Most prospective college students submit several applications. Allen Gannett fired off just one, to George Washington University, then threw up his hands and crossed his fingers.
Looking back, what frustrated me was there were so many schools I could have gotten into … but I was so overwhelmed,†said Gannett, now a senior at GW. “That’s solely based on the fact that information gathering is so hard for college search.â€
So Gannett turned his problem into a business opportunity. Last month his Web startup, CampusSplash, debuted an online question-and-answer forum for prospective students.
The idea isn’t exactly novel. Plenty of resources claim to be the go-to college guide. But Gannett tapped his own experience as a college student to find a niche between U.S. News and World Report rankings and the promotional materials put out by universities.