Do you guys suggest Questbridge?

AbilityNow
Sat, 18 Aug 2012 11:29:46 +0000

Since Kim2013 answered your technical questions, I’ll answer the one posed by the thread topic: Do I recommend QuestBridge? Honestly, it depends on your circumstances. I’m not going to ask about your life story, because that’s extremely personal information, but just take my words in mind and apply them to your own situation. As someone who was a QuestBridge finalist, here’s my advice: if you have really special circumstances, I say go for it. For example, Brown posted a link to an article about one of the students who they admitted under the Match process. If I remember correctly, she evidently was without electricity and a non-public method of transportation for some time. If you have a story like that, I’d say you’re golden. But if you’re anything like me, where there’s no special circumstances, you’re just plain poor, I can’t say I would suggest it. It did nothing for me. If your heart is set on Brown, just apply there Early Decision and prepare other applications just in case.

In the event you do decide to go through with the process, don’t just apply to QuestBridge schools. This may seem like common sense, but I still feel it needs to be said (or written, I suppose). There are plenty of other schools out there that are pretty generous in financial aid. I’ll use myself as an example here: I’m an incoming freshman to one of the schools you listed. I stayed on top of requirements and turned everything in on time, so I got some pretty generous financial aid. Adding in the local scholarships I received, the cost of attending the university is low, especially considering the sticker price. Sure, I’m going to have some loan debt, but it’s nothing unmanageable.

Hope this was helpful. :)