In the News…

Barnard College Diversity Weekend

July 7, 2013

Barnard Bound provides a taste of both Barnard College and New York City for promising high school seniors who self-identity as students of color and/or who couldn’t otherwise afford to visit. Participants spend the first day touring parts of Manhattan and experiencing its rich diversity of culture, neighborhoods, and of course, food, returning to campus to get a feel for student life and discovering more about Barnard the next day during Open House. The program also introduces students to important details about our admissions and financial aid processes. It’s our goal to help your students learn as much as they can about our unique and vibrant community. We hope that your students will also see that Barnard is both affordable and attainable.

Students must complete the online Barnard Bound Student Application. Please note that students will be unable to save and return to this application before submission, so they should be prepared to complete and submit their application in one sitting.

In addition to the application, students must be nominated by a guidance counselor or mentor at a college access organization using the Barnard Bound Adviser Recommendation. We hope you can help us find intellectually curious students who are independent thinkers and would benefit from the mentorship and support that Barnard provides. Finally, a transcript must be sent with the nomination form (this may be an unofficial transcript). Transcripts and forms may be scanned and emailed or faxed.

All applications, adviser forms and transcripts are due by TBA. They may be sent by e-mail or by fax (to 212-854-6220). Please do not send forms or transcripts via postal mail.

Program participation is limited, but travel scholarships are available for students outside of the New York City metro area who demonstrate financial need and meet Barnard Bound admission criteria. Advisers and students will be asked for basic financial information at the time of application to determine qualifications. Travel scholarship recipients will be notified at the time of program admission.

Expenses for program-related events, subway passes, and meals will be covered by Barnard College for all attendees.

Amherst College Diversity Weekend

July 7, 2013

As part of Amherst College’s commitment to diversity, the Office of Admission hosts two weekend Diversity Open Houses (DIVOH) in the fall to introduce prospective applicants to Amherst’s campus, student body, faculty, classes, and residence halls. Up to 100 students are selected to attend each weekend. The Diversity Open Houses are available to all prospective students, but the selection committee prioritizes the invitation of students from traditionally under-represented groups, such as African-American, Hispanic/Latino American, Native American, and Asian-American backgrounds, as well as first-generation students. To support socio-economic diversity, the selection committee will also invite and prioritize students with limited family financial resources, regardless of cultural or racial background. The above-mentioned are priorities, and are not meant to imply any exclusivity regarding the program or selection process. Should you have an interest in attending, we encourage you to apply no matter your demographic or economic background.

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

Students selected to visit Amherst for a DIVOH weekend will receive 100% of round-trip transportation costs (airline, bus, or train) for DIVOH attendance and will be hosted on campus by current students. Typically, seventy-five percent of the students who attend one of our DIVOH programs choose to apply to Amherst, although they are under no obligation to do so. A fee waiver of the $60 application fee is provided to all students invited to attend a DIVOH weekend. Some students who apply to the Open House will also receive a waiver for the Amherst College $60 application fee in order to encourage their applications to Amherst, regardless of whether they are invited to attend the Open House.

FALL 2013 DIVERSITY OPEN HOUSE WEEKENDS

Saturday, September 21 – Monday, September 23
Saturday, October 26 – Monday, October 28

Special programming for the DIVOH weekends includes information sessions with admission deans, a faculty panel, and opportunities to attend classes and interact with current Amherst College students, faculty and staff. Although the plans for the upcoming DIVOH weekends are not yet finalized, you can get a good idea of the typical weekend activities by reviewing the sample DIVOH program below.

DIVOH Sample Program

APPLYING FOR DIVOH

To apply for attendance at one of the upcoming Fall 2013 DIVOH weekends, please complete and submit our online DIVOH Application. The application deadline for both DIVOH weekends is Friday, August 16, 2013, at 4:30 p.m. (EST).

