The college decisions are starting to arrive. Accepted. Denied. Deferred. Waitlisted. Four words that can completely change the mood in your house.

In Episode 11 of Drop In, Lisa and Josh break down what each college admissions decision actually means, what students should do next, and what parents need to remember when the answer is not the one everyone was hoping for.

They cover what to do after an acceptance, why you should not rush to commit before comparing financial aid offers, what a deferral really means, when to send a Letter of Continued Interest (LOCI), and how to approach a college waitlist without putting your life on hold.

They also tackle the harder part of decision season: disappointment.

Because a denial is not a verdict on your worth. A deferral is not a secret rejection. And a waitlist is a maybe you cannot build your life around.

Plus, Lisa and Josh talk directly to parents about the first few minutes after a college decision arrives, why your reaction matters more than you may realize, and why sometimes the best thing you can do is skip the strategy and simply lead with love.

In this episode:

• What to do after a college acceptance
• Why you should compare financial aid before committing
• What a college deferral actually means
• When and how to send a Letter of Continued Interest
• How midyear grades can affect a deferred application
• What to do after a college denial
• How to handle a college waitlist
• Why students should not put their lives on hold for a “maybe”
• What parents should say — and NOT say — when decisions arrive
• How to keep one college decision from defining the rest of your senior year

Whatever word shows up on that screen, remember: it is information, not a verdict. You can feel disappointed and still be okay. Both things can be true at the exact same time.

Want to dig deeper? Read our blog post here for a closer look at how to make the most of the waiting period.

Need help navigating the wait, understanding your decisions, and ultimately finding the right fit? Visit https://decisiondrop.com/contact to learn more about working with Lisa and Josh at Decision Drop.

The wait is not dead time. It is a window.

In Episode 10 of The Drop In, Lisa and Josh tackle the part of the college process nobody warns you about: the long stretch between hitting submit and hearing back in March. What can you actually do during the wait? Does demonstrated interest really matter? And how do you keep a great application from unraveling before decisions even arrive?

We dig into what demonstrated interest actually looks like, and why it works completely differently at a small school like Pitzer College than it does at a giant flagship like the University of Wisconsin, or a hidden-gem liberal arts school like Austin College in Sherman, Texas. We talk about why visiting a campus in the actual winter cold matters so much more than a glossy fall visit, because climate is a real fit factor and there might still be snow on the ground in March.

Then we get into everything else you can be doing right now: keeping your grades up, submitting your mid-year report, watching your portals and email, taking optional interviews, and finishing your financial aid paperwork so you can compare offers calmly when they come.

And Lisa shares her hot take on the one thing coming for every single senior. No one is immune.

Because the wait is not something to survive. It is something to use.

In this episode: What demonstrated interest is and why it matters. How demonstrated interest differs by school size and type. Pitzer, University of Wisconsin, and Austin College. Why you should visit campuses in the winter. Climate as a college fit factor. What to do while you wait for decisions. Mid-year reports and senior grades. Why senioritis can cost you an acceptance. Watching your application portals and email. FAFSA and CSS Profile follow-up. How to stay sane between now and March.

Want to dig deeper? Read our blog post here for a closer look at how to make the most of the waiting period.

Need help navigating the wait, understanding your decisions, and ultimately finding the right fit? Visit https://decisiondrop.com/contact to learn more about working with Lisa and Josh at Decision Drop.

Early Decision is a commitment. It is not a hack.

In Episode 9 of The Drop In, Lisa and Josh break down the alphabet soup of college admissions: Early Decision (ED), Early Action (EA), Restrictive Early Action (REA), and Regular Decision (RD). What does each application plan actually mean? Is Early Decision really an admissions advantage? And how do you know if applying ED is the right strategy for your student?

We dig into why higher Early Decision acceptance rates do not automatically mean ED will make an uncompetitive applicant competitive, the difference between ED1 and ED2, and the two questions every student should ask before making a binding commitment.

Then we tackle the other thing that can derail even a great college application: organization.

