LOS ANGELES -- When he was in high school, Adam Omary never pictured himself sitting in the front row of a lecture at the University of Southern California.

“I even had an economics teacher who would use USC as an example like, ‘oh, that’s extremely unaffordable, you shouldn’t even apply there,’” Omary said.

While he grew up an hour away from the campus, the school’s $57,256 tuition seemed out of reach. It’s estimated the total cost of attending the school is even higher, around $77,459 when you factor in living expenses.

“Teachers and faculty at my high school encouraged us to apply to state schools,” Omary said, “and it make sense for most students. It’s more affordable.”

But when Omary scored 1500 out of 1600 points on his SAT, he attracted the attention of CollegePoint, a program funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies aiming to solve the problem of “undermatching,” when high achieving, low-income students apply to less-prestigious colleges than they could get into because of price.

The program paired Omary with a mentor who helped him apply to colleges and financial aid. He ended up with a generous offer from USC that made the cost of attendance less than a public college.  The program is leveling the playing field for students like Omary who don’t get as much college help as more affluent students who may have counselors or coaches helping them get into top-tier universities.

“I don’t feel out of place here,” Omary said. “I still got in by merit.”

Now, Omary is a mentor himself, helping a high school student in Washington State.

The two talk regularly on Skype and plan to eventually meet in person. The teenager got into every school he applied to and got a full ride scholarship to Boston College. Omary is helping him decide where to go from here.