To be eligible for the programs, you must:

be a high school senior in the fall of 2013
reside in the U.S.
complete a DIVOH application (essay required)
submit a copy of your transcript (an unofficial one will be accepted) through your junior year

READY TO APPLY?
It’s easy! The first step is submitting an on-line DIVOH application, followed by submitting a copy of your transcript.

Submit your on-line DIVOH application

DON’T FORGET YOUR TRANSCRIPT!
Please remember that, until we receive a high school transcript (through the end of junior year), your application is not complete. We must receive all materials by Friday, August 16, 2013. You may send your transcript:

by fax to 413-542-2040, Attn: Lyn Rodriguez
by email to divtravel@amherst.edu
by mail to:
Admission Office
Attn: Lynn Rodriguez
Amherst College
PO Box 5000
Amherst, MA 01002-5000

QUESTIONS? Email divtravel@amherst.edu.

Women in Engineering Diversity Weekend

July 7, 2013

We know that the opportunity to visit campus is an important factor in identifying whether Cornell would provide what you are looking for in your college experience. The 2013 Fall Women in Engineering Hosting Program (WIE) is a great chance for you to come see what the College of Engineering and greater Cornell University campus have to offer!

This overnight hosting program will take place Thursday, September 26 – Saturday, September 28, 2013 and will provide you with an insider’s view into life as a Cornell Engineer. During Fall WIE you will have the opportunity to:

stay in a residence hall with a current student;
learn details about the admission process;
attend a class;
participate in an interactive lab demonstration; and
interact with faculty, staff, and students.

Additionally, you will be able to engage with members of several of our award-winning engineering student organizations including:

Notes about the program

This program is for high school senior women (graduating in Spring 2014 only).
There is no cost for the program except for your own travel to campus. However, you may be eligible to apply for a travel grant to cover some or all of your travel expenses. Once you have been accepted into the program you, will receive instructions on how to apply for these travel grants.
This is an application-based, space-limited, selective program. Though it is not equivalent to admission into Cornell University, we are looking for students that show promise of being a member of the freshman class.
Because we require one year each of Calculus, Chemistry, Physics, and Biology for our freshman admissions, we are also requiring these for our hosting program. Note that these are requirements for you to fulfill before high school graduation, so taking them in Senior year still fulfills the requirement.

How to Apply for Fall WIE 2013

All supporting application materials must be submitted with the online application by Monday, July 15, 2013. If you experience difficulty uploading your materials, please contact the Engineering Admissions office.

To apply, you must complete the Fall WIE Online Application by Monday, July 15, 2013.

The Fall WIE Online Application includes:

A. Essay

You will be asked for a completed essay of 400-500 words in the application. Because you are expected to enter the essay in the midst of your application, please have your response ready before you fill out the application so that you are prepared to enter the essay when asked. This year’s essay prompt is:

Cornell Engineering: Breakthrough Thinking

After viewing the following websites, discuss what it is about Cornell Engineering that interests you most.

B. Completed Junior Year High School Transcript

You will be asked to upload a copy of your transcript (official, unofficial, or copies of your 9,10, and 11 grade report cards – whichever you have access to). These must have final grades for 9th, 10th, and 11th grades. If you have not yet finished your Junior year, you should wait to apply for WIE until you have your completed final grades. Because you are expected to upload your transcript in the midst of your application, please have your document(s) ready before you fill out the application so that you are prepared to upload your transcript when asked.

Apply for Fall WIE 2013

Program Notification

Fully completed applications will be reviewed on an ongoing basis throughout June/July.
Decision notification will also be on a rolling basis throughout July.
A portion of our applicants may not be notified until Monday, July 29 when all final decisions will be released via e-mail.
All selection decisions will include important details for the program, including how to apply for travel grants and how to make travel arrangements.

Cornell University Diversity Weekend

July 7, 2013

We know that the opportunity to visit campus is an important factor in identifying whether Cornell would provide what you are looking for in your college experience. The Fall Engineering Diversity Hosting Weekend (DHW) is a great chance for you to come see what the College of Engineering and greater Cornell University campus have to offer!

stay in a residence hall with a current student;
learn details about the admission process;
attend a class;
participate in an interactive lab demonstration; and
interact with faculty, staff, and students.

