June 15th, 2009
(Editor’s note: This week I’m happy to have Terry Cowdrey, Dean of Admission at St. Lawrence University, post her examination of her institution’s decision to make standardized tests optional.)
At St. Lawrence University, we have used a test-optional admissions process for four years. When students return to campus in the fall, all of them will have had the choice of whether or not to have SAT or ACT test scores considered in the application process. Why did we make the decision and what have we learned? In thinking back, it seems strange that the tests were ever a requirement.
Why did we consider going test-optional?
At the time, the test was changing and surrounded by controversy—we would have been irresponsible to not evaluate how useful a tool it was in making good admissions decisions. We already used a holistic review process, and test scores rarely figured prominently in admission decisions so why were we still asking for them? It seemed inconsistent to tell students that scores were not very important in the process but then still have them as a required part of the application.
How did we make the decision?
We needed to test whether the scores were an important predictor of grades students earned at St. Lawrence. We studied test scores, high school grade point averages, and other data points to evaluate how predictive SAT and ACT scores were. The results were clear: the test scores had some predictive value, but it was far outstripped by the predictive value of the high school GPA. We believe one of the reasons for this result is that, in the classroom at St. Lawrence, students are not “tested” in ways that mimic the SAT and ACT. Multiple-choice exams are rare, students almost always write multiple drafts of essays and papers, and they are tested on—and writing about—subjects in which they have specific interest. (The SAT or ACT may be more predictive at colleges that use multiple-choice exams.)
How did our admissions process change?
We altered our review of high school transcripts to give us a clear understanding of the number and rigor of the courses taken in the core academic subject year by year. We pay close attention to the trend of the grades earned from ninth grade through the middle of the senior year. We read letters of recommendation from teachers with greater scrutiny. All of this is done regardless of whether a student has chosen to submit test scores.
For us, test scores have become like interviews—students have the choice of whether or not to submit their scores just as they have the choice of whether or not to have a personal interview. If the score report or interview report are included in the application folder, we know the student wants us to consider that information as part of our holistic review.
What have we learned?
Students choose not to submit scores for a number of reasons. Some know their scores are below the profile of students we admitted in recent years. Others have scores well within the St. Lawrence profile but not as high as they think they should be given how well she or he has done in high school. Some students choose not to submit scores because they are philosophically opposed to standardized test scores—and to being judged based on the results of their work on a couple of Saturday mornings. (It is interesting how many valedictorians choose not to submit scores!)
We also learned that SAT and ACT scores are particularly poor predictors of academic performance at St. Lawrence for students who have attended rigorous high schools or prep schools. Those students come to St. Lawrence with experience writing multiple drafts of long papers of the sort we require. They are used to the expectations of lively class discussion and have experience with active learning in lab and studio classes.
Reflections
In the winter of 2004, our staff had an extended debate about one of our candidates. The young man in question ranked first in his class of more than 150 students at a school from which we had not seen applications in the past. He had strong letters of recommendation and was very involved in extracurricular activities, and we were certain he would add much to our campus. The issue? His SAT (verbal and math) score, 770, fell well below the middle 50% score profile (1060-1250) for the previous year’s entering class.
It was hard to reconcile such a low score with such strong high school performance. We talked at length about the pros and cons of offering him admission, wondering if his low test scores really meant that he would struggle to meet the demands of our classes. In the end, we admitted him with some trepidation. Four years later he graduated from St. Lawrence with a GPA above 3.0 in a double major, having completed independent research and having been a valuable and visible contributor to campus life.
What a loss it would have been for us if we had let his SAT score prevent our community from benefiting from his presence on our campus! Now, with a test-optional admissions process, we worry far less about excluding a student based on SAT or ACT test scores, even when the student has lower scores and still chooses to submit them. Our admissions process allows us—in fact, it requires us—to look beyond the quick signal we may get when we see test scores—low or high.
Terry Cowdrey is the vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid at St. Lawrence University. Her career in college admissions spans three decades and includes experience at Vanderbilt University, the University of New Hampshire, and Wesleyan University.
