Student Aid Index Calculator [https://www.mefa.org/student-aid-index-sai-calculator]to figure out which colleges you can afford.  * 55:11 Holly also recommends Big J Educational Consulting’s chart [https://www.bigjeducationalconsulting.com/resources] of schools that lists average merit award and what percentage of students get award.  * 56:45 Holly lists two reputable scholarship finders that aren’t selling your data: (1) CareerOneStop Scholarship Finder sponsored by the U.S Department of Labor [https://www.careeronestop.org/Toolkit/Training/find-scholarships.aspx]and (2) JLV College Counseling. [https://jlvcollegecounseling.com/scholarships/]  * 58:50 Susan mentions Harvard as an example of a school that may be prohibitively expensive. However, while the sticker price is $60,000+/ year, the university has a large endowment and can cover most of that through merit and need-based scholarships. Here is a link explaining. [https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/harvard-university-2155/paying] * (00:00) - Intro with Holly Ramsey and Michele Evard (again!) * (00:13) - Make sure you listen to part 1! * (00:58) - Things you *can* do for college admissions * (01:28) - Do document your home school journey * (09:38) - Core 4 documents * (09:48) - 1 - An official transcript * (14:52) - 2 - Course descriptions * (19:55) - 3 - Home school profile * (23:16) - 4 - The counselor letter of recommendation * (32:39) - Break * (32:40) - The personal essay * (38:20) - Do make a list of "good fit" schools * (51:48) - Do consider price tags * (01:00:46) - Do consider alternatives * (01:11:03) - Wrapping up

In this episode, Susan Wise Bauer and Susanna Jarrett discuss what NOT to do when navigating the college admissions process as a homeschool family. They are joined by two educational consultants and college admissions experts, Holly Ramsey and Michele Evard. Show Notes:  * Holly Ramsey’s Website [https://www.thoughtfulhomeschooling.com/] * Michele Evard’s Website  [https://www.evardconsulting.com/] * Holly and Michele’s Book [https://www.collegeunmazed.com/homeschool] (Use promo code: HOMESCHOOL10 for 10% off the book and everything else College UnMazed sells) Links mentioned:  * 3:42: Independent Educational Consultants Association [https://www.iecaonline.com/] (Holly and Michele are part of this organization, the other association they mentioned is HECA [https://www.hecalive.org/]) * 19:49 Methodology on How US News and World Report Rank Colleges  [https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/how-us-news-calculated-the-rankings] * 28:48 Holly mentions Colleges That Change Lives [https://ctcl.org/] as an example of the many smaller schools that may be a great fit for your student.  * 29:42 Holly’s recommendations for finding right fit colleges: New York Times Build Your Own College Rankings [https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/opinion/build-your-own-college-rankings.html] and Georgetown Return on Investment Chart. [https://cew.georgetown.edu/cew-reports/roi2022/]  * 32:29 Holly recommends MEFA Student Aid Index calculator [https://www.mefa.org/article/student-aid-index-sai-calculator/] to determine what kind of aid you can get.  * 37:52 Holly recommends Loper App [https://www.getloper.com/](the dating app for colleges) * (00:00) - Intro with Holly Ramsey and Michele Evard * (06:42) - What not to do while thinking about the college application process * (07:07) - Don't worry about what your third grader is doing * (17:44) - Break * (18:38) - Keeping on topic * (19:02) - Don't worry about "Ivy Leagues" * (34:33) - Don't get emotionally invested * (40:39) - Don't shape your curriculum to have a good looking transcript * (48:48) - Come back next week for the "Do-s"!