Additionally, you will be able to engage with members of several of our award-winning engineering student organizations including:

Notes about the program

This program is for high school seniors (graduating in Spring 2014) and has a particular focus on first generation college students and/or student from backgrounds traditionally underrepresented in engineering (African American/Black, Hispanic/Latino, Native American, Native Hawaiian, Native Pacific Islander and Native Alaskan).
There is no cost for the program except for your own travel to campus. However, you may be eligible to apply for a travel grant to cover some or all of your travel expenses. Once you have been accepted into the program you, will receive instructions on how to apply for these travel grants.
This is an application-based, space-limited, selective program. Though it is not equivalent to admission into Cornell University, we are looking for students that show promise of being a member of the freshman class.
Because we require one year each of Calculus, Chemistry, Physics, and Biology for our freshman admissions, we are also requiring these for our hosting program. Note that these are requirements for you to fulfill before high school graduation, so taking them in Senior year still fulfills the requirement.

To apply, you must complete the Fall DHW Online Application by Monday, July 15, 2013.

Informing Low-Income Students About Their College Options

June 30, 2013

Many high performing students from lower income backgrounds are failing to recognize the huge advantage they have in gaining admissions into highly selective colleges and universities.

In the article, Elite Colleges Struggle To Recruit Smart, Low-Income Kids, Shankar Vedantam notes the challenges faced by top colleges and universities to identified qualified candidates from lower income backgrounds:

“If this is like most years, administrators at top schools such as Harvard and Stanford will try hard to find talented high school students from poor families in a push to increase the socioeconomic diversity on campus and to counter the growing concern that highly selective colleges cater mainly to students from privileged backgrounds.”

Although the information and support we are providing through our partnership with the Turner Chapel AME Church Education Ministry is being replicated by organizations in other parts of the country, there are still far too many students lacking access to the necessary support. For example, In the Houston Public Radio article, Ivy League 101: Helping More High Achieving, Low-Income Students Apply to Best Colleges, Laura Isensee notes how the Houston Independent School District’s Emerge program is expanding college access for students from lower income families by working with over 300 students from 12 Houston high schools:

“We have students at Harvard, Tufts, Dartmouth,
Oberlin, and MIT.”

The research paper by Caroline Hoxby (Stanford University) and Sarah Turner (University of Virginia) of The Hamilton Project, Informing Students about Their College Options: A Proposal for Broadening the Expanding College Opportunities Project, provides insight into the need for closing the widely research “College Knowledge Gap.”

“Most high-achieving, low-income students do not even
apply to selective colleges despite being highly qualified
for admission and success at these institutions. Because they
do not apply, these students forgo the generous academic
resources, increased financial aid, and better collegiate
and career opportunities that selective schools offer.”

Professors Hoxby and Turner discuss the “Expanding College Opportunities (ECO) Project” and cite four important elements their research addresses, which has been validated in a variety of research studies pertaining to:

Undermatching
The College Knowledge Gap
Graduation rates for high achieving, low-income students attending selective colleges and universities is substantially higher than the graduation rates of such students attending colleges where they are “undermatched”
Such students receive greater amounts of scholarships and grants, and lower amounts of student loan debt when attending selective colleges and universities

However, their research also addresses an important fifth element that is missing in many other research studies—the impact on low-income communities:

“High-achieving, low-income students are the natural role models for their
communities. High-achieving, low-income students are potentially the greatest
future college ambassadors to low-income students. Their authentic
experience of a life transformed can make them powerful advocates
and policy leaders who understand the issues that plague low-income
students who are striving to obtain a world-class education.”

In our work with students, this little researched aspect of expanding college admissions and scholarship opportunities, represents perhaps THE most significant element. Expanding the opportunities of students from low-income backgrounds, low-performing schools, and from families where students are the first in the family to attend college has a profound impact on family and community constructs regarding postsecondary pathways.

