Why I did this

Harvard accepts 67% of its students from families in the top 20% of income, but only 5% of students from the bottom 20% of income. Other selective colleges are even worse in terms of income distribution. This is very wrong, and I wanted to do something about it.

My name is Prabhu Kavi and after retirement I created Reach4College as my volunteer effort to correct this imbalance.

There are many reasons why admissions are so skewed. One key reason is that rich families can afford expensive college counseling. This helps develop their child’s talents throughout high school, and then showcase them in the college applications.

This site contains FREE information about what selective colleges look for in their students. Topics will include when to start thinking about college, understanding tiers of college selectivity, how to shine in extracurriculars, the importance of recommendations, whether the SAT still matters, and tips on filling out the application.

I am also providing one-on-one counseling to highly talented students, with preference given to those from lower income families, particularly students interested in STEM careers.

My Background

Most college counselors are young people who either attended an elite college, or worked in an elite college’s admission office. That’s not me.

Before doing this, I had just retired from a career as a quant investor (that’s my last professional photo). So should you trust that I know anything about elite college admissions? Yes, here’s why:

  • First, my two kids were admitted almost everywhere they had applied to college, including 6 of the top 10 ranked US colleges.
  • Second, one received multiple national STEM awards, and I learned that almost everyone receiving similar awards also had stellar admission outcomes. These awards are “golden tickets” when it comes to elite college admissions.

Based upon this knowledge, I have advised several friends and family about college admissions, again with great results. I have also advised numerous people online for years on collegeconfidential.com and more recently on reddit’s Applying To College forum. I have particular expertise on advising STEM students.