16 episodes

Confused about the road to college? Don't know where to begin your college search? The College Checklist Podcast is your source for guidance about the college admissions process, financial aid, scholarships, and more! Each week, Lauren Gaggioli brings you a new episode featuring interviews with college counselors, higher education professionals, and entrepreneurs who can help you master the process of getting into, paying for, and being successful in college. Find show notes and more at CollegeChecklistPodcast.com.

The College Checklist Podcast: College Admissions, Financial Aid, Scholarships, Test Prep, and more..‪.‬ Lauren Gaggioli | SAT & ACT Prep Expert, Entrepreneur, and Speaker

    • Education
    • 4.9 • 87 Ratings

Confused about the road to college? Don't know where to begin your college search? The College Checklist Podcast is your source for guidance about the college admissions process, financial aid, scholarships, and more! Each week, Lauren Gaggioli brings you a new episode featuring interviews with college counselors, higher education professionals, and entrepreneurs who can help you master the process of getting into, paying for, and being successful in college. Find show notes and more at CollegeChecklistPodcast.com.

    Focus & Determination, Adam’s Story (Part 2)

    Focus & Determination, Adam’s Story (Part 2)

    If you listened to the last episode featuring just-graduated-high-school-Adam, be prepared to teleport 3 years into the future and meet almost-graduated-college-Adam!He's the same focused, dedicated student he always has been and he's back to share a great deal of insight for other students who are getting ready to head off to college for the first time.I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did!



    Listen Now



















    Subscribe on iTunes | Subscribe on Google Podcasts



    About Lauren GaggioliAfter graduating from New York University with her B.F.A. in Theater, Lauren moved to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career. To make time for auditions during the day, she called upon her academic roots from her high school days and began tutoring the ACT and SAT.She quickly fell in love - not with the exams, but with the feeling that she was helping students put their feet on a firm path towards a big, bright future.(Ok, maybe she fell a little bit in love with the exams too. Her dad didn't nickname her #2 Pencil Nerd for nothing.)After 7 years working as an in-home tutor with a large test prep firm and then in her own independent tutoring company, Lauren distilled her experiences into the 4 different ACT & SAT prep programs that are now available through her company, Higher Scores Test Prep.Lauren's love of teaching and compassion for what students are facing in today's complex, competitive college admissions landscape allows her to bring a little bit of calm to her corner of the college admissions process.



    Ready to find your future path?While Adam's clarity of purpose is admirable, it can also be intimidating. It can be hard to decide what to focus on and pursue.In my 13+ years working with college-bound high school students, I've watched many struggle to articulate their Big Why.It's a challenging and daunting task. But I also know that more students are capable of finding their Big Why than currently do. We all have the potential to find our perfect path to fulfillment and deserve to have the resources to discover it. That's why I created my new program: Big Why Life.If your future feels murky, it won't become more clear by simply soldiering on. Uncertainty begs us to take a step back and to create space reflection.  If you're ready to gain clarity and find your best path forward, I'd like to invite you to join my next cohort of Big Why Life. Head to BigWhyLife.com to learn more about this life-changing work.

    • 48 min
    Focus & Determination, Adam’s Story (Part 1)

    Focus & Determination, Adam’s Story (Part 1)

    I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with Adam when he was a junior in high school.  Not only was he thoroughly committed to improving his ACT scores, he then leveraged those scores for some really impressive merit aid awards. He's a very focused young man who worked hard and reaped the rewards of his efforts.I always find it so inspiring to hear my students' journeys to college. I hope you find Adam's story as uplifting as I do!



    Listen Now























    Subscribe on iTunes | Subscribe on Google Podcasts



    About Lauren GaggioliAfter graduating from New York University with her B.F.A. in Theater, Lauren moved to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career. To make time for auditions during the day, she called upon her academic roots from her high school days and began tutoring the ACT and SAT.She quickly fell in love - not with the exams, but with the feeling that she was helping students put their feet on a firm path towards a big, bright future.(Ok, maybe she fell a little bit in love with the exams too. Her dad didn't nickname her #2 Pencil Nerd for nothing.)After 7 years working as an in-home tutor with a large test prep firm and then in her own independent tutoring company, Lauren distilled her experiences into the 4 different ACT & SAT prep programs that are now available through her company, Higher Scores Test Prep.Lauren's love of teaching and compassion for what students are facing in today's complex, competitive college admissions landscape allows her to bring a little bit of calm to her corner of the college admissions process.



