Best and worst admissions offices

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: Virginia Tech has made a mess of things for the last 7 years.

Just because you like to repeat this every year doesn't make it true. They do an excellent job with tours, ASDs, etc.

Was it 2018 where the app deadline closed and suddenly a week later they reopened it.

I think they totally over enrolled in 2020 and had to rent out hotels a mile from campus .

It’s something every year. I’m sure you could Google it.

[Anonymous]

I work in admissions for a K-12 private where tuition is $60k/year. We think a big part of admissions work is being ambassadors for the school, so while I agree that of course all admissions staff should be lovely and try to make a good impression, I also think it's strange that people are angry if they don't get a free lunch or if a receptionist may be having a rough day or if someone just makes a mistake. They are still human beings and they are dealing with an extremely high number of applications, phone calls, emails, and visitors. Are some of them better at it than others? Sure, but I would encourage you to help your dc see past that and focus on everything else about the school, as they will likely never deal with admissions again after they submit an application (or if they choose not to apply, after the visit).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Worst: Kenyon - DD checked in but they apparently didn’t check her in properly so we missed the tour (they call visitors by name for small group specialty tours so we just waited for her name to be called). We finally followed up and eventually got an absolutely awful 10 minute tour that they pretended was the tour we were supposed to be on. It was all very disorganized and the tour guide was confused about what tour she was supposed to be giving. It’s also the only school that didn’t send us a post-visit survey about our visit. So either they don’t care or, more likely, they never did manage to check her in despite her checking in repeatedly so they have no idea she was ever there. Which would be really annoying if she wanted to apply since they consider demonstrated interest.

For a $400K product, it definitely reflects poorly on the school when admissions is so disorganized. Most of the schools have been fine and interactions have gone as expected. We had particularly great experiences at Skidmore and Occidental.

Our experience at Kenyon was great both at their "junior day" and when my kid did the official visit as a commit.

[Anonymous]

Union College was terrible. We asked the tour guide about programs in my son's major area of academic interest, which is also one of the college's most popular majors. She referred us to the admissions office. Ok, fair enough. So then we asked an admissions officer the same question but he had nothing to say other than mumbling about how he needed to brush up on that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Worst: Kenyon - DD checked in but they apparently didn’t check her in properly so we missed the tour (they call visitors by name for small group specialty tours so we just waited for her name to be called). We finally followed up and eventually got an absolutely awful 10 minute tour that they pretended was the tour we were supposed to be on. It was all very disorganized and the tour guide was confused about what tour she was supposed to be giving. It’s also the only school that didn’t send us a post-visit survey about our visit. So either they don’t care or, more likely, they never did manage to check her in despite her checking in repeatedly so they have no idea she was ever there. Which would be really annoying if she wanted to apply since they consider demonstrated interest.

For a $400K product, it definitely reflects poorly on the school when admissions is so disorganized. Most of the schools have been fine and interactions have gone as expected. We had particularly great experiences at Skidmore and Occidental.

Our experience at Kenyon was great both at their "junior day" and when my kid did the official visit as a commit.

We had a wonderful visit at Kenyon as well, and it's impressive to me how much focused follow up they do as opposed to just spamming marketing emails. My dd never ended up applying as she got into her ED; my ds went along for the visit and liked it so much he is applying this year, even though it never would have been on his radar otherwise. I think all this thread really goes to show is that, depending on the day and the family, everyone could have great, good, mediocre, or terrible visit anywhere. I've done almost 30 college tours at this point and, even when they toured the same school, my dcs sometimes had very different experiences. I believe all the Bates love on this thread and it's a wonderful school, but it was probably one of our worst tours and info sessions of all.

[Anonymous]

Uvm seem cool. They’re constantly mailing stuff like assemble at home viewfinders that have pics of the campus (that a student designed). Their essay questions were clever and creative without being obnoxious. Definitely made a good impression on us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is the weirdest post on here right now. Says a lot about you guys. You’re focused on the wrong thing people

Odd take. Most people would agree that how prospective customers are treated very much matters in any industry.

