Denison released admission decisions for over 9000 applicants on Thursday. What does an admission office look like around decision release?
First, it’s important to know that there are four offices in the enrollment management division: admission, financial aid, operations, and strategy/communications. All four offices have critical roles to play in every step of the process.
In the weeks leading up to decision release, the admission staff is reviewing files, participating in selection committees, and making admission decisions one by one. We also step back regularly to take a look at the composition of the entire class to make sure we are meeting all of our objectives. At the same time, we answer calls and respond to emails from nervous applicants (and their families), often right up until the moment decisions are released.
Our financial aid staff, meanwhile, is putting together all of those financial aid offers which will be shared alongside admission decisions. They also work individually with families who may have difficulty submitting some of their information and resolving all financial aid issues before the decisions go out.
Our operations staff are answering phones and emails, processing application and financial aid documents, and making sure our visit program runs smoothly. Then in the days leading up to decisions release, our operations staff assemble our beautiful admission packets, print the admission letters and financial aid packages, and make sure everything gets to the right place. With over 2000 acceptances going out, this is painstaking work where attention to detail is critical. They are the real heroes of decision season!
Finally, our strategy and communication team are writing and designing all of the emails, social media posts, and snail-mail that admitted students will receive in March and April. They also assemble the admitted student portal, a task so complicated it is probably worth it’s own blog post. Especially this year, giving students a chance to experience Denison from afar is more critical than ever.
Finally, at about 4:30 PM on Thursday, everything was ready to go and we hit “SEND” on all of those admission decisions. We may also have opened a few bottles of champagne. The admission process is a year-long cycle, and it’s important for us to celebrate all the hard work that goes into completing any one part of it. So now that decisions are out, we move on to the next stage in the cycle – enrolling the Denison Class of 2025!