    Resources MentionedWant to improve your test scores and earn more cash for college? Each of my four online test prep courses includes my free Cash for College workshop so you can raise your score and earn thousands of dollars in free tuition too.Head to higherscorestestprep.com/online-act-prep or higherscorestestprep.com/online-sat-prep to learn more.

    • 41 min
    Big Why Life

    Big Why Life

    In my 13 years helping college-bound high school students, I've seen many students lose their way.Sometimes they lose connection with what they want and why they started on the path to college. They had direction once, but - over time - it slipped away.Or they realize that what they want from life is shifting, but the work they’ve done so far makes them feel locked into their current trajectory. Their progress is halting, taking two steps forward, one step back as they struggle to convince themselves that a few months of sunk cost is worth a lifetime on the wrong path.Or they’ve been checking boxes off their to do list but are losing momentum, getting angry, or feeling overwhelmed because they never stopped to think about what they really wanted on the other side of all their hard work. They’ve come so far only to find that they are struggling to fulfill the basic tasks they need to complete in order to get into college - like the personal statement - because they’re impossible to do properly without clarity about oneself.The common connection among these students? They’re all missing their Big Why. I finally have a way to help them. Head to BigWhyLife.com to learn more.



    Listen Now



















    Subscribe on iTunes | Subscribe on Google Podcasts



    About Lauren GaggioliAfter graduating from New York University with her B.F.A. in Theater, Lauren moved to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career. To make time for auditions during the day, she called upon her academic roots from her high school days and began tutoring the ACT and SAT.She quickly fell in love - not with the exams, but with the feeling that she was helping students put their feet on a firm path towards a big, bright future.(Ok, maybe she fell a little bit in love with the exams too. Her dad didn't nickname her #2 Pencil Nerd for nothing.)After 7 years working as an in-home tutor with a large test prep firm and then in her own independent tutoring company, Lauren distilled her experiences into the 4 different ACT & SAT prep programs that are now available through her company, Higher Scores Test Prep.Lauren's love of teaching and compassion for what students are facing in today's complex, competitive college admissions landscape allows her to bring a little bit of calm to her corner of the college admissions process.



    "If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favorable." - SenecaHead to BigWhyLife.com to join the next cohort before registration closes on February 11th.

    • 7 min
    Transforming The College Conversation

    Transforming The College Conversation

    If you're not hopeful about the future...If your next steps feel forced...If you feel your purpose lies on a different path than the one you're currently walking......then this episode is for you. And, if I'm honest, this episode is for me too. It's for high school me who was so lost and felt compelled to plod towards a future she wasn't genuinely excited about.I've been there. I know how it feels. And I have a simple Blue Sky way we can completely transform the college conversation and get excited about the future again.



    Listen Now



















    Subscribe on iTunes | Subscribe on Google Podcasts



    About Lauren GaggioliAfter graduating from New York University with her B.F.A. in Theater, Lauren moved to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career. To make time for auditions during the day, she called upon her academic roots from her high school days and began tutoring the ACT and SAT.She quickly fell in love - not with the exams, but with the feeling that she was helping students put their feet on a firm path towards a big, bright future.(Ok, maybe she fell a little bit in love with the exams too. Her dad didn't nickname her #2 Pencil Nerd for nothing.)After 7 years working as an in-home tutor with a large test prep firm and then in her own independent tutoring company, Lauren distilled her experiences into the 4 different ACT & SAT prep programs that are now available through her company, Higher Scores Test Prep.Lauren's love of teaching and compassion for what students are facing in today's complex, competitive college admissions landscape allows her to bring a little bit of calm to her corner of the college admissions process.She is thrilled to be announcing her brand new program - My Big Why Life - in this very episode!



    Resources MentionedIf you're feeling lost or hopeless about the future, I would be so honored to work with you to help you discover your Big Why and come up with a game plan for you to live in that purpose.Head to BigWhyLife.com to learn more about how we can work together.

    • 28 min
    Is A Transfer Track the Right Choice For You?

    Is A Transfer Track the Right Choice For You?