Posted in Testing/Test Prep | No Comments »
June 9th, 2009
At the risk of stating the obvious, there is a good chance your college education will represent one of the most significant investments in your life. Whether you choose a place that costs $50,000 or $150,000 over four years, that’s a lot of money—and four years is a big chunk of your life! When you consider everything that is at stake, how much are you willing to leave to chance?
As a result, visiting college campuses will represent an important investment of your time and energy as you prepare for college. There is no better way to assess in real terms the opportunities at, and appropriateness of, a college or university that is on your college list.
By investigating college campuses in person, you reach beyond the marketing propaganda to make first-hand evaluations. The college is there for you to discover on your own. Now is the time to challenge assumptions and replace preconceived notions (biases introduced by family, friends, the media and promotional brochures) with information processed through your own filters. Now is the time to begin developing your “gut feeling” with regard to colleges.
When you approach the college selection process as a consumer, the value of the campus visit becomes clear. Each place you visit could become your home for four years. Spending time on its campus gives you an opportunity to check out the merchandise before buying. In many cases, the campus visit also gives you the opportunity to demonstrate your interest in the institution and tell your story (more on that in a future blog).
So, plan to visit colleges as early and often as possible. Talk with your parents about combining college visits with business trips, family gatherings and vacations. See as many places as possible early in your search. Even if a college does not appear on your initial list, spending time on its campus will give you valuable perspective for more informed decision-making later in the process. Besides, you may discover things at a previously unknown college that may impress you. More than a few students have chosen such colleges that emerged from random visits.
Ideally, by the time you enroll you will have visited the college three times. Each visit serves a different purpose as you become acclimated to the college search and advance your interest in specific schools.
1. Look/See
This is the initial survey visit. Get out of the car and check it out—there is no such thing as a good “drive by” visit! Take a tour. Attend an information session. If the college is far from your home and an interview is offered, take it. The purpose of this visit is to determine if you want to add the college to your list. Visit as many colleges as possible. Resist the temptation to make emotional commitments right away. You may find yourself falling in love with a place, but there is much more to learn before you are ready to rule out other options.
2. Investigate
When you have determined your short list of colleges, begin planning a second round of visits. The point of these visits is to learn as much about the place as possible—from an insider’s perspective. Visit when the college is in session, preferably in the fall or winter of your senior year. Try to achieve immersion. Become a student on that campus for 24 hours. Talk with students, meet with professors, and, if possible, stay overnight on the campus. Get inside the culture of the place—especially those elements of campus life that are important to you (athletics, music, theatre, volunteerism, etc.).
If the cost of attending will be an issue, you and/or your parents should meet with a financial aid officer. Many financial aid officers will review costs as well as sources and methods of payment. Some will work with your parents to determine your estimated family contribution.
If Early Decision is a possibility for you, do not begin the ED process until you have immersed yourself in at least two choices—the potential ED school and the school that ranks second on your list.
3. Time to Buy
You have been accepted—hopefully, to several colleges—and now it’s time to “buy.” Assuming you used your priorities and the five points of a good fit as a compass bearing thus far, you need to rely again on your gut feeling in making a final decision. Attend programs for accepted students. Stay overnight—again. Imagine yourself in the classroom, the residence hall and the dining hall every day. How does it feel?
In the final analysis, visiting college campuses is probably not at the top of your list of things to do right now. Every day spent visiting campuses is time away from things you would rather just be hanging out with friends. Multiple visits at colleges that are geographically removed from you can also represent a major disruption in your schedule. Nonetheless, they are essential if you are going to make good, well-informed decisions about your educational future.
The June 8 Web-Side Chat, “Window Shopping: Getting the Most Out of Campus Visits,” featured an extensive conversation about the role of the campus visit in choosing a college and provided a check-list for a successful campus visit. On June 22, the Web-Side Chat series provides a real-time webcast that focuses on “Tips for a Successful Interview.”
