Introducing YouCanGo!
Sept. 2011
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Please visit YouCanGo! at http://YCG.org |
At a time when a college degree is so critical to enhancing opportunities, far too many students find the college admission process too daunting a challenge to overcome. Not enough students who want to pursue a degree are enrolling in college. Of those who do, many are unable to find the right fit. Young people are unaware of opportunities that are open to students like them, often because of a lack of access to good guidance resources. Some students don't believe college is affordable, don't know how to navigate the process or simply don't believe they are college material.
To address this problem, the College Board has developed and launched a new online resource that specifically targets less-resourced students.
The YouCanGo!™ website is an interactive tool for students who need extra inspiration, basic facts and simple guidance to realize that they have college options. YouCanGo! delivers this practical information through interactive tools and engaging media content, centered around real-life videos and success stories from young people who have overcome obstacles to make their college dreams come true.
YouCanGo! provides a simple, engaging, student-centered experience that includes:
- Authentic student videos that show students that they're not alone
- Expert advice provided through the lens of other students, busting myths about college costs and admissibility
- An interactive tool that shows students that they have college options just by graduating high school, with more options available if they work harder
- Practical and simple starting points to the college planning process
- Integration with Facebook for sharing site content, and making a "college pledge" to peers and family
YouCanGo! has been positively received by college counselors and educators, who see the site as a valuable way to motivate traditionally underrepresented students.
The YouCanGo! site is inspirational because it not only helps students plan for college but also demonstrates to them that there are other students who have prevailed over similar barriers to college.
Students need reassurance that they are capable of attending college. Viewing success stories of other students who have overcome the same obstacles bolsters students' confidence, giving them increased optimism about applying to college. As one student in the YouCanGo! video attests, "If I can do it, you can do it." College Board President Gaston Caperton also sees the value of YouCanGo! "This site promotes a positive outlook on college in which students realize that access to college is not out of their reach," he said.
YouCanGo! will be featured at the College Board's Fall Counselor Workshops and at the national Forum.
To check out this exciting new research, please visit: http://YCG.org.
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