Minneapolis
College and career support in Minneapolis
SHABELLE is based in Minneapolis and works here. Our office is at 1003 E 24th Street, Suite 2, Minneapolis, MN 55404, and the students, families, schools and employers we work with are largely in this city.
What follows is specific to Minneapolis: where students actually go after high school, where the transition breaks down, and what the career landscape looks like for someone starting out here.
Our Minneapolis office
1003 E 24th Street, Suite 2
Minneapolis, MN 55404
This is our only physical office. We do not maintain branch locations in other neighborhoods or cities, and we would rather tell you that plainly than imply a network of offices we do not have. Much of our work happens remotely, and we meet partners across the metro regularly.
Where Minneapolis students actually go
Minneapolis students move into a wide range of post-secondary paths, and the right preparation differs depending on which one they are aiming at. The city has a large public school district, a substantial charter sector, and a number of strong private and parochial schools, and the college counseling available varies a great deal between them.
- Minneapolis Public Schools operates seven comprehensive high schools plus several specialty and alternative programs, each with its own counseling capacity.
- The University of Minnesota Twin Cities is the largest in-state destination, and it draws heavily from Minneapolis high schools.
- Minnesota State colleges and universities, including Minneapolis College, serve a large share of students seeking two-year and applied degrees.
- Private institutions including Augsburg, St. Thomas and Macalester are all within the city or immediately adjacent, and each has its own admissions character.
The transition problem in this city
Minneapolis has a well-documented gap between high school graduation and successful completion of post-secondary education, and it falls unevenly across the city. Students in some parts of Minneapolis move into four-year institutions at rates far above the state average. Students a few miles away, often with comparable ability, do not.
- First-generation students are more likely to attend college and less likely to complete it, which makes early preparation matter more rather than less.
- Students who work substantial hours while studying face a different set of constraints on time and energy that preparation planning needs to account for.
- Families without prior experience of the American application and financial aid systems often discover critical deadlines too late to act on them comfortably.
Career preparation in a large metro area
Minneapolis has a diversified economy, which is genuinely an advantage for someone starting a career here. The Twin Cities has strong concentrations in healthcare, financial services, retail headquarters, manufacturing, technology and a substantial nonprofit and public sector.
- Healthcare and medical technology employ a large share of the metro workforce, with roles at many different levels of education.
- The Twin Cities is home to a significant number of Fortune 500 headquarters, more per capita than most American metros, which creates early-career hiring at scale.
- The public and nonprofit sectors in Minneapolis hire steadily and often with less emphasis on institutional prestige than comparable private employers.
- Internships and early-career programs in the metro are frequently posted through campus career services before they appear publicly.
What we offer here
Support available to Minneapolis students and families
These are the services most relevant to people in the city. Each page goes deeper on one part of the work.
College readiness
Planning, applications, essays, financial aid and building a list that fits the student rather than a ranking table.
Support for students and graduates
Turning a degree into a direction, and preparing for the transition into a first professional role.
Career and job preparation
Resumes, cover letters, interviews and organising a job search that holds together over months.
Programs and workshops
Group programming for schools, colleges and community organizations across Minneapolis.
Nearby
Also serving the wider Twin Cities
Minneapolis is where we are based, not the limit of where we work. Students and families from across the metro area get in touch regularly, and we work with schools and colleges throughout the Twin Cities.
If you are outside Minneapolis, the support is the same. The difference is mainly logistical, and most of what we do works remotely.
Start here
If you are in Minneapolis, this is the next step
Send us a message describing where you are. If you are a student or parent, tell us what stage the student is at. If you represent a school or an employer, tell us what you are trying to address.
A person reads it and routes it to whoever handles that kind of question.
