Every year, perspective students are faced with the daunting task of selecting the place in which they will spend the next 2-4 years (sometimes more) of their lives. One’s college choice is also important because of the financial implications from an investment standpoint. Unfortunately, sometimes students find that they may have not made the right decision, and end up looking to transfer after one or so years. With that in mind, Derek Kraus decided to found myUsearch. Essentially, myUsearch allows students to search through colleges and find those schools that most accurately match what they are looking for in terms of higher education. Mr. Kraus was kind enough to grant College and Finance an exclusive interview to help shed some light on the service:
1. What would you say your main service is for those of us that are unfamiliar with myUsearch?
myUsearch is a free service for anyone looking to enroll in college. Our free service provides students with unbiased college matching results. We do not advertise or promote any specific colleges. We also fund and award scholarships to students that use our college matching service.
For colleges, myUsearch provides the opportunity to introduce themselves to new students, plus colleges have the ability to connect with those students actually interested in their programs. We provide colleges with a very targeted approach to marketing, and eliminate spam for students.
2. How did you design the survey on your site?
Our “Smart” Questionnaire is designed to eliminate irrelevant questions, and reduce the time to find the right colleges.
3. How is your site different from existing college search sites?
First, we do not promote nor restrict students’ college results based on whether a college is willing to pay us.
Secondly, we have a large list of over 3,400 colleges from across the country that students can match with. Again, we do not restrict colleges based on whether they’re paying us. We list them regardless.
Lastly, we make sure to ask students all the necessary questions for providing a proper college match, and we eliminate those questions that are not relevant.
4. What’s the philosophy behind creating the site/business?
Our philosophy is two-fold. First, we wanted to provide students with an honest and accurate method for determining which college is best for them. We were tired of seeing so many college search sites that either did not provide a valid service, or took advantage of students. Secondly, we are avid supporters of education, and we have always wanted to provide scholarships for students that have financial difficulties with college. By starting an education based business, it presented the opportunity to direct business funds directly into our very own scholarship program.
5. What’s your background prior to myUsearch?
Initially, I had a difficult time in college. My grades were awful and my family did not have enough money to pay for my college education. I was fortunate, however, because I was a college athlete and I had a mother that made me realize just how important my grades were. Eventually I improved my grades, graduated from college and passed the Certified Public Accounting exam, which I thought would never happen.
Recently I worked at an online college where I experienced firsthand the difficulties and inefficiencies colleges were experiencing with my competitors.
6. Where do you get all of the ideas/content/writers for your blog?
We are actively involved in multiple higher education forums, blogs, etc. and we also stay current with student and college topics through various newspaper publications.
We’ve gathered writers from posting job opportunities at college campuses, as well as recruiting others that already maintain blogs about higher education or the college experience.
7. How does the myUsearch College Matching making process work?
We pose the most relevant questions for students to answer and then objectively match them with the right colleges within our large database of college profiles.
8. Should students using myUsearch still visit their college before deciding?
You bet they should. myUsearch is focused on narrowing that group of colleges to visit to the best opportunities and to disclose those lesser known colleges that actually should be considered.
9. Colleges are constantly changing, new programs, acceptance rates, rankings, and more, how often is myUsearch updated?
This is a problem with several other college search sites. Our goal is to have any and all changes updated on the site the instant these changes occur. We have developed an operational process that allows for instant updating and a more accurate database.
10. Would myUsearch be useful for students unhappy with their current college situation and looking to transfer?
Yes. Ultimately, myUsearch is useful to any person searching for a college, regardless of whether they’ve had prior college experience or not.
11. Where does myUsearch draw its information from? Directly from the Universities?
Without going into great detail, yes we derive our information directly from colleges and universities. However, we also derive our data from other public resources if the college isn’t currently working with us. This allows us to provide the best information to students and maintain our objectivity.
12. How important would you consider attending the “perfect” college or university to fit one’s needs is to success?
We believe that it is very important to a student’s long-term success at that school. The problem today with peoples perception of the “perfect” college is that it is usually based on someone’s ranking system. The problem is that just because a college is highly ranked does not mean that it will be a good fit, nor does it mean that those that are not ranked are not very good, if not great colleges.
13. About how large is the catalog of colleges listed in your database?
Currently we’re over 3,400 colleges and growing.
14. What types of scholarship opportunities can students find on your site?
Currently we’re offering two $1,000 scholarships. Both are financial need based. One is for a student looking to enroll in a video game design program and the other is more general and only requires an essay recommending ways in which colleges could improve the admissions process.