Organizations such the Gates Millennium Scholars, Posse Foundation Scholars, and Simon Scholars are having profound impact on students, families, schools, and communities each year. For example, not only do the students who are selected as one of the 1,000 Gates Millennium Scholars each year provide hope for their communities, students who are not selected are enriched through the process and end up applying to highly selective colleges and universities. The same is the case for both students who are selected as Posse Foundation Scholars and those who apply, but are not selected. Here in Atlanta, Gates Millennium Scholars who attend the Atlanta University Center work with Atlanta Public Schools students each year in preparing their GMS applications. Their efforts have significant as Atlanta Public Schools students lead the state in the number of students selected as GMS recipients. Through these and other volunteer efforts they are having a profound influence on the community as they continue expanding their own leadership capacity.

Although students certainly should be aware of the following four programs, there are many more local, state, regional, and national programs counselors and organizations should identify:

We are also working with students as 11th and 12th grade cohorts in college application packaging, scholarship research, essay writing, résumé writing, interviewing, and college research. Through this process we have gained perspective into what Professors Hoxby and Turner propose in their study. We believe that the ECO Mailing Packet they propose expanding in their paper can certainly be helpful for students. However, that is not enough as we believe that the information must be supported by the type of grassroots organizations that have been working with such students for many years and who have been experiencing measurable success in widening the postsecondary pathway for such students.

The formation of our 11th and 12th grade cohorts is in response to our experiences in which high performing students continued to make poor college choices and to miss out on important scholarship opportunities, despite being presented with all of the necessary information. Providing the information is an important element, however, connecting students to people willing to guide them through the process is critically important.

Their paper goes on to reinforce other research indicating some of the challenges confronting high achieving students from low-income backgrounds:

Students are poorly informed about the application strategies typically used by students who generate a strong portfolio of admission offers.
Students are poorly informed about what college will actually cost.
Students are poorly informed about the differences between colleges.
Students are not aware that they are eligible for testing and application fee waivers.

Responding to these challenges will require “Information” and “Guidance Through the Process.” Additionally, it will require interventions during elementary and middle school if we are to substantially increase the number of students from low-income backgrounds who among raise to the ranks of high achieving students who are qualified for admissions to selective colleges and universities.

Students from low-income families may have many college options available to them if they can navigate the oftentimes difficult, time consuming, and tedious college admissions process to selective colleges and universities. However, if students are willing to commit the time to researching colleges and to preparing quality college admission packages, there could be tens of thousands of dollars in financial aid awaiting.

The Washington Post article, “Getting more poor kids into college won’t fix income equality” points out some of the benefits of President Obama’s push for colleges to expand the admissions pathway for students from low-income backgrounds (Obama proposes college-rating system in bid to increase affordability) through increased accountability in such areas as average tuition, percentage of low-income students enrolled, and the amount of student loan debt accumulated by students. More information about colleges would be available on the U.S. Department of Education’s College Scorecard website.

In an attempt to expand the college pathway for low-income students, the University of Chicago is simplifying the application process, eliminating the expectation that students work during the school year, providing summer internship opportunities, expanding their career counseling support, and no longer require submission of the CSS/Financial Aid Profile.

The U.S. News and World Reports listing of “Economic Diversity Among the Top 25 Ranked Schools” provides insight into those colleges that may have the most supportive policies and programs for students from low-income backgrounds.

Click here for the U.S. News & World Reports listing of the 100 most selective colleges and universities in the United States.

Simon Scholars Program

June 30, 2013

Simon Scholars Program

The Simon Scholars Program, funded by the Simon Family Foundation is currently operating in California, New Mexico, Georgia, and Washington D.C. It is a 6-year scholarship program that begins during a student’s junior year in high school and continues throughout the student’s 4 years of college. The program requires students to maintain a minimum 3.0 GPA by the end of their junior year of high school. Students are provided with a cash stipend, a computer, social skills training, academic support, leadership training and community service activities. Students also receive college-preparatory assistance through ACT and SAT courses, college tours and assistance in the application process from college coaches. Upon graduating from high school and being accepted into college, students receive a $16,000 college scholarship ($4,000 per year).