To participate in that program and view the June 8 segment in the archives, become a Best College Fit™ Member.
Posted in College Planning, Choice of a College | No Comments »
June 3rd, 2009
As a young person, I loved sports. In fact, I played sports year-round all the way through high school. My problem was that my ability always fell short of my enthusiasm! When I left high school, my competitive playing days were sadly but surely over.
I envy student athletes because they have the opportunity to extend their careers beyond high school. For many, college represents a new playing field and an opportunity to compete at a higher level. And, when that talent comes with good grades, the possibilities become interesting.
Enter the athletic recruitment process. While the prospect of competing athletically in college may be assumed, the choice of a college is no less important for a recruited athlete than it is for the non-athlete. In fact, recruited athletes need to be more vigilant with regard to their priorities and finding the best “fit” as the courtship, quite often very public in nature, preys on the egos, expectations and insecurities of the student as well as the key influencers in his/her life.
If you are a student athlete contemplating competitive sport involvement in college, the first thing you need to do is become familiar with the rules and regulations surrounding athletic recruitment as articulated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The NCAA oversees intercollegiate athletic competition at most colleges in the country. Whether you intend to compete as a scholarship athlete at the NCAA Division I level or as a non-scholarship athlete at the Division III level, make sure you understand the rules that govern the recruitment process at that level.
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) is a separate organization that oversees athletic competition for 360 institutions around the country.
It’s easy to get caught up in the “rush” that comes with athletic recruitment. In order to end up at a place that is truly good for you, you need to maintain perspective and stay grounded in your priorities. Regardless of your intended level of competition, I would like to share a few thoughts (this is just the tip of the iceberg!) with regard to how you might engage the recruitment process productively.
I. Athletic recruitment is a numbers game. College coaches begin the recruitment process intent on filling their recruitment “funnels” with as many qualified prospects as possible. The larger the pool of candidates, the greater is their opportunity to target the talent that will meet their needs.
Tip: Find out where you fit. Ask the recruiting coach how many roster spots need to be filled and how many prospects are being considered for those spots.
II. Mental Math. As they build their rosters, coaches are constantly trying to gain commitments from prospects even before the latter have completed applications for admission. In effect, they’re doing the mental math. It’s not uncommon for a coach to say to an athlete, “I only have two slots left and I’d like to offer one of them to you but I need a commitment from you.” If you say “Yes” to that commitment, know that you are assured nothing. The coach may control who plays, but the admission office controls who gets in.
Tip: Forward an unofficial transcript along with your test scores to the recruiting coach and ask him for an early assessment of your admissibility at his school.
III. Winning is everything. College coaches are evaluated on the basis of the performance of their teams. As a result, some are “climbers” intent on building a resume that gets them to the next level as quickly as possible. Conversely, others may be in jeopardy of losing their jobs.
Tip: Ask the recruiting coach about her professional objectives as well as her plans to stay at the institution—and don’t accept hearsay!
IV. Understand the odds. The chances that you will become a professional in your sport are less than 1%. Choose your college accordingly. You owe it to yourself to make sure it is a place that addresses your non-athletic needs. Consider, for example, the possibility that you don’t make the team or you become incapacitated and can’t compete. What then?
Tip: Ask about the graduation rate for students who enter the program as freshmen and find out how lack of participation might affect your scholarship/financial aid.
V. Be honest with yourself. You might be an enthusiastic competitor at your school or in your local club program, but what are the chances that you will be able to compete in college? The recruitment letters you might receive from coaches as they work to fill their “funnels” sound promising, but they are form letters that go to thousands of athletes.
Tip: Ask your high school or club coach for an honest assessment of your skill level as well as your potential to compete at the next level—and then listen carefully.
The life of a young person with special talents, athletic or otherwise, is full of adulation and high expectations. If you are fortunate enough to be living this experience, remember that it can be fleeting. Playing a sport at a high level may indeed help you get into some colleges. In the end, however, the choice of a college needs to reflect your core values and priorities. Don’t succumb to the pressure of doing things because you can. Be careful in your choices—and do things because they make sense to you and what you want to accomplish in life.
