While I continue daily to help students to improve their SAT and ACT scores, I also write a widely-readnewspaper column, College 101, which reports onthe ever-changing college landscape. Take a look at my columns and don't hesitate to give me a call if I can be of help,
I think Gary L. Ross, vice president and dean of admissions at Colgate University, succinctly sums up the trappings to the news this week about how a growing number of colleges are enticing students to apply by using marketing tactics similar to what credit card companies are doing.
Marquette, Rensselaer Polytechnic, the University of Minnesota and the College of Saint Rose in Albany were among the colleges noted in The New York Times (Jan. 26, 2010) for simplifying the application process: Some schools are waiving the dreaded essay, filling out a good portion of the application, and assuring a decision in three weeks.
It's been great for the colleges. Take Saint Rose in Albany: Its applications have increased 25 percent annually and its standing in U.S. News and world Report rankings climbed more than 20 steps up the magazine's ladder. (Rankings are based in part on the number of applicants)
Eduardo Garnica, 19, of Scaramento, CA, was quoted in the article saying that he had no interest in applying to the University of Pacific until he received a "Disticintive Candidate" application that waived the application fee and essay. Flattered and happy not to write the essay, Eduardo now attends the University of Pacific.
It's not hard to figure how many studnets will respond to the offer of no fee, no essay, and the promise of scholarship money, but it does come at a cost as Ross pointed out in his letter to The New York Times.
"Prospective college students and their parents should be very wary of shortcuts in the college admission process, regardless of how tempting or personalized the enticements seem to be.
"Patronizing offers that boast of a “fast” and “easy” application process could sidetrack students who might otherwise engage in an exercise that rightfully involves introspection, exploration and thoughtful evaluation of serious options.
There is no way — nor is there any reason — to rush this important opportunity to learn. Four years of college will go fast enough," Ross wrote.
There are many reasons why 25 percent of all of the freshmen who started college in the fall of 2009 will not return to their first choices next fall, this is but one of them. It pays to do the research.
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