| Author | Post |
|---|
Descartes
Super Moderator
|
Posted: Fri Apr 11th, 2008 12:50 pm |
|
With the understanding that even most of the selective colleges are expecting more than 60% of their admissions offers to be turned down, I am curious about what admissions offices are doing right now.
I expect that many admitted students have already indicated their preference one way or the other and will continue to do so in a steady flow up to the May 1 deadline. Are the admissions officers carefully watching the trends on a daily basis? Do they compare responses in a month-to-date fashion with previous years or do they simply wait until May 1 to see where they stand? If yield is running "below the curve" are they already making contacts with their waitlist or do they wait until they hit their threshhold quota? If yield looks to be "high", are they taking steps to manage it? If so, what do they do? Will they tweak financial aid offers up (or be more firm in rejecting revisions) in order to influence the yield?
This would seem to be the one month of the year in which the admitted student (like the job candidate with an offer) has power. I am curious to know what is happening from an insider's perspective.
|
mmaah
Member
| Joined: | Mon Mar 27th, 2006 |
| Location: | |
| Posts: | 58 |
| Mana: |    |
|
Posted: Fri Apr 11th, 2008 02:34 pm |
|
When I worked (as a student) in a college admissions office (decades ago now) I know that all the major admissions officers took a vacation the first week in April! They were exhausted and hoping to avoid the first wave of phone calls I believe...and some of that must still be true today...
|
mackinaw
Member
| Joined: | Mon Mar 6th, 2006 |
| Location: | Michigan |
| Posts: | 776 |
| Mana: | |
|
Posted: Fri Apr 11th, 2008 03:13 pm |
|
I think these days the Admissions Offices are working hard to land those admitted students. Alumni, current students, and others (coaches and faculty in some cases) are making contact asking whether the applicant has any questions. And they are planning and implementing their "admitted student days." They are also negotiating and resolving issues concerning financial aid packages.
My guess is they are monitoring the "returns" on a daily basis. Whether they go to the waitlists always seemed in the past to be a decision made after the last day of April or first day of May, when they know the final yield, but no doubt they were working on honing those lists before that.
Last edited on Fri Apr 11th, 2008 03:23 pm by mackinaw
|
orangesulfur
Member
| Joined: | Sat Jul 7th, 2007 |
| Location: | |
| Posts: | 37 |
| Mana: | |
|
Posted: Fri Apr 11th, 2008 03:16 pm |
|
I don't know whehther they are going to their waitlists yet, but I do know they are heavily courting those admitted just like Mackinaw said.
|
Fireflyscout
Member
| Joined: | Sun Mar 5th, 2006 |
| Location: | |
| Posts: | 175 |
| Mana: | |
|
Posted: Fri Apr 11th, 2008 04:20 pm |
|
| Some are travelling to spring college fairs to recruit next year's applicants. And so it goes.
|
CarolynLawrence
Administrator
| Joined: | Sun Mar 5th, 2006 |
| Location: | USA |
| Posts: | 3197 |
| Mana: | |
|
Posted: Sat Apr 12th, 2008 12:32 am |
|
mackinaw wrote: I think these days the Admissions Offices are working hard to land those admitted students. Alumni, current students, and others (coaches and faculty in some cases) are making contact asking whether the applicant has any questions.
Agree. And, it's not just the students they're contacting. I've had nearly daily calls and emails from admissions folks asking about which way my students are leaning, and for suggestions on what they might do to "persuade" them to attend. Our local institutions have also sent representatives to our campus in recent weeks to talk to groups of students who were admitted.
As Firefly noted, recruiting of next year's juniors has also started in earnest. I have a number of college admissions reps coming to talk to my juniors in the next few weeks.
Most of the admissions folks I know don't take time off until late May or June, after waitlists are settled. 
|
Consolation
Member
| Joined: | Mon Apr 9th, 2007 |
| Location: | USA |
| Posts: | 474 |
| Mana: | |
|
Posted: Fri Apr 18th, 2008 07:55 pm |
|
It's interesting, Carolyn, that you have reps calling you. When I spoke to our college GC, after the acceptances came out during the first week of April, she didn't know where kids had gotten in unless they happened to tell her. They didn't seem to have any method in place to find out who was accepted where, and she certainly wouldn't have been able to comment meaningfully on where they were leaning toward going.
|
mackinaw
Member
| Joined: | Mon Mar 6th, 2006 |
| Location: | Michigan |
| Posts: | 776 |
| Mana: | |
|
Posted: Fri Apr 18th, 2008 11:45 pm |
|
I would surmise that most reps know that Carolyn is CAROLYN. They're going to make a special effort to stay in touch, and they're going to know that she's on top of things. This probably increases their incentive to work through her to land those admitted students.
|
Consolation
Member
| Joined: | Mon Apr 9th, 2007 |
| Location: | USA |
| Posts: | 474 |
| Mana: | |
|
Posted: Sat Apr 19th, 2008 01:57 am |
|
I think you have it right, Mackinaw.
|
scoop
Member
| Joined: | Wed Oct 4th, 2006 |
| Location: | |
| Posts: | 550 |
| Mana: | |
|
Posted: Sat Apr 19th, 2008 07:32 pm |
|
| I never heard whether Carolyn was on Jay Leno. Anyone know?
|
mominva
Member
| Joined: | Sun Mar 5th, 2006 |
| Location: | DC Suburbs |
| Posts: | 332 |
| Mana: | |
|
Posted: Sat Apr 19th, 2008 08:39 pm |
|
I believe she was not selected.
Last edited on Sat Apr 19th, 2008 09:55 pm by mominva
|
Descartes
Super Moderator
|
Posted: Sat Apr 19th, 2008 09:37 pm |
|
I did watch that night and she was not on.
|
Current time is 03:39 am | |
|
