Zinch in the press
Online Profiles a Factor in College Admissions by Scott J. Cech
"...High school students accustomed to social-networking Web sites have flocked
to new online sites that let them send information about themselves to colleges
in hopes of gaining an edge over fellow applicants.
'It’s only natural, given today’s students’ comfort with sharing personal information
on a Facebook or MySpace,' said Tony Pals, a spokesman for the National Association
of Independent Colleges and Universities, a Washington-based organization of more
than 900 private institutions. 'Students are further motivated by the fact that
college admissions has never been so competitive.'
Zinch, which was co-founded by a Princeton University student and launched last
March, 'is one of many sites that are trying to do the same thing,' said Jeannine
C. Lalonde, an assistant dean of admission at the University of Virginia, in Charlottesville,
who also maintains an admissions blog. But, she said, 'it’s the one that most students
seem to prefer.' "
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New York Times Tech Talk Podcast
Two co-founders of Zinch are interviewed during the last 8 minutes of this New York
Times Tech Talk Podcast
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Facebook-like Web site helps add personality to the recruiting
process by Paul Beebe
"Zinch is a Facebook-like Web site that allows aspiring college students to
post profiles that reveal far more about themselves than a standardized test score
will, while aiding college admissions officers to recruit students more effectively.
If a college is looking for an exceptionally bright bisexual cribbage champion and
clarinetist who hopes to study paleontology, it's not unlikely they will discover
a match on Zinch."
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A New Tool That Could Help Span the Digital Divide by Cynthia
Kopkowski
"...minorities and low-income students fall through the digital divide: even
if they want to go to college, they don't always have access to admissions coaches
and other self-promoting tools that bolster their chances at scaling the ivory tower.
That's where Zinch.com comes in...
The site is even using a slogan that will be familiar to NEA's impassioned advocates
for overhauling the No Child Left Behind Act: 'I am more than a test score.'"
»
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The Facebook Style in Finding Applicants by Scott Jaschik
"If the old model allows a college to identify students interested in music,
the [zinch] approach would let a college buy the names of oboe players. And if a
college wanted Asian, bisexual oboe players, a list of names might be possible there,
too. More broadly,
the traditional model has the student largely on the sidelines
after providing information about herself. The new model creates more of a role
for students in trying to get in front of certain colleges." (Inside Higher
Ed, September 28, 2007)
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Article
Admissions Office signs on to Zinch by Kim Chow
"Trumpeting the mantra 'I am
more than a test score,' the new Web site Zinch.com targets high school students
worldwide who are more interested in sharpening their creative abilities than their
Number Two pencils — and Yale is interested.
The Admissions Office is finalizing a decision to try out the site, which allows
college admissions officers to view profiles created by high school students that
showcase their personalities, educational achievements and extracurricular activities."
» Read Article
Colleges miss you? Time to Zinch by Cecily Wu
"High-school students who hate the
alphabet soup of admissions testing may instead opt to Zinch.
Launched in April, Zinch is a Facebook-like Web site that allows students to show
prospective schools more than their PSAT and SAT scores. Applicants can create profiles
that showcase their accomplishments and extracurricular activities and upload video,
images and audio clips.
Admissions experts say that students who don't perform well on tests early in high
school are often at a disadvantage, since top universities receive names of high
scorers on the PSAT and focus their recruiting efforts on those students."
» Read Article
Website to Match Admissions Officers and Applicants by Eric
Hoover
"Three young entrepreneurs have unveiled a new Web site that they say will
help college admissions deans more effectively recruit students.
The Web site, called Zinch, allows high-school
students to post online profiles revealing their talents, hobbies, and passions
— things that do not show up on transcripts and reports of standardized-test scores
— before they start the college-application process. In turn, colleges could use
a search function to find and recruit students with specific interests, like tuba
playing or poetry writing."
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Article
Para ir a la universidad (Spanish) by Róger Lindo
"Sus programas, dice, permiten que
cada estudiante incluya información sobre sus talentos y habilidades que van más
allá de las calificaciones PSAT o SAT (el examen estándar de admisión utilizado
por las universidades en Estados Unidos).
Zinch.com permite hasta 400 entradas para los aspirantes a la universidad, donde
pueden registrar, además de sus calificaciones escolares, información sobre los
instrumentos que ejecutan, las lenguas que hablan, los deportes que practican, las
actividades en las que han participado."
»
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Web site links students, college recruiters by Dena Levitz
"..This school year, she’s begun
referring students to a new Web site modeled on MySpace and Facebook where students
can more actively market themselves to prospective higher-learning institutions.
The strength of the approach is that students who may not score the highest on standardized
tests are able to make their own cases about their skills and interests to recruiters."
» Read Article
Should the College Admission Process be a Zinch? by Jennifer
Brady
"Here's a new, free, and very interesting
online product you may want to examine. It's called Zinch. It features a simple
but revolutionary premise: while would-be college students can continue to apply
to the best schools as they always have, maybe it is time for the best schools to
go out and find the best or most appropriate students. In short, if you think colleges
ought to be recruiting you, take a look at Zinch."
