TPP 157: Eric Karlan on Navigating the College Application Process

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What should parents discuss with 9th‑ and 10th‑graders about interests and grades?

Eric Karlan 0:00
when we talk about what can I do for my child or what are the conversations I should be having at home with my ninth or 10th grader, of course it's obvious to talk about the importance of them keeping up their grades and doing their schoolwork. But it's also engaging your son or daughter in conversations about what are their interests? What are their curiosities? And I always hesitate to use the word passion. Certainly some students have a passion. sometimes multiple. But I think even there's a lot of adults in the world who may not have a passion. And that's why I try to take that pressure off of students when we have those conversations.
Debbie Reber 0:46
Welcome to Tilt Parenting, a podcast featuring interviews and conversations aimed at inspiring, informing, and supporting parents raising differently wired kids. I'm Debbie Reber, your host, and today's an important episode for listeners with kids in middle school or high school because we are going to be talking about university admissions. We'll see you next time. But this week, we are going to get into the nitty-gritty of the application process and learn about things like strategies for tackling admissions essays, how to decide between the SAT and the ACT, getting accommodations for those admissions tests, how to highlight interests in a way that will catch admissions directors' eyes, and more.
Debbie Reber 1:48
And to fill us in on all of this is my guest, Eric Carlin. He's a college essay and application consultant and the founder of The Ivy Experience, a company that works with families to prepare students for their collegiate futures through test prep, tutoring and essay consultation. Eric also recently gave a TEDx talk called What Do I Need to Know About You, in which he talked about the benefits for anyone of any age embracing and expressing their answer to that question, not just for interviews and applications or even personal and professional relationships, but for happiness and well-being. In this episode, Eric gives us a lot of insight into the application process and I have to say that rather than ramping up the anxiety here, I found myself feeling more calm and trusting and at peace about the college application process.
Debbie Reber 2:42
So I hope it does the same for you. And don't forget to tune in to next week's episode. I am so excited to be sharing a very special conversation with Dr. William Stixrud and Ned Johnson, co-authors of one of the most powerful parenting books I've ever read, The Self-Driven Child. This is a longer than usual episode that packs a punch, so be sure to check that out. I can't wait to share it with you. Thank you so much. And now here is my conversation with Eric. Hey, Eric, welcome to the podcast.
Eric Karlan 3:22
Good morning, Debbie. Thanks for having me.
Debbie Reber 3:24
Well, thank you for coming on to enlighten us a little more about high school students who are looking to go to college and kind of that application process. And it seems very overwhelming, I can say, even as a parent of a child going into high school, it's in the back of my mind, like, oh, it's time to start kind of thinking about planning, and I don't even really know where to start. So I'm sure there are many people listening to this, who are going to be very curious and taking notes on this conversation. So as a way to get into it, can you take a few minutes to introduce yourself and tell us about your work in the world?
Eric Karlan 4:04
Sure. So I've been doing this since 2010. In college, I actually individualized my major. And in The major was called Journalism, History and Culture, but graduated in 2009 in the heart of the recession when magazines and newspapers were cutting freelance budgets. And I had always been also interested in education and I got into this world by starting to work with students and families on the application and application essay process. At the same time, my now business partner, he was a biomedical engineering major who decided he didn't want to be a doctor. And he was doing SAT and ACT prep right after graduation. And the two of us were sitting together one day a few months after graduating.

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