Findings from our recent impact and efficacy whitepaper delve into admit and yield outcomes for Raise Me’s university partners, as well as student and educator sentiment around Raise Me’s micro-scholarship platform.

Last October, Raise Me released Impact and Efficacy: An Exploratory Study into Raise Me Micro-Scholarships examining the overall efficacy and impact in improving student outcomes, expanding the scope of Raise Me micro-scholarships as a college readiness tool for high school educators, and observing the overall success rate for students in applying to and selecting a best-fit institution. Since the launch of the micro-scholarship platform in 2014, over 2 million students have signed up to earn micro-scholarships from colleges and universities for their achievements throughout high school.

Our exploratory study indicates that micro-scholarships are helping students engage in the college readiness process much earlier and are motivating students to work harder towards college readiness. 81% of students said their confidence towards their own likelihood to succeed in college increased as a result of earning micro-scholarships on Raise Me.

Students who have earned micro-scholarships from colleges on Raise Me are being admitted to colleges at a higher rate than students not on Raise Me. The mean admit rate of students on Raise Me at Raise Me partner colleges is 10 percentage points higher than that of non-Raise Me students. And, students that have earned micro-scholarships through Raise Me are committing to 4-year colleges at a higher rate than students not on Raise Me, suggesting that Raise Me is helping them find best-fit institutions. The mean deposit rate at Raise Me partner colleges by Raise Me students is 9 percentage points higher than that of non-Raise Me students.

The mean admit rate of students on Raise Me at Raise Me partner colleges is 10 percentage points higher than that of non-Raise Me students

The mean admit rate of students on Raise Me at Raise Me partner colleges is 10 percentage points higher than that of non-Raise Me students.

Raise Me Impact and Efficacy Whitepaper, 2018

Educators agree that Raise Me is an easy-to-navigate, impactful tool to use with students beginning in 9th and 10th grade. In fact, 78% of educators surveyed agreed that Raise Me is an effective tool to help create an understanding of college readiness amongst their student bodies. Many school counselors and educators share Raise Me with their students individually, in a group setting, or as part of school-wide college readiness programming. More than 300 of surveyed educators reported sharing Raise Me with more than 100 of their students each.

Educators reported financial understanding, college readiness, and college discovery as key benefits that students experienced upon earning micro-scholarships on Raise Me.

• Help students plan financially for college with their families earlier on in high school, knowing that aid is available
• Get students thinking about college much earlier than they normally might
• Help students discover new colleges that may be a good financial or academic fit for them
• Show students a roadmap for academic and extracurricular success in preparing for college
• Motivate students to work harder in academic or extracurricular pursuits, knowing that they might receive micro-scholarships for those achievements

Educators shared they use Raise Me as a resource to:

One educator shared,

“Some of my students light up with the knowledge that they already have a few dollars (or thousands) towards the big scary cost of college. It also broadens their ideas of what is possible and what colleges are out there.”

Raise Me Impact and Efficacy Whitepaper, 2018

Another educator says,

“The opportunity for students to start thinking about college and seeing the ‘value’ in their accomplishments is useful for any high school program.”

Raise Me Impact and Efficacy Whitepaper, 2018

To download the full whitepaper, visit this link.

Want to learn more about how Raise Me can support your student engagement and success goals? Get in touch.