Local Business Offers Online Showcase for College Hopefuls

When Blake Friedman attended Staples High School, she was very involved in extracurricular activities as a field hockey player and the head of the AIDS awareness club. When she applied for college, she struggled conveying her volunteer work and standing out from other applicants.

“I think a big problem is that I was involved in so many extracurricular activities and extra coursework that it was a challenge to devote the time to applications,” the class of 2004 graduate said.

With the struggles of college applications far behind her, the Brown University grad has returned to Westport to start a business aimed at helping kids appeal to admissions officers. College Bound Designs, which was co-founded with Staples student Jaryd Malbin, fits right in with the Facebook generation.

The company offers online portfolios and video essays aimed at boosting college chances of athletes, artists and just about anyone else.

“We think that the portfolio itself would be a benefit to every student because everyone has a unique story,” said Malvin. “No one is just a bland application.”

As described on the company’s website, “College Bound Design’s customized digital portfolios enable students to tell their stories in a way that personalizes them to admissions officers and humanizes the application process. The digital portfolio serves as a means to expedite the admissions review process by effectively conveying a student’s passions and achievements in a convenient, interactive manner.”

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, college enrollment is growing rapidly. From 1987 to 1997, there was a 14 percent increase. From 1997 to 2007, that number surged to 26 percent. College are becoming increasingly competitive, and the founders of College Bound Design say an online portfolio can help students rise above all the other applications.

“There are more and more applicants applying for college every year, and with that there’s less of a chance for students to stand out to college admissions officers,” Mavin.

The services begin at $995, and there are different packages and price levels. Friedman said that another benefit of the site is, that in an age where embarrassing personal details often find themselves on the Web, the online portfolio allows students to control what other people see.

More information about College Bound Designs can be found here.