🚀 Getting Started
New here? Start with these.
Cirkled In is a free, secure student portfolio
platform trusted by 1.5M+ students. You compile your whole story —
academics, sports, arts, volunteering, work — in one profile, then share
a secure link with college, scholarship, internship, and job
applications. Beyond grades, it's the real you.
Yes — 100% free for students, families, and
teachers. Forever. Build your full portfolio, search 7,000+ colleges and
6,500+ scholarships, and share your profile without paying a cent. An
optional subscription adds extra features, but free never expires.
Yes. Cirkled In is an award-winning ed-tech
company (GSV Cup Elite 200, multiple Stevie Awards) featured in Forbes,
TechCrunch, and GeekWire, trusted by 1.5M+ students and used by schools
nationwide. It's COPPA and FERPA compliant, and our $2,500 No-Sweat
Scholarship pays out to a real student every cycle.
One profile, every application. Share your
secure link (or PDF) with college applications, scholarships,
internships, summer jobs, and competitive programs — complete with
photos, videos, awards, and teacher recommendations.
Because colleges look beyond test scores — over
1,000 colleges are now test-optional, and admissions officers want your
holistic story. And honestly? You'll forget. That summer program, that
performance, that volunteer day — capture them once and they're yours
forever, ready when applications roll around.
Now — seriously. Start as early as middle school
and keep adding through college. The earlier you start, the less you
forget, and the stronger your story when it counts. Your profile is
yours to keep forever.
Any internet-connected device — phone, tablet,
PC, or Mac — in any modern browser (Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge). No
download needed; the site is fully mobile-friendly.
Yes. When your student is ready to own their
story, go to Settings → Edit Options next to their name → "Allow Student
Access," then enter their email and a temporary password. They get
access to their own profile only — never a sibling's.
Yes — your story goes with you. Add a personal
email as an alternate address in Settings (up to 2 allowed) and keep
using your account after graduation. Nothing is lost.
Common App is where you submit applications;
Naviance is a school-run college-planning tool that ends at graduation.
Cirkled In is different — it's your holistic portfolio, owned
by you, that starts as early as middle school and follows you through
college and into jobs. Instead of just grades and a college list, it
captures your whole story — sports, arts, volunteering, projects, work —
and works for scholarships, internships, and jobs too, not only
admissions.
Middle school, high school, and college
students, plus recent grads — and the people who support them. Parents
can co-manage younger students' profiles, and teachers and counselors
can guide students and write recommendations. International students are
welcome too; the platform is U.S.-focused but open to everyone building
a portfolio.
No. There's no GPA requirement to use Cirkled In
or to access most of the opportunities on it. The platform is built to
give every student — whatever their grades — equal access to
tools, colleges, scholarships, and internships.
Yes. Cirkled In is primarily focused on U.S.
opportunities, but international students are welcome to create
profiles, build their portfolios, and explore select global programs on
the platform.
Two spots: under the profile-completeness circle
on your dashboard, or in the Profile Activities tab → "Invite a Friend"
/ "Invite a Teacher." Enter their name and email, add a personal note,
and send. Bonus — you earn Cirkled In points when they join.
Click your name (top right) → Settings → enter
the school code your teacher gave you → "Join." Pick your classes from
the list that appears. This lets your teachers view your Life Story and
write recommendations for you.
▶ Watch
video walkthrough
📁 Building Your Portfolio
Make your story come alive.
Log them as they happen — don't wait until
senior year. Cirkled In organizes everything into 7 Life Story
categories (Academics, Supplemental Learning, Summer Activities, Sports,
Music & Arts, Volunteering, Internships & Work), each with
photos, files, links, and dates. Five minutes after each activity beats
five panicked hours before a deadline.
A student portfolio is a curated collection of
your achievements, activities, projects, and work samples that shows
colleges who you are beyond grades and test scores. A résumé lists what
you did — a portfolio proves it, with photos, videos, recommendations,
and real work.
Some programs require one (arts, design, music,
some maker/CS programs) — but for most colleges it's optional and a
powerful differentiator. In a holistic, test-optional era, a portfolio
link is one of the few parts of an application where you fully control
the story.
Anything that doesn't add to your story:
half-finished work, repetitive entries showing the same skill twice, and
outdated pieces that no longer reflect your level. Curate — quality over
quantity. And use Private settings to hide empty categories.