For further thoughts and analysis, listen to my May 28 webcast, “Inside the Athletic Recruitment Process.” Visit the Best College Fit membership page where you can become a member and gain access to all of my past webcasts.
Posted in College Planning | No Comments »
May 14th, 2009
As the current economic climate lingers, I am hearing more questions from families regarding the potential value of having students attend a community college for two years before transferring into four-year institutions to complete their degree work. While this may prove to be a valid, if not cost-effective approach for many families, I would like to take a quick look at the implications of pursuing such a strategy.
The following are common explanations for taking the community college route to a four-year college degree:
1. “Since she doesn’t know what she wants to do, she can go to the community college and find out while the cost per credit isn’t nearly as high.” In other words, “we don’t want to pay for her to find herself.”
On the surface, this sentiment makes sense. Why pay top dollar for an education when it seems the student isn’t focused on a specific career interest? On the other hand, many educators would argue that is precisely what a college education is designed to do—help young people find a sense of direction and purpose in life. At liberal arts colleges in particular, the exposure students have to a breadth of disciplines during the first two years is critical to the process of learning how to learn.
2. “Four years of college is quite an expense. He can go to the community college to get his electives out of the way at a fraction of the cost he’d pay at a four-year college and then transfer for his last two years to complete his degree.”
This is a valid point from a financial perspective. In considering the options, however, you need to be sensitive to differences in the style of instruction as well as the levels of rigor that can be found in two-year and four-year educational sequences. In addition, you need to be alert to the transferability of CC credits into a given four-year college.
If the student in question is well accomplished through high school, identify a community college environment that includes an honors or scholars program and/or an articulation agreement with a four-year college. The articulation agreement will ensure a transfer of completed credits and often will provide assurances of need-based financial aid for transferring students. Otherwise, the classroom experience at the community college is not likely to prepare the student to move comfortably into the third year at a four-year college.
3. “He really struggled academically in high school so community college would be a good place for him to start fresh and begin to build his confidence.”
This is perhaps the best reason to consider going the community college route. Students with marginal academic records coming out of high school have an opportunity to “wipe the slate clean” with a fresh start at a two-year college. And they can do so in an environment that is more forgiving without the prospect of costing their families tens of thousands of dollars in the process. There are certainly a lot of very successful people in this world who got their starts this way.
If you are considering the community college route, do so with your eyes wide open. Look for articulation agreements with four-year colleges from which you would like to earn your degree. Visit the four-year colleges that interest you and ask for an evaluation of the CC curriculum to find out which courses will eventually transfer for credit. The last thing you want to do is transfer into a four-year college that doesn’t recognize all of the credits you accumulated at the CC! And, if you need financial assistance, make sure the four-year colleges you are considering routinely make need-based financial aid available to transfer students.
Posted in College Planning | 1 Comment »
April 23rd, 2009
The college admission season is now in its last days and I thought it might be interesting to give you perspective on why the May 1 deadline is so important to colleges and how it effects those who monitor the enrollment efforts at those colleges.
The last 10 days of April can be the most maddening of the year for deans of admission as the May 1 National Candidates’ Reply Date draws near. After two years of exhaustive recruiting and then months of intensive credential review, the next entering class still hangs in the balance for colleges and universities. In my own experience as dean of admission, while my colleagues and I were confident each class would materialize as surely as a rite of spring—history offered that assurance—we never felt secure in that knowledge until the last enrollment deposit was received.
We could imagine the fully formed class but we still couldn’t see it. It remained a work in progress on a very tight schedule and that only added to the angst. Twice daily trips to the campus mailroom didn’t produce more immediate results and, at times, only added to the frustration. And, yes, there were times when misplaced mail pouches caused near meltdowns among anxious observers.
