Podcast

demonstrated interest

506: What Colleges Want (Part 6): Demonstrated Interest: What Is it, Why Is it Important, and How Do You Show it? with Dean of Enrollment Christine Bowman

Listen Here

SHOW NOTES

On today’s episode, Ethan is joined by Christine Bowman, Assistant VP for Admission at Southwestern University. In part 6 in our series on What Colleges Want, Ethan and Christine get into:

  • What is demonstrated interest and how do colleges track it? 

  • How important is demonstrated interest to a student’s chance of getting in?

  • How might students find out if a particular school considers demonstrated interest in their admission review?

  • What are some practical ways you can demonstrate your interest to colleges?

Christine Bowman is the Assistant VP for Admission at Southwestern, where she oversees the admission department to set enrollment and retention philosophies. She has a Masters in Higher Ed Administration from UT-Austin, was the Co-Chair for the 2007 NACAC National Conference in and has served two terms as the Chair of the Colleges that Change Lives Board of Directors (see last season’s episode with Ann Marano for more on CTCL’s work). She currently serves on the advisory board of ROCA-NM (Rural Opportunities for College Access) and, with almost 30 years of experience in the admission profession, Christine believes in guiding students to find the right college fit and regularly gives presentations encouraging a stress-free college search process.

We hope you enjoy the conversation! 

Play-by-play

  • 2:15 - What is demonstrated interest?

  • 5:00 - Why might demonstrated interest be important to colleges?

  • 8:22 - What is yield?

  • 11:24 - How can students demonstrate interest for a particular school? 

  • 15:17 - What can colleges track?

  • 18:52 - For whom does demonstrated interest matter most? 

  • 23:47 - How to “break up” with a college

  • 27:05 - What are some practical tips for students as they reach out to a college?

  • 30:10 - How might an admissions officer use demonstrated interest?

  • 32:58 - What ways can students demonstrate interest without visiting campus?

  • 37:24 - What is the difference between early action, early decision, and regular decision?

  • 40:25 - How important is the college interview?

  • 48:10 - What can parents do to support their students during this process?

  • 53:02 - Closing advice for parents, students, and counselors 

ResourceS

 

501: What Colleges Want (Part 1): A Deep Dive into the Factors Colleges Deem Important & State of College Admissions Report

Listen Here

SHOW NOTES

On today's episode, Ethan sits down with David Hawkins, Chief Education and Policy Officer at National Association of College Admission Counselors (aka NACAC), and they get discuss, among other things: 
What are the most important factors colleges consider? 

  • What significant changes has he seen in the college admission landscape in the past few years?

  • How has the emphasis on college essays (aka the personal statement) shifted? 

  • Why has the emphasis in standardized testing changed?

  • What have the impacts been of the Supreme Court decision to ban race conscious admission? 

  • How can students, counselors, and parents use the info in this report to make their college admission process easier? 

For over 20 years, David Hawkins has worked in enrollment management and admissions to alleviate systemic barriers to accessing higher education. Hawkins has played a key role in setting NACAC's strategic direction