Pathways to the Future

Mentor Path is an independent 501(c)(3) charitable initiative started by Empowerly to provide high school students from first-generation, lower-income, and minority communities with college and career mentorship, tutoring, internships, and research opportunities.

Mentor Path formed to provide college and career guidance to students from disadvantaged backgrounds – especially those most affected by the recent Supreme Court ruling on Affirmative Action – and empower them to attend and receive full financial aid at top universities.

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A Growing College Degree Divide

In today’s society, motivation and talent is distributed equally, but opportunities are not. Due to socioeconomic barriers and limited resources, students from underrepresented communities have inadequate access to college and career opportunities such as quality tutoring, mentorship, and internships – contributing to the growing college degree divide. Today, college graduation rates remain significantly lower for students from underrepresented communities and students of color compared to their higher income peers.

After the recent Supreme Court decision to overturn affirmative action policies, matriculation rates for students from underrepresented communities and communities of color are likely to decline even further, especially at selective institutions. Top universities often have the largest endowments and offer very generous financial aid, with many schools covering 100% of a student’s demonstrated financial need. In many cases, it is actually more affordable for students with household incomes of less than $65,000 per year to attend a selective private school rather than their local state college. For high achieving students from these communities, accessibility to these opportunities is a major factor in supporting their higher education journey, and the increased barrier to entry will only exacerbate the growing college degree divide.

 

college graduates

The Value of a College Degree

Earning a bachelor’s degree has significant benefits for students from underrepresented communities and communities of color, including

  • 24% increase in employment1
  • 3.5 times lower likelihood of living in poverty compared to non-college attendees2
  • $1.2 million more in their lifetime earnings3

College graduates also exhibit higher rates of civic engagement in their communities. By removing barriers to college access and success, we can foster diversity, enrich educational experiences, and contribute to a more innovative, equitable, and vibrant workforce and society.

How Mentor Path Works

Mentor Path focuses on helping high achieving students from underrepresented communities gain admissions to a Top 100 School that meet close to 100% of their demonstrated financial need. These schools often have large endowments and many cover 100% of a student’s demonstrated financial need (including room and board), or have national merit programs that offer full scholarships.

As experts with a collective 725 years of college and career counseling experience, we know what it takes to guide students towards success. We match students with a one-on-one mentor and a team of experts to develop important academic, critical thinking, and leadership skills. We also provide students with research and internship opportunities, data, and tutoring to help them achieve their college and career goals – donor supported and free for the student.

Our Impact

A Few of Our Students’ Acceptances

families

STUDENTS

Over one-third of all undergraduates in the US are first-generation students, and nearly 60% of them are the first in their families to pursue higher education. Unfortunately, they often attend schools lacking the necessary resources to guide them through the challenging terrain of college admissions. Mentor Path empowers students from underrepresented and low income communities to discover their passions, achieve their career goals, attend top universities, and receive scholarships to meet most or all of their financial needs.

communities

UNIVERSITIES

Today’s students are tomorrow’s leaders, innovators, entrepreneurs, and policy-makers. Unfortunately, the recent repeal of affirmative action policies has had a discernible impact on the diversity of top universities and subsequently the leadership positions and influential roles those universities help shape. Addressing the diversity gap at its core, by investing in adequate and scalable K-12 personal development programs, can be a transformative and cost effective strategy.

societies
SOCIETIES

Embracing diversity in educational institutions and the workplace brings forth a myriad of positive advantages to society. Studies have consistently shown that diverse teams and organizations outperform homogeneous ones. By tapping into a diverse talent pool, we can unlock fresh perspectives, foster innovation, and enhance problem-solving capabilities, leading to increased productivity, equity, and societal profitability.

98%
of our students get into a top 100 school

4X
more likely to get accepted on average

70%
of students are ethnic minorities

Empowerly helped me get accepted to MIT Launch summer program (<10% acceptance rate), start my own environmental nonprofit, and intern with Dr. June Flora at Stanford University. I worked with Empowerly on over 50 essays and finished all of them by November. I was accepted to Columbia, Duke, Carnegie Mellon, USC, and more. I also have a deeper insight about my career and the impact I want to make in the world.

Samuel

Student

The Research Scholar Program counseling sessions were very helpful in guiding me through the necessary steps for my research. Especially with the help of my counselor, I was able to find various research topics that I am interested in. Overall, I felt that the one-on-one sessions were accommodating where I was able to talk freely about my interests, strengths, weaknesses, etc.

Matthew

Student

My experience with Empowerly was great! They have a lot of helpful resources such as a bank of sample college essays for different colleges. They also have an amazing research team that is able to answer almost any question you have! For example, they can compile a list of scholarships or internships for you personally. My counselor was hard-working and was able to go through essays for more than 17 colleges with me!

Aaron

Student

As the first member of my family to apply to American Universities, Empowerly and my counselor have played a tremendous role in helping me walk through the entire process. My counselor’s great amount of knowledge in college admissions gave me a new perspective in this process and she always made sure that I am on track. Empowerly’s services had also helped me land an internship and improve my writing.

Tim

Student

My counselor has been extremely patient and supportive with the college and scholarship application process. She helped me improve greatly at articulating my thoughts and being a more concise writer, and I’m very proud of the essays I have since produced! She is also awesome at working around my busy schedule and keeping me on track. I’m extremely grateful; with her guidance, I got into my top-choice school. I highly recommend Empowerly!

Mia

Student

student

Your Future, Within Reach

At Mentor Path, we understand that talent is equally distributed in society – but opportunity is not. We strive to bridge that gap by providing personalized guidance and support to first-generation and low income students throughout their academic journey – at no cost to the student.

Our team of experts, including college admissions counselors, former admissions officers, and more, work closely with each student to identify their unique strengths, interests, and goals. They help create a customized plan to achieve their objectives, whether it’s preparing for college admissions, improving academic performance, or exploring internship and extracurricular options. We strongly believe that success is not just about getting good grades and test scores, but also about developing critical life skills such as problem-solving, communication, and critical thinking. Our team has the knowledge and experience to guide students through each step of the process and help students reach their full potential.