In this short bonus episode, Susan Wise Bauer and Susanna Jarrett talk to one of our amazing listeners, Kim! Kim shares an important personal story and a correction to our previous statement about IQ testing.  Where to find Kim:  Blog: www.kimrankin.com [http://www.kimrankin.com/] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HoldMyWords [https://www.facebook.com/HoldMyWords] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/holdmywords/ [https://www.instagram.com/holdmywords/]

In this episode, Susan Wise Bauer and Susanna Jarrett are joined by Dr. Julia Collier and Sandra Amoroso from the Well-Trained Mind Academy to talk all things standardized testing.  Show Notes:  Resources for end-of-year testing:  * Seton Testing [https://www.setontesting.com/?gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAACn5vLg-9bQ7dtuMzBitzL0-qo4Xm&gclid=CjwKCAjwyfe4BhAWEiwAkIL8sAbQVsqPiXbZX-MV8G8UiaTvjNPbusym_xEHuZhDdLif0MjvYayNrhoC8UcQAvD_BwE] * Susan’s book: Rethinking School: How to Take Charge of Your Child’s Education [https://welltrainedmind.com/p/rethinking-school/] * Yearly Testing: How to Do It [https://welltrainedmind.com/a/yearly-testing-how-to-do-it/]by Susan Wise Bauer Resources for SAT and ACT Testing (college admissions tests):   * CollegeBoard  [https://www.collegeboard.org/] * Yes, standardized testing is coming back to college admissions. Here is the Dartmouth statement [https://president.dartmouth.edu/news/2024/02/reactivating-satact-requirement-dartmouth-undergraduate-admissions#:~:text=This%20decision%20was%20guided%20by,who%20will%20succeed%20at%20Dartmouth]that Julia read.  * More information on SAT Adaptive Testing  [https://blog.collegeboard.org/what-digital-sat-adaptive-testing] * Correction for 21:20: Both the SAT and ACT are now offered seven times a year.  * Correction at 16:18: Students can use a calculator during the math portions of the SAT.  * Preparing for the SAT:  * Schoolhouse.World [https://schoolhouse.world/] * Official SAT prep book [https://store.collegeboard.org/product/detail?sku=116708] * PSAT [https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/psat-nmsqt] information Resources for AP Testing * CollegeBoard [https://www.collegeboard.org/]official website  * AP essay writing tips [https://www.wtmacademy.com/ap-exam-writing-tips/] * Articles to dive deeper into CollegeBoard controversies:  * Follow the Money, History of CollegeBoard Finances [https://www.totalregistration.net/AP-Exam-Registration-Service/Follow-The-Money-History-of-College-Board-Finances.php] * How the SAT Failed America [https://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2020/09/30/the-forbes-investigation-how-the-sat-failed-america/?sh=212dad6053b5] via Forbes (this is an older article, but it gets into some issues with the CollegeBoard that stand the test of time) * Scandal about Student Data [https://www.reuters.com/legal/sat-administrator-college-board-settles-new-york-claims-it-sold-student-data-2024-02-13/]via Reuters * (00:00) - Intro with Julia Collier+ * (01:27) - Talking about testing * (02:09) - End of grade testing * (10:08) - College admissions testing * (29:03) - Break * (29:57) - Advanced placement tests * (34:30) - Pros of AP exams * (46:27) - Cons of AP exams * (56:41) - Closing statements * (59:23) - Outro

In this episode, Susan Wise Bauer and Susanna Jarrett are joined by Well-Trained Mind Press editor Justin Moore to talk through the quirkier questions we receive at Well-Trained Mind Press.  Justin’s movie recommendation: The Magnificent Seven [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlXBaP7l5n4] (the 1960 version!)  Resources for Planning your own Homeschool Plan:  Well-Trained Mind Recommendations Portal  [https://welltrainedmind.com/curricula-recommendations-twtm-ee/] Well-Trained Mind Learning Services  [https://www.wtmls.com/] FAQ answer to this question [https://support.welltrainedmind.com/hc/en-us/articles/360020251213-Can-you-recommend-a-thorough-plan-for-K-12-homeschooling] FAQ Section on our Website [https://support.welltrainedmind.com/hc/en-us/categories/360001574953-General-FAQ] * (00:00) - Intro with Justin Moore * (05:55) - Questions not to ask * (07:42) - Don't send your manuscript * (15:00) - Don't ask for custom curricula * (20:43) - Break * (21:49) - Don't ask us to win history * (30:56) - Don't ask if Susan has "gone woke" * (38:53) - Susan's at the mercy of the shearer * (41:17) - Don't ask if we can do your homework * (45:47) - Wrapping up