267. When Borrowing For School Is A Bad Idea
Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast
Release Date: 11/26/2021
689. LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES 101
Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast
Liberal arts colleges represent what may be the most misunderstood class of higher ed institutions. What are the hallmarks of these schools, and what kinds of students should seek them out? Amy and Mike invited educational consultant Matt Arant to provide instruction in Liberal Arts Colleges 101. What are five things you will learn in this episode? How are liberal arts colleges defined in comparison to other types of schools? Is the application process different for liberal arts college applicants compared to those applying to research universities? Can you study STEM subjects at liberal...
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688. EXTEMP WITH AMY & MIKE: November 2025
Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast
The Tests and the Rest podcast has always been relentlessly focused on exploring important topics in testing, admissions, education, and learning with amazing expert guests. Sometimes, though, we enjoy an unstructured opportunity to discuss our own takes on major issues, upcoming events, and our endeavors at the intersection of business and education. Catch up with us in the latest episode of EXTEMP with Amy & Mike. What are five things you will learn in this episode? How busy was last month for Amy and Mike? How was the College Board Forum? What new professional role has Amy taken...
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687. FOREIGN LANGUAGES AS A SUPERPOWER IN COLLEGE ADMISSIONS
Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast
Most college-bound teens tend to focus on core English, history, science, and math classes as the keys to the schools of their dreams. Little do they know how important or influential their language studies can be. Amy and Mike invited educator Rachèle DeMeo to explore foreign languages as a superpower in college admissions. What are five things you will learn in this episode? What’s the best way for students to make their language proficiency really stand out on a college application, so it doesn’t just look like another bullet point? How can students highlight their language...
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686. BEST & WORST EXTRACURRICULARS FOR HIGH SCHOOLERS
Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast
The choices a high schooler makes about how to spend their time outside of classes tell prospective schools a lot about what kind of college student they’ll be. However, in terms of admissions, not all activities are created equal. Amy and Mike invited educational consultant Marlena Corcoran to review the best & worst extracurriculars for high schoolers. What are five things you will learn in this episode? What are the worst extracurricular activities for college-bound students? What are the runners-up for the prize? Are there any harmless extracurricular activities? ...
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685. SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT: STUDYSPACES
Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast
What if your PDFs could grade and track themselves? with educator Jam Mirzakhalov What are five things you will learn in this episode? What is the story behind StudySpaces? How does StudySpaces work? Who currently uses StudySpaces? What kinds of outcomes do users experience? What should someone curious about StudySpaces know about it? ABOUT STUDYSPACES StudySpaces helps tutors create, assign, and track student work in one place. It connects directly with your existing curriculum, automatically pulling in your PDFs and materials so you never have to start from scratch....
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684. HOW TO PLAN FOR YOUR COLLEGE TRANSFER
Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast
Believe it or not, over one-third of college students transfer at least once while earning their degree. So why do so many students assume their first school will be their forever school? Amy and Mike invited college advisor Jaime Smith to share insights on how to plan for your college transfer. What are five things you will learn in this episode? Where do students most commonly struggle when preparing to transfer schools? How easy is it to transfer credits between colleges? What might students do in advance if a potential transfer is in their future? Do transfer students need SAT or...
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683. WHAT DO FEDERAL POLICY CHANGES MEAN FOR FINANCIAL AID?
Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast
The ability to pay for a college education usually depends on stable economic conditions and clear, predictable rules. But what happens when everything seems to change every day? Amy and Mike invited financial aid advisor Ed Recker to explain what federal policy changes mean for financial aid. What are five things you will learn in this episode? What federal policy changes will have the potential biggest impacts to students? What federal policy changes will have the potential biggest impacts to colleges & universities? Has the U.S. Department of Education’s reduction in force (RIF)...
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682. CULTIVATING AND RECOGNIZING ACADEMIC CURIOSITY
Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast
The primary goal of our formative years is often seen as figuring out what we want to do with the rest of our lives. Why, then, do we focus so much on what we want to *be* instead? Amy and Mike invited educational consultant Matthew Jaskol to explore the importance of cultivating and recognizing academic curiosity. What are five things you will learn in this episode? What is the development process for a curious but undecided student? Why does fostering intellectual curiosity get overlooked in traditional education systems? What are ways to encourage students to explore or engage...
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681. EXTEMP WITH AMY & MIKE: October 2025
Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast
The Tests and the Rest podcast is always focused on exploring essential topics in testing, admissions, education, and learning with amazing expert guests. Sometimes, though, we enjoy an unstructured opportunity to discuss our own takes on major issues and ongoing adventures at the intersection of business and education. Catch up with us in the latest episode of EXTEMP with Amy & Mike. What are five things you will learn in this episode? How busy was last month for Amy and Mike? How can educators balance work and family? Should high school prepare teens for the work world? What is...
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680. SCHOLARSHIPS, MAJORS, AND HOW CLARITY CAN UNLOCK MORE COLLEGE AID
Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Podcast
While high schoolers don’t need to know exactly what they’ll be doing with the rest of their lives, those students who make intentional, well-informed major choices before applying to college can unlock more merit-based and private scholarship opportunities–including specific awards based on intended major. Mike moderated a conversation with Dave Peterson and Lisa Marker-Robbins to explore Scholarships & Majors: How Clarity Can Unlock More College Aid. What are five things you will learn in this episode? If scholarships aren’t just awards for past achievements, how should...
info_outlineMost students and their families enter the college admissions process fully expecting to take out tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars in student loans. Does earning a degree really have to cost that much? Amy and Mike invited college cost advocate Mark Salisbury to elaborate on when borrowing for school is a bad idea.
What are five things you will learn in this episode?
- Why are student loans particularly burdensome, especially for young adults?
- What choices can increase or decrease the cost of college?
- What are ways to earn college credit?
- How can students attend college without borrowing too much?
- What are the long-term benefits of graduating without substantial debt?
MEET OUR GUEST
Dr. Mark Salisbury has spent 27 years in higher education. His first decade was as a soccer coach and admissions counselor. He then returned to school and earned a Ph.D. in higher education at the University of Iowa, studying college student access and success as a researcher on the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education and a member of the Teagle Scholars. Since then, he has published both academic research and more mainstream writing on higher ed, including commentaries for the Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside Higher Ed, interviews with NPR, and the blog, Delicious Ambiguity. From 2010 to 2018, he was an Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs and Director of Institutional Research and Assessment at Augustana College in Rock Island, IL.
In addition, Mark has done consulting work for colleges and universities over the past decade on how to use data to improve in areas like recruiting, financial aid leveraging, admissions, student retention, graduation, and post-college outcomes. He started the TuitionFit project in the summer of 2018 and continues to be an enthusiastic advocate for the benefits of price transparency for both students and colleges.
Mark first appeared on this podcast in episode #19 to discuss COLLEGE PRICE TRANSPARENCY.
Find Mark at https://www.tuitionfit.org/ or mark@tuitionfit.org.
LINKS
RELATED EPISODES
THE TRUTH ABOUT STUDENT LOAN DEBT
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ABOUT THIS PODCAST
Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.