In Episode 15 of Drop In, Lisa and Josh are joined by Liane Crane of The College Dollar to tackle one of the most confusing—and important—parts of the college admissions process:

How are we actually going to pay for college?

FAFSA. CSS Profile. Financial aid. Scholarships. Grants. Loans. 529 plans. Net cost.

It can feel like an entirely different language, and families are often expected to figure it out while they are already juggling applications, essays, deadlines, and everything else that comes with senior year.

So we brought in an expert.

Liane has spent the last decade helping families understand college finances and how to make college more affordable. She joins Lisa and Josh to break down the financial aid process in plain English and help families understand what they actually need to know before the bills start arriving.

They start with the basics: What is the FAFSA? What is the CSS Profile? Who needs to complete them? And when are they actually due?

Then they tackle one of the questions families are sometimes afraid to ask:

Can applying for financial aid hurt my student’s chances of admission?

From there, the conversation gets into the real math behind paying for college—including how to compare financial aid offers, why loans and work-study are not the same thing as free money, why the highest sticker price does not necessarily mean the most expensive college, and why families should think about the cost over four years, not just freshman year.

Because the number on the college website is not necessarily the number YOUR family will pay.

In this episode:

What FAFSA means and what it actually does
• Which colleges require the CSS Profile
• When families should file financial aid forms
• How missing a deadline can cost you financial aid
• Does applying for financial aid hurt your chances of admission?
• Federal student loans and Parent PLUS loans
• Why families need a college budget BEFORE building the college list
• How to calculate your true out-of-pocket college cost
• How 529 plans can help families pay for college
• Why sticker price does NOT equal actual price

One of our favorite reminders from Liane:

The most expensive college is not necessarily the one with the highest sticker price. It’s the one that makes you borrow the most.

Parents, please have the money conversation early.

Know what your family can comfortably contribute. Know what you are willing—or not willing—to borrow. Understand the deadlines. Ask questions when something does not make sense.

You are making one of the biggest financial decisions your family may ever make.

You are allowed to need help understanding it.

And as Lisa says in this episode, the money piece is absolutely figure-out-able.

Want help from Liane?

Liane Crane works with families through The College Dollar, helping parents and students understand college costs, FAFSA, CSS Profile, financial aid, student loans, 529 plans, appeals, and strategies for making college more affordable.

If you have questions about your family's college finances, visit thecollegedollar.com and click the link to schedule a FREE introductory consultation with Liane.

Need help building a college list that fits both your kiddo and your family's budget?

Visit decisiondrop.com/contact to connect with Lisa and Josh at Decision Drop for help with college lists, applications, essays, admissions strategy, and navigating the college process from beginning to end.

In Episode 14 of Drop In, Lisa and Josh are joined by test prep expert Megan Dorsey of College Prep Results to tackle a part of the college admissions process that stresses out a whole lot of students and parents:

The SAT and ACT.

Which test should your student take? When should they start? How many times should they test? What kind of prep actually works? And what happens when a student knows the material but sits down on test day and suddenly their brain stops cooperating?

Megan has spent three decades helping students improve their SAT and ACT scores and brings a practical, no-gimmicks approach to test preparation. She joins Lisa and Josh to talk about test anxiety, realistic score expectations, choosing between the SAT and ACT, when juniors should begin testing, how much improvement families can reasonably expect from good preparation, and when it may actually make sense to stop testing altogether.

They start with test anxiety and one of Megan’s biggest reminders: being nervous does not mean you are bad at testing.

You do not need to feel completely relaxed on test day. You need to be able to focus. Then they get into strategy.

Megan explains why she currently prefers the SAT for most students, how the digital SAT and changes to the ACT have shifted her advice, why Desmos can be a game changer, and why families should never use an official SAT or ACT as a paid “baseline” test.

Instead, take a full-length official practice test under realistic testing conditions and use that information to build a plan. Because test taking is a skill. And skills can be practiced.

In this episode:
• What parents can do to reduce testing pressure
• Why more colleges may continue returning to required testing
• How the digital SAT compares with the current ACT
• How to determine which test fits your student
• Why you should NOT take a real SAT or ACT just to establish a baseline
• When students should take their first SAT or ACT
• How many times students should retake the SAT or ACT
• When another test attempt may actually be worth it for scholarships
• How much score improvement students can realistically expect
• When choosing not to test may actually be the right decision

One of our favorite reminders from Megan:

You do not have to feel good. You just have to be able to focus.

And parents, remember that testing is only one piece of the college admissions process.

Make a plan. Pick the test. Pick the dates. Prepare with intention. Give your kiddo the support they need. Then let them take the test and keep moving.

Want to work with Megan?

Megan Dorsey works with students through College Prep Results, specializing in SAT, ACT, and PSAT preparation. All in-person work takes place in the Sugar Land / West Houston area, including Fort Bend, Missouri City, Katy, Bellaire, Memorial, and similar west Houston communities. Outside the Houston area? Megan also works with students virtually by Zoom.

Visit collegeprepresults.com to learn more about Megan’s classes, private tutoring, and test prep options.

Need help figuring out how testing fits into your student’s larger college admissions strategy—including whether to test, when to test, where to submit scores, and how those scores fit into the college list?

Visit decisiondrop.com/contact to learn more about working with Lisa and Josh at Decision Drop.

In Episode 13 of Drop In, Lisa and Josh welcome their very first guest, Mary O’Malley, Co-Head of Admissions Advising at Union Hall Advising and author of the Admitted-ish Substack, to tackle one of the hardest questions parents face during application season:

How much should I actually be helping my kiddo with their college applications?

Should parents edit the college essay? Can they fill out the Common App? When does helpful feedback become rewriting? And how do you support a stressed-out teenager without accidentally taking over the entire process?

Mary brings experience from college admissions, independent school admissions, college counseling, enrollment management, financial aid, and reading applications for highly selective universities. Together, Lisa, Josh, and Mary break down what authentic student voice actually looks like, why ordinary essay topics can be incredibly effective, and why a teenager’s application should still sound like a teenager wrote it.

They also talk about how parental involvement should look different from student to student, why families may want to schedule dedicated “college check-ins” instead of talking about applications constantly, and why one of the best things a parent can do is give their student room to have an opinion before offering their own.

Because helping does not always mean fixing.

Sometimes the most loving thing you can do is let your kiddo do part of this imperfectly.

And as Mary reminds families, a college acceptance letter is not a parenting report card.

In this episode:

• How much parents should help with college applications
• Why a college application needs to sound like the student
• What admissions officers actually mean by “student voice”
• Why an essay does not need a dramatic or extraordinary topic
• Helpful parent feedback vs. rewriting a student’s essay
• Why parents should ask permission before reading an essay
• Whether parents should fill out the Common App
• How students can own their application while still receiving support
• Why different kiddos need different levels of help
• How to keep college admissions from taking over every family conversation
• Why parents should let students react to college visits and decisions first
• How comparison can steal the joy from senior year
• Why an admissions decision is not a verdict on a student’s worth
• Why a college acceptance is not a parenting report card
• How the college application process can build independence before college

Parents, you absolutely have a role in this process. It is a big one.

But your job is not to create the perfect application.

Your job is to help your kiddo build the confidence to own theirs.

Love your kiddo more than you love the outcome.

Need help guiding your student through essays, applications, college lists, deadlines, and strategy without taking over the process? Visit decisiondrop.com/contact to learn more about working with Lisa and Josh at Decision Drop.

And be sure to check out Mary O’Malley’s Admitted-ish Substack for more smart, practical, hysteria-free college admissions advice.