Press Releases

Online tools are helping students choose colleges earlier.

It is commonly thought that students arrive at a choice for their ideal college during their senior year, but is that always the case? A recent Cappex survey of more than 260 college freshmen says it is not. Surprisingly, 43 percent of survey responders said they chose their college before senior year, and a good percentage said they chose their ideal college even earlier than junior year.

The study found:

• 57% chose their ideal college senior year
• 23% chose their ideal college junior year
• 20% chose their ideal college sophomore or freshman year

“It is imperative that colleges make students aware of their institutions early in high school and continue to maintain awareness through senior year,” said Chris Long, President of Cappex.

What are the main influences inspiring first choice?

The study also looked at the main factors about a college that inspire an ideal college choice. School attributes like reputation, size of school, and campus appeal topped the list. Of course these days, financial assistance is also a very important driver.

To probe on the influencing factors, the Cappex study used answer choices that mirrored the larger 2008 CIRP study by The University of California at Los Angeles Higher Education Research Institute.

The students in the Cappex study said:

• The school had a good reputation: 50%
• My visit to campus: 48%
• The school offered me financial assistance: 35%
• Size of school: 33%
• Overall cost of attending: 30%
• The school had a good reputation for its social activities: 19%
• Graduates from the school get good jobs: 17%

“A visit to campus appears to be one of the major influencing factors, and it is one that colleges can affect from a recruiting standpoint,” said Long. “For those students who may not be willing to travel to visit, colleges should aim to give them a taste of that on-campus experience online through their websites, college search sites, and social media.”

What are some perks offered by colleges that tip the scales in deciding where to enroll?

In addition to the typical things like scholarships and extracurricular programs, it is interesting to see that attributes like having a green campus and free Wi-Fi can help students make an enrollment decision.

Students said these perks tipped the scales for them:

• Had great extracurricular programs: 61%
• Provided non-departmental or general merit scholarships: 51%
• Offered opportunities for paid work study: 54%
• Free Wi-Fi: 53%
• Provided a departmental merit scholarship: 35%
• Had new classroom facilities: 32%
• Had a green campus: 30%
• Had new residence halls: 28%
• Offered in-state tuition to out-of-state students: 22%
• Provided free laptops: 8%

So, how can colleges tip the scales in their favor? They can start by reaching out to college-bound high school students online early and often, give them a three-dimensional feel of what their college is about, and have a recruiting hook.

“By the way, at Cappex, we’ve observed that it is never too late for colleges to recruit seniors,” said Long. “Many seniors add colleges to their lists well into spring semester.”

Fewer Students Putting their College Searches on Hold

A new study of more than 1,400 prospective college students nationwide indicates that college bound students are more optimistic about being able to afford college.

The study is a follow-up to research conducted last October by Cappex.com and MeritAid.com, free Internet services that provide data on over 3,000 colleges and over $11 billion in merit scholarships nationwide. The students surveyed revealed some emerging trends related to a potential economic recovery.

Among the findings of the study:

• Only 7% of surveyed students said they are putting their college searches on hold because they don’t think their families will be able to pay for college compared to 16% last October

• Just 55% said they are now considering a less prestigious college due to affordability compared to 57% last year

“Families are finding ways to adjust and appear to see a recovery in sight,” remarked Chris Long, COO and President of Cappex. “In addition, colleges have continued to work hard to provide merit scholarships and other financial aid.”

Though there is optimism about being able to afford college, the sustained drive to less prestigious and public schools has had an impact on perceptions of how hard it might be to get in. More than 60% of college bound students now believe an increase in students applying to state schools will make this application season more challenging.

There is also still some long term concern about the job market, and 47% of the students surveyed indicated that they are concerned about being able to get a job after college. That’s more than double the percentage of students who were concerned about it last year.

From fear of rejection to finding scholarships, a new Cappex.com survey of more than 600 college-bound high school seniors has the 10 top things that keep them up at night.

Just in time for Halloween – College-bound students weave a frightening tale about the search for the perfect college.

