Program areas at uAspire
Uaspire guides students, families, and communities to navigate complex financial aid systems in pursuit of equitable access to affordable postsecondary pathways through in-person and virtual advising. Uaspire provides postsecondary financial aid advising to 10,000 students in locations across Massachusetts (boston, cambridge, somerville, malden, and fall river) and the san francisco bay area (san francisco, oakland, and hayward) and new york, new york. Uaspire's high school advising program, afford, delivers robust, individualized support in their high schools and over text messaging to apply for financial aid, make financially informed college decisions, and successfully enroll. Uaspire's postsecondary advising program, succeed, supports students to maintain/secure financial aid and manage college costs to persist and ultimately complete their degrees. Uaspire advisors supplement high school counselors and other community-based organizations who depend on Uaspire to help with the financial issues related to affrodability, matriculation and persistence to a certificate or degree.
By leveraging our own and our students' financial aid expertise, Uaspire advocates for institutional, state, and federal policy change to transform financial aid and higher education systems. We also run a paid policy fellowship, where college students build advocacy skills and influence policymakers to make higher education more affordable and equitable.
Uaspire trains school counselors and program staff to support the students they work with through the financial aid process. Tailored to staff's experience and state context, our online and in-person courses offer best-in-class instruction, action planning, and tools to use with students and families. We also offer practitioners unlimited online access to Uaspire's resources, technical assistance, and financial aid expertise through our partner portal. Through the portal, members can request support or ask a question to get the best solution for their students, find how-to videos and tools to share with students and families, and stay current with college affordability news.
Other program services consist of our: 1) consulting practice where we collaborate with partners to assess their needs and offer uniquely designed solutions in the areas of content development, program improvement and systems change, by leveraging our financial aid expertise, student-advising experience, and student-centered research; and 2) scholarship and emergency aid support which is inclusive of the distribution and administration of funds as well as program quality and evaluation.