From building a college application spreadsheet and tracking financial aid deadlines to working backward from your earliest deadline, submitting before 11:58 p.m., checking that your application actually went through, and keeping track of all those passwords, we share the systems that can make application season a whole lot less stressful.

Because the spreadsheet is not beneath you. The spreadsheet is your best friend.

In this episode:

• Early Decision vs. Early Action
• What makes Early Decision binding
• Whether applying ED increases your chances of admission
• Restrictive Early Action and Regular Decision
• ED1 vs. ED2
• Early Decision and financial aid
• College application deadlines
• How to organize your college applications
• FAFSA and CSS Profile deadlines
• Why students should submit applications early
• How to confirm your college application was submitted

Want to dig deeper? Read our blog post for a closer look at how these options work and what families should consider before choosing an early application strategy.

Need help deciding where and when to apply, building your college list and timeline, or managing the application process? Visit decisiondrop.com to learn more about working with Lisa and Josh at Decision Drop.

On this week's episode of The Drop In, Josh and Lisa unpack the one piece of the college application that students can't fully control: the letter of recommendation.

They break down why only about 11-12% of colleges say recommendations carry considerable weight in admissions decisions, why requirements vary wildly by school (UC schools discourage them, Florida's public universities don't use them at all, UT Austin actually encourages letters from outside the high school), and why "optional" rarely means skip it.

The conversation goes deep on what separates a forgettable recommendation letter from one that moves the needle: specific, real moments over vague compliments, a teacher who truly knows the student over one who just gave them an A, and a recommendation that adds a new dimension to the application instead of repeating the essay or activities list.

Josh and Lisa also cover the practical side parents and students ask about most: who to ask, why junior year is the sweet spot, how to give a teacher useful context without handing them a script, and why a simple thank-you matters more than families realize.

Want Josh and Lisa to help your kiddo build the kind of relationships that lead to strong recommendation letters, and make sure every part of their application tells one authentic story? Head to decisiondrop.com to connect.

More clubs, more leadership titles, more lines on the résumé… that must mean a stronger college application, right? Not necessarily. In Episode 7, Lisa and Josh challenge one of the biggest myths about extracurricular activities: that more is always better.

They explain why colleges care far more about depth, initiative, growth, and impact than the number of clubs a student joins. They break down what makes an activity meaningful, why part-time jobs and family responsibilities absolutely count, and how self-directed experiences can reveal genuine curiosity and motivation.

Lisa and Josh also share practical ways students can make their activities list stronger, from using numbers to show impact to explaining what they led, built, changed, learned, and contributed. And they remind families that the activity itself is only part of the story. What matters most is the student behind it.

The bottom line: stop collecting activities just to look busy. Explore what genuinely interests you, commit to what matters, and let your experiences show colleges who you are becoming.

Want Josh and Lisa to help your kiddo find meaningful ways to get involved, build on the interests they already have, and tell their story authentically? Visit decisiondrop.com/contact.

Standardized testing has become one of the most confusing parts of the college admissions process. Test optional, test blind, test required, SAT, ACT, CLT, middle 50% ranges, scholarship requirements. Just when families think they understand the rules, another college changes its policy.

In Episode 6 of Drop In: A Decision Drop Podcast, Lisa and Josh break down what these testing policies actually mean and answer the question families ask constantly:

Should I submit my test score?

The honest answer is still, “It depends.” But by the end of this episode, you will understand exactly what it depends on.

Lisa and Josh explain how to compare your score to a college’s admitted student range, when a score below the median may still strengthen an application, and why intended major and merit scholarship policies can change the decision. They also discuss the growing role of the Classic Learning Test, or CLT, and why families need to check each college’s testing policy every year.

In this episode:

• The difference between test required, test blind, and test optional
• When submitting an SAT, ACT, or CLT score makes sense
• How to use a college’s middle 50% score range
• What to do when your score falls in the gray zone
• Why testing expectations may vary by major or program
• How scores can affect merit scholarship eligibility
• Why the CLT may be worth exploring
• What the University of California testing debate could mean for future applicants

The biggest takeaway: a test score is not a verdict on your intelligence. It is one piece of a much larger application.

