College Admissions Staff - Massive turnover

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This explains so much. Thanks for posting.

There has always been a lot of turnover in the role. It involves a lot of travel for crappy pay and it’s hard to advance without changing schools. This is not new. But I fail to understand “what this explains.”

Right???

This is not news or new save that some colleges are doing a better job at hiring diverse, inclusive work forces.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:W&M readers make about $20an hour.

$18-22 is pretty normal. Preference is given to people who have worked in education, especially admissions, secondary, or higher Ed.

As stated above, they listed it as $12/hr last year:

https://www.salary.com/job/william-mary/outside-admission-reader/870d1eb1-0ecc-4604-8748-8d8a7c15c378

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes and seasonal reader jobs pay $12-$18 and you are on the clock to read 4 - 6 applications per hour and score them. (ps. you can find the job descriptions - even at Ivies that show those expectations)

The entire process is broken

It should be like residency match in medicine - you rank your matches 1 to 20 and they rank applicants and those are matched.

How do I get this type of job as a side gig? I have multiple degrees from T25 schools and would find it very interesting. I feel like more DCUM folks should try to do this to understand the process well before their kids go through it.

I applied with very strong credentials and didn’t get picked up or even interviewed. I don’t think they want a well qualified person in that position.

I think they want young & expendable folks.

But it was a set hourly rate and a temp position. Though I’m guessing they did hire younger people. I don’t think they want parents of future applicants to see how the sausage is made.

Some of the schools explicitly exclude parents of high schoolers, or those already working advising high schoolers through the application process. That said, others don't have such exclusions in their job ads.

For what it's worth, I have a Ph.D. from a top public university and was hired to work as an application reader for an out-of-state public university. Though the other readers and I didn't make much money (and we worked 20 hours or more per week from Thanksgiving through mid-January), I was favorably impressed by the other readers. We received extensive required training, and many of the other readers impressed me with their thoughtfulness.

+1

Very much on purpose, which is understandable.

They generally only exclude parents of 12th and sometimes 11th graders.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Serious question: how can you expect the “best and brightest” to be reading your kids’ applications when none of you would apparently encourage (or allow?) your own best and brightest kids to pursue a job like this?

Do they pay what a "best and brightest" college graduate would expect to get?

Of course not. I was using the OP’s own words. “You really wonder whether the best and brightest are reading our kids applications…” Um, no. I don’t wonder at all. Nor do I think they need to be.

Have you ever worked for a university? The hiring process is usually Byzantine and ridiculous. The idea that they would hire you for your great resume is laughable. They probably haven’t even got to your resume yet. Or it was lost in the arcane 1995-era computer hiring system.

[Anonymous]

Univ Prof here. I agree with the main observation of this thread. Admissions offices are being staffed, on average, by poorly trained and poorly educated folks (who are, in general, MUCH less able than folks they are screening). Fact of life and it will not change.

[Anonymous]

Especially at a top school that isn’t in a major city, what 22 y/o is going to stay in Lewiston, Williamsburg, Williamstown, Northampton etc after graduation instead of going into consulting, law school, a PhD program, a fellowship abroad, tech or finance? What parent is going to nod politely if their Larla says they’re going to stay in town after graduation to make $40k in the admissions office?

That’s why you end up with the underachievers working in admissions (and other departments on campus)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Univ Prof here. I agree with the main observation of this thread. Admissions offices are being staffed, on average, by poorly trained and poorly educated folks (who are, in general, MUCH less able than folks they are screening). Fact of life and it will not change.

Will the faculty advocate for better pay to attract stronger admissions staff members?

[Anonymous]

Thanks common app! With written apps back in the day I’m sure this was less of an issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Especially at a top school that isn’t in a major city, what 22 y/o is going to stay in Lewiston, Williamsburg, Williamstown, Northampton etc after graduation instead of going into consulting, law school, a PhD program, a fellowship abroad, tech or finance? What parent is going to nod politely if their Larla says they’re going to stay in town after graduation to make $40k in the admissions office?

That’s why you end up with the underachievers working in admissions (and other departments on campus)

I’m the poster who knows LAC grads who work in admissions. One went to a top 5 LAC. In their case, as an unconnected person with a humanities major, it was the best job they could get. Average Williams English grad makes $41,065 3 years after graduation (https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/fields/?168342-Williams-College). LAC grads are not getting top jobs after graduation unless they’re an Econ major at NESCAC or have connections.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:W&M readers make about $20an hour.

$18-22 is pretty normal. Preference is given to people who have worked in education, especially admissions, secondary, or higher Ed.

As stated above, they listed it as $12/hr last year:

https://www.salary.com/job/william-mary/outside-admission-reader/870d1eb1-0ecc-4604-8748-8d8a7c15c378

Michigan Engineering was offering $25/hr to application readers in this past cycle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:W&M readers make about $20an hour.

$18-22 is pretty normal. Preference is given to people who have worked in education, especially admissions, secondary, or higher Ed.

As stated above, they listed it as $12/hr last year:

https://www.salary.com/job/william-mary/outside-admission-reader/870d1eb1-0ecc-4604-8748-8d8a7c15c378

Michigan Engineering was offering $25/hr to application readers in this past cycle.

$18-$25 is the norm for undergrad readers. W&M’s listing is way outside the norm. Some UC grad schools offer up to $60/hour.

[Anonymous]

Can you imagine having to field angry, insane phone calls and e-mails from parents of rejected students? Of course turnover is high.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can you imagine having to field angry, insane phone calls and e-mails from parents of rejected students? Of course turnover is high.

Since when do admissions offices entertain those calls?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can you imagine having to field angry, insane phone calls and e-mails from parents of rejected students? Of course turnover is high.

Since when do admissions offices entertain those calls?

They do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can you imagine having to field angry, insane phone calls and e-mails from parents of rejected students? Of course turnover is high.

Since when do admissions offices entertain those calls?

They answer them but they will not discuss the reason for denial. They might have 20 years ago but no longer (possible exceptions for development cases).