Bottom Line (BL) College Advising Program

Bottom Line (BL) is a college advising program that serves low-income, first-generation students with family incomes below 200% of the federal poverty line and high school GPAs of 2.5 or higher. The program begins between the end of junior year and start of senior year of high school and continues through college for students who attend BL target institutions. During high school (Access program), full-time counselors with caseloads of 40-60 students meet with each student for an hour every 3-4 weeks at BL offices. Counselors provide comprehensive support including creating college lists, writing essays, completing applications, applying for financial aid, interpreting award letters, and selecting affordable colleges. BL emphasizes helping students understand net prices and choose institutions with optimal quality-affordability combinations. For students enrolling at BL target institutions (approximately 50% of advisees), the Success program provides ongoing campus-based counseling: 3-4 meetings per semester for first-year students and twice per semester for older students, covering academic support, social adjustment, and balancing commitments. Counselors are college-educated (17% with master's degrees), mostly female (75%), with median age 26.