When is a price not a price? When the stated retail cost of a year at any college diverges dramatically from what students actually cost, you can't effectively factor price into your initial college search. Amy and Mike invited educational expert Mark Salisbury to explain the importance of and path to college price transparency.

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. Why isn't a college's "sticker price" enough to understand how much a student actually pays?

2. Why do undergraduate financial offers arrive too late to inform college choice?

3. How can a database of actual college prices facilitate more informed school choices?

4. How effective are standard Net Price Calculators?

5. In what ways does price transparency benefit colleges?

MEET OUR GUEST

Dr. Mark Salisbury has spent over 30years in higher education. His first decade was as a soccer coach and admissions counselor. He then returned to school and earned a PhD 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.

Find Mark at https://www.tuitionfit.org/

LINKS

TuitionFit

Mark's TEDx Talk

The trouble with Net Price Calculators

2026 Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars

RELATED EPISODES

NEGOTIATING A FINANCIAL AWARD LETTER

BEST COLLEGES FOR YOUR TUITION DOLLARS

FINANCIAL AID HORROR STORIES

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT: TUITIONFIT COLLABORATIVE

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright, Roots2Words, and College Eagle. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros and LEAP. If you're interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, get in touch through our contact page.

Choosing a college often entails deciding where you'll live for the next four to possibly fifty-four years. Why, then, do so many applicants select their new homes without properly evaluating them? Amy and Mike invited student entrepreneur Evan Goldstein to discuss creating better college visits.

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. Can you truly understand a college without visiting campus?

2. What should every high schooler ask a current college student before committing to a school?

3. What can current college students tell you that admissions offices can't?

4. How much does the person showing you around campus shape your perception of a college?

5. Why does timing play such an important role in effective college visits?

MEET OUR GUEST

Evan Goldstein is a member of the Class of 2028 at Jesuit High School in Portland, Oregon. In the summer of 2025, he co-founded Quadzio with his older brother Jack, a student at the University of Pennsylvania, to bring greater transparency and a student perspective to the college admissions process.

Built around the philosophy of "Fit Over Prestige," Quadzio connects high school students one-on-one with current college students, giving prospective applicants a candid, firsthand look at the schools they're considering beyond traditional tours, rankings, and admissions materials.

Evan has been featured in Chris Rapozo and Rob Clark's higher education book Attention Gap for his perspective on college admissions and has shared his experiences on several podcasts. Outside of the classroom and his work with Quadzio, Evan is passionate about college sports and Mock Trial.

Evan can be reached at egoldstein@quadzio.com.

LINKS

Campus Visits That Count: What Questions to Ask Before You Commit

RELATED EPISODES

MAKING THE MOST OF COLLEGE VISITS

MAKING THE MOST OF A VIRTUAL COLLEGE ADMISSIONS EVENT

HOW TO BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH COLLEGES

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright, Roots2Words, and College Eagle. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros and LEAP. If you're interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, get in touch through our contact page.

About 66% of American students FAIL to earn their bachelor's degrees in four years. Yet, those extra years of college come at a tremendous cost. Amy and Mike invited educational consultant Edie Steele to explore the benefits and challenges around finishing a four-year degree on time.

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. Why does finishing a four-year degree on time matter?

2. What academic issues keep students from finishing college on time?

3. What credit and career planning issues keep students from finishing college on time?

4. What role do or should colleges play in facilitating on-time completion?

5. How can parents prepare high schoolers to finish their degrees on time?

MEET OUR GUEST

Edie Steele's expertise was honed as an Academic Advisor and Student Retention Director at diverse colleges and universities. Her Ph.D. in Educational Policy, Planning and Leadership from the College of William and Mary enabled Edie to understand key factors driving student success, and the larger forces that shape and define the American higher education system. Her Master's degree in Counselor Education from the University of Virginia strengthened Edie's skills in supporting individual students. Edie's background includes Career Exploration with students and Admissions Counseling positions at the graduate and undergraduate levels.

Edie now coaches students privately through Finish in Four, LLC with a simple goal of helping students finish college on time. With high school and college students in tailored sessions, remotely and in person, she works to identify potential roadblocks, teach students how to navigate college structures, and provide strategies for academic, social and career success. Edie also presents to groups of parents and students about academic success and a dream of a college education pursued the right way: on time and on budget!

Find Edie Steele at www.finishin4.org.

RELATED EPISODES

HOW TO PERSIST TO COLLEGE GRADUATION

GALLUP ALUMNI SURVEY AND THE SIX COLLEGE EXPERIENCES THAT DRIVE SUCCESS

ADVANTAGES OF DUAL ENROLLMENT

EARNING ADVANCE COLLEGE CREDIT

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright, Roots2Words, and College Eagle. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros and LEAP. If you're interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, get in touch through our contact page.