    While this episode was recorded before the pandemic, the information is particularly relevant today as many students and their families scramble to make alternate college plans. Over the years, no more so than now, I've heard many parents say, "We're just going to have her go to community college because she doesn't know what she wants to do." Changing course can often be a great choice, but there are some risks that come from opting out of the first 2 years at a 4-year college. The most important thing is to have a clear understand of both the upshots and downsides of opting for a transfer track before making your decision.Here's the thing, though. Whether you opt to go straight to college, head into a transfer track, or defer enrollment to take a gap year, you get the most out of each experience if you know what you want to do with your life.After 12 years in the college admissions space, I've worked with so many students who were checking the boxes to take the next steps without really understanding the Big Why behind their actions. So I've created a course to help. The inaugural run of my live-led program, My Big Why Life, kicks off started on November 1st. I'd love to have you be a part of the journey so that you can gain clarity of purpose as you transition to adulthood. Head to BigWhyLife.com to learn more!



    Listen Now



















    Subscribe on iTunes | Subscribe on Google Podcasts



    About Kat ClowesKat is the founder of March Consulting. She holds several degrees, including an MBA from Mount Saint Mary’s College, a BA in Communications from Santa Clara University, and a post-graduate certificate in Independent Educational Consulting from UC Irvine. An associate member of the Independent Educational Consultant’s Association (IECA) and the Higher Educational Consultant’s Association (HECA), she visits college campuses throughout the United States to discover more about the great options available to a variety of different students. She brings that knowledge home with her to help students discover the schools best fit for their needs. Her favorite part of her job is watching clients discover that they have something to offer the world and find the means of communicating it.To learn more about Kat, her team, and her services, head to MyMarchConsulting.com.



    Resources MentionedPut College To Work [Book]Big Why Life Workshop

    • 48 min
    Increasing Our Capacity To Focus

    Increasing Our Capacity To Focus

    Recorded long before the pandemic hit, this episode seems rather fortuitous given the biggest challenge I'm currently facing in lockdown: focus.My dear friend and fellow bookworm Jen Hoffman joins us to share her incredible tips for cultivating the practice of focus.Yes! Focus is a muscle that must be cultivated but that muscle can atrophy in our high tech world. Our devices are incredible tools that are keeping us connected in these crazy times, but their ability to keep us in contact with others comes with a cost. Today we'll explore this concept together and discover simple practices that we can weave into the fabric of our day to help us increase our capacity to focus.



    Listen Now



















    Subscribe on iTunes | Subscribe on Google Podcasts



    About Jennifer HoffmanJennifer Hoffman is a Certified Personal Trainer-Restorative Exercise Specialist™ (CPT-RES™) , a Registered Yoga Teacher (eRYT-500), and founder of HealthyMoving.com. Jen has worked with thousands of students sharing tips to help them make lasting improvements to their health and wellness. Everything she teaches is based on one crazy truth: that you don’t need to exercise to be healthy. Instead, for lasting wellness, she encourages us to weave Healthy Moving into the fabric of our day so we can feel amazing in and about our bodies.To learn more about Jen and her work, visit HealthyMoving.com.



    Resources Mentioned* 5 Minute Stress Relief PracticeHeadspace AppJen's Homeschool PE Curriculum

    • 32 min

Customer Reviews

4.9 out of 5
87 Ratings

87 Ratings

Donereviewing ,

So helpful!

We’re not at a point where we need all of the episodes, but great for what we do!

Jolynne Smyth ,

Really wanted to like this...

but would be far more helpful jump right to the point(s) of the episode.

I had to turn it off although I really wanted the content. So much preliminary chit chat from the host about her outside activities, conferences, all stuff unrelated to the reason we tuning in. Why would I want to sit through this? I’m not a long time listener fascinated by her personal stories (sorry!!).

scubagirl99 ,

Took my Crazy to Calm

As a parent of a high performing 7th grader, I want to make sure her experience with her college search and acceptance isn’t hindered by my lack of knowledge of the process. Playing these podcasts and listening to ALL of them (regardless of if I think they are highly relevant right now) has given me a sense of calm that I am in the know AND that she’ll find her path and perfect college ... that we can afford. Knowing we are prepared BEFORE she selects her path in high school gives me a sense of calm. Knowledge is power. Thank you, Lauren, for all of your time in producing these podcasts - to be able to get this advice FOR FREE is well worth the listen.

Top Podcasts In Education

The Mel Robbins Podcast
Mel Robbins
The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast
Dr. Jordan B. Peterson
TED Talks Daily
TED
UNBIASED
Jordan Is My Lawyer
Do The Work
Do The Work
The Rich Roll Podcast
Rich Roll