Thursday, September 13, 2018
CHESTNUT HILL LOCAL
Page 11
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Traversing today’s college admissions landscape by Brian Walter, Director, Of fice of College Counseling Springside Chestnut Hill Academy
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colleges, even if they don’t have the flashiest academic profiles. These folks are doing everything they can to provide accurate information to applicants, reduce the hype surrounding the college process, and establish an application reading system that ensures all students are read fairly. However, the reality is that more students are applying to more colleges than ever before. Admissions professionals at the most selective schools in the country see thousands of students in their applicant pools with eye-popping academic credentials, compelling stories, and genuine leadership. Ultimately, even the nicest and kindest of admissions professionals do occasionally need to lean on metrics (GPAs, test scores) to help them make these difficult decisions. While there are always exceptions, for the most part, if a student applies to a highly selective school in the current admissions climate and doesn’t meet or exceed the academic metrics desired by those institutions (GPA, rigor of courses, standardized testing ranges), that student has almost no chance for admission. In fact, most students who do meet or exceed these academic metrics still aren’t admitted to these institutions. In 2018, there is little forgiveness for students who are just off the mark at these types of hyper-selective colleges.
his past June, I spent three days with 18 of the most talented leaders currently working in the world of college admissions. I was invited to attend the Southern Consortium School Summit in Amelia Island, Florida. Along with 14 other college counselors from the independent, public, and charter school world, deans of admission from some of America’s most well-known institutions — including Davidson College, Emory University, Rice University, University of Richmond, Tulane University, Vanderbilt University, Washington & Lee University and Wake Forest University (to name just a few) — shared with us the biggest challenges they grapple with in their positions. I pass these on to you, readers, to give you a behind-the-scenes look at the world of college admissions today. What keeps top college and university leaders up at night: • pressure from college presidents to increase their institution’s standing in such publications as the US News and World Report • the impossible task of managing and “holistically” reading up to 35,000 applications with limited staff (and limited financial aid budgets) • trying to genuinely increase 2. The Money Matters. While many students and paraccess for low-income and underents understand the need to create represented students a college list that includes at least a My colleagues and I on the sec- few “likely” options in terms of ondary school side of the desk were admission, it is critical for students also able to express our concerns to to also have schools included in these deans. Most prominent their list that are “financial likely” options as well. Ideally, parents and among these were: • the seemingly never-ending students need to have an honest increase in applications at just conversation about their family’s about every selective college in the financial situation as it relates to financing higher education before United States • the continued focus on Early the student starts applying to colleges. Is there a specific amount of Decision at many institutions • the creeping feeling that our money that the family feels they students are just pawns in a larger can spend for college? How much game of yield management, analyt- debt would a student be comfortable taking on and how much ics, and “box checking” would he/she have to clear in salary While there were no magic solu- a month to pay back the loan taken tions established during those 72 out? Are all of a student’s top hours, I did come away with six key choice schools going to be the points that I think students and more expensive options? Having a parents about to enter the college few colleges on your list that are likely in terms of admissions means process will find helpful: nothing if these institutions are not 1, Real People Actually Make financially realistic for your family. Admissions Decisions. The large majority of admissions 3. More Applications Does Not professionals I have encountered in Equal More Options! It is almost impossible to apply my 22 years working in admissions and college counseling are good well to dozens of highly selective people who truly care about kids. colleges. I have worked with many These admissions professionals— students over the years who with long and fancy titles such as embrace the “throw the mud and vice president for enrollment man- hope some will stick” philosophy to agement, executive director of this process, and rarely does it turn enrollment services, and the more out the way they hope. Because of how incredibly selectraditional dean of admissions—are also parents of current teenagers tive many of the most popular unientering the college process and versities in the United States have young adults who have recently become (at least 40 institutions been through the process. They admitted applicants at a rate of want to admit deserving students (Continued on page 12) with compelling stories to their
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