In the age of artificial intelligence, more and more communication is crafted by sophisticated models–and it shows. Critical messages should be composed by a person for a person. Amy and Mike invited college essay specialist Barak Rosenbloom to discuss how to write the college essay that AI cannot.

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. What is the consensus view on AI and college essays?

2. What do people—students, adults, professionals, even teachers—miss out on when they use AI, and what does it do to communication between people?

3. What do people need to know, and what skills do they need, to interact with AI in ways that produce better writing and communication?

4. How should teens approach their college essays to maximize what counts?

5. What role can AI play in a smart essay approach?

MEET OUR GUEST

Barak Rosenbloom is the founder, owner, and Chief Essay Mentor of Essay Mentors, a Seattle-area company that specializes in college admissions essays. He's mentored over 600 students in a comprehensive 1-to-1 program and has delivered training and workshops to thousands of students, parents, counselors, teachers, and admissions officers.

Barak is the lead designer of EssayQuest, an all-in-one system that helps schools, teachers, and counselors help their students write better college essays. Barak and his team developed EssayQuest over eight years, incorporating principles of neuroscience, linguistics, learning theory, and instructional design.

Barak started life after college as an English teacher; spent five years at the US Department of Labor; and for fifteen years was a leadership, organizational development, and communication consultant.

Barak previously appeared on this podcast in episode 482 to discuss College Essays In The Age of Artificial Intelligence.

Barak can be reached at essayquest.com.

LINKS

AI can write your college essay, but it won't sound like you

Fifteen great college essays

RELATED EPISODES

COLLEGE ESSAY SECRETS

HOW MUCH AI IS JUST RIGHT IN THE COLLEGE ESSAY?

MAKING YOUR COLLEGE ESSAYS COUNT

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright, Roots2Words, and College Eagle. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros and LEAP. If you're interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, get in touch through our contact page.

Far too often, we evaluate math ability in high schoolers solely on the basis of grades and level of math learned. A more accurate assessment of a student's potential on challenging math tasks--including those posed on tests like the SAT and ACT--should consider mathematical maturity. Amy and Mike invited author and test prep professional Dr. Steve Warner to define what this means and explain the link between mathematical maturity and test success.

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. What is mathematical maturity?

2. How can you determine your "level" of mathematical maturity?

3. Can mathematical maturity be improved?

4. How does mathematical maturity relate to standardized test scores?

5. What steps can students seeking higher levels of mathematical maturity take?
   

MEET OUR GUEST

Dr. Steve Warner, a New York native, earned his Ph.D. at Rutgers University in Pure Mathematics in May 2001. After Rutgers, Dr. Warner joined the Penn State Mathematics Department as an Assistant Professor and in September 2002, he returned to New York to accept an Assistant Professor position at Hofstra University. By September 2007, Dr. Warner had received tenure and was promoted to Associate Professor. He has taught undergraduate and graduate courses in Precalculus, Calculus, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Mathematical Logic, Set Theory, and Abstract Algebra.

From 2003 – 2008, Dr. Warner participated in a five-year NSF grant, "The MSTP Project," to study and improve mathematics and science curriculum in poorly performing junior high schools. He also published several articles in scholarly journals, specifically on Mathematical Logic.

Dr. Warner has nearly two decades of experience in general math tutoring and tutoring for standardized tests such as the SAT, ACT, GRE, GMAT, and AP Calculus exams. He has tutored students both individually and in group settings.

In February 2010, Dr. Warner released his first SAT prep book, "The 32 Most Effective SAT Math Strategies," and in 2012 founded Get 800 Test Prep. Since then, Dr. Warner has written books for the SAT, ACT, SAT Math Subject Tests, AP Calculus exams, and GRE. In 2018, Dr. Warner released his first pure math book called "Pure Mathematics for Beginners." Since then, he has released several more books, each one addressing a specific subject in pure mathematics.

Steve can be reached at steve@SATPrepGet800.com.

RELATED EPISODES

CHOOSING HIGH SCHOOL MATH COURSES STRATEGICALLY

MENTAL MATH AND AUTOMATICITY

HIGH IMPACT STRATEGIES TO HELP STUDENTS SUCCEED IN MATH

LINKS

Gaining Mathematical Maturity

Dr. Warner's extensive catalog of math prep books

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright, Roots2Words, and College Eagle. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros and LEAP. If you're interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, get in touch through our contact page.

Obviously, accomplishing big things requires energy and intention. But should admission to a specific school really be the ultimate focus of a child's K-12 journey? Amy and Mike invited college advisor Beth Gelles to analyze what college admissions culture is doing to our kids.

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. How early does college admissions pressure start in the worst cases?

2. When should parents actually start talking to their kids about college?

3. When does wanting your child to succeed start doing more harm than good?

4. How do we stop turning everything kids do into something for college admissions and give them the space to figure out who they are and what they actually care about?