Stop asking, “Is this a good score?” Start asking, “Will this score help me at this specific college, for this specific program, during this specific application cycle?”

Need Josh and Lisa to help with your testing plan? Visit decisiondrop.com/contact.

Supplemental essays. The 250-word ones buried in the application portal that students look at on a Friday night, decide they have all weekend to write, and then somehow end up finishing in a Sunday night panic spiral. Sound familiar?

In this episode of Drop In, Lisa and Josh break down every major type of supplemental essay: what colleges are actually asking, what admissions officers are actually looking for, and how to write answers that sound like a specific human being instead of a Google search with a word count.

They cover the "Why Us" essay (it's a love letter, not a thank-you note), the extracurricular essay (your activity list already told them what you did, and now tell them why it matters), the perspectives essay (it's not asking you to win, it's asking you to grow), and the "Why This Major" essay (show evidence your interest exists outside the classroom). Plus...the sneakiest challenge in the entire supplemental process: those super short 50-word prompts that look easy until you're staring at a blank box for 45 minutes.

Real examples from Texas A&M, Georgetown, the University of Florida, Wake Forest, and UT Austin. And Lisa shares a story from her recruiting days that every student needs to hear before they hit submit.

New episodes every week. Follow Drop In on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.

📲 Work with Lisa & Josh: decisiondrop.com

Chapters:
00:00 Welcome to Drop In!
03:23 Episode 5 Intro: Supplemental Essays Are Not What You Think
05:33 The "Why Us" Essay: How to Write One That Actually Works
10:06 Texas A&M and Georgetown: Real "Why Us" Essay Examples
11:36 The Extracurricular Essay: Show Don't Tell (University of Florida)
13:21 The Perspectives Essay: How to Write About Different Viewpoints
15:25 The "Why This Major" Essay: Show Your Curiosity Outside the Classroom
16:52 UT Austin and the "Why This Major" Essay: Specific Examples
19:41 Super Short Supplements: The Sneakiest Challenge in College Applications
20:20 Wake Forest and the 50-Word Essay: How to Write Less and Say More
22:51 Hot Take: The "Why Us" Essay Is a Love Letter, Not a Thank-You Note
25:49 Drop the Mic: Every Supplemental Essay Is a Conversation
27:05 Read the Mission Statement Before You Write a Single Word
27:42 Next Week: Standardized Testing, Test-Optional, and What It All Really Means

A beautifully written college essay that tells us nothing about the student is not a good essay.

In Episode 4 of Drop In, Josh and Lisa are talking about what actually makes a college essay work:

• Voice
• Perspective
• Reflection
• Authenticity

The problem is not always the lesson. The lesson may be completely true. The problem is that thousands of students explain that lesson in exactly the same way.

An admissions reader does not just need to know that you learned perseverance after a sports injury or gratitude after a mission trip. They want to understand what that experience actually did to you. What did you notice that someone else might have missed? How did you react? What changed specifically for you?

This is the reframe we give our students:

Write as if you already trust the reader, not as if you are trying to impress them.

When you're trying to impress someone, you perform. You reach for bigger words, the most dramatic moment, or the version of the story that makes you sound the most accomplished.

But when you trust someone, you simply talk to them. You tell them what actually happened and what it actually meant to you.

That is where your real voice shows up.

Parents, please do not edit the kiddo out of the essay.

And AI? It can be a great tool for brainstorming, organizing ideas, and helping students think more deeply about why a story matters. But it should never sand down their voice until the essay sounds like everyone and no one at the same time.

At the end of the day, the essay should sound like the best version of the student. Not the parent. Not a polished fake adult. And definitely not a robot.

The student's voice should always stay at the center of the college essay.

Want to work with Josh and Lisa? Head to decisiondrop.com/contact.

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