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The QuestBridge National College Match helps outstanding low-income high school seniors gain admission and full four-year scholarships to some of the
nation's most selective colleges.
If you are a student who has achieved academic excellence in the face of economic challenges, we encourage you to apply to the National College Match. You may be concerned about tuition costs, but QuestBridge's partner colleges offer generous financial aid packages that cover 100% of demonstrated financial need, making them very affordable for low-income students.
Last year, QuestBridge's partner colleges offered admission and more than $90 million in financial aid to over 900 students who applied to the National College Match.
The key benefits of the National College Match program include:
The College Match offers full four-year scholarships covering tuition, room and board for high-achieving low-income students. All College Match scholarships cover 100% of demonstrated financial need and are loan-free.
Most of our partner colleges include the cost of travel and books in their scholarship packages and automatically renew the scholarship for all four years of college. Last year, 204 students were selected as QuestBridge Scholars and received admission and full four-year College Match Scholarships to partner colleges.
Click here for more details on the College Match scholarship
QuestBridge works with some of the nation's top-ranked colleges and universities. All of our partner colleges are committed to opening their doors to high-achieving students regardless of family income. Our 26 partner colleges are among the most selective in the country, and include:
Liberal arts colleges that offer small class sizes and tight-knit campus communities. Research universities that provide a broad range of academic specialties, resources and facilities.
Click here for more details on QuestBridge's partner colleges
The QuestBridge National College Match has been created to maximize the admissions chances and financial aid results of high-achieving low-income students.
Socio-economic identification: By participating in the QuestBridge program, students ensure that their socio-economic status is understood by admissions officers at QuestBridge partner colleges who are actively seeking to increase the number of outstanding low-income students on their campuses. For information on some of the characteristics that QuestBridge and our partner colleges look for in students, please see the following pages: The QuestBridge application: Our application is designed to help high-achieving students turn their low-income status into an advantage in the college admissions process. The application includes numerous questions and essay prompts that aid students in presenting a full picture of their intellectual promise and personal qualities in light of the obstacles they have overcome. Excellent financial aid: All of QuestBridge's partner colleges offer financial aid packages that cover 100% of demonstrated financial need and are loan-free, so students can be assured that attending a top-tier college will not place a financial burden on their family. Our partner colleges' financial aid packages are so generous that the real cost of attendance is typically lower than the cost of attending a state university or a local community college.
The QuestBridge National College Match program offers two chances to gain admission to our partner colleges:
The QuestBridge College Match process pairs outstanding low-income students with early admission and full four-year scholarships to top-ranked colleges.
Students participating in the College Match process complete one application by September 30 and use it to apply early to up to 8 of QuestBridge's 26 partner colleges, ranking the schools in order of preference. The rankings are binding; students must attend the school highest on their ranking list that also admits them. Please see the College Match Process page for details. Last year, 204 QuestBridge applicants who participated in the College Match process were selected as QuestBridge Scholars, receiving admission and full scholarships to our partner colleges.
The QuestBridge Regular Decision process enables qualified students to apply to our partner colleges for free via the regular admissions process using their QuestBridge application.
Most of our partner colleges accept the QuestBridge application in lieu of their own application for Regular Decision admission. Those that do not will use the QuestBridge application as a supplement. Please see the Regular Admissions Process page for details. Last year, our partner colleges offered admission and generous financial aid to more than 700 QuestBridge applicants who applied through the Regular Decision process.
Students can take advantage of either or both opportunities. Outstanding low-income students who are not interested in participating in the College Match process can choose to apply to QuestBridge partner colleges solely through the Regular Decision process (students making this choice must still submit their application by September 30). This option can benefit students who want to take advantage of other benefits that QuestBridge offers to students beyond the College Match process through its focus on outstanding low-income students and the Quest Alumni Network.
Applying to the National College Match is completely free of charge. The National College Match is offered by QuestBridge, a nationally focused non-profit program. Our organization has worked since 1994 to place top-tier college education within reach for outstanding low-income students. In keeping with our mission as a non-profit organization, QuestBridge charges no fees to students for any of our programs.
Click here to access the National College Match application
National College Match applicants who gain admission to our partner colleges will join a national community of hundreds of QuestBridge Scholars who are as committed to helping others as they are to their own academic excellence and professional aspirations. The Quest Alumni Network is a national organization that offers a range of educational and career opportunities, and also involves significant responsibilities:
Campus communities: When QuestBridge Scholars arrive on campus to begin their freshman year, they are invited to join the college's Quest Alumni chapter. The campus alumni chapters are designed as communities where students with similar backgrounds and values can help one another navigate the challenges of life at selective colleges. Mentoring: During college and beyond, QuestBridge Scholars will have access to the national Quest Alumni Network of hundreds of previous QuestBridge Scholars who can offer advice and professional connections to help along the way. Graduate and professional opportunities: As QuestBridge extends its program to include partners such as graduate schools and employers, alumni will have access to new opportunities that these partnerships will offer. Giving back: New alumni will in turn be called on to connect younger students with the same opportunities from which they benefited. QuestBridge will ask alumni to participate in outreach to outstanding low-income students and to offer guidance to high school juniors and seniors as they navigate the college admissions process.
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