Adding to the angst felt in the admission office was the seemingly incessant and increasingly impatient stream of calls and emails from the “higher ups” on campus regarding the status of the class. “How do the numbers look today? How does that compare with last year at this time?” “When will we know if we need to go to the Wait List?” “How many scholars have enrolled?” “How does the yield look on our financial aid offers?”
So many questions for which there were, at best, partial answers. We were always confident in the credentials of the students we had admitted, however, we knew they would be attractive to our competitors as well. We admitted these students because we saw them as good fits for our campus. Now, we had to convince them that our school was the best fit for them.
The offers of admission had been made weeks earlier and financial aid awards followed soon after. The open house for accepted students had been a success. Now, phonathons featuring our most engaging students and faculty worked overtime to make accepted students feel welcome and wanted. And families continued to visit the campus for one last look before making the final choice of a college.
Unfortunately, no amount of hard work or worry on the part of the admission staff could hasten the outcome. While our history told us that the class would indeed materialize, it also told us that 75-80% of the non-Early Decision enrollments would arrive after April 25! All we could do was “hurry up and wait.”
I offer this perspective because similar scenarios are playing out on hundreds of college campuses around the country—right now! You might find it only fitting that college officials feel the stress and uncertainty of a process that has exacted a similar toll on you and your family. After all, as a college applicant, you have been living the “hurry up and wait” experience for months.
The proverbial “ball” is now in your court and you need to determine your next course of action. After waiting for months to learn of your acceptances, you have to stop everything that might be going on in your life to focus on choosing a college. The timing isn’t great, but you have little choice. You have worked hard to put yourself in the position of being able to make the final choice and no one can blame you for wanting to take full measure of the time available before the May 1 deadline. Nonetheless, you need to act soon.
By the way, May 1 is not an arbitrary deadline set to ease the anxieties of admission officers. College officials have a very short turn-around time after the enrollment process is completed in which to assign academic advisors, set the academic schedule, complete course registrations and order classroom materials for the coming fall. In addition, they need to make housing assignments, verify financial aid awards, set their operating budgets and set up the billing process for a new group of students. As you can see, May 1 is certainly not any more convenient for colleges than it is for the students they admit.
The bottom line: it is important that you honor the deadlines and requirements that have been placed before you. Choose one school and inform the rest of your decision. Resist the temptation to submit enrollment deposits to three or four or five colleges now so you can make your decision later. Instead, follow your instincts to the place that fits you best and begin to invest in becoming a first-year student at that college.
Posted in The Admission Process, Making the Final Choice of a College | No Comments »
April 14th, 2009
Over the course of a year, no universal deadline looms larger than does April 15 for American taxpayers. But don’t tell that to the hundreds of thousands of families whose children need to make the final choice of a college by May 1!
For students admitted to one or more colleges this spring, the not-so-fine print on the letters of acceptance have instructed them to respond with an enrollment deposit by May 1. This date, the National Candidates’ Reply Date (NCRD), is observed by most colleges and universities in an attempt to bring closure to the college admission process.
If you are an admitted student, the rules are simple. Choose one school and submit the required enrollment deposit by May 1. Colleges cannot insist that you submit the deposit prior to May 1. And you may not submit deposits to multiple colleges. Allowable exceptions involve late (post May 1) offers of admission from Wait Lists that would require you to forfeit an initial deposit at one school in order to enroll at the school that has accepted you from the Wait List. As a matter of courtesy, you might also notify institutions that have admitted you of your decision to enroll elsewhere.
Unfortunately, the NCRD comes only weeks after you received notification of your admission decisions and financial aid offers. After months of anxious waiting, you must suddenly shift gears to make one of the most important decisions of your life. Making matters worse, everyone who knows you will have an opinion about what you should do! There is a good chance you are hearing things like: “Take the scholarship and run!” or “Wow! You got into an Ivy—you’ve got to go!” or “You know your grandfather went there and it would make him proud if you were to choose his alma mater,” or “Their engineering program is ranked higher than the others…” and so on and so on!
