Pathful's Comprehensive Postsecondary Tools: Empowering Students for College Success

October 28th, 2024

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Navigating the journey toward postsecondary education can be overwhelming. With countless schools, financial aid opportunities, and critical academic skills to consider, students need a reliable guide to help them make informed decisions and develop key knowledge and skills. Pathful’s postsecondary tools provide just that—a comprehensive suite of features designed to support students through every step of the postsecondary decision-making and preparation process.

At the heart of Pathful’s postsecondary tools is School Profiles, which allows students to search for and access detailed school profiles, providing valuable information on various colleges, universities, and trade schools using Peterson’s Data. This feature presents a wealth of data including:

• Tuition Costs: Get clear, up-to-date figures on tuition and fees, so students can assess whether a school fits their budget.
• Enrollment Figures: Understand the size of the student body, which can influence your experience on campus.
• Student Population Statistics: See a breakdown of key demographics to get a sense of the diversity and community.
• Student-to-Faculty Ratios: Learn how accessible faculty might be by examining how many students are assigned to each instructor.
• Admissions Statistics: Review the acceptance rates and average test scores to understand your likelihood of admission.
• Application Requirements: Get a clear list of what’s needed to apply, from transcripts to essays.
• Financial Aid Information: Understand what types of aid—such as grants, scholarships, and loans—are available to help cover costs.
• Majors Offered: Explore the programs available to ensure your field of interest is well-represented.

With this tool, students can get a holistic view of each school they’re considering, making it easier to choose an institution that meets their needs academically, socially, and financially.

Choosing the right school often comes down to comparing a few top choices. Pathful’s School Comparison Feature allows students to compare up to three institutions side by side. This side-by-side view lets users evaluate key factors like tuition, admission rates, population size and ratios, and financial aid. By laying out this data in an easily digestible format, students can clearly see how each school measures up to their priorities.

Financing postsecondary education is one of the biggest challenges students face, and scholarships, forgivable loans, and grants can make a significant difference. Pathful’s Scholarship Search Function helps students find financial aid opportunities tailored to their unique backgrounds, skills, and needs. With an extensive database of scholarships, the search tool allows students to filter opportunities based on criteria such as ethnicity or gender, state of residence or school location, or specific fields of study. This feature helps take the guesswork out of searching for financial support and can uncover lesser-known opportunities that might otherwise be overlooked.

Pathful also offers a variety of Postsecondary Lessons to prepare students for both academic and financial challenges in higher education. These lessons cover topics such as:

• Research and Writing Skills: Learn how to research, organize, and properly cite sources for academic papers, helping students build the foundational skills they’ll need for college-level work.
• Academic Skills: Time management, note-taking, study habits, and test-taking strategies are crucial to academic success. Pathful provides practical tips to improve performance across the board.

Financial Aid and the FAFSA: Understanding financial aid is essential for most students, and Pathful includes lessons on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) process. This step-by-step guide helps students and families understand how to apply for federal aid, which is often the foundation of a financial aid package.

By offering these focused lessons, Pathful ensures students are not only prepared for the logistics of college applications but also equipped with the academic skills to thrive once they’re there. For more information on Lessons, please see this article.

Pathful’s Postsecondary Plan helps students create a personalized roadmap for their future, allowing them to map out their educational journey, identify their top three career, school, and scholarship choices, and set achievable goals. Combined with Pathful's Goal Setting tool, students can organize and prioritize their postsecondary options and establish both short- and long-term S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) goals that align with their aspirations. This structured approach empowers students to make informed, strategic decisions about their postsecondary paths and stay focused on their next steps. Both of these tools can be found under My Path or My Tracker. For more information on Pathful's Goal Setting tool, see this article.