Closing the Gap: Free Near-Peer College Advising from Anywhere

Research shows that 53% of low-income and highly talented students (about 35,000 students every year) do not apply to a single selective college that matches their average grades and test scores. Without the information and support they need to apply to a best-fit college, many students end up at colleges not commensurate with their academic achievements, financial need, and social fit—or not enrolling at all. In a complicated and changing landscape of college admissions, Matriculate aims to be a leader in supporting these students to their potential.

Research shows that 53% of low-income and highly talented students (about 35,000 students every year) do not apply to a single selective college that matches their average grades and test scores. Without the information and support they need to apply to a best-fit college, many students end up at colleges not commensurate with their academic achievements, financial need, and social fit—or not enrolling at all. In a complicated and changing landscape of college admissions, Matriculate aims to be a leader in supporting these students to their potential.

“My first interaction with Matriculate was with my Advising Fellow, Christian. As an optimistic first-generation college student, I was both nervous and excited about the entire process of applying to universities. Christian and I worked hard to show universities the best version of myself. After receiving scholarships and grants that financed all of my tuition and housing costs, I am forever grateful for Matriculate’s support. Now, I am both honored and ecstatic to be a part of the Advising Fellow Leadership Team, finding the next new faces that will represent Matriculate and facilitate high school students’ big dreams, despite their background.”
JoAnn (Corpus Christi, TX), attending UT Austin

What’s the problem?
Research shows that 53% of low-income and highly talented students (about 35,000 students every year) do not apply to a single selective college that matches their average grades and test scores. Without the information and support they need to apply to a best-fit college, many students end up at colleges not commensurate with their academic achievements, financial need, and social fit—or not enrolling at all. In a complicated and changing landscape of college admissions, Matriculate aims to be a leader in supporting these students to their potential.

What is Matriculate?
Matriculate (www.matriculate.org) is a national nonprofit that is providing free virtual college advising to eligible high school juniors this year. The program is simple but powerful: high school juniors, called High School Fellows, are paired with Advising Fellows, current college students who are recruited and rigorously trained to provide one-on-one virtual advising through each piece of the college application and financial aid processes.

Who are the High School Fellows?
Students should apply if they:

• Are on track to graduate high school in Class of 2025
• Attend high school in the US (no citizenship requirement)
• Have a 3.5 Unweighted GPA or the equivalent
• Have an annual family income of less than $90,000

The application (bit.ly/MAT25Apply) only takes five minutes! Students are accepted and matched on a rolling basis through August 2024.

Who are the near-peer advisors?
Our Advising Fellows (AFs) come from colleges across the country and use their near-peer expertise to provide personalized guidance to their High School Fellows (HSFs). AFs apply, interview, and complete 15+ hours of training before they are matched with a high school student. Throughout the year, AFs complete 40+ hours of additional training and are closely supervised by staff. The pairing process is intentional – high school students are matched with an AF who shares similar identities and career aspirations. HSFs learn more about their AF’s college and career journey to inform their own. They meet with their AF a few times a month via video call, phone, text, and email to work on college tasks, such as:

• College Essays
• College Applications
• Financial Aid (including FAFSA & CSS Profile)
• Scholarships
• College Interviews
• Preparing for College Life

What is the impact of the Matriculate program for students and families?
Perhaps the best illustrators of Matriculate’s work are the heartfelt and personal stories from our students: “My Matriculate advisor, Rohan, always had the answers to my questions, so I never felt lost throughout the crazy college application process. He always showed me great kindness, and helped me understand that I have the potential to get accepted to and thrive at a top university, regardless of my background and the region where I grew up.” Allan (Los Fresnos, TX), attending Johns Hopkins University

Matriculate is proud of the continued positive impact on the students we serve. In 2021, Bloomberg Philanthropies’ CollegePoint Initiative supported a student, led by Dr. Ben Castleman of the University of Virginia to evaluate Matriculate’s model. This ongoing randomized control trial (RCT) has already show statistically significant impact on our work. Here are some of the findings. As compared to a randomly selected control group, Matriculate students saw a:

• 10.2% increase in attendance at High Graduation Rate schools
• 33.9% increase in attendance at colleges that meet full financial need of either all or lower-income students

Of students who matriculated:

• 94.4% persisted into the fall of their second year

Read more from the RCT and our latest Impact Report.

Author

For almost three decades Bryan Contreras has led college access and education reform efforts in Texas. His experiences sit at the intersection of education and social justice blending college counseling, college admissions, and technology. His personal journey, a Mexican American from the tough streets of Houston’s northside to an elite independent boarding, enable him to inspire educators, families, and students as they plan their futures.

Currently, he leads the Matriculate program team as they forge education and school partnerships to serve more high-achieving, low-income students. Prior to this role, while at Encourage, he led the implementation strategies to deliver Encourage, the nation’s largest free college and career planning program to schools across the nation. For twelve years he served as the Executive Director, KIPP Through College at KIPP Houston Public Schools. There he founded a college and career-planning program that empowered students in communities with historically low college completion rates to successfully complete their degrees where he helped design a college persistence program that continues to support thousands of college-age students today