In this day and age, more and more colleges and universities are considering demonstrated interest in their admissions process. If you aren't familiar with the term or don't know the ins and outs of demonstrated interest, you may be at a disadvantage come application time. During my recent Facebook Live Q&A, I covered all things college visits and demonstrated interest.
In case you missed it, here’s a recap with a list of the questions I answered, the full video of my session, and some bonus questions that I didn't get to answer live!
HERE ARE SOME OF THE QUESTIONS YOU'LL SEE ME ANSWER:
- What are the benefits of visiting a college campus?
- How can a family get the most out of a college visit?
- What do colleges offer families during college visits?
- When is the best time to have an on-campus interview?
- How many colleges can you visit in a day?
- If a student visits a campus as a 10th grader, does this count towards demonstrated interest?
- Is it still necessary to check in with the admissions office if a student signed up online and attended an organized school tour and information session?
- How does a student show demonstrated interest if they visit on an off-tour day or when the admissions office is closed?
- What if you are unable to visit a college? What are the alternatives and are any valued as much as a campus visit?
- What steps can a student take to show demonstrated interest?
- Should a student begin following the social media pages of schools as part of demonstrated interest?
- Do all colleges factor in demonstrated interest in the admissions process?
- How can you find out if a college uses demonstrated interest in the admissions process?
- What is considered an official college visit?
- If a student is on a college campus due to an extracurricular activity, is there a way to make their interest in the college known?
- How can a student fit in visits to all of the colleges on their list? How do you prioritize your list? Do you need to visit all of the colleges on your list?
- When a school does not conduct interviews, how do you make contact with your regional rep?
- How much is too much when you're communicating with admissions officers?
- What should a student do if they are deferred or waitlisted?
- When can a student athlete visit a college campus?
- Does demonstrated interest have an impact on the amount of merit-based aid received?
- Is applying Early Decision the ultimate demonstration of interest?
- Do you have tips for a deferred applicant who is revisiting the school for a second time?
- My son's college counselor is recommending that the students send emails to all schools they applied to. My son doesn't have any important updates to his application and doesn't want to seem annoying. Should he email at least his first choice?
- What should students be focusing in on at accepted student visits?
BONUS Q&A- BIG QUESTIONS THAT DIDN'T MAKE THE VIDEO
1. If a college cancelled a tour/info session because of bad weather, would they still consider it as if you had been there?
If you arrived on campus and the tour/info session was cancelled, they'll count that as a visit. If the family never got to campus due to bad weather, the college might have a record that they signed up but that everything was cancelled due to the weather.
2. Our guidance counselor recommended emailing the admission director that visits our area. Basically reaching out to show your interest and letting them know you're interested in attending? What do you think?
Depends on timing. Admissions officers tend to not stay long in the job or they are moved to a different region frequently. So if a junior sends them an email, they may not give it much thought (especially if they're focused on seniors). An email to the admissions officer senior year can be a nice gesture. Knowing that you don't want to annoy them, though, I always tell students to think about the most ideal time to email them. Is it after meeting them at their high school before they apply? Is it right after they submit their application? Or should it be reserved if they get deferred or waitlisted? Students shouldn't email them regularly. And, the other thing is that it's getting harder and harder to get an admissions officer's email address. Many times (at the larger and more selective universities) it's impossible to email the admissions officer for your region directly.
3. My daughter has just started a senior internship. Should she send an updated resume or just a note to the colleges she has applied to?
A short email or just update the admissions portal. If it's related to what she plans to pursue in college, tell her to make that connection in what she writes.