How much of a range is there with this variable?

You sign up online for a tour. Your kid checks in at the desk. You listen to the presentation. You walk around the campus with a tour guide.

In terms of differences: Some schools give out a little swag. And apparently one provides a lunch ticket. In my experience, all have provided free parking, but maybe there are some with pay-to-park garages??

I’m genuinely curious. What exactly do you think these tiny “customer experience” differences on your day say about the relative value or experience of a four year college education at these schools?

+1
I picture these people calling the admissions office of every school their kid is applying to and demanding answers about... something or other. So bizarre.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: Virginia Tech has made a mess of things for the last 7 years.

Just because you like to repeat this every year doesn't make it true. They do an excellent job with tours, ASDs, etc.

Was it 2018 where the app deadline closed and suddenly a week later they reopened it.

I think they totally over enrolled in 2020 and had to rent out hotels a mile from campus .

It’s something every year. I’m sure you could Google it.

It's really not "something every year," but sure. Whatever you say.

[Anonymous]

I was super impressed with USC (california) admissions department. We were not able to visit in person, but they had the best virtual essay writing workshops. They picked up the phone and answered questions in a helpful manner. Reaching out via email with questions got a fast response. They have unique academic programs. They were very helpful explaining first and second choice majors, etc. The online presentations were great and I was really impressed. Perhaps because they had a specific program that was a great academic fit for our kid. My least favorite admission office experience was Tufts. Found them lazy and totally uninspiring and our dc didnt bother applying. My kid got in early to an ivy and they are happy, but dh and I were excited about usc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Weird to me that some people don’t care whether the college treats prospective customers like crap or not.

Especially if you’re expecting families to spend $400,000 on something you offer with a value that’s hard to quantify

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Occidental was wonderful, kind, warm, welcoming.

Well, I would hope so in light of the fact that selectivity is only 44% and that the college recently announced a devastating 15% fall in applications. https://theoccidentalnews.com/news/2025/11/05/college-adjusts-spending-and-admissions-tactics-in-the-wake-of-enrollment-decline/2916071. Then, there are the never-ending protests by SJP most recently at Coons and took over Coons on Nov 20 (I was there) which has led to at least 14 Jewish students transferring out because they didn’t sFe on campus

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What a discussion

Exactly!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Union College was terrible. We asked the tour guide about programs in my son's major area of academic interest, which is also one of the college's most popular majors. She referred us to the admissions office. Ok, fair enough. So then we asked an admissions officer the same question but he had nothing to say other than mumbling about how he needed to brush up on that.

My kid went to Union. He liked his visit so much that he decided to apply ED while we were driving back to the airport from our visit. That was a few years ago, but I’m sure different people have varying experiences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Williams and Middlebury were impressive.

Bates was very good too but Colby much less so.

Totally agree on Bates vs Colby admissions office. Went to visit all 3 colleges in Maine this past summer and Bates went out of their way to answer every question and put us in touch with professors to follow up on a discussion. Gave us a ticket for a free lunch too. Bowdoin was alright but no free lunch. Tour guide was amazing. Colby clearly was only interested in the athletes in our group. Could care less about the other students who were non athletes. They couldn’t even be bothered to turn around and talk to the whole group. Also, becomes obvious when first stop is the gym.

Bates is exceptional. DS ended up at Middlebury but Bates leapfrogged other NESCACs after our interaction with AO.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: Virginia Tech has made a mess of things for the last 7 years.

Just because you like to repeat this every year doesn't make it true. They do an excellent job with tours, ASDs, etc.

Was it 2018 where the app deadline closed and suddenly a week later they reopened it.

I think they totally over enrolled in 2020 and had to rent out hotels a mile from campus .

It’s something every year. I’m sure you could Google it.

It's really not "something every year," but sure. Whatever you say.

Agree. I’m on here a lot and certainly more than back that far. The PP just invented that to bully.