While the Simon Scholars Program provides a much smaller scholarship amount than the Gates Millennium Scholars and Posse Foundation Scholars Programs, the Simon Scholars Program works with students over the course of their final two years of high school providing much needed assistance in helping students to qualify for a broad range of college scholarships and expands students’ college admissions options to highly selective colleges and universities with generous need-based financial aid policies. Increasing students college readiness and expanding students’ sources of financial aid provides further evidence of the research findings pertaining to students’ college success and campus involvement:

86 percent of Simon Scholars who have started college are still enrolled or have graduated
97 percent of Collegiate Simon Scholars are actively involved in campus life
65 percent of Collegiate Simon Scholars are involved in community service on campus

I recently had the opportunity to speak to a group of Simon Scholars, both recent high school graduates and students currently attending college. Among the group of high school graduates were 3 Gates Millennium Scholars and many of the current college students were attending highly selective colleges and universities.

Click herefor information about current high schools participating in the program.

Merit-Based Financial Aid

June 25, 2013

Chapter 7: Merit-based and Need-based Aid, in the book, “Show Me the Money: Scholarships, Financial Aid, and Making the Right College Choice,” assists students in identifying how to research sources of merit- and need-based financial aid. Merit-based aid is awarded based on a student’s merit, e.g., academics, arts, leadership, community service, etc. Although athletic scholarships are the most widely publicized form of merit-based aid, there are many opportunities for students to qualify for academic merit-based aid. For many students the clearest path to merit-based financial aid based on academic merit is their class rank, SAT score, ACT score, and GPA. TheCollegiateBlog website lists 65 colleges with guaranteed merit scholarships. Several of the students in the 11th and 12th grade cohorts we work with each year at our church have received full scholarships based on the strength of their SAT scores, ACT scores, and GPA. The New York Times publishes a comprehensive listing of over 600 colleges and universities and the percentage of merit-based financial aid they are offering.

For example the following table provides an example of the types of merit-based financial aid associated with SAT and ACT scores.

SAT/ACT Score	1400 SAT – 32 ACT	1300 SAT – 29 ACT	1250 SAT – 28 ACT

Texas Tech	$6,000/yr	$4,000/yr	$3500/yr
University of Alabama-Birmingham	$7,000/yr	$7,000/yr	$7,000/yr
Ferris State	Full Tuition	$5,500/yr	$4,000/yr
Ohio University	Full Tuition	$1,500/yr	$1,000/yr
Northern Illinois	$23,500/yr	$7,000/yr	$7,000/yr
Miami of Ohio	Half – Full Tuition	$4,000-8,000/yr	$2,000-6,000/yr
University of Georgia	$10,500/yr	$5,250/yr	$5,250/yr
Auburn University	Full Tuition	$2,500/yr	$2,500/yr
LeMoyne College	$23,750/yr	$23,750/yr	$17,500/yr
Maryville University	$14,000/yr	$14,000/yr	$14,000/yr
Howard University	Tuition, fees, room, board, and $500 book voucher	Tuition, fees, and room	Tuition and fees
Xavier University of Louisiana	Tuition, fees, room, board, and $1000 book voucher	Tuition, fees, room, board, and $1000 book voucher	Tuition, fees, room, board, and $1000 book voucher

As evidenced from the widely varying amounts of financial aid offered by different institutions, it is important for students and families to carefully consider where students will receive the best financial aid package based on their academic achievement. College Confidential has two large listings of colleges offering merit-based scholarships and click here.

The article Oregonian article, “Higher SAT, ACT scores pay off with bigger college scholarships for Oregon grads” provides further insight into the type of merit-based scholarships being offered students based on their SAT and ACT scores.

