Josh Roman

Josh Roman is the co-founder and CEO of College Journey, where he draws on over a decade of work in behavioral health and AI to transform how families navigate the college admissions process. His mission is deeply personal: having experienced firsthand the challenges of college fit, mental health, and preparation at Princeton, Josh is passionate about helping students not just get into college, but thrive once they’re there.

As an alumni interviewer for over a decade, Josh has unique insights into what makes students stand out in the admissions process. He’s interviewed candidates from elite private schools, public schools, and international programs, witnessing firsthand how the rising complexity of college admissions affects students and parents. This experience drives his commitment to democratizing access to high-quality admissions guidance, ensuring all students—not just those with private counselors—can present their best selves.

Before College Journey, Josh co-founded MindSciences alongside neuroscientist Dr. Judson Brewer, building digital therapeutics programs that helped hundreds of thousands of people manage anxiety, stress, and habitual behaviors through evidence-based approaches grounded in neuroscience. The company’s clinically validated programs were acquired by public healthcare company Sharecare in 2020. That experience—understanding how anxiety works at a neurological level and how to break its grip—is the foundation of College Journey’s approach to helping families navigate the emotional weight of college admissions.

Earlier in his career, Josh helped create pioneering 529 college savings plans — an experience that gave him deep insight into the financial challenges families face in planning for college.

As an entrepreneur and advisor, Josh has hired hundreds of employees across industries and privately coached executives at companies like Apple, Microsoft, and PayPal. This unique perspective on workforce development shapes College Journey’s approach to preparing students not just for college admission, but for long-term success in a rapidly evolving professional landscape that will increasingly be dominated by AI.

Josh holds a degree from Princeton University and is the co-founder of Mindshift Recovery, a nonprofit that uses neuroscience-informed approaches to support people and families affected by addiction. His work across behavioral health—from anxiety and habit change at MindSciences to addiction recovery at Mindshift—gives him a perspective on student wellbeing that goes deeper than test prep and applications.

Josh lives with his wife, son, two dogs, and two cats on the south shore of Massachusetts.