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Tests and the Rest: College Admissions Industry Podcast


Oct 30, 2020

Everyone knows that extracurricular activities matter in college admissions. But do you know which aspects of participation and achievement really make a difference? Amy and Mike invited admissions expert Judi Robinovitz to outline the essentials of building an A+ extracurricular resume.

 What are five things you will learn in this episode?

  1. Are extracurriculars as important as people say?
  2. Do colleges want students who are well-rounded or angular?
  3. Do community service and work count as extracurriculars?
  4. How important are excellence and impact in an activity?
  5. What is the difference between your academic rating and extracurricular rating?

MEET OUR GUEST

Judi Robinovitz is a Certified Educational Planner with more than thirty-five years of experience in college counseling and school placements. She is the author of numerous articles, books, and software products on educational planning and test preparation. Judi has been a featured speaker at national educational conferences, schools, and places of worship.

To keep pace with current educational trends, Judi continually travels across the country to visit dozens of college and boarding school campuses every year. She has acquired vast knowledge of the admissions process as well as the requirements and specialties of hundreds of educational institutions. Since 1980, she and her team have successfully guided more than 8,000 students – from those at the very top of their class to students experiencing significant academic struggles – and their families through the planning and application process for private school, college, and graduate school. Judi specializes in guiding students applying to prestigious double-degree BS-MD programs and the nation’s most selective universities as well as colleges that best serve mid-range students and those with learning disabilities.

During her 23-year tenure at Educational Testing Service, Judi served as technical liaison to the College Board. She designed and led the programming team to implement the College Board’s first SAT-prep software; she also wrote strategy chapters of their original SAT-prep books. Taking the SAT numerous times throughout her career, Judi has several perfect 800 scores on her record.

As a founding faculty member of two private schools in Boca Raton, Florida, Judi created their college guidance programs and served as Director of College Guidance to the first four graduating classes of each school. Judi founded Score At The Top Learning Centers & Schools in South Florida. Accredited by AdvancED and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the learning centers provide academic tutoring, SAT & ACT preparation, and courses for credit to over 1,000 students every year, both in person and via Skype. The accredited schools are home to more than 180 full-time students who thrive in intentionally small classes ranging in size from one to eight students.

Judi is a professional member of the Independent Educational Consultants Association, the Higher Education Consultants Association, the National Association for College Admission Counseling, the Secondary School Admissions Test Board, and the Learning Disabilities Association of America. Judi earned degrees in mathematics and computer science from the University of Connecticut and Rutgers University, both with highest honors. Her professional life has been devoted to helping students achieve academic success.

Find Judi at judi@scoreatthetop.com.

LINKS

All About Extracurricular Activities

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ABOUT THIS PODCAST

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