How Much “Guidance” Can You Expect From Your “Guidance Counselor?”

June 25, 2013

In the research study by the College Board Advocacy & Policy Center, “2012 National Survey of School Counselors: True North: Charting the Course to College and Career Readiness” middle school and high school guidance counselors acknowledged that they simply do not have time, or in many cases, the training to for provide students with the necessary college or career guidance.

The National Office for School Counselor Advocacy(NOSCA) identifies eight components deemed to be critical to ensuring college and career readiness for students in grades K – 12:

College Aspirations
Academic Planning for College and Career Readiness
Enrichment and Extracurricular Engagement
College and Career Exploration and Selection Processes
College and Career Assessments
College Affordability Planning
College and Career Admission Processes
Transition from High School Graduation to College Enrollment

To support the implementation of these 8 components:

Elementary school counselors should be creating early awareness and assisting students in developing the knowledge and skills that lay the foundation for the academic rigor and social development necessary for college and career readiness.
Middle school counselors should be creating opportunities to explore and deepen college and career knowledge and assisting students in developing the skills necessary for academic planning and goal setting.
High school counselors should be creating access to college career pathways that promote full implementation of each student’s personal goals that ensures the widest range of future life options.

Most counselors support these 8 components and although 9 out of 10 counselors believe that all students should have access to a high-quality education, only 56 percent of counselors see this as a reality in their schools (49 percent in high poverty schools).

In response to these eight components, high school and middle school counselors surveyed indicated that only:

50 percent of counselors have the training and knowledge to implement schoolwide strategies
48 percent of counselors know how to create solutions that remove barriers
47 percent know how to keep students’ parents and families involved
31 percent of counselors collaborate with outside organizations and businesses to support their strategies

Less than half of all counselors believe they have sufficient training to assist students with:

academic planning,
college aspirations,
college and career admission processes,
connect college and career aspirations and the selection processes,
enrichment and extracurricular activity engagement, or
college affordability planning

The reality in most schools is that guidance counselors are responsible for too many students, lack adequate resources, were not adequately trained in college and career planning during graduate school, and lack access to high quality staff development in their current school districts.

The undeniable truth is that students and parents are unlikely to receive sufficient guidance from guidance counselors to develop an effective middle-through-school college admissions and financial aid plan. Students and their families must accept responsibility for developing their plans and for putting forth the necessary effort to implement their plans if students are to expand their college and financial aid options.

Colleges That Do Not Require SAT or ACT Scores

June 25, 2013

The National Center for Fair and Open Testing identified over 800 colleges and universities that deemphasize the use of standardized tests in their admissions decisions for applicants who graduated from U.S. high schools. Some of the schools totally exempt students from having to provide SAT or ACT scores, while others use the tests for placement purposes.

The admissions policies vary by institution with some schools waiving SAT/ACT scores for students graduating in the top 10 percent of their high school class, based on the student’s high school GPA, or have a “Text Flexible” policy. Review the schools on the list and contact the admissions office to learn about their particular admissions policy.

Some of the top ranked major universities and liberal arts colleges on the list include:

Wake Forest University
NYU
University of Rochester
University of Texas – Austin
University of Arizona
DePaul University
George Mason University
University of Mississippi
Middlebury College
Bowdoin College
Smith College
Bryn Mawr College
College of the Holy Cross
Mount Holyoke College
Bard College
Agnes Scott College

This should be welcomed news for students who have performed well in school, engaged in leadership and community service activities, and yet, have not performed well on standardized tests. Do your research and identify the colleges and admissions policies that are best for you.