All of these good wishes simply add to the growing paralysis by analysis that takes over your thought process. However well intended the arguments and pitches, they don’t really contribute to productive decision-making. You need to summon all of your tact and diplomacy to step out from under the weight of these conversations and refocus on making a choice that makes sense for you. To do so, I recommend the following:
- Re-visit your priorities. Why do you want to go to college? What are the 3-4 things you want to take from your college experience? Get past the clamor of public opinion. This choice is about you and how an educational experience can best serve you.
- Reflect on the five elements of a good college fit. As a reminder, the best college for you will be one that provides:
- A program of study that meets your needs.
- A level of academic rigor/challenge commensurate with your ability/preparation.
- A style of instruction that matches the way you learn most comfortably.
- A community that feels like home.
- Evidence that it values you for what you do well.
- Create a spreadsheet on which you list the five elements on one axis and the colleges under consideration on the other. Then, rank the each school within each category. In other words, if you are considering five colleges assign a rating of 5 to 1 to each school under each element of a good college fit.
- Visit the campuses. Even if you have seen them before, go back. While the schools will offer tours and information sessions, give each your own “white glove” treatment. Make a point of visiting the academic departments that interest you. Talk with the professors and undergraduate students who are hanging out in that area. What do they like about their experience? What do the professors value in the students who come into their classrooms? How do the students feel about their opportunities to learn and grow?
- Evaluate costs. If money is a factor, create a spreadsheet on which you list all of the schools on one axis across the top. Then, down the side, list total educational expenses, financial aid and out-of-pocket expenses. Be exhaustive in listing all expenses and forms of financial aid. This will give you an objective look at the actual costs of attendance. I created such a template for the April 13 Web-Side Chat and would be happy to share it with you. Contact me (Peter@theadmissiongame.com) to learn more.
- Finally, put rankings aside. In all likelihood, there is very little actual difference in the strength of program at these schools. Besides, your ultimate success has much more to do with how you embrace the opportunities available to you at a given college than it does the name on the parchment that hangs on your wall after graduation!
As you approach the May 1 deadline, remember to celebrate the moment. This is about you, your life and your achievements. Remain true to yourself and you can’t go wrong!
Posted in The Admission Process, Making the Final Choice of a College | No Comments »
April 7th, 2009
“But I don’t want to go there!” Such is the all too frequent response of a despondent high school senior as s/he is reminded of the colleges that have admitted him/her. Despite the best of plans, when outcomes don’t match expectations in the college admission process you may be left feeling like your life has gone into a hopeless tailspin.
All is not lost, though. Before you allow despair to overwhelm you, take stock of your opportunities. The reality is that things are rarely as bad as they seem. So, in deference to an old and worn cliché—“when life hands you lemons, make lemonade.”
In the interest of finding the best “lemonade mix,” I would like to discuss two scenarios you may be encountering now that all of your admission decisions are in hand.
Scenario #1: While you have been admitted to a number of very interesting schools, your absolute first choice college has offered you a place on its Wait List. Now, you find yourself in an awkward position. Do you hold out hope that you will be moved from the Wait List or do you begin to invest emotionally in the options that are real?
As I have been preaching all winter, Wait Lists are likely to be active at most institutions this spring. The only questions, then, are when and for how many students. The key to getting in rests on the decisiveness of your response. If you want to compete for a place in the class from the Wait List, you must get on the “radar screen” of the admission committee at that school. We talked about steps you can take to accomplish this during the March 25 Best College Fit™ Web-Side Chat webcast, “Admission Decision Letter Preview.”
The key to success in any Wait List situation is to maintain a balanced perspective. While you want to do everything possible to enhance your chances of admission from the Wait List, be careful not to under-value the other options you do have in the process. After all, you are holding offers from places that are presumably good “fits” for you. Make sure you invest the requisite time and energy in preparing to choose from among them if the Wait List situation doesn’t pan out.
