Onyx Guide to College Search©

College Research Template for Black Students (Copy + Paste into ChatGPT)

Want to know what a college is really like before you commit?
This free research template—built specifically for Black students and families—helps you dig deeper than rankings or brochures. You’ll get a full breakdown of cost, safety, support systems, and what it’s actually like to be Black on campus. Just fill in a few details, copy and paste it into ChatGPT, and get real answers that can help you make the right call.

Support This Work

This isn’t just a tool. It’s part of a bigger strategy to protect Black families from student debt, predatory admissions practices, and institutions that don’t invest in us.

For years, I’ve supported families through research, advocacy, and one-on-one guidance—including a pro bono practice that serves students who wouldn’t otherwise have access.

A sponsor who was supposed to underwrite that pro bono work backed out. That forced me to scale back, even though the demand hasn’t stopped.

Your support helps:

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  • Offset costs for low-income families

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College Research Template for Black Students (Copy + Paste into ChatGPT)

Instructions:
Fill out the blanks below with your college info. Then copy and paste everything—including the questions—into ChatGPT to get a breakdown of what it’s really like to be Black at that school—and whether it’s worth the cost.

Now paste this into ChatGPT:

I want you to analyze this college for me using current and publicly available data, student feedback, and relevant news. Please walk me through the report section by section.

College or University Name: [Insert college/university name]
My Tuition and Fees Offer (optional): [Insert total tuition, fees, and grants/scholarships]
My Major (optional): [Insert intended major]

1. Top Snapshot

  • Average student debt

  • Average graduate salary

  • Link to official College Scorecard page: [Insert link] (check this out before you decide)

  • Student newspaper (link)

  • TL;DR summary including cost, debt, safety, major strength (if provided), and Black student experience

2. Cost Overview

  • Tuition & fees (latest year)

  • Full cost of attendance (COA)

  • Estimated 4-year total

  • If major and tuition/aid info are provided: calculate how long it would take to pay off 4 years of tuition using average salary for that major

3. Financial Aid & Socioeconomic Context

  • Pell Grant %

  • First-gen %

  • Middle-income representation

  • % of students from top 1% and top 5% income

  • Legacy admissions (if available)

  • Scholarship Displacement:
    ➤ If you plan to use outside scholarships to cover gaps, check this before accepting your offer: https://www.disscholared.org

  • Common complaints about financial aid from students

4. Black Student Experience & Institutional Policy

  • Black enrollment trends since 2020

  • DEI and student support offices

  • Black student organizations (list with links)

  • Racial climate, including protests, harm reports, or safety concerns

  • Policy Shifts & Institutional Changes:

    • Have faculty, deans, or the board voted to remove DEI, affirmative action, or race-conscious language?

    • Has the university complied with executive orders or state laws that impact diversity, curriculum, or student life?

  • Link to student climate surveys if available

✅ Pause Here

That covers cost, context, and what it’s like to be Black on campus.
If you’re ready to keep going—say “Yes, keep going” to learn about academics, social life, and safety.

5. Academic Environment

  • Notable departments and programs

  • Reputation for grad school or pre-med/law pipelines

  • If major is provided:

    • The school/college where the major is housed

    • Overview of the major

    • Common praise and complaints about that specific major

  • Student praise and complaints about the academic culture (e.g. workload, accessibility of professors, flexibility)

6. Social Environment

  • Campus culture and student life

  • Inclusion and representation in leadership, clubs, and traditions

  • Protests, campus tensions, or culture issues (race, politics, Palestine, LGBTQ+ concerns, etc.)

  • Praise and complaints about how welcoming or isolating the social environment is for Black students

7. Safety + Support

  • Campus safety (crime reporting, patterns)

  • Reported incidents involving Black students or racial tensions

  • Available support offices (mental health, identity-based offices, first-gen resources)

  • Access to internships and alumni networks

8. Recent News to Know

  • Any major headlines, policy changes, controversies, or federal/state funding issues

  • Board of Trustees updates or faculty senate decisions

  • Impact on the student experience or racial climate

This is original, copyrighted work.
You’re welcome to share or repost the template—but please credit Jenn the Tutor and link back to www.jennthetutor.com. Don’t copy, rebrand, or redistribute it without permission. This resource was created to protect Black students, not to be repackaged.