Check out this list – enough to spook any prospective college student:
1. Getting rejected (77%)
2. Writing the application essay (50%)
3. Keeping up with deadlines (31%)
4. Finding scholarships (31%)
5. Applying for financial aid (29%)
6. Meeting a college’s GPA and test score requirements (26%)
7. Filling out applications (22%)
8. Narrowing down my list of college picks (18%)
9. Reading all the mail from colleges (12%)
10. Starting my list of college picks to explore (9%)

“The road to college is more complex than ever these days, and, just as there are thousands of colleges out there, there are also almost as many diverse sources for finding information about them,” said Chris Long, President of Cappex. “Cappex.com aims to be the one place on the Web that simplifies the process and relieves the stress.”

Websites like Cappex.com help simplify college search, and students can use the site for free. On Cappex.com, students can: create their own college list, access college profiles with student reviews, understand their chances of admission to any college, get college matches, and find merit scholarships – all in one place!

Financial help arrives just in time for college search season.

A new e-book with 20 money-saving tips and secrets is available starting today for free on Cappex.com.

The fast-reading e-book titled “20 Insider Strategies to Save Money on College NOW” is published by Cappex.com, a Web site that dramatically simplifies the college search process, and MeritAid.com, a site that makes $11 billion in merit scholarships easy to find. The e-book has crucial strategies that every prospective college student simply needs to know in this economy.

“This e-book is ideal for anyone seeking help paying for college. It sheds light on the top approaches,” said Chris Long, President of Cappex.com. “Among the approaches are a revealing look at merit scholarships, special strategies for saving on public and private colleges, and getting money that you don’t have to pay back.”

Students and their parents can download the free e-book in a pdf format at http://www.cappex.com/media/20InsiderStrategiesCappex.pdf

Even with Endowments Shrinking, Colleges Come Through

Highland Park, IL, April 15, 2009 – A new study about how students and their families pay for college shows that merit scholarships offered to undergraduates by colleges have increased 50 percent since 2004.

The National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS) is conducted every four years by the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics.

“This is a very sharp increase in available merit aid scholarships,” said Chris Long, president of MeritAid.com, a Web site focused on merit scholarships. “Merit aid has been steadily increasing since the 1990s, but a 50 percent increase during this most recent period is substantial.”

Merit scholarships can typically help reduce the cost of college tuition from 25 percent to 50 percent and sometimes up to full tuition. The average merit scholarship of $5,360 is up 30 percent over the previous study.

“The increase in available merit aid is outstanding news for college students in a tough economy, and we are glad to provide a Web portal such as MeritAid.com to help students identify merit scholarships that fit them,” Long said. “There are now over 78,000 merit scholarship programs available from more than 1,800 colleges, and MeritAid.com is dedicated to giving students and parents easy access to information about them.”

College-bound students are flocking to the free online matching service to find their college matches. 

Highland Park, IL, March 17, 2009 – A month after its second anniversary, Cappex.com has reached a significant milestone of 1 million student signups and has grown into a one-stop shop for college search and merit scholarships. 

“Each year, more college-bound students use online services such as Cappex.com to identify colleges that would be a good fit, and they also want scholarships that they have real chances of achieving,” says Chris Long, president of Cappex.com. “Cappex makes it easy and fun for students to get college and scholarship information.” 

More than 1,200 colleges connect with students on Cappex.com, and they meet students half way. Students fill out free profiles, and colleges pursue students based on how their profiles fit the college. College matching is based on far more than grades and test scores; majors, accomplishments in sports and arts, and students’ college preferences play a major role as well. 

“Cappex cuts through the clutter,” Long says. “Students let colleges know who they are, and colleges tell students why they are a good match.”  Cappex also helps students predict their chances of getting in with the “What Are My Chances” Calculator. The unique tool instantly lets students know their chances of being accepted to thousands of colleges and universities. Students can even see how they stack up with other applicants in real time with Cappex Scattergram Graphs. 

“When it comes to college search, one question that causes students stress is, ‘Will I get In?’” Long says. “This tool relieves that stress by helping students understand how well they fit a college’s historical admissions profile.” 

In addition to college matching, through sister site MeritAid.com students can search $11 billion in scholarships from colleges across the country and find their merit scholarship matches. Students typically have good odds of earning merit scholarships, and merit scholarships usually are renewed for each year of study. The average merit scholarship award is $5,000. 

