It's January again, and school will be back in session before you know it. While admissions counselors across the United States aren’t necessarily back to work yet, the time is quickly approaching – and that means it’s about time to continue poring over admissions applications.
Sometimes the best advice for admissions counselors isn’t really about how to find the right applicants during ‘crunch’ time – it’s about how to make the process far less stressful on yourself. When you’re less stressed out, your applicant base will feel as if the process is more pain free. This makes both your life and the life of your admissions base 100 times easier as you navigate through another round of applicants and another academic year. Get the Help You Need Admissions counselors are universally used to doing everything themselves. If you’re also responsible for reviewing applications at your school, chances are this time of year is overwhelming for you. This is where interns come in. If you haven’t asked your administrative staff for interns, now is a great time. Students may also be eligible for work study – which is a great way to get some labor into your office and ensuring your workers are fairly compensated. You may not want students going through applications themselves, but simple things like data entry, matching up test scores and ensuring that all applications materials are in place for particular students may be things that currently admitted students can help you with. Take a Break Multi-tasking is something you need to be naturally good at in able to do this job – but things shouldn’t be so stressful that you’re pulling your hair out day after day. If you don’t have a system in place, this time of year is a great place to get one. Try setting aside a few hours a day to answer student questions. Rather than taking meetings at a specific time, block out hours on your schedule where you’re going to go through applications. Try blocking out time for answering emails. If you’re feeling overwhelmed with your current workload and set up, maybe it’s time to start fresh in the new year and take another approach to your work. Try making a list of the top 5-10 things that stress you out during this time of year and make an action plan to minimize those. You’ll find yourself happier and more productive in the new year – particularly if you’re able to ask for help when needed. A happier admissions counselor is a happier admissions base. The less painful the process is for you, the more streamlined it will appear for your students.
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It's that time of year again – when all your hard work visiting classrooms to discuss how your learning institution is the best choice culminates in (hopefully) thousands of applications. You know, however, that the work is nowhere near done. Even if the first round of application deadlines has passed, late applications will come in and students will start exploring financial aid options with the FAFSA date coming up.
Believe it or not, many students still aren’t aware that January 1 is an important time for them. Many students’ parents will need to contribute to helping with the FAFSA, which can be a harrowing process. High schools typically help out with filling out the application – but then there are tuition fees to worry about, and who wants to pay hefty application fees? Most colleges offer FAFSA help and application fee waivers to help with costs. The problem is, many students – both traditional and nontraditional – don’t have any idea these resources exist. With internet communications becoming so prevalent, it’s important to give students some options to save money. The idea is not to reduce your school’s revenue, but to increase enrollments by giving students from lower income families a chance. But you already knew that, right? Examine the Qualifying Income It may be too late this year, but it’s always good to review the income brackets for application fee waivers with administration. If hard economic times in the US call for a review of the current bracket, then make that happen. Start a dialogue now so you can revisit this issue with administration next summer or fall. Modify Digital Applications Remind students about fee waivers by modifying digital materials. Ask the student to indicate whether or not they’re interested in a fee waiver, then ask for an email so you can contact the student personally if necessary. If your school is a large university, you may want to ask students to complete an extra digital form so that you’re not sending 10,000 emails. Many schools already have printed applications, so just slip a fee waiver questionnaire into current applications to save a little time if necessary. It’s also a great idea to make sure that students know they can request an application fee waiver by telling them on the admissions webpage. So many schools gloss over this step. Reminding students that aid resources they wouldn’t always consider are available to them could get you those extra applications you’re looking for. Extra applications mean you and students both have an opportunity to excel. One of the best parts about working in higher education is that it is a world that is ever evolving. Once one plan is successfully implemented and on its way, it is already time to begin working on the next one. It’s the cycle of enrollment and classes that keeps a university body moving steadily onward. Classes may have just begun for the spring semester, but now is the best time to begin implementing strategies for bringing students in over the summer.
Who Takes Summer Courses? The students that enroll in summer courses are from all over the map. Some of them may be returning home and want to get a few credits out of the way that they can transfer back with them when they return to their home institution in the fall. Some may be eager students ready to get some of those prerequisites out of the way before hitting the books in the fall. Others may be non-traditional students who are just looking for a class that will sharpen their minds and interest them. And still others may be those repeating a course that did not go as planned for them during the previous term. In many ways, summer courses offer a broader range of student possibilities than traditional enrollment in Fall or Spring. Use Your Data By using your student data from the previous two semesters, you will be able to have a clear vision of the types of courses those repeat students will need. You can also use that same data from the previous summer to tell you which classes have, historically, been the most popular. Summer courses are a great way to pick up extra revenue because classes are quick and hyper focused. For example, I studied how to write my essay in summer to achieve high results in school. The nature of a summer course appeals to some students because of the short time commitment. The summer session can also appeal to those who don’t want to focus on too many things at once. Students who struggle with math or science might find it easier to focus on these subjects when they don’t have the rest of their class load to think about. Whatever type of students that you typically serve, summer is a wonderful time to bring in those students who don’t normally sign up for a full load of classes come Fall. This is also a perfect time to let those students know all of the incredible offerings you have so that you can tempt them into returning full time. |
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