Each school has a target enrollment number and a yield number which is the percentage of students who actually enroll after being admitted. These numbers are used as part of a school’s ranking. As you know college rankings are crucial to a school’s success.
Many private colleges consider demonstrated student interest in their school as part of their admission decision. This is good news for the student who has their heart set on a particular institution. You might be thinking “How do I show my interest extra special interest when all of your information is submitted by either the Common or Coalition App?” There are several ways that you can show your demonstrated interest in a school. The ideas range from simple to elaborate and I would certainly start with the simples ones right away. In fact, you might use all of the simple ways with every school you are considering.
- Visit their booth at a college fair and fill out an interest card with your information on it.
- Visit the school and arrange for a tour during your junior year. Make sure you make an appointment so your interest can be recorded.
- Apply early decision or early action if this option is available. The early decision option may be binding and prevent you from applying or accepting other offers from colleges. These options should be discussed with parents and advisors.
- Make sure that you submit a supplemental essay if they are optional. Some schools have essays on both the Common and Coalition App that are optional. If you have a strong interest or even a tiny glimmer of interest in those schools make sure to complete these essays. Otherwise, it is optional.
- Participate in any alumni visits to your school. Make sure you express your demonstrated interest at any meetings or get-togethers,
- Try to arrange an interview with the area admission rep or alumni.
- Visit the campus again in your senior year.
- Single out any faculty in your major and email them showing them your interest in their program and in their university.
Some easy ways to demonstrate interest include: get on the school’s email list, follow them on social media, spend time on their website researching potential majors, attend a college fair that they are attending, contact their regional representative by email or phone, send thank you notes and emails after visits or any interactions and follow the instructions for the waitlist if you are notified you are on the waitlist.
On a personal note, my youngest daughter (I have 3 daughters and a son!) who was an aspiring filmmaker in high school had only one school she wanted to attend. She was accepted by others but did not want to go to any other school than this particular private university. She visited the campus several times, went on the campus tour, attended the university’s presentation at her school. applied early decision but was waitlisted. She targeted the Dean of the department that she was interested in and emailed him throughout her senior year. She won an international award for her filmmaking and made sure that the Dean was aware of this. She even took a picture of her puppy with the school bandana on and sent it to the Dean. I must also add that she was several points below the SAT/ACT score and GPA listed on the university website. The university lists GPA and ACT/SAT scores as numbers that they expect their entering freshmen class will have however it doesn’t always work out that way that year. I also think it has to do with the popularity (football team?) of the university that year. Waitlisted students need to confirm with the school that they are still interested in attending.
During the first week in May my daughter received notification that she had been accepted to the university of her choice. The whole family was so happy for her and somewhat relieved that she didn’t have to resort to the back-up plan. It all turned out well for her as she was an excellent student at the university and graduated in four years with a very timely degree in media management.
The motto here is to demonstrate interest and don’t give up while you are collecting acceptances from back-up schools that you would attend in case you do not receive an acceptance from school #1.
Any questions? Feel free to contact me through the contact page or by email.
Dr. Nancy Rich