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About The College Equestrian Advisor – Randi Heathman
The Equestrian College Advisor is Randi C. Heathman, an educational consultant with nearly two decades of experience in higher education and a lifetime of involvement with equestrian sports.
Heathman holds a B.A. in English and M.A. in communication studies. She honed her craft as senior assistant director of admission at Albion College during the early 2000s, reading applications, sitting on admission decision committees, organizing campus visits, and navigating the financial aid process with families – all while working extensively with Albion’s equestrian program as both a recruiter and a mentor to the riders on the team in her role as advisor to the campus equestrian club.
In fact, Heathman was an integral part of the creation of the riding program at Albion in 2004, as its roots stem from her undergraduate Honors thesis, Enhancing Education through Equitation: A Promotional Plan for an Equestrian Facility at Albion College. During her lengthy tenure in the admission office, she gained valuable experience in guiding students and families through the search, application, and financial aid process all while obtaining an inside look at the expanding world of intercollegiate riding. She returned to Albion to support the equestrian program post-COVID and served as director of the Held Equestrian Center from 2021-2023.
Today, those experiences – as well as the connections forged with enrollment officers, coaches, and support personnel at colleges and universities across the country – form the foundation of her practice.
Heathman is the only independent educational consultant who includes both enrollment and intercollegiate equestrian program experience on her resume. She maintains the highest standards of ethics and professionalism as a professional member of the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA) and the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC). In addition, she maintains a close network of higher education professionals and travels to dozens of college campuses, educational workshops, and equestrian recruiting events each year to expand her knowledge and keep current with ever-changing admission practices and trends.
A lifelong horsewoman, Heathman is a member of the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) and the United States Dressage Federation (USDF). Growing up, she competed in a variety of disciplines before concentrating her efforts on dressage. In 2009, she and her Dutch Warmblood gelding Ricochet were named GAIG/USDF Regional Champions at second level in the adult amateur division. Today, she is a USDF bronze and silver medalist and active competitor at the FEI level.
A popular speaker on topics ranging from the general college search to careers in the equine industry, she has spoken annually at the College Preparatory Invitational Horse Show in Wellington, FL since 2013. In 2014, Randi published Horses for Courses: The Definitive Guidebook for the Prospective College Equestrian and produced its second edition in 2020. She has been interviewed by multiple equestrian news outlets, including for a college search piece in the January 2016 issue of Equine Journal, the 2023 education issue of The Plaid Horse, and also served as one of the experts who contributed to the content available on the Corsava college search platform online. Randi is a highly sought consultant on equestrian-related higher education issues when colleagues and peers seek support.
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