The Building Blocks of College Bound: The Three P's
Preparation (Why do we prepare students?)
A 2006 analysis of the factors influencing college access and success prepared by The Bridgespan Group (and funded by Bill and Melinda Gates) concludes that academic preparation is the most important lever for increasing college completion. College Bound students participate in a year-round curriculum of academic enrichment ranging from summer programs on a university campus to one-on-one tutoring to comprehensive test preparation taught by
Kaplan experts.
But academic preparation is not the only lever influencing college success.
College admission offices, university career centers and college students report that college success also depends on how well prepared students are to manage expectations, choose among competing interests, resolve conflicts, take charge of their finances, advocate for their interests, manage their learning styles and feel confident in diverse social and cultural settings.
The critical need for students to be broadly prepared for the rigors of higher education is the reason that College Bound emphasizes preparation as the first and most essential lever in our three-part program.
Placement (How do our placement services work?)
Beginning as high school sophomores, College Bound students experience college life through pre-admission campus visits, summer residential programs and tutoring sessions held on college campuses. This exposure helps students decide what type of school fits them best. Are they attracted to big schools or small schools, urban or rural settings, schools that encourage competition or schools that emphasize personal best?
High school juniors meet regularly with a college counselor who gets to know them and develops a list of colleges that is compatible with their interests and aptitudes, financial needs and geographical preferences. From that, a more specialized list of schools is developed to which the student will apply, and a portfolio is developed that highlights strengths not always visible through transcripts and recommendations.
When College Bound students become rising seniors it’s all hands on deck with financial aid sessions, essay writing, application guidance and closely coordinated meetings among the students’ high school counseling office, family and College Bound. By working in unison, every option is explored until the ideal fit is realized for the student and the student’s family.
Persistence (Why is persistence important?)
Getting to college without the skills and supports to stay in college and persist to degree completion leaves students and families with a hefty price to pay, from long-term debt to broken dreams. In our current economic climate (that increasingly demands a college-educated workforce) it is no longer a viable option to drop out of college before a degree is acquired.
But the reality surrounding persistence for students of low-income backgrounds is sobering.
Fewer than 9 percent of students from low-income backgrounds receive their bachelor’s degree by 24, (compared to 75 percent of students from high income quartiles). Another study reports that of all the students entering college from low income backgrounds, only 1 in 7 will graduate with a bachelor’s degree.
Because of this, College Bound devotes monumental support services to ensure that every one of our students who
gets to college
succeeds in college. We provide ongoing financial aid information, a liaison to student’s college success centers, e-mentoring, buddy programs, and many other services that support our students after they matriculate.
Rising to degree completion is the single most important outcome of the College Bound program.