Proof and progress. Add 3–10 photos to your top
carousel, 2–4 attachments per grade level, external links to your work
(videos, code, articles), and at least one teacher recommendation.
Showing the same activity across multiple years demonstrates commitment
— the thing colleges love most.
Go to your Life Story tab, pick the category,
and click the blue "Add" button. Fill in the program name, school,
state, and description — then Save. Done in under a minute.
▶ Watch video walkthrough
In any Life Story entry, click the paperclip
icon to attach files from your device, or paste a link (YouTube, Vimeo,
your website, an article about you) into the "External Links" field. For
your top photo carousel, click the plus sign at the top of your
profile.
▶ Watch video walkthrough
Go to Profile Activities → "Request
Recommendation" → "Send Request," and enter your teacher, coach, or
mentor's name and email with a personal message. Their endorsement lands
right in your profile — and adds tremendous credibility to your story.
Depth beats quantity. Completeness is based on
how much detail you add to each entry — not how many activities you
have. Fill every field, add an attachment, an image, and a link to each
entry, and watch the percentage climb. (It matters: scholarship review
starts with the most complete profiles.)
▶ Watch
video walkthrough
You earn points by inviting friends or teachers
who join, and by requesting recommendations. Points boost your profile
completeness and are factored into Cirkled In scholarship applications.
Totally fine — just set that section to
"Private" and it won't appear when you share your profile. Nobody sends
a blank category, and nobody's judging.
Wherever it fits best — there's no wrong answer.
Individual activities go under their natural category (cycling → Sports,
piano → Music & Arts). Clubs like Debate or National Honor Society
go under Academics for each grade you participated (showing multi-year
commitment), and programs like 4-H or Scouts fit Supplemental Learning.
Add courses under the Academics category in your
Life Story tab, grade by grade — AP, Honors, and regular. They appear
automatically in the "High School Achievements" section of your High
School & Beyond tab.
Different applications deserve different
stories. Custom profiles let you create multiple shareable versions of
your profile — one for colleges, one for jobs, one for scholarships —
each with its own link. Manage them from your Settings page.
Click your name (top right) → Settings → "Edit
email." Type your new address and click "Change Email." That's it.
▶ Watch video walkthrough
Your Life Story tab has seven sections:
Academics, Supplemental Learning, Summer Activities, Sports, Music &
Arts, Volunteering, and Internships & Work Experience — plus a top
summary with your photo carousel, awards, and recommendations. Each
entry can hold photos, documents, videos, and external links.
No limit at all. Add every relevant experience —
the more complete your story, the stronger your profile. Just curate for
quality, and use Private settings for anything you'd rather not show.
At least once a semester — and any time you
finish something worth capturing: a new award, project, performance, or
internship. Little and often beats a senior-year scramble, and you won't
forget the details.
Yes. Your profile link stays live and updates in
real time, so any change you make shows up instantly for anyone viewing
it (unless a specific application has already closed its submission
window).
You can browse opportunities without a finished
profile — but completing it dramatically improves your matches. A
complete portfolio is what gets you shortlisted for competitive
scholarships, internships, and jobs, and it's a factor in Cirkled In
scholarship review.
Only people you share your profile with — like
teachers, counselors, or admissions officers — can see it. It shows your
future goals and plans, and appears for students in grades 9–12 (or
whose latest Academics entry falls in those grades).
🔒 Privacy & Security
Your story. Your rules.
Only who you choose. Your profile never appears
on Google or any search engine. Three ways someone can see it: you share
a secure link, your school's teachers view it to write recommendations
(if your school uses Cirkled In), or an accredited college in our
network matches with you. Your friends can't find it. Ever.
Yes — security is priority #1. SSL encryption,
encoded passwords, zero search-engine indexing, and COPPA & FERPA
compliance. Attachments open only for logged-in, invited viewers, and
you control the privacy of every section.
Every Life Story section has its own switch.
"Private" = for your eyes only — no one else can see it, period.
"Public" = visible to you and the guests you invite via your secure
link. Change any section on the Life Story page, or flip them all at
once in Settings.
Yes — personal and family details are never
visible to anyone you share your profile with. They're used for one
thing only: matching you with opportunities, like colleges offering
scholarships for your background or financial-aid programs your family
qualifies for. This data is never sold or shared.
