Tackling the UC PIQs; Celebrating Financial Aid Day

October 10, 2024
Hosted by Elizabeth Heaton

[Download MP3] [itunes] [Bookmark Episode]

Episode Description

Are you applying to the University of California system? If so, you probably already know that they have their own application and require four essays. And those essays are a very important piece of the application evaluation! Host Sally Ganga will be joined by College Coach colleagues Steve Fernandez-Brennan and Alexandra Rendon to discuss how to approach them. Both have extensive experience advising students on this application, and Alex even worked for UC San Diego! So tune in. In addition, College Coach Finance Expert Zach Gries will be helping us celebrate Financial Aid Day, coming on October 16th, by explaining what financial aid actually is.

Getting In: A College Coach Conversation

Thursday at 1 PM Pacific Time on VoiceAmerica Variety Channel

Planning for college? Tune into Getting In: A College Coach Conversation for tips, techniques, and insider perspectives. Hosted by Elizabeth Heaton, a former admissions officer at the University of Pennsylvania, and featuring her fellow admissions and college finance experts from Bright Horizons College Coach, the show shares what colleges are really looking for and how to highlight your hard-won achievements for the best chance at success. New episodes air every Thursday at 4 PM Eastern Time, 1 PM Pacific Time on the VoiceAmerica Variety channel.

Elizabeth Heaton

Elizabeth Heaton is the senior director of educational consulting and strategic marketing at College Coach, the nation’s leading provider of educational advisory services. Ms. Heaton began her admissions career at the University of Pennsylvania, where she chaired university selection committees, evaluated potential athletic recruits as one of the school’s athletics liaisons, and oversaw the university’s portfolio of admissions publications. She also served as second chair in the selection committee for the school's flagship interdisciplinary Jerome Fisher Program in Management and Technology. A graduate of Cornell University, Ms. Heaton brings exceptional skills to the craft of essay writing paired with experience reading and evaluating thousands of Penn admissions applications. She is featured regularly in news outlets including Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, Time, US News and World Report, Boston Globe, and ABC News, among others, and can offer expert advice on a wide range of college admissions topics, from colleges’ expectations for high school curriculum choices and standardized test scores to choosing the right extracurricular activities and essay topics. Prior to joining Penn, Ms. Heaton worked as a public relations professional and served for a decade as a member of the Cornell Alumni Admissions Ambassador Network.

Episode Directory

December 2024

November 2024

October 2024

  • 10/31/2024: What’s Supp: UChicago & UVM Essays; In-State/Out-of-State Tuition Listen Now
  • 10/24/2024: What’s Supp with Supplemental Essays: BC & Cornell; College Lists Listen Now
  • 10/17/2024: What’s Supp with Supplemental Essays: Yale & UMichigan; Merit Aid Listen Now
  • 10/10/2024: Tackling the UC PIQs; Celebrating Financial Aid Day Listen Now
  • 10/3/2024: A.I. in College Admissions; Cyber Security Tips for Young Adults Listen Now
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