~ BY KAREN FINUCAN CLARKSON ~
T
oo many families approach the college admission process with trepidation rather than a sense of adventure and that’s unfortunate, said Dale Bittinger, director of undergraduate admissions and orientation at University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). “Applying to college should be enjoyable, a celebration of 18 years of hard work. Unfortunately, it’s become so process-oriented that the experience is often otherwise.” The frenzy surrounding college admissions is fueled by several factors. College rankings may convince families “that their perfectly admissible student won’t get into college,” said Florence Hines, vice president for enrollment management and dean of admissions at McDaniel College in Westminster. That worry is exacerbated by reports of a growing pool of applicants and a rise in the number of applications each prospective college student submits. The number of students in degree-granting postsecondary institutions is expected to reach 23 million by 2020, up from 20.4 million in 2009, according to the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC). Nearly threequarters of the nation’s colleges saw an increase in applications in 2010 and a quarter of fall 2010 freshmen applied to seven or more schools, up 3 percent from fall 2008. The result is that, on average, a college admissions officer reviews more than 500 applications annually, according to the NACAC.The average ratio of applications to admission officers at public institutions in 2010 was 981-1, compared with 402-1 at private institutions. Given the numbers, it’s not surprising that students feel pressured to create applications that stand out from the pack. That task becomes easier and some of the angst abates when an applicant’s strengths correspond to a school’s profile. In other words, where a student submits an application is as important as what he submits, both Bittinger and Hines said. ISTOCKPHOTO: THIS PAGE, BGWALKER; OPPOSITE PAGE, SSHEPARD
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Higher Education
Special Supplement | Fall 2012