15. Do you have any future expansion plans for the range of myUsearch’s services?
Most definitely. There are multiple improvements and additional services we’re researching. Two most likely additions include expanding our scholarships to include different offering types and increasing the dollar amounts of each scholarship granted, and including campus tour videos with each college profile.
16. Finances are a huge concern for many college students, does or will myUsearch offer something more regarding finances, in addition to scholarship opportunities and information?
In order to provide the best college financial service we would need to develop an arrangement with the Federal Department of Education and their online forms. Currently there are several other sites that provide more in-depth college finance information, and the DOE alone provides direct assistance with Federal Aid. Therefore, I do not anticipate providing more in-depth financial information outside of expanding our scholarships and our information and links to these other great sites.
17. What do you hope that students will get out of using myUsearch?
An honest and accurate approach to finding the right college. We want students to have a memorable and successful college experience. Ultimately, we want to assist in making sure that students actually graduate from college. We believe that selecting the right college is step 1 to improving college graduation rates.
18. Do you think that students who use myUsearch will significantly lower their chances of disliking their university, and deciding to transfer as a result?
Of course. This is what we strive towards. We continue to evaluate ways in which we can improve the matching process, so as to increase the likelihood of a happy and successful college experience.
June 13 2008 | College Advice and Financial Advice and Pre-College Decisions | No Comments »
It’s about that time of year when perspective college students around the country will be getting their acceptance, or rejection letters. By now, you probably know that if the envelope is nice and fat, full of pamphlets and the like, then you’re in. However, if it’s a thin little sheet of paper you receive, then you’re either waitlisted, or worse, rejected.
In truth, rejection is not the worst possible thing that could ever happen to you in your young life. With universities the way they are these days, prestigious schools get many, many more applicants than they could ever hope to accept. And as the applicant pools go, students seem to be getting better and better grades, doing more extracurricular activities than ever before, and it is simply becoming more difficult to distinguish one’s self from the pack. So, maybe you’ve just gotten that depressing letter that has the beginning “we regret to inform you,” (You probably think they don’t regret it as much as you do). If so, then read my tale of rejection, and maybe it will put some perspective on the situation.
The Story
I applied to four schools my senior year. I was accepted by two and rejected by two. As it turns out, I ended up attending the back-up school of my back-up school. My dream school was The University of Pennsylvania. Specifically, The Wharton School of Business. I fell in love from the moment I made my first campus visit. It was the school for me. It was where I could be successful, comfortable, and happy. When it came time to apply, I did everything in the book I was supposed to, and then some. I even had my grandfather (who was an alumni) write a letter of recommendation. I wrote what I thought was the most amazing college essay ever written. It was an incredible opus in which I talked about how much I loved Penn, how much I wanted to be a part of the tradition, and so on. Alas, April came, and I received my tiny envelope. They truly regretted to inform me that I was rejected. It was a tough application class, and I didn’t make the cut. I wasn’t even waitlisted. My SAT and ACT scores were in range. My GPA was above average. I held a job throughout High School, played football and volleyball, and was even in plays. I wondered how it could happen to me, and where I went wrong.
Needless to say, I was quite distraught. Then, less than a week later, my backup school, The University of Notre Dame sent me another thin letter. Worst of all, one of my best friends, whom I had a higher GPA than, and almost as high SAT score (with a higher ACT score) got accepted. Was I inadequate? Was I simply someone who had too lofty expectations? A multitude of questions and thoughts of self-doubt flooded my brain for weeks. I was truly depressed, and felt that I had failed. I was too focused on my failure to even be happy for my friend. I was convinced that my life would never amount to anything, because I wasn’t going to be a Penn Quaker, or a Fighting Irish.
With that in mind, I had to choose between Purdue University and The Ohio State University. I decided to become a Buckeye, and, to make a long story short, I’m extremely happy I did so. I’ve had some great learning experiences, and created memories that will last a lifetime. I’ve experienced things that never would have been possible had I attended my first two choices. In fact, my freshman year I had the opportunity to go see my Buckeyes defeat the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at the Fiesta Bowl in Arizona. Sure, in a different world I would have been standing on the other sideline, but it sure was sweet to cheer along with the victorious side. After the game, when I was singing the Alma Mater along with the fans, band, and football team, I felt like I was where I belonged all along.
The Moral
Looking back on it, over three years ago, I had the wrong idea about college. The college you go to does not make you who you are. It can certainly help mold you and set you off in the right direction in your adult life, but it doesn’t complete you. Dream schools are great, but they are not the end-all, be-all of colleges. Simply because some report ranks a college high in a certain area doesn’t mean that you are nothing if you don’t attend that specific school.
