QuestBridge is a national nonprofit based in Palo Alto, California. Its goal is to connect low-income and first-generation students with partner colleges and universities.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}

In 1987, Stanford University students Marc Lawrence and Michael McCullough started the Stanford Medical Youth Science Program as an outreach program for eight low-income students from East Palo Alto who were interested in a future in medicine.^[8] This program eventually led to the launch of the Quest program in 1994, then called the Stanford Youth Environmental Science Program (SYESP), aimed specifically at Stanford.^[8] Although they initially expanded to include Harvard University, this program ended by 2002 as the focus returned to Stanford.^[8] By 2004, the program had evolved into QuestBridge.^[7] Over the next decade QuestBridge developed partnerships with a number of colleges.^[8]

According to the Columbia Daily Spectator in 2021, QuestBridge's goal is to match "high school students with a full-ride offer of admission from one of its 45 partner universities. Targeting students based on data from admissions tests and networks of guidance counselors, QuestBridge aims to reach high-achieving students well before the typical January application deadlines, offering mentoring programs that make the admissions process—which traditionally advantages wealthy students—more accessible for low-income applicants."^[5]

As of 2024^[update], the National College Match officially has 52 partner colleges, a mix of research universities and liberal arts colleges.^[9][10]