Eight students are in line to become the first QuestBridge Scholarship recipients to graduate from the University. The QuestBridge Program — which the University joined four years ago — reaches out to academically accomplished high-school students who have excelled despite difficult life circumstances. The program currently has 35 participating partner schools, including Yale University, Brown University, Princeton and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Alexandra Kerstein, a fourth-year Commerce student and QuestBridge scholar said the program gives greater opportunities to students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.
“The scholarship is made for people who are able to excel in comparison to others even though they’ve had extremely hard circumstances,” Kerstein said. “I don’t know if there are any scholarships as competitive.”
The QuestBridge has a multi-part application process resembling the regular application process which high school students applying to college generally go through. Applicants write several personal statement essays and submit transcripts, recommendation letters and extracurricular activity histories.
Prospective students who make the final round are asked to rank their top eight of the 35 participating schools; if they are accepted to any of those schools, they receive a full scholarship and additional monetary assistance.
Hawa Ahmed, a fourth-year College student and QuestBridge Scholar said if it were not for the program, an institution like the University would not have been economically feasible.
“I was so close to going to West Point, not because I ever desired to be in the military, but because the idea of getting a free degree was appealing,” Ahmed said. “Knowing that there was an option for students like me other than going to a military academy allowed me to get the education that I always wanted.”
QuestBridge is aimed at increasing the opportunities available to bright, underprivileged youth who because of a low income may not otherwise have considered many of the higher education options QuestBridge provides.
Ahmed said the program is consequently a valuable resource for enhancing the diversity and student experience at participating schools.
“When I was working in the admission office we learned that so many low income students undermatch when applying to college,” Ahmed said. “QuestBridge fills that niche.”
Kerstein said the resulting diversity is beneficial not only to the students who represent different backgrounds, but also to those who are exposed to it.
“I think that kind of diversity only enlightens the students that are around it,” Kerstein said. “When I am able to tell the people around me that my story is so different from theirs, I hope they are able to learn from that.”
Kerstein also said although the program is a way to reach out to students who are low-income, it also stresses academic prowess and strong applications.
“It’s not that we’re ashamed of our socio-economic status, but that’s not why we got the scholarship,” Kerstein said. “It was the hard circumstances we’ve overcome and still that ability to meet these standards for a high-achieving university.”
While Kerstein said she assimilated easily into the University, Marvin Nogueda, graduate Education student and QuestBridge scholar, said attending University can be a culture shock for those from an underprivileged background.
“One of the problems with low income students coming into a university is [the amount of privilege] — it is extremely prevalent in the culture,” Nogueda said.
Despite this possible cultural disparity, Nogueda said one of the benefits of the QuestBridge Program is the tight-knit community of scholars and Deans it provides.
“The Deans involved have made an effort to make sure scholars are welcome at U.Va.,” Nogueda said. “We’ve made a small network of close family that can rely on one another.”
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