10. How to Overcome Writers Block and Find Unique College Essay Topics Through The Edvisory’s Brainstorming Method
The Trailblazer's Guide To College Admissions
Release Date: 07/09/2021
S2E1: The Edvisory’s Framework: The Defining Factor in a Unique, Undeniable College Application
The Trailblazer's Guide To College Admissions
Is "meeting students where they're at" actually doing more harm than good? If you've ever heard the question, "What do you want to do with your life?" and felt a pit in your stomach—or worse, watched your child shut down in response—this episode is going to change the way you think about college admissions. The truth? Most students don't know what they want at 16 or 17—and that's not the problem. The real issue is that traditional college counseling assumes they should know... and builds a future based only on who they've already been. What if we stopped projecting certainty onto...
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38. How to Find Your Path as a Transfer Student with Isaac Lubert
The Trailblazer's Guide To College Admissions
Today on the Bold Student Podcast, we’re joined by my very special guest Isaac Lubert. Isaac is a former transfer student of mine who is currently pursuing music, business and psychology at NYU. In today’s episode, we talk about Isaac’s journey from Indiana University to Santa Monica College to now NYU and how our work together encouraged him to pursue his current path. Isaac shares wisdom around navigating change, not being afraid to try new things and how working with a private college counselor pushed him in the right direction (even when it meant pushing him outside of his...
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37. Inspiring Change as a Storyteller and First-Generation College Student with Donald Jolly
The Trailblazer's Guide To College Admissions
Today on the Bold Student Podcast, we’re joined by none other than Donald Jolly. Donald is our very own essay coach, but he’s also a first-generation college student who studied English at Dartmouth, and has an MFA in dramatic writing from the University of Southern California. He's also a Los Angeles-based writer proudly hailing from Washington, DC. As a playwright, he wrote the historical drama, Bonded, which was nominated for the Los Angeles stage Alliance Ovation award for playwriting and the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Los Angeles theatre, and winner of the 2013...
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36. Discovering Your Purpose Through Human Design with Ilona Barnhart
The Trailblazer's Guide To College Admissions
I’m so excited to introduce you to today’s guest, Ilona Barnhart. Ilona is a human design reader who blends insight and inspiration from multiple sources to create something entirely new so that you can embrace and accept more parts of yourself. In today’s episode, Ilona shares what human design is and the events that led her to become a human design practitioner. Ilona also talks about living in an energy-based world and what that means. Then, we discuss the different types of human design and how understanding human design allows you to connect to your own unique intuition while...
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35. Parents Didn’t Go To College? Here’s How to Navigate the Admissions Process with Marvette Lacy
The Trailblazer's Guide To College Admissions
Today’s guest has such an interesting and inspiring story for anyone who has dreams of overcoming their circumstances and becoming more than what they have always known. Marvette Lacy is an aspiring engineering student, turned student affairs doctoral student who started her business all while finishing her dissertation in THREE MONTHS! Now, Marvette runs a multiple six-figure business as a coach and in today’s episode she shares all of the pivots that she made in her journey to get to this place. Marvette’s story is one that will encourage you to always be flexible and to...
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34. My Predictions On How Overturning Roe v Wade Will Impact College Admissions
The Trailblazer's Guide To College Admissions
On June 24, 2022, the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade. Whether you’re a parent to a soon-to-be-applying student, a junior or senior applying to college, or an international student coming to the US – this decision affects you. In this episode, I want to make some predictions on how this decision will impact college admissions and how to actively prepare to still get into your dream college despite the changes that this decision may bring. Even with these predictions, I believe this next generation will reshape our world into something better and brighter – and with...
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33. Understanding Personal Finance, Taking a Gap Year, and Entrepreneurship with Mary Esposito
The Trailblazer's Guide To College Admissions
I’m so excited to be joined by none other than Mary Esposito on today’s episode of The Bold Student Podcast. Mary is a 19-year-old entrepreneur and financial literacy TikToker. She’s always been an entrepreneur at heart, juggling business and academics while in high school. Today, she helps Gen Z’ers sharpen their financial literacy skills through her educational TikTok content, runs her company called Money with Mary, and is a full merit scholarship college student. In this episode, Mary and I discuss her early journey through entrepreneurship. She also shares her experience of...
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32. How to Deal With College Rejection Letters and Break the Stereotypes of Success with Nikhil Desai
The Trailblazer's Guide To College Admissions
In today’s episode, I’m joined by a very special guest, Nikhil Desai. Nikhil is a recent college graduate currently applying to med school, and he happens to be a TikTok and Instagram phenomenon as well. We have a raw conversation that breaks down the stereotypes of success, pursuing a non-traditional route as a student, and the importance of being intentional with your time (no matter how you spend it). Nikhil shares his journey to college and being a non-traditional pre-med candidate, being open-minded about learning from others’ success, and why it’s so important to...
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31. What’s The Deal With Open Curriculum Colleges? A Guide to Choose a School That Fits Your Personal Needs
The Trailblazer's Guide To College Admissions
In today’s episode, I am keeping it short and sweet as I discuss a few important things to consider as you begin your college admissions journey. Speaking from years of research as an admissions counselor, my own experience in college and my students’ experiences, I share the best way to approach your own decision-making process. There is a lot to consider as you enter this very important stage of your life and learning journey. Tune in now for some tips on how to make the best decisions for you so that you can create the successful life you dream of. What We Cover: What is...
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30. 4 Tips To Quiet Your Inner Critic with Confidence and Assertiveness Specialist, Talia Bombola
The Trailblazer's Guide To College Admissions
How do we develop confidence and assertiveness in all aspects of our life? In today’s episode, Talia Bombola, a licensed therapist in the state of California and a Confidence and Assertiveness specialist joins us to help us navigate this conversation. From what she does as a confidence and assertiveness specialist to the ideal ways in which parents can cultivate a not-so-harsh inner critic in their children, Talia shares her wisdom on these important topics. This is an important conversation for anyone who is interested in psychotherapy, developing more confidence, and...
info_outlineIf you’re heading into 12th grade, that means it’s time to start working on your college applications. But to write application essays that WOW college admission officers, you need a lot of content to write about, specifically content that relates to your desired major. But wait, what if you don’t even know what you want to major in yet?
In this episode, I am sharing an amazing brainstorming exercise that will help you not only come up with topics for some of your college application essays but also start to understand whether the majors you're thinking of applying to are actually right for you. I’m helping you take the pressure off so you can figure out what you’re deeply interested in right now, write about it in your essay, and then follow it as your major.
What We Cover:
- The pressure to pick a major and figure out your career by age 18
- Top misconceptions when it comes to college application essays
- Four key traits college admission officers are looking for in your essay
- Why having a theme will help you stand out
- How to complete the brainstorming exercise
“70% of students pick the wrong major. So you might have a major in mind that's not quite right for you.”
“This is just one of the many brainstorming exercises I teach my students to help them generate interesting content and ideas because your college application essays count for up to 30% of the admissions decision, which is huge. And through this deep introspective work, you can also start to figure out what you're drawn to and what you're not. A lot of students pick the wrong major.”
Thanks for listening, and if you like what you’ve heard, subscribe and listen to The Bold Student Podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Don’t forget to spread the word by leaving a review or sharing this podcast with your friends!
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