Cirkled In is a closed, secure platform — no one
sees your profile without your invitation. No public search, no spam, no
ads, no strangers. And it's built for student life: categories for
sports, arts, volunteering, and summer activities that professional
networks were never designed for.
Only to match you with opportunities — never to
display. Family details (like parents' education or household
background) help colleges offer financial aid, scholarships, and support
programs you may qualify for. This information is never visible to
anyone you share your profile with, and it's never sold.
Never. Cirkled In does not sell or share your
personal data with advertisers. Your information is used for one purpose
only — connecting you with meaningful education and career
opportunities.
Yes — fully compliant with both COPPA and FERPA,
the U.S. regulations that protect student privacy and educational data.
Combined with SSL encryption and no search-engine indexing, your
information stays protected.
You can request account deletion right from your
Settings. Once deleted, your personal data is permanently removed from
our system. Prefer to pause instead? Just email us and we'll help.
🏛️ Colleges & Applications
Find your best-fit college.
Go to the "My Colleges" tab → "New Search" to
explore 7,000+ colleges. Filter by major, location, size, and more —
then heart the ones you love to build your College List. Only you can
see your list; it's your private planning space. ▶ Watch video walkthrough
Commitment, leadership, and story. Admissions
officers want to see sustained involvement (the same activity over
years), initiative (starting something, leading something), and a
genuine narrative about who you are. That's exactly what a holistic
portfolio shows — and a transcript can't.
Test-optional colleges don't require SAT/ACT
scores — you decide whether to submit them. Over 1,000 colleges are now
test-optional, which means the rest of your application (essays,
activities, recommendations, portfolio) carries more weight than ever.
Early action is non-binding — apply early
(usually November), hear back early, decide later. Early decision is
binding — if accepted, you commit to enroll. Use ED only for a clear
first choice you'd attend regardless of other offers.
Typical dates: early action/decision around
November 1–15, regular decision January 1–15, and rolling admissions
year-round (first come, first served). Start your applications the
summer before senior year so essays and recommendations aren't a
scramble.
Most counselors recommend 6–10: a couple of
reach schools, several matches, and 1–2 safeties you'd genuinely be
happy to attend. Quality beats quantity — every application deserves
your real attention.
The Common Application is one standardized
application accepted by 1,000+ colleges — fill it out once, apply to
many. It opens August 1 each year, but the essay prompts rarely change,
so you can start drafting the summer before senior year. Your Cirkled In
profile is the perfect prep: your activities list is already written.
Most applications cost $50–$90 each, but
eligible students can get fee waivers through the Common App, College
Board, or their school counselor — just ask. Some colleges charge
nothing to apply online.
Ask people who know you best — teachers,
coaches, counselors, mentors — by the end of junior year if you can.
Give them your activities profile so they can write specifics, not
generalities. On Cirkled In, one shared link shows them everything.
Be specific and be you. The strongest essays
zoom in on one real moment or experience and show how it shaped you —
not a résumé recap. Your Life Story entries are a goldmine of essay
material you'd otherwise forget. Essay guides in
our Resource Library →
In any college result, click the heart icon — it
turns pink and the school drops into your "My Fav Colleges" list for
easy tracking. Only you can see your list; it's your private planning
space.
▶ Watch video walkthrough
Yes. Cirkled In's comparison tool lets you line
up schools by tuition, programs, deadlines, size, and more — so you can
weigh your options in one view instead of juggling a dozen browser tabs.
Recommendations are personalized from your
profile — your academics, activities, and interests. The more complete
your portfolio, the better the matches, so filling it out pays off in
your college list too.
Yes. Use filters to find schools known for
specific strengths — STEM, the arts, music, athletics, and more —
alongside major, location, size, tuition, and acceptance rate. You can
also filter for test-optional schools and no-essay applications.
Yes — colleges from all 50 states, with filters
for in-state and out-of-state so you can plan around residency, cost,
and distance.
Applications are submitted on each college's
official site, but Cirkled In gives you direct links and lets you attach
your portfolio as a supplemental resource. Many listed colleges accept
the Common App — that's noted right in their profile.
💰 Scholarships & Financial Aid
Find the money with your name on it.
Search 6,500+ scholarships on Cirkled In by
major, background, GPA, and grade level — including no-essay ones.
