Interview Beth Probst
Thank you for your interest in interviewing me on your show! Here’s information to make our interview as smooth and seamless as possible.
Contact:
Beth Probst (prōbst)
Cell: 614-404-0646
Email: interview@gettingatthecore.com
Website: https://www.gettingatthecore.com
I am outside Columbus, Ohio, which is Eastern Standard Time.
Media Kit:
100 word bio
Since 2012, Beth Probst, Founder and CEO of At The Core, has inspired parents of college-bound students to think strategically about how to select the best-fit college, major, and career so they don’t end up wasting precious time, energy, and money. Beth’s practical tips and stories from the trenches equip parents and students with information to eliminate the grasping and guessing and boost their confidence and clarity when making college-related decisions. Beth generously shares what students can do during high school to engage with their interests and take steps to leverage every opportunity before college.
50 word bio
Since 2012, Beth Probst, Founder and CEO of At The Core, has inspired college-bound families to think strategically about college, major, and career selection to avoid stress and extra expense. Beth’s practical tips and stories from the trenches inspire families to be thoughtful, practical, and creative about college-related decisions.
Beth Probst sat down with Jessica Brown of Fox 19 Now for a talk about testing, what colleges are looking for, social media accounts and college applications, and high school experiences.
Speaking Topics, Promotional Material, and Suggested Questions
1. Flipping the College Planning Process
Promo copy:
All college-bound kids have three big decisions toward the end of high school: pick a college, pick a major, and target a potential career. Of those, we have a natural (but troublesome) focus on the COLLEGE. We visit, buy the t-shirt, take the tour, enjoy a meal. But, wait – why is your student heading to college? Families know they’re paying for the skills and experiences that lead to better employment. We’ll discuss how we challenge families to flip that “college first” script and approach the process differently.
Key points:
- College-bound students must make three big decisions – college, major, and targeted career.
- Traditionally, families focus on picking a college. (That’s the easy part!)
- The wake-up call comes when families realize their child has no solid idea(s) about what to study. This lack of direction makes college selection very difficult!
- We’ll share tips to help with this common situation.
- We challenge families to think of the student’s strongest traits, interests and experiences. This can lead to potential careers that can be a great fit. Then, you’ll be able to research majors that support the path to that career. THEN, a student can look at colleges that will support their educational and career goals.
- Yes, high school is not too soon to do this exploration!
A few suggested questions to guide our conversation:
- There are about 2,000 4-year colleges in the US. Why do we fixate on about 50 of them?
- You say there are three big decisions to make prior to doing a college search that will set you on the right course. What are those decisions?
- How important is selecting a major and thinking about careers?
- That process sounds logical, but do high school kids truly know about all of their career options?
- I remember taking an online career assessment. Do schools still use those?
- What is Guided Self Assessment?
- Are we really talking to our 16-year-olds about careers?
- How can families get in touch with you?
- Do you have something special to offer our listeners?
Free offers:
- Free weekly high school, college, and career-planning newsletter: click to subscribe
- Free download: Career Exploration 101: 12 tips to motivate my kid to explore careers…even if they don’t know what they want to do!
2. Why Go To College, Anyway? To get a better job! If students don’t understand real-world careers, how can we help?
Promo copy:
Have you seen the cost of college today? It’s stunning, and that realization prompts a few natural questions. Is it worth it? Why does anyone go to college, anyway?
We’ve asked thousands of students this question: “Why does anyone go to college?” Almost every kid says, “To get a better job.” The value and the purpose surrounding the huge investment become key topics of discussion for every family considering the college path. We’ll discuss practical tasks for high school students to complete before the end of high school to move toward college with much more confidence and clarity.
Key points:
- The cost of college makes every family hesitate and consider – does my child have a really solid reason for heading to college? Is the investment going to be worth it?
- During the important high school years, students must take action: study electives of interest, get a part-time job, participate in a club tied to an interest, etc.
- These actions build a collection of experiences they can use to make decisions.
- Self assessment is a very important tool for students (but few know how to engage with this kind of thinking).
- When it’s time to look at colleges, we want students to do the following in this order:
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- think of their strengths and interests
- think of careers that can be a great fit
- think of the education needed to support those career ideas
- and THEN think of the colleges that meet your criteria (like cost, size, distance from home, etc.)
A few suggested questions to guide our conversation:
- I just read that Harvard’s tuition, room and board is $76,000. Per. Year. $300,000 sticker price for a 4-year degree. Beth, your alma mater (Purdue) is about $24,000 for Indiana residents. $100k for four years. Those huge numbers beg the question, “Is college worth it?”
- Beyond “is it worth it?”, we must also ask “why does anyone go to college” at some point?
- Students tell you they want to go to college “to get a better job” than the job they’d get right out of high school. Is today’s typical teen able to really discuss jobs and career paths with any kind of rationality?
- How do you help teens prepare to make the decisions surrounding college?
- What is Guided Self Assessment?
- How can families get in touch with you?
- Do you have something special to offer our listeners?
Free offers:
- Free weekly high school, college, and career-planning newsletter: click to subscribe
- Free download: Career Exploration 101: 12 tips to motivate my kid to explore careers…even if they don’t know what they want to do!
Social Media Links & Followers
Facebook: https://facebook.com/GetAtTheCore
Twitter: https://twitter.com/GetAtTheCore
Beth Probst LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bethprobst/
At The Core LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/at-the-core-llc/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gettingatthecore/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvLBwUbaZvuB3sHUEfpW-hw
At The Core is proud to currently reach over 16,000 followers. We directly impacted over 7,000 families over the past year with our webinars and services.
Past Speaking Engagements
A selection of TV, radio, and podcast appearances can be found on our resources page.
In addition, Beth has spoken on college and career planning every year over the past 10 years to school districts including many of the top 10 largest districts in Ohio:
- Dublin City Schools
- Worthington City School District
- Westerville City Schools
- Olentangy Local School District
- Delaware City Schools
- Hilliard City Schools
- St. Brigid of Kildare
- Saint Gabriel Consolidated School
Beth is also passionate about spreading the word about career tech education to families and has presented with the following Ohio-based CTE schools for many years:
- Delaware Area Career Center
- Tolles Career & Technical Center
- Great Oaks Career Campuses
- Eastland-Fairfield Career & Technical Schools
A selection of private/corporate events:
- Wendy’s QSCC
- GE Cincinnati
- DeBra-Kuempel
- Kohn Wealth Management Advisors
- Raymond James Nashville
- Wealth Planning Corporation
- True North Wealth Partners
- Business First Roundtable
- Granville Rotary
- Next College Student Athlete (NCSA)
Community/educational events have included:
- Educational Service Center of Central Ohio
- Journey to College Made Easy
- LeHerron Rising Leader Program
- Olentangy Dyslexia Network
- PERC (Parents and Educators Raising our Community) Dublin
- Parent Place Program at Northern Kentucky University
- Pearson Connections Academy
- Ohio Business Week
- Dawson Gahanna
- Dream College Summit
- Huntington Learning Center
- Jack and Jill of America
- University of Dayton Career Counseling event
- Your Teen College event
- Jonathan Alder PACE event