About Cappex.com 

Cappex.com, “Where colleges apply to you,” is a free service that matches students and colleges. With more than 1 million registered students and 12 million matches made, the website makes it easy and fun for students and colleges to find each other. On Cappex.com, students can also discover merit scholarships from more than 1,700 colleges. 

MeritAid.com, one of the websites in the Cappex family, is the first-ever comprehensive resource dedicated to helping students and parents discover merit aid scholarship opportunities nationwide.  MeritAid.com includes $11 billion in merit scholarships offered by thousands of colleges across the U.S., matching student profiles with specific merit scholarships. 

Economic Crisis Now Blamed for Drastically Changing College Preferences, New Study Says

Many Students Delaying Higher Ed Due to Lack of Funds

Highland Park, IL, October 13, 2008 – A new study of over 2,500 prospective college students nationwide indicates that the economic downturn is dramatically affecting enrollment with many having to delay academic plans or set their sights on less prestigious colleges.

The study was conducted by MeritAid.com, a new, free Internet service that provides data on over 2,000 colleges and over $11 billion in merit scholarships nationwide.  The students surveyed revealed some emerging trends resulting from skyrocketing tuition costs combined with the plummeting economy.

Among the findings of the MeritAid.com study:

• 16% of surveyed students said they are now putting their college searches on hold because they don’t think their families will be able to pay for college

• 57% said they are now considering a less prestigious college due to affordability

• 85% said they have increased time spent searching for scholarship money or merit aid programs to help pay for tuition, and just over half said they were depending on financial aid

• 48% said they are more concerned than ever about being able to afford any college at all

• 64% are very concerned about finding a job after college

• Some students said they were choosing a school close to home to save on fuel and housing costs, or changed their focus from a four-year college to a two-year college for financial reasons

“Financial fit has always been a major component of college fit. Now, financial fit is taking on even greater significance,” remarked Chris Long, COO and President of MeritAid.com. “Even if you are changing your college plans because of current conditions, know that there is a college out there that is right for you and that can fit into your budget.”

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AS COLLEGE TUITION COSTS SOAR, REVOLUTIONARY WEB SITE FOR FINDING MERIT  SCHOLARSHIPS LAUNCHES

MeritAid.com Provides Students & Parents Easy Access to Billions of Dollars in Merit Aid from Colleges Across the U.S.

Highland Park, IL, September 22, 2008 – MeritAid.com (www.meritaid.com), the first web site to provide a central and comprehensive resource for matching students to merit scholarships from colleges, has officially launched.  At no cost to the user, MeritAid.com is the only web site dedicated to giving parents and students access to information about the $11 billion available in merit aid from more than 1,800 colleges across the country.

The launch of this web site couldn’t be timelier with college tuition costs continuing to escalate – up 8% every year – as many Americans are struggling  during these uncertain economic times.  Merit scholarships can typically help reduce the cost of college tuition and fees from 25% to 50% and sometimes up to full tuition.

“By logging onto MeritAid.com, both college-bound students and their parents can access an enormous amount of scholarship information, saving countless hours of time calling or researching each college individually,” remarked Leon Heller, CEO of MeritAid.com.  “We provide an organized and effective tool to help make one of the most important decisions in a person’s life.”

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If you’re a regular reader here then you probably already know about all of the Cappex scholarships and some of our bright winners. But at times we like to put on a shirt and tie and get formal. So here it is: The official Cappex college scholarship winners press release, for official folks and news-hounds alike.

Let this also serve as a last-minute reminder: The last day to apply for our business, biology and communications scholarships is Nov. 30.

Full press release after the jump.

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CAPPEX GIVES OUT COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS TO STUDENTS THAT GET THE WORD OUT

Cappex.com Promoter College Scholarship rewards a student and a friend for signing up and finding the college that fits them best.

HIGHLAND PARK, IL, Aug. 22, 2007­ – Cappex.com is spreading the wealth to students that spread the news.

The newly launched Cappex Promoter College Scholarship will reward the student who gets the most of his or her friends to sign up on Cappex with a $2,000 college scholarship. Also, one of the winner’s friends will get a $1,000 scholarship.

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