Local graduates start college admissions nonprofit
MONROE — AdmitLink Consulting Inc., a new and innovative higher education admissions consulting nonprofit, offers a unique approach to the typical admissions consulting model: they never turn down the opportunity to assist a talented student.
Jaimie McFarlin, a current Harvard Law School student and Burke Catholic graduate, co-founded AdmitLink with her brother Justin McFarlin, a recent Harvard Kennedy School graduate and Chapel Field High School alumnus. In addition to his degree from Harvard, Justin, who currently resides in Monroe, also possesses degrees from West Point and Dartmouth. Jaimie and Justin founded AdmitLink in the hopes of providing overlooked communities with the same educational opportunities that have shaped their lives.
“Our goal is for every student to have the opportunity to pursue higher education,” said Jaimie McFarlin. “We have seen incredible organizations and individuals already out there, working with high school students every day. We want those organizations to have the necessary tools to get their students to the next level.”
AdmitLink offers services on a sliding scale, based on the resources of their clients. AdmitLink uses the tools, materials, and metrics that were developed for one-on-one clients to educate, train and provide programming for other non-profits, churches, athletic clubs, and mentoring programs about the college and graduate school admissions process. This unique approach allows AdmitLink to give organizations that already work with high school students the knowledge and training they need to help get their students to the next level.
AdmitLink consultants are using their unique set of skills, knowledge, and experience to empower students and provide expert advice on the application processes. AdmitLink’s clients and non-profit partners receive expert advice from a team of admissions consultants with undergraduate degrees from Yale, West Point and Washington University in St. Louis, as well as advanced degrees from Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business, the Olin Business School of Washington University, Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Harvard School of Public Health, and Harvard Law School. Additionally, their consultants have worked in admissions full-time or in a volunteer capacity at these same institutions.
AdmitLink also provides guidance to high school athletes looking to continue competing at the next level — all three consultants were collegiate student athletes.
AdmitLink is growing, already assisting several individual clients this college and graduate school application season, and are preparing for the launch of several partnerships with two after-school programs, a high school athletics team, and a national mentoring program. AdmitLink has a unique reach: they can serve both traditional students and students who might not otherwise access these resources.
“Despite the number of admissions consulting businesses in the market, too many segments of society fall through the cracks and are not afforded the same advantages as their peers,” said Justin McFarlin. “That’s what makes this so exciting. And with our innovative approach, we’ve already created partnerships with organizations who reach students we would not easily reach, and we’re always looking for more partner organizations.”
Over the course of a lifetime, a college graduate will earn more than $1 million more than a high school graduate. Less than 10 percent of the poorest high school students will obtain a bachelor’s degree and the majority will apply and attend nonselective colleges that limit their future earning potential. The mission of AdmitLink is to counter this statistic, increasing access to higher education opportunities through sound advice and counsel to both individual clients and partnering organizations.
For more information about AdmitLink Consulting, go to www.admitlink.org or contact Jaimie McFarlin at jaimie.Mcfarlin@admitlink.org.