» Read Article
Site to personalize application process by Ashley Coulombe
"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."
» Read Article
Albion wants you: recruiting tactics change by Holly Setter
"According to Kropf, one way that
Albion is trying to reach out to interested students who might fall outside the
normal recruiting area is through the website Zinch.com...
...Essentially a Facebook for prospective students, people can create profiles for
colleges to peruse. Zinch is a free service that allows Albion to search for students
nationwide who are interested in colleges like Albion, and who fit the profile of
an Albion student."
»
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Business-minded brains by Parker Williams
"After six months of competition
and several rounds of judging, the Utah entrepreneur challenge announced Zinch.com
as the grand prize winner last Thursday at Rice-Eccles Stadium Tower...Zinch.com
members described themselves as a business 'dream team.' The company focuses on
personalizing the college application process."
» Read Article
Recruiting goes online by Kim Chow
"Zinch allows high school students
to create profiles detailing their educational and extracurricular information as
well as their personal stories. Registered college admissions officers may then
search or browse the database to find students they are interested in recruiting...
...The site’s main objective is to help students who may be overlooked in the college
recruitment process, which typically starts when colleges receive students’ standardized
test scores, such as the PSAT. This disadvantages students who do not take standardized
tests before their senior years or who do not score high enough to make the cutoff
for colleges’ targeting efforts."
» Read Article
College Matchmaking — Online by Ian Crawford
"The first step is for the student
to create a profile with their interests, academic qualifications and extracurricular
experience. Then they make the profile available for viewing by colleges that have
also signed up on the site. The services match the student with colleges based on
their profiles and the colleges can contact the student with application information."
» Read Article
College Admissions is a Zinch by Brad Baldwin
"The college admissions process was
such a pain that it inspired Mick Hagen with the idea for a company. Zinch.com is
all about helping students showcase themselves for college admissions officers.
As Hagen says, there's a lot more to students than test scores. Zinch lets students
create a searchable profile that combines their academic scores with a broad collection
of achievements, talents, interests, arts, extracurricular activities, athletics,
music and more."
»
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Will it help colleges who are seeking greater racial diversity?
"A half-century ago many colleges
and universities required a photograph on student application forms. This permitted
them to weed out black applicants. Now almost all of our leading colleges and universities
encourage black students to apply. But today at many schools, increasing the number
of blacks who apply for admission is a major task.
A new Web site may become an important tool for admissions officers seeking to diversify
the student body at their particular institution. The Zinch Web site allows high
school students to post online resumes which can reveal more about an individual’s
creativity, ingenuity, and personality than might come across in a traditional college
application."
» Read Article
Leading Edge On Higher Ed
"Is this the future of college admissions?"
»
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Zinch Wins 2007 E-Business Competition
"Zinch recently won $5,000 in prize
money in the e-business category of Brigham Young University’s Business Plan Competition,
sponsored by the Kevin and Debra Rollins Center for eBusiness...
...In addition to winning the e-business category of the BPC and its recent success
with students across the nation, Zinch also won first place at the Utah Entrepreneur
(UE) Challenge, a program that helps promote entrepreneurship among college students."
» Read Article
Students are now more than test scores by Alin Bistran
"By March 2007, high school students
preparing for higher education have had no easy way of getting seen by colleges
of their preferences. Now, thanks to a new internet service called Zinch.com, students
can be seen by college recruiters as more than a test score...
...Technology is doing modern marketing a one-on-one experience. Zinch's services
are riding that wave and allowing college admissions officers to target recruitment
material to students based on all types of requirements other than test scores."
» Read Article
Zinch brengt potentiële studenten en universiteiten dichter bij elkaar (Danish)
by Simone Kops Hagedoorn
"Drie jonge ondernemers hebben een
website opgezet waarop aankomende Amerikaanse studenten zichzelf in de kijker kunnen
spelen bij universiteiten. Deze website, genaamd Zinch, maakt het voor onderwijsinstellingen
makkelijker om geschikte kandidaten te werven."
» Read Article
College Admissions is now a Zinch
"Zinch lets the students 'shout-out'
to specific programs and universities they are interested in attending. Universities
purchase a subscription to the content database with the ability to search various
criteria. Zinch gives the university an additional way
to target prospective students
and then market specific programs students are looking for, rather than deliver
generic, campus-wide information."
» Read Article
Up-and-Comers - Zinch Going Beyond Test Scores
"For a high school student, getting into
a good college or university has never been more competitive. Provo-based Zinch
hopes to empower students across the world to show college recruiters they are more
than just a test score."
»
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Students, colleges use website to find each other by Chris Velardi
"In the ultra-competitive world of
college admissions applicants are always looking for a way to stand out and colleges
are always trying to find those outstanding students. A new website, zinch.com,
promises to help in both efforts...
...Zinch.com wants to help students highlight that they're "more than a test
score." Colleges and universities generally use test scores to recruit, but
zinch.com wants to help students show off their other skills."
» Read Article
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