Colleges launch final push to meet fall admissions goals
As the academic year ends, applications for the Class of 2018 are in. Admissions officials at Central Massachusetts colleges and universities are confident they’ll meet their headcount goals for their incoming groups of freshmen, with some hoping for slight increases over last year.
Jim Fowler, dean of admissions at Dean College in Franklin, said in an email that his applicant pool is 3 percent deeper over 2013 and has grown 68 percent in the last five years.
Many of the schools recently held open house events to invite accepted students to visit one last time before they make their final decisions. Typically, these types of events are successful in boosting admissions deposits the schools receive. Worcester State University, in particular, received such a financial boost from a recent “Congratulations Day” event, Ryan Forsythe, the school’s vice president for enrollment management, said.
“We have had quite a surge,” he said last month. “After the event, we received almost 50 percent more deposits than we did last year on that day. So, we are optimistic for a better year.”
Reaching out
As application deadlines draw closer, schools try to make their presence more prevalent on social media. They’re slowly adapting to certain handles in hopes of getting more information out to students who are going through the college application process.
“We have been treading lightly in social media, because we are aware of where the students go for information,” Ann McDermott, director of admission at the College of the Holy Cross, said last month.
Then, there’s the issue of cost, which can greatly influence a student’s decision on where to go. That’s very much on the minds of officials at schools like Assumption College, which recently froze tuition for current freshmen and sophomores, as well as for the Class of 2018. Becker College and Worcester State have done something similar.
“I think certainly that in this economy, cost is something that many families are considering,” Edward Connor, chief admissions officer at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, said.
“Hopefully financial aid programs help balance the out-of-pocket costs a little bit and take cost out of the equation for some families and minimize that part of the decision-making process.”
Becker, meanwhile, has implemented its Be Affordable program, in which undergraduate day students will have tuition and financial aid awards remain the same through their four years.
“It is very attractive and reassuring to families to understand up front how to plan financially,” Kevin Mayne, vice president of enrollment management at Becker, said in an email.
“We created this program as a response to the growing need to make the dream of college education an affordable reality.”
But affordable tuition isn’t the only factor students consider when picking a school. Paul Brower, admissions director at Nichols College in Dudley, shed some light on why kids may choose one school over others.
“Nichols is the only area school that offers a formal professional development program to our students,” Brower said in an email. “It really gives our students an edge as they compete for internships and professional positions.”
Maintaining a high level of enrollment from year to year can sometimes become difficult. But the schools learn over the years what techniques tend to work and which ones don’t.
Some schools have decided to take a different approach and have begun sending people across the country to recruit more students.
“Becker has been engaging in more national travel and expanded outreach,” Mayne said.
“We are also providing strong leadership development programs and expanded service learning trip options, allowing for a more enriching and transformational collegiate experience.”
It’s always tough to decipher why more or fewer students are committing to schools each year, but keeping a high level of communication between the school and potential student is key, officials say.
“As we approach the critical decision time for them, we have essentially ramped up our level of engagement,” said Peter Miller, dean of admissions and financial aid at Anna Maria College in Paxton. “We are with them every step of the way, monitoring how it is and where they are as they go through the process.” n
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