Scenario #2: You didn’t get into any of your top choice colleges, but you have been admitted at a couple of your “safety” schools. Unfortunately, they don’t hold the same luster that is associated with the places that turned you down. As “back-ups,” they we were fine—perhaps because you didn’t think you would ever really have to consider them. Besides, now that your friends have been admitted to some of the places that turned you down, the schools that are left may not seem nearly so exciting. You feel stuck. If this is the case, what can you do?
If you find yourself in such a situation, re-assess the options you do have. They weren’t so bad when you decided to apply. Rediscover them. Find out why they made it to your list in the first place. They may not carry the same cachet as the places that turned you down, but the academic opportunities they present are probably every bit as good as those you would have found at the other schools.
An alternative is to apply somewhere else as a late applicant. This is easier said than done, though, as most schools are reluctant to entertain late applications from students with whom they have little or no history. Your best chance in this instance is to find a college or university with an active Wait List and hope it will see your credentials as competitive with the students it is considering from its Wait List. This is not likely to be the case, though, at places that are as selective as those that turned you down earlier.
The conversation about admission decisions and enrollment options continues for Best College Fit Members on April 13 with the Web-Side Chat Series and “Evaluating Financial Aid Options.” At 7PM (ET), I will talk about the concept of the “expected family contribution” (EFC) and how colleges across the spectrum can interpret it differently. Then, I will review actual financial aid awards. In the process, I will guide you through a comparison of award letters and answer your questions.
NB: All Web-Side Chats are recorded and available for review in the Webcast Archives. In addition, I am offering a limited number of short-term private consultations to help families sort out college options including those relating to Wait Lists and/or financial aid. Please contact me directly at Peter@TheAdmissionGame.com to make arrangements.
Posted in Hot Topics/Trends, The Admission Process | No Comments »
April 2nd, 2009
Who would have thought that the headlines would read “Recession has Silver Lining for Class of ’09”? (Washington Post, Susan Kinzie, April 1, 2009) After hearing how “record numbers of talented applicants were rejected at top colleges” for much of the past decade, it would seem that this is the year of the applicant—or is it?
It turns out very little is predictable about outcomes this year. Sure, some members of the Class of ’09 are finding unexpected success, but the good news is not flowing evenly. In fact, if you are an applicant, much depends on your personal financial circumstances.
Students who do not need financial aid are finding more college options than usual. Conversely, those who need assistance are either finding themselves admitted—but short of the money they need—or, worse yet, on wait lists.
I heard about these scenarios and more during the March 25 Web-Side Chat in which I talked with Best College Fit™ members about what to expect with regard to admission decisions. I received questions about the impact of needing financial aid on a student’s ability to gain admission from the wait list as well as the likelihood of receiving merit scholarships from selective schools.
One participant, a college advisor, observed that, “Many of my full pay kids are getting money even though they haven’t asked. And my inner city kids are getting scholarship offers in their acceptance letters, but when the financial aid package letters come, they are gapped so much they cannot attend the schools.”
The next six weeks promise to be unprecedented with regard to renewed admission activity as colleges and universities press onward to get their classes. And it will be a time of opportunity for students who understand the process and are prepared to respond decisively when that opportunity presents itself. Wait lists will move and I won’t be the least bit surprised to see schools revisiting admitted students with new offers of financial aid and/or merit scholarships.
The Best College Fit™ (BCF) Membership program continues to provide insight and support to families as they sort through the various college options that lie before them. On April 13, BCF hosts a Web-Side Chat webcast, “Evaluating Financial Aid Options,” that will compare actual financial aid awards and provide advice with regard to next steps in making the final choice of a college. In addition the “College Talk” email listserves provides on-going conversation opportunity throughout the month.
NB: All Web-Side Chats are recorded and available for review in the Webcast Archives.
In addition, I am offering a limited number of short-term private consultations to help you sort out your college options. Please contact me directly at Peter@TheAdmissionGame.com to make arrangements.
Posted in Financial Aid, The Admission Process | No Comments »