Academic “Undermatch” and What it Means to You

June 21, 2013

Academic Undermatch

With only 57 percent of students attending 4-year colleges and universities receiving their bachelor’s degree in six years, it is important for students to choose the right college. But what is the “Right College?” Is it one where students attain their degree? Is it one where students have access to the necessary financial aid to reduce student loan debt? Is it one where students are engaged academically, nurtured socially, and are connected to the institution? Is it one where students develop a marketable skill set that will enable them to pursue jobs and careers? Is it one where students develop a network of social and professional contacts within the institution and that extend into the professional workplace? Is it one that is located close to home? Is it one that effectively prepares student for graduate school? Ideally, the right college would provide an affirmative answer to such questions based on their importance to the students who are applying to college. However, finding the right college match will also have to account for each student’s interest, gifts, talents, academic abilities, personality, best/worst learning situations, needed support, and career aspirations.

The term “academic undermatch” refers to when a student’s academic credentials permit them access to a college or university that is more selective than the postsecondary alternative they actually choose (Smith, Pender, Howell, Hurwitz). Academic undermatch may occur with as many as 41 percent of all students and may be significantly higher for students from lower income families, students who live in rural areas, and students from families where the student is the first in the family to attend college. Such students are less likely to have access to effective college planning or even engage in significant conversations about the types of colleges accessible to them. Without engaging in such conversations and lacking any formal curricular or co-curricular activities to engage them in college research and financial aid planning, they are not only likely to undermatch, they have no context for increasing the chances of making a good college match or even enrolling into college at all.

The research brief, “Maximizing the College Choice Process to Increase Fit & Match for Underserved Students” provides a working definition of “Fit” and “Match.”

Fit:a broad assessment of the extent to which an institution meets a student’s social, academic and financial needs. Considerations of fit may be based on a variety of factors, including location, academic programs and majors, class sizes, graduation and employment rate and support services offered.

Match:one aspect of fit—it refers to the relationship between institutional selectivity and students’ academic ability, and is usually assessed by ACT and/or SAT scores. Students often use “match” to assess their chances of being admitted to a particular institution and to determine where they will apply (Roderick et al. 2009). Those who choose to attend an institution with academic indicators (e.g., test scores) below their own are said to “undermatch” (Bowen et al. 2009).

The brief goes on to note:

“Attending a college that is a good fit and match is the optimal outcome of the college choice process—the steps students take to: 1) explore different types of institutions, majors, and financial aid options, 2) complete the admissions and financial aid processes, and 3) determine which institution to attend. The college choice process provides a framework for understanding the journey students take to arrive at their enrollment decisions. Several key factors influence the process, including parental education, socioeconomic status, students’ perceptions of college cost and financial aid, academic preparation, career aspirations, and the availability of information about college (Cabrera and La Nasa 2000).”

Although research shows that college completion rates rise with institutional selectivity, students should raise the question, “Do students from my cultural and socioeconomic background graduate at higher rates?” The following table shows the U.S. News and World Reports top ten ranked major colleges and universities(all of which are private institutions). The second table shows the U.S. News and World Reports top ten ranked liberal arts colleges(all of which are private institutions). The third table shows the graduation rates of students at ten of the largest public universities. Each table shows the 6-year graduation rates of white students and that of African-American and Hispanic students. Graduation rate data is taken from the U.S. Department of Education College Navigator.

Top Ten Ranked Major Universities

College	6-year Grad Rates White	6-year Grad Rates Black	6-year Grad Rates Hispanic
1. Harvard	98%	94%	95%
1. Princeton	96%	94%	91%
3. Yale	97%	95%	94%
4. Columbia	92%	91%	92%
4. U. of Chicago	92%	80%	86%
6. MIT	94%	83%	88%
6. Stanford	96%	93%	95%
8. Duke	95%	90%	94%
8. Penn	96%	96%	95%
10. Caltech	85%	100%	80%

Top Ten Ranked Liberal Arts Colleges

College	6-year Grad Rates White	6-year Grad Rates Black	6-year Grad Rates Hispanic
1. Williams	96%	94%	92%
2. Amherst	98%	95%	92%
3. Swarthmore	94%	100%	96%
4. Middlebury	93%	69%	90%
4. Pomona	97%	90%	91%
6. Bowdoin	94%	89%	84%
6. Wellesley	91%	97%	87%
8. Carleton	93%	75%	91%
9. Haverford	93%	84%	85%
10. Claremont McKenna	92%	100%	85%

