724. HOW DATA IS TRANSFORMING THE WAY STUDENTS NAVIGATE COLLEGE DECISIONS

How often does a thorough college search process involving hours of research and weeks of onsite college visits take an unexpected last minute twist because of fuzzy criteria and gut feelings? Shouldn't certain statistics inform better choices? Amy and Mike invited ed tech entrepreneurs Braden and Cooper Weissman to explore how data is transforming the way students navigate college decisions.  What are five things you will learn in this episode? Why does the college admissions process feel more complicated today? How can counselors help students think about choosing a college beyond rankings and prestige? What are the risks of relying on guesswork or outdated information during the admissions process? Where do students tend to struggle most when applying to colleges and making school decisions, and how can counselors help address those gaps? How might data and technology improve the college search process? MEET OUR GUEST Braden Weissman is the co-founder and Co-CEO of Nerd Apply. A competitive athlete and team builder at heart, Braden brings a performance-driven mindset to everything he works on. He was named Arizona's Student and Athlete of the Year in 2021 and carried that same discipline and leadership to the University of Michigan, where he co-founded multiple ventures alongside his brother, including Dorm Doctor AI, Dynamic Purchasing Solutions, and WEIDEV. Braden was later accepted into the University of Miami's four-year MD/MBA program, but chose to defer to fully commit to building Nerd Apply. He is passionate about creating tools that reward collaboration, integrity, and real-world outcomes. Braden lives in New York City, where he enjoys staying active and spending time with close friends. Cooper Weissman is the co-founder and Co-CEO of Nerd Apply. A lifelong builder, Cooper began teaching himself to code at a young age and launched businesses while still in high school, some of which had to be registered in his older brother's name because he was not old enough to open a bank account himself. At Dartmouth College, Cooper immersed himself in entrepreneurship and leadership, serving as a student leader at the Magnuson Center and winning the Global Venture Capital Investment Competition. His curiosity and systems-oriented thinking continue to shape Nerd Apply's product vision today. Cooper lives in New York City and is driven by experimentation, thoughtful problem-solving, and building communities around shared ideas. Find Braden and Cooper at nerdapply.com. LINKS Nerd Apply RELATED EPISODES FINDING YOUR COLLEGE FIT USING THE COMMON DATA SET SELECTING YOUR FOREVER SCHOOL WHAT DOES UNHOOKED MEAN IN ADMISSIONS? ABOUT THIS PODCAST Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page. ABOUT YOUR HOSTS Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright, Roots2Words, and College Eagle. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros and LEAP. If you're interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, get in touch through our contact page.