5. How can parents help kids build resilience before they leave for college?

MEET OUR GUEST

Beth Heller Gelles co-founded Acceptance Ahead, a college admissions counseling firm, in 2012, and she is the author of Crazy for College: The Stories, The Secrets, & The Shot of Sanity You Need to Make It Through Admissions. After working with hundreds of students and families and visiting more than 160 college campuses, Beth wrote Crazy for College to help families navigate the process with less stress and keep the parent-child relationship intact. A graduate of Harvard College and Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management, Beth spent over a decade in advertising and marketing before entering the college admissions world.

Beth can be reached at http://crazyforcollege.com.

LINKS

Are we sacrificing our youth for college admissions?

Crazy for College: The Stories, The Secrets, & The Shot of Sanity You Need to Make It Through Admissions

RELATED EPISODES

HOW PARENTS CAN SUPPORT (NOT DERAIL) THE COLLEGE PROCESS

THE ROLE OF PARENTS IN THE COLLEGE PROCESS

COLLEGE ADMISSIONS INSANITY

ADVOCACY FOR PARENTS OF HIGH SCHOOLERS

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright, Roots2Words, and College Eagle. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros and LEAP. If you're interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, get in touch through our contact page.

How can we succeed in the moment when we're so burdened by thoughts of the past and anxious over fears of the future? The practice and application of mindfulness can keep a person fully focused on the present. Amy and Mike invited author and test prep professional Logan Thompson to discuss powerful strategies for using mindfulness for test and school success.

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. What is mindfulness?

2. What is "the other half of test prep" and how can mindfulness help prep?

3. What are the "passengers" that steer us wrong in stressful moments?

4. How can simple acknowledgment of negative self-talk create better outcomes?

5. What can educators, counselors, and parents do to help cultivate mindfulness?

MEET OUR GUEST

Logan Thompson scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT®, GRE®, and GMAT®. He has studied and practiced mindfulness since 2008. After earning his MBA from Vanderbilt University, Thompson lived at the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, MA, for two and a half years, spending several months in silent mindfulness retreats. He also participated in a two-year mindfulness teacher-training program by Inward Bound Mindfulness Education (iBME). Thompson holds a Masters of Education in Human Development and Psychology from Harvard University and is an adjunct psychology professor. He has spent the past several years teaching both mindfulness and test prep for Manhattan Prep.

Logan is also the author of Beyond the Content: Mindfulness as a Test Prep Advantage.

LINKS

Ten Percent Happier app

Mindfulness and Concentration in Testing

RELATED EPISODES

HOW TO BREATHE DURING STRESSFUL ACADEMIC SITUATIONS

HOW STRESS AFFECTS TEST PERFORMANCE

MENTAL TECHNIQUES FOR PEAK TEST PERFORMANCE

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright, Roots2Words, and College Eagle. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros and LEAP. If you're interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, get in touch through our contact page.

It is often said that intention is one thing, but execution is another. That observation is little comfort to students who study and prepare with the best intentions yet still fail to reach their goals. Amy and Mike invited test prep professional Bobby Nicholson to unpack the regrettably common question, "Why didn't my test score increase?"

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. When students say, "I know the material—I'm just a bad test taker," what is usually preventing them from scoring higher?

2. Why isn't taking more practice tests enough, and what should students actually do with the questions they miss?

3. What separates test preparation that feels productive from preparation that produces meaningful score increases?

4. What is the most productive response when official scores don't match practice test scores?

5. What should parents look for–and be skeptical of–when comparing test prep options?

MEET OUR GUEST

Bobby Nicholson is the founder of Outliers ACT Prep, a Knoxville-based education company helping students achieve measurable, life-changing score increases on the ACT. What began as one-on-one tutoring has grown into a multi-coach, team-based program used by students and schools across the region, known for its data-driven diagnostics, proprietary coaching app, and five-point composite score guarantee.

Beyond test prep, Bobby is building a broader ecosystem around education, character development, and long-term human flourishing. He is a co-contributor of the FLOY project (Future Leaders of Yesterday), a multi-decade project to design a practical "life curriculum" that teaches young people how to think clearly, build strong relationships, contribute meaningfully to their communities, and pursue lives that are happy, free, and fit for the good of others.

Bobby is an entrepreneur, systems-builder, and lifelong student of learning science, psychology, and philosophy, with a particular interest in how motivation, meaning, and skill-building intersect. When he's not working with students or building new education programs, he enjoys endurance training, cooking ambitious meals, reading widely, and designing new tools to help people grow.

Bobby previously appeared on this podcast in episode 748 for a Test Prep Profile.

Find Bobby at bobby@oaprep.com.

LINKS

Why Does So Much ACT Prep Fail—and What Actually Works?

Standardized Test Preparation Checklist

RELATED EPISODES

WHAT TO DO WHEN A TEST SCORE DISAPPOINTS

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A BAD TEST TAKER?

BRINGING GRIT TO TESTING AND ADMISSIONS

ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright, Roots2Words, and College Eagle. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros and LEAP. If you're interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, get in touch through our contact page.