Approximately
Are the First in Their Family to Attend College
Our students come from families with an average income of less than $24,000, just below the federal poverty line. They are typically the first in their family to attend college. Our students have varied career goals, and they know that college is their path to success.
Zhi - Minds Matter San Francisco
The first in her family to go to college, Zhi relied on Minds Matter to help her navigate the application and selection process. With the encouragement and guidance of Minds Matter, Zhi explored colleges she would have never even considered. Now, Zhi attends Middlebury College tuition-free.
Johnathan - Minds Matter Chicago
With the help of Minds Matter Chicago, Johnathan beat the odds in one of the city’s most challenged neighborhoods – graduating from high school in Englewood and enrolling Pomona College on a full scholarship. “I love all of you,” Johnathan wrote in an e-mail to the Chicago chapter during his first semester at Pomona College. “Without you, I wouldn’t have the chance to be here.”
Rasha - Minds Matter Seattle
Rasha dreams of becoming a primary care doctor or surgeon, and Minds Matter’s summer programs helped her pursue that passion. Rasha’s Minds Matter Mentors helped her apply to attend the MultiCare Nurse Camp over the summer, to pursue her passion in the medical field. During the five-day camp, Rasha tested medical devices, practiced suturing, and shadowed professional nurses and other healthcare providers.
The Minds Matter Program
For more than 30 years, Minds Matter has helped students from marginalized communities get to and through college. A highly selective program beginning in tenth grade, Minds Matter accepts
students with substantial academic achievement and the determination to go to college. Together with Minds Matter volunteers, they engage in academically rigorous instruction, mentoring, and professional preparation. Minds Matter students are smart, dedicated, and determined to succeed in college and beyond.
Throughout the program, students gain confidence and ambition, strengthen their skills in writing, critical thinking, test-taking, and mathematics, and flourish into young adults who are ready and excited to succeed in college. Minds Matter proudly boasts a 100% success rate for students’ acceptance into four-year colleges and universities.
College Acceptances
100% of Minds Matter graduates are admitted to a 4-year college
63% of Minds Matter graduates enrolled in a U.S. News top 100 college
40% of Minds Matter graduates enrolled in a U.S. News top 50 college
Find a Chapter Near You
Visit our Chapters Page to find the chapter nearest you and learn how you can apply to be a student.