by Anna Burgess
José Garcia, a freshman and Quest
Scholar from Lehigh Acres, Florida, praises QuestBridge's
"commitment to matching deserving low-income students with
elite colleges."Photo credit: Nimarta Narang |
It has long been Tufts' aim to offer as many students as possible an
affordable education, but the university's newest endeavor to
attract and assist low-income students involves much more than just
financial aid.
Last year marked the beginning of a partnership between Tufts and
QuestBridge, a national college
access organization that helps high-achieving, low-income students
connect with elite colleges and universities. QuestBridge helps
students apply to, afford, and attend some of the most competitive
schools in the United States—schools that they might not otherwise
even consider as options.
"[QuestBridge] works with students from all over the country, from
all different backgrounds, with a wide array of interests, and all
are linked by the fact that they are from low-income families," said
Laura Tapper, senior assistant director of undergraduate admissions
and the QuestBridge liaison for Tufts Admissions. "They are smart,
interesting, motivated students who have often dealt with an array
of obstacles that would normally act as barriers to college
attendance, but have succeeded despite those roadblocks. I can't
imagine a university anywhere that doesn't want to see more students
in its applicant pool that fit that description."
Tufts is now one of thirty-five QuestBridge partner schools. The
program uses the free QuestBridge application simultaneously for
admissions and financial aid; during its National College Match
option, if a student is accepted by one of his or her preferred
schools (in a process similar to Early Decision), the student is
bound to enroll at that college and receives a full, four-year
scholarship.
José Garcia, a freshman and Quest Scholar from Lehigh Acres,
Florida, chose the binding option because it guaranteed him a
four-year scholarship to Tufts, his "matched" school. Other Quest
Bridge partner schools include Brown, Yale, MIT, Oberlin, University
of Virginia, Northwestern, and Stanford.
"One of the best things about QuestBridge…is their commitment to
matching deserving low-income students with elite colleges," Garcia
said. "Such an opportunity does wonders for [students'] self-esteem
and lifts our hopes for the future."
The QuestBridge staff, adds Garcia, is helpful and the QuestBridge
application more approachable—and more affordable—than the Common
Application. Garcia, who was told about the program by a teacher,
said that most of his high school classmates don't apply to places
like Tufts. In fact, he said, only about 30% go to college at all.
Yet Garcia is at Tufts, hoping to major in International Relations,
getting to know Boston, and making friends. He is part of the
inaugural group of thirty-five students on campus who applied to
Tufts through QuestBridge.
QuestBridge students meet once a month to talk with their faculty
advisor, Dean Robert Mack, as well as get to know each other and
provide support if needed. Mack also tries to help Quest Scholars
feel at home by hosting events such as Thanksgiving dinners for
students who are unable to fly home, and study breaks during finals.
Mack volunteered to be the QuestBridge Faculty Advisor because he
believes Questbridge is a valuable program for Tufts. "It's clear to
me that Tufts works really hard with diversity initiatives and wants
to expand access to higher education," he said. With Questbridge,
says Mack, "not only do we get to work on the access piece, but we
know the students have some support structure."
Mack explained that for these low-income students, "getting in [to
an elite school] is one thing, but staying in is another." He said
that the Quest Scholars group provides a forum for discussing
challenges faced at Tufts such as the socioeconomic divide between
Quest Scholars and other students. "There are a lot of opportunities
here that they think ‘aren't for them,' like studying abroad or
doing the Talloires program," said Mack. "Part of what I do is help
students see how we can make these things happen for them, or if
they really aren't possible, find other options to help them make
the most of their time here."
Sixteen QuestBridge students have already been accepted via the
National College Match as members of the Class of 2018, and many
more applied through Regular Decision. Lee Coffin, dean of
undergraduate admissions, anticipates as many as fifty QuestBridge
students will enroll in the next first-year class. "They are a large
and compelling part of our applicant pool," he noted. Tapper said
that although the QuestBridge application process is time-consuming,
there's no doubt that it's worth it. "We're very happy to be working
with QuestBridge," she said, "and thrilled with the students who are
on our campus as a result."