College is supposed to be a personal journey. College is all about learning and growing. Your dream school can certainly help you do that. However, those back-up schools you might be snubbing could probably be just as successful in helping you achieve your goals.
If you get a rejection letter from a school you had your heart set on, don’t think of it as the end of the world. As lame as it might sound, think of it as a new beginning. In the hustle and bustle of today’s world, it seems that too many people get caught up with rankings, hiring rates, and other numbers that really don’t say much about who they’ll become. Who is more successful, the Harvard graduate who scrapes by with C’s and ends up getting a dead-end job working for some company, or the state-school graduate who works hard, makes an impact at his or her university, and uses college as a time to grow into a successful adult? It’s all about what you DO in college, not what college you attend. One movie I love that concerns college is Orange County. I don’t want to give away too much if you haven’t seen it, but the idea that your college doesn’t define you, and that you don’t need to go to a certain school to be successful is central to the film’s plot.
Remember, those admissions officers don’t really know you, they only have a glimpse of what you’ve done in high school via your application. They could be missing out on one of the best students to ever walk through their door. Just because some person looking at a piece of paper, trying to determine if you are worthy of admission, decides that you are not, doesn’t mean you’re a failure. Also, being rejected from your school of choice doesn’t always have to be the end of the story. You can always work hard and attempt to transfer, or take a year off and re-apply. Remember, if life closes a door on you, it will usually open a window. The bottom line is, if things didn’t turn out the way you wanted them to, it’s not the end of the world. No letter can make or break you. It’s what you do when confronted with adversity that defines you. So, if you’re reading this, having recently been rejected, you have two options:
1. Feel sorry for yourself, and hold regret that you didn’t work hard enough, and rue the day you tried applying to your target school.
2. Take the rejection as an opportunity and run with it.
After wasting time with 1, I eventually chose 2. Which one will you choose?
April 30 2008 | Admissions and College Advice and Pre-College Decisions | No Comments »
There has been considerable uproar since a variety of Liberal Arts colleges decided to not participate in the US News and World Report annual rating of colleges. I cannot begin to describe the amount of times I’ve heard friends compare their colleges. One of the biggest comparisons is relative ranking. Sometimes I wonder; do rankings really even matter? For example, my older sister graduated from Ohio State with a degree in English (OSU isn’t known for having the most stellar English department), but nonetheless she graduated and ended up at Fordham Law. Her roommates her freshman year were graduates from Yale and Dartmouth, respectively. I’m sure they outranked Ohio State in a wide variety of academic areas, yet my sister ended up at the same exact Law School. She ended up being hired by a very prestigious law firm, and now makes a sizeable amount of money. So, do rankings really matter? Were her roommates that much better off because their colleges received higher ratings?
I think there’s no simple answer (as both sides have valid arguments). However, I feel that while rankings may give you a little bit of a boost when looking for a job, it’s much more important to see what you did in college, rather than how your school was ranked. I guarantee someone who gets straight Cs at Harvard will not be as appealing to a perspective employer as someone who earned straight A’s at a state school. I know too many students get into highly ranked colleges and expect it to automatically make them better than everyone else looking for jobs. Just because a school is highly ranked, doesn’t mean it will be the best fit for you. It also doesn’t mean that you’re guaranteed to get the best job in your field. At the same time, brighter students tend to seek out the higher ranked colleges, so one might think that the overall educational atmosphere would be better. But, again, what’s the goal of college? To get a degree, in order to get a job. Will going to a highly ranked institution always translate into a higher salary?
The last thing is that rankings really can be deceptive. Many students can make their colleges as easy or hard as they want. If students look for the easiest classes, with the easiest professors, their college experience, and degree will reflect that. Students who challenge themselves in highly ranked, and unranked schools will both probably benefit from a strong education. Some schools deciding to not be involved in the US News and World Report rankings is a very big statement. Schools are realizing that when it comes down to it, being able to brag about being top ten in a certain area is great, but might ultimately be unfair to the thousands of schools that still have fantastic programs, but just don’t break the top 10. Should students not apply to certain universities simply because some report doesn’t rank them high?
So, do college rankings really matter? If the BCS is any indication, ranking colleges in any spectrum (either academically or athletically) can be quite challenging, and sometimes woefully inaccurate.
But I digress, what do you think?
November 27 2007 | Admissions and Pre-College Decisions | 1 Comment »