A Princeton University undergraduate student and two Brigham Young University students launched Zinch.com earlier this year to connect high school students to prospective colleges through online profiles that act as resumes for admissions departments. According to their Web site, Zinch "exists to extract the wealth of potential in today's high school students."
Through Zinch, high school students from all 50 states and over 150 countries can create a free online profile specifically for colleges and universities to look at as part of the admissions process.
Over 380 colleges subscribe to the new site, and the numbers continue to grow each day. College admissions departments can log on to Zinch and read about a diverse selection of high schools students, including information on their interests, passions, extracurricular activities and talents - all things that normally would not be featured on a college application.
"It's a place for students to shine," said co-founder Sid Krommenhoek.
The idea for the Web site came from co-founder Mick Hagan's quest to get into Princeton.
"Princeton had always been at the top of my list," Hagan writes on Zinch.com. "They had no idea who I was. I was a public school kid out of Utah - half-Hispanic, and ambitious. No one in the Ivy League had ever heard my name. And that was fine. So I went to them. I decided to let them know who I was."
Hagan created a portfolio detailing his extracurricular activities and demonstrating his graphic abilities, complete with a picture of himself Photo-shopped on to a photo of the Princeton campus.
"I basically knocked on Princeton's door and said, 'This is who I am. Take me or leave me,'" wrote Hagan, who is now studying economics and computer science at Princeton as a member of the Class of 2009.
"He wanted to present himself in a way that most kids can't," said Krommenhoek. "He was a good student whose best skills were things that weren't necessarily in the realm of good test takers." Hagan approached his brother, Brad Hagan, and Krommenhoek, both 2006 BYU graduates, about his idea for a place for students to showcase their abilities in the same way he was able to. Eventually, the three came up with Zinch.com and launched the site in May 2007.
Zinch.com gives students a place to say, "I am more than a test score," the Web site read. Not only can students create online profiles to present themselves to their dream colleges, but college admissions officers can also use the site to advertise themselves to potential students and search for prospective undergraduates. Zinch also offers many scholarships, ranging from $1,000 to $20,000, which students can apply for after creating a profile.
In the future, Zinch will be adding ways to connect high school students to each other through their common interests, similarly to other online profile Web sites like Facebook and MySpace.
Krommenhoek emphasized the growth the site has experienced since its launch earlier this year.
"It's an exciting challenge," said Krommenhoek, who also explained what Zinch.com can do to help student's futures. "They can say, 'This is my blank canvass, and I'm creating art here. This is who I am.'"
Ashley Coulombe can be reached at acoulomb@student.umass.edu.
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