Graduation Rates for State Universities

College	6-year Grad Rates White	6-year Grad Rates Black	6-year Grad Rates Hispanic
University of Arizona	63%	50%	58%
University of California Los Angeles	90%	76%	85%
University of Florida	85%	77%	83%
University of Georgia	83%	79%	70%
University of North Carolina	92%	81%	83%
University of Texas	84%	66%	72%
University of South Carolina	71%	65%	69%
University of Virginia	95%	85%	99%
University of Washington	81%	68%	71%
University of Wisconsin	84%	62%	73%

While degree completion rates do not tell the full story, it is undeniable that the degree completion rates are higher for all students who attend selective colleges and universities, particularly for students of color and those from lower income families. Perhaps answers to the following questions may provide guidance as to why degree completion rates at such institutions are so significantly higher:

What type of financial aid policies are offered by the institutions?
What type of academic support is offered by the institution and among students themselves?
How large are the classes and what type of learning experience occurs within typical classrooms?
What is campus culture like?
How large is the student population and what are the socio-cultural norms embedded within the school community?
What type of financial aid support do students need and what is the level of support provided from the office of financial aid?
What is the academic calendar and what is the accessibility of student enrollment into the course work required for degree completion?

Although students of color and students from lower income backgrounds are more likely to attend a state university or public college within their state, research findings also reveal a number of reasons beyond location as to why such students choose to attend public in-state institutions and who are significantly less likely to identify the necessary “fit” and identify the right “match” in their college choices:

Low-income students are less likely to plan for college early
Underrepresented students have less access to comprehensive information
Underrepresented students underestimate their eligibility for financial aid and overestimate college costs
Underrepresented students often lack tangible parental support in the college choice process
Underrepresented students are sometimes discouraged from attending certain types of institutions based on counselor’s and teachers cultural misperceptions
Underrepresented students limit college choices to a smaller geographical range than wealthier students

The answers to such questions, as well as consideration of the research findings, can further explain the differences in degree completion rates between institutions. However, the question may be raised, “How does all of this relate to the issue of academic undermatch?” The answer is twofold:

Students of color and students from lower income backgrounds who meet the admissions requirements and enroll into highly selective private colleges and universities have significantly higher rates of degree completion.
Since African-American and Hispanic students disproportionately live in poverty and come from households where their parents are unlikely to be college graduates, even if they meet the criteria for admissions into highly selective colleges and universities, they are less likely to apply for admissions to such colleges (Smith, Pender, Howell, Hurwitz).

Although the tables provided here only compare graduation rates between 3 racial groups, students from all racial groups who come from lower income families or who live in rural communities are at risk of under matching in their college choices. It is important for all students to seek out their school counselor and local college planning support programs to assist in their college and financial aid planning efforts if they are to find the right college “fit” and “match.”

References

Maximizing the College Choice Process to Increase Fit & Match for Underserved Students. (2011). Research to Practice Brief. College Pathways Network.

Smith, J., Pender, M., Howell, H., Hurwitz, M. (2012). A Review of the Causes and Consequences of Students’ Postsecondary Choices. Advocacy & Policy Center. The College Board. <http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/LiteratureBrief_Undermatch.pdf>

Smith, J., Pender, M., Howell, H., Hurwitz, M. (2012). The CollegeKeys Compact: Getting Into College: Postsecondary Academic Undermatch. Advocacy & Policy Center. The College Board. <http://advocacy.collegeboard.org/sites/default/files/12b_6264_CollegeKeys_Brief_revise_WEB_120719.pdf>

Smith, J., Pender, M., Howell, H. (2012). The Full Extent of Student-College Academic Undermatch. Advocacy & Policy Center. The College Board. <http://www.aefpweb.org/sites/default/files/webform/Extent%20of%20Undermatch.pdf>