Listings are updated regularly, especially in fall and spring, so keep
checking back.
Yes — including our own $2,500 No-Sweat
Scholarship. No essay doesn't mean no effort: winners are chosen on
profile completeness and compelling stories, not a random drawing. A
legit scholarship never charges you to apply.
Click the scholarship banner on cirkledin.com,
hit "Start Here," log in (or sign up free), then "Apply Now" and answer
the prompt question. Pro tip: keep improving your profile right up to
the deadline — completeness counts in the review.
▶ Watch video walkthrough
It's not random. We review the top 100 most
complete profiles (usually 60%+), then dive into the top 30 for
compelling stories — hardship overcome, community involvement, standout
achievements — regardless of GPA or test scores. Finalists get reference
checks; winners are contacted by email or phone about 5–6 weeks after
the deadline.
Absolutely. Many scholarships on Cirkled In are
GPA-flexible or don't consider grades at all — including ours. Every
student has a story worth sharing, 4.0 or not.
You're probably logged into a Parent account —
only Student accounts can apply. If the scholarship banner says "Only
students can apply," email us and we'll switch your account type so you
can apply.
Simple rule: real scholarships never charge you
to apply. Red flags: application "fees," guaranteed wins, requests for
bank or Social Security details, and pressure to "act now." Every
scholarship listed on Cirkled In is vetted.
Earlier than you think — many scholarships
accept applications from freshmen and sophomores, and deadlines run
year-round. Build your profile early, then apply on a steady monthly
rhythm instead of a senior-year sprint.
The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student
Aid) is the form that unlocks federal grants, work-study, loans — and
many state and college scholarships. It opens in the fall of senior
year; file as early as you can, because some aid is first come, first
served. It's free to file at studentaid.gov. FAFSA guide in
our Resource Library →
💼 Internships & Jobs
Build your résumé while you're still in school.
Browse 23,000+ internships and jobs curated for
students on Cirkled In — filtered by paid, part-time, and remote, with
new roles added daily. Apply now or save for later, right inside your
profile.
Paid when you can — plenty of student
internships pay. An unpaid role can still be worth it if it offers real
skills, mentorship, or a foot in the door of your dream field. Either
way, log it in your portfolio: experience compounds.
You have more experience than you think. Lead
with activities, projects, volunteering, and coursework — your Cirkled
In portfolio already holds all of it. Turn each into an action statement
("Organized a 20-person fundraiser that raised $3,000"), and share your
profile link for the proof. Résumé guide
→
Sophomore or junior year is a great time to
start — summer program applications often open the preceding fall and
winter. Even earlier? Volunteering and part-time work build the story
that lands the internship.
⭐ Subscription & Billing
Free forever. Extra when you want it.
Cirkled In stays free — that never changes. The
optional subscription unlocks extras like more attachments, custom
profiles, and additional PDF shares. Subscribing does
not improve your scholarship chances; every applicant
is judged equally.
Yes. Payments run through trusted providers like
Stripe with top-tier encryption — we never store your card details
ourselves.
Cancel anytime from the Pricing page or Settings
→ Edit Subscription — you keep access through the end of your billing
period and won't be charged again. We don't offer refunds, so review
your plan before confirming.
You're billed on your signup date each cycle
(monthly or yearly). Upgrade or downgrade anytime from the Pricing page
— upgrades are prorated, so you only pay for new features from the day
you switch.
Nothing is deleted — ever. Your files stay on
your profile (you just can't upload more), and custom profiles are
preserved but locked until you re-subscribe. Come back anytime and
everything's exactly where you left it.
Your PDF share count depends on your
subscription level and resets every quarter (unused shares don't roll
over — use them strategically). Your shareable profile link is always
unlimited.
📚 Resource Library
Free guides for every step.
A free hub of student-focused content — expert
guides, checklists, and tips on college applications, scholarships,
internships, career readiness, and mental health. No account required to
browse. Explore
the Library →
Résumé writing, interview prep, scholarship
strategy, college applications, choosing a major, career exploration,
leadership, and mental health — how-to guides for the whole journey.
Definitely. There's beginner-friendly content
made for 9th and 10th graders — early college-prep tips, activity
planning, and foundational leadership advice to help you build
involvement before applications ever come up.
