Search (college selection service)
| Search | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Founded | 1966 |
| Founder | David DeWan |
| Headquarters | Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
Area served | United States high schools |
| Services | computerized college selection |
Search was a computerized college selection service founded in 1966 by David Dewan while he was a student at Harvard Business School. The service administered a 72-question questionnaire to high school students covering their academic record and college preferences, then compared their responses against a verified database of 2,837 accredited American colleges and mailed each student a list of ten recommended institutions.
Background
In 1965, David Dewan graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and pursued entrepreneurship in computing, developing a computer dating concept before enrolling at Harvard Business School. In the spring of 1966, he borrowed US$10,000 from his grandfather to launch Search, repaying the loan within two months. He launched Search with the help of a few other students, including his brother, and hired a staff of eight after a few years.
The growing number of colleges, combined with a shortage of guidance counselors, made college selection difficult for high school students. Having already founded two companies, Contact and Computer Dance, through which Dewan had distributed questionnaires to thousands of students and processed their responses by computer, he applied the same model to the college selection market.
In 1967, there were more than 2,300 US 2-year and 4-year colleges and universities in the United States as well as over a thousand 3-year degree-granting schools (primarily hospital-affiliated nursing schools).
| Type | Colleges | Notes | Source(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2-year | 752 | Not including branch campuses | |
| 3-year | ~1,300 | Primarily hospital-affiliated nursing schools | |
| 4-year | 1,577 | Not including branch campuses |
In the fall of 1967, there were approximately 13,647,000 students enrolled in public and private US high schools.
| Grade | Students | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 12 | 2,525,000 | |
| Grade 11 | 2,879,000 | |
| Grade 10 | 3,221,000 | |
| Grade 9 | 3,395,000 | excluding junior high |
| unknown grade | 226,000 | includes grade 13 |
| private high schools | 1,400,000 | grades 9 through 12 |
| Total | 13,647,000 |
In the 1967–68 school year, 31,455 guidance counselors were employed in secondary schools across the United States, a figure the government considered insufficient relative to its recommended standards. National guidelines called for a ratio of one counselor for every 300 students, and authorities estimated that an additional 11,545 counselors were needed to meet that threshold.
Database compilation and verification
Between 1966 and 1967, Search created a database of 2,837 accredited colleges, universities, and degree-granting institutions in the United States, encompassing every qualified two-year, three-year, and four-year school.
Beginning in the summer of 1966, a staff of eight assembled the school catalogs from an initial group of 2,200 colleges. The researchers read, compiled, and encoded the data on punch cards for entry into the computer files. "It turned out to be a larger project than we expected," Dewan admitted. With the addition of the remaining schools, the Search database grew to more than 2.5 million facts.
Dewan highlighted the importance of the data accuracy. "The basic thing is having the facts on each college correct," Dewan told The Christian Science Monitor. "Nothing can leave here until everything is perfect. There's no room for mistakes."
Search updated its database every six months with information supplied directly by the colleges, which was then verified against independent sources.
The approach drew an enthusiastic response from institutions, with Dewan reporting a near-perfect reply rate from colleges contacted for information. The database was updated twice a year through direct correspondence with the admissions office of each institution, a frequency Dewan noted kept the service more current than published college guide.
Questionnaire
The cost to use Search was US$10. The Search questionnaire comprised 72 questions divided into two sections: general information about the student (questions 1 through 10), and college preferences (questions 11 through 72), with responses recorded as preferred, acceptable, or not acceptable. The questionnaire was developed with input from guidance counselors and college admissions directors.
Result letter
The Search computer compared each student's answers and preferences with the complete database of 2,837 colleges and selected the 10 schools that best met their needs. The computer printed a letter with each school's name, location, required tests, attendance cost, and the application deadline. Search also enclosed ten computer-printed, pre-addressed postcards so students could request catalogs and admissions information directly from each recommended school. Dewan clarified that the service was not intended to confine students to the ten recommended colleges, but rather to narrow the field to the most suitable options for each individual.
In 1969, Search was receiving about 1,000 applications for its service on a weekly basis. The company was worth US$750,000 and had two offices in Boston and Chicago that year.
Search results letter
Search results letter
See also
References
- 1 2 Doughty, Roger (March 18, 1969). "He Programs Young People's Futures". News Register. Fremont, California. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 Reice, Sylvie (May 3, 1969). "He Knows Computers". The Montana Standard. Butte, Montana. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
His most serious venture to date is Search
- 1 2 Reice, Sylvie (April 18, 1969). "The Computer - A Student's Friend in Need". The Mayfield Messenger. Mayfield, Kentucky. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 3 "Table 233. Institutions of higher education, by control and type of institution: 1949-50 to 1994-95". National Center for Education Statistics. August 1995. Retrieved March 21, 2026.
- 1 2 Newmark, Cheryl G. (February 20, 2025). "Evolution of RN Programs: Where Did All the Diploma Schools Go?". Nursing CE Central. Retrieved March 21, 2026.
- ↑ "Table 201.20: Enrollment in grades 9 through 12 in public and private schools". National Center for Education Statistics. February 2017. Retrieved March 21, 2026.
- ↑ "Teacher Supply and Demand in Public Schools, 1968" (PDF). Washington, D.C.: National Education Association. 1968. p. 39-40. Retrieved March 21, 2016 – via Education Resources Information Center.
- ↑ Treesh, Frederick H. (April 24, 1969). "Complete Data Is Compiled On All Colleges, Junior Colleges In U.S.". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Lubbock, Texas. p. 83 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 3 4 Merelice Kundratis (March 9, 1967). "Students get help from computer in picking right college". The Christian Science Monitor. Boston, Massachusetts. p. 5.
- ↑ Reice, Sylvia (August 10, 1969). "Computers Aid in Selecting College". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. p. 49 – via Newspapers.com.
They programmed more than 2 1/2 million pieces of data into the computer.
- 1 2 3 Treesh, Frederick H. (April 24, 1969). "Computer Gives Student His Ten Best Colleges". The Tipton Daily Tribune. Tipton, Indiana. p. 6 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Reice, Sylvie (April 21, 1969). "College Selection in Computer Age". The Press Democrat. Santa Rosa, California. p. 15 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Treesh, Frederick H. (April 24, 1969). "College Information Finally Programmed By Computer". The Daily News. Lebanon, Pennsylvania. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
The program is updated college by college every six months with data supplied by the colleges themselves.
- ↑ Reice, Sylvie (April 19, 1969). "He Computes Success". The Patriot-News. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Treesh, Frederick H. (May 1, 1969). "What's The Best College For You? Search Has 10 Possible Answers". Transcript-Telegram. Holyoke, Massachusetts. p. 24 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 Treesh, Frederick H. (May 4, 1969). "Computer Becomes College Counselor". The Pantagraph. Bloomington, Illinois. p. 49 – via Newspapers.com.
It even addresses post cards to the colleges requesting catalogues and additional information for the student.
- ↑ Treesh, Frederick H. (April 24, 1969). "Computer Can Give Information On Every College in America". The Macon News. Macon, Georgia. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Bein, Mary (May 3, 1969). "He Plans Computer World for Those Who Think Young". Niagara Falls Review. Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. p. 20 – via Newspapers.com.
