I built this because we had a map with pins everywhere and no way to narrow it down.

My son started this search dead set on New York and the East Coast. Then, a few months in, he swung hard toward the Pacific Northwest and California. Suddenly we had a map with pins scattered across the whole country and no real way to narrow it down.

So we stepped back. What could his grades and scores actually get him into? And just as important: what did he actually want out of these four years — not just academically, but socially, the activities and community that would make it feel like his? This is the stretch where kids really grow, and his dad and I wanted a real match, not just a list of names.

I have a background in tech and design, so I did what I know how to do: I built a spreadsheet. A genuinely elaborate one — pulling in cost data, admissions odds, everything I could find. At some point I looked at it and thought, why not build this into something other families could actually use? I doubt we were the only ones staring at a map with pins everywhere.

So this is that spreadsheet, turned into something real. Right now it's focused on getting your list right — the schools, the real costs, the honest odds. Down the road, I want it to help with more of what comes next: finding scholarships, figuring out transfer paths, even planning the move into a dorm room. All of it built the same way — real data, no sponsors, nothing dressed up.

No ads, no sponsored schools, no wishful thinking dressed up as a match. Every school you see is weighed against you and yourfamily, and if the odds are long, we say so, gently. It's the tool I wish we'd had — and I'm still building the rest of it.