Yes — many articles give actionable tips for
writing compelling activity descriptions, choosing the right media, and
structuring your profile so it stands out to colleges and employers.
Yes — downloadable résumé templates,
interview-prep checklists, college-planning calendars, and application
timelines you can use right away.
Experienced educators, counselors, and
college-admissions professionals — so the guidance is accurate and
genuinely useful.
No — browsing is open to everyone. A free
Cirkled In account just personalizes your experience and tailors
recommendations to you.
Regularly — with extra during peak seasons like
college-admissions and scholarship deadlines, so the guidance is timely
when you need it most.
🍎 For Teachers
Know every student in 30 seconds.
Track your classes, view each student's holistic
profile in a 30-second glance, and write recommendations — individually
or for a whole class at once. Free for teachers, always.
Two ways: email us your class list (names,
emails, class) and we'll add them for you — or share your unique school
code. Students enter it in their Settings, pick your classes, and appear
in your dashboard automatically. Need a code? Just email us.
Yes. Students log in → Settings → enter your
school code → "Join" → select their classes. They show up in your
teacher portal instantly — no spreadsheets, no chasing. To allow this,
check "I am accepting new students" in your profile.
It lets new students add themselves to your
class dashboard using your school code. To turn it on, edit your profile
and check the box at the bottom that says "I am accepting new students."
Yes. From your Student List, select one student
or the whole class and click "Recommend." Your recommendation saves into
each student's Academics section, visible to everyone they share their
profile with. You can attach photos or documents that showcase their
work.
Any pictures or documents that demonstrate the
student's aptitude — work samples, project photos, certificates. Visual
supplements make a recommendation (and the student's profile) far more
compelling.
Your recommendation appears in the student's
Life Story tab under Academics, visible to anyone the student shares
their profile with — including admissions officers and hiring managers.
Your words endorse the story they're telling.
Go to your Profile tab and click the pencil icon
on the blue box showing your expertise, experience, and location.
Not currently. There's no intra-school
messaging, and students choose which colleges to share their portfolio
with. You can view students' post-secondary plans in their High School
& Beyond tab and support them with recommendations.
🧭 For Counselors
Deeper insight. Better guidance.
Cirkled In is student-centric: profiles start as
early as elementary school, capture life inside and outside the
classroom, and stay with the student through every school change and
beyond graduation. It works for scholarships, internships, and jobs —
not just college admissions — and parents stay engaged throughout. Most
counseling tools cover only the high-school window and disconnect at
graduation.
The full catalog of a student's activities,
achievements, and post-secondary goals — the holistic picture that makes
guidance conversations deeper and faster. Counselor dashboards are
included in every school license.
🏫 For School Admins
Your whole school, one platform.
More students accepted into prestigious
opportunities, teachers who know their students from day one, and alumni
tracking through and beyond graduation. Schools strengthen their brand,
reduce churn, and level the playing field for underserved students.
In your school portal, open the Configuration
tab → "Teacher data" or "Student data" → "Add," then enter their name
and email. You can view each teacher's student list with "Show
Students."
The Monitoring Dashboard shows profile
completeness school-wide, compared against state and national averages
and tracked over time. Alumni data flows into your tracking dashboards
automatically as graduates keep updating their profiles.
Only if a student shares it with you directly.
Individual profile viewing is a teacher and counselor feature — by
design, to protect student privacy.
Students keep their story. Accounts transfer to
their next school or convert to a free personal account — student data
always belongs to the student, wherever they go.
💳 Pricing & Licensing
Simple pricing. Complete package.
Everything your school needs: a custom-branded
school portal with monitoring and alumni tracking, unlimited teacher and
counselor dashboards, and Premium portfolios for every student — at
school and at home. Setup, data hosting, up to 6 hours of professional
development, and parent/student materials are included.
They can — but they'd be on their own. Without a
school license, teachers and counselors can't view student profiles or
write in-platform recommendations, and the school gets no monitoring or
alumni data. The license turns individual portfolios into a school-wide
advantage.
Simple annual pricing with volume discounts.
Email us for a quote — and ask about pilot programs for high schools and
youth organizations.
Yes. All students and teachers automatically
switch to free consumer accounts with profiles intact — nothing is lost.
Your school loses the portal, dashboards, and tracking data, and
teachers can no longer view student profiles.
