|
 |
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Does this match? APS launches digital tool to help with college advising
By Vanessa McCray
Feb 03, 2020
Figuring out where to go to college can be stressful.
There are so many factors to consider: academic reputation, location, cost, and the campus culture for starters.
A new digital tool is designed to help Atlanta high schoolers identify
their best options and narrow down which colleges they should apply to.
The district will launch the Match & Fit List Builder on Monday,
Feb. 3. The computer program uses a student’s academic data — such as
grade point average and SAT and ACT test scores — and combines it with
a student’s preferences to create a list of potential colleges and
universities.
Students can fine-tune the list by entering information about what they
hope to study, how close or far they want to be from home and if they
want a small or large campus.
The hope is that by compiling a strong list of potential colleges,
students will apply to ones that best suit their needs. And, if they
pick the right college, they’ll be more likely to stay and earn a
degree.
“Students have a lot of trouble figuring out what’s the right college
for them,” said Korynn Schooley, vice president of college access for
Achieve Atlanta.
The organization awards scholarships to Atlanta Public Schools
graduates and worked with the district to develop the new tool. Funding
for the project was part of a $532,470 grant from the Bill &
Melinda Gates Foundation.
The tool is different from other online college search sites because it
provides APS-specific context, officials said. Students can see how
many other Atlanta graduates enrolled in that college and the
percentage of those who made it to their sophomore year.
It highlights each college’s graduation rate, which officials said should be a key consideration when deciding where to go.
The tool also organizes colleges into three categories: “target” colleges, “reach” colleges and “likely” colleges.
Target colleges are ones that admit students with academic credentials
similar to the applicant’s. Reach colleges are those with academic
profiles that will be harder for the applicant to get into. Likely
colleges are those with an academic profile below the applicant’s,
meaning a student is likely to be accepted.
Schooley advises students to attend more competitive colleges, in the
target or reach categories, because those are the schools that tend to
have better financial aid packages and offer support programs that lead
to higher graduation rates.
The tool includes private and public colleges as well as two-year and
technical schools. It does not show for-profit colleges. Schooley said
it was a deliberate decision to leave out for-profit options because
they have, on average, low graduation rates.
Lamar Young, a Grady High School counselor, saw the tool for the first time at a training session last week.
“The transition from high school to college can be tumultuous. And,
it’s overwhelming and it induces anxiety because a lot of times there’s
so many options, and they don’t know how to pull it all together. So
that’s what this tool does,” he said.
The tool allows counselors to see which students are interested in the
same college. That will help with organizing campus tours and reaching
out to college representatives, said Washington High School counselor
Erica Clark.
She also said the tool could motivate students to work harder to score
higher on the SAT because students can see how a better score expands
their college options.
Atlanta juniors will be the first to have access to the new tool.
Officials said they plan to eventually make it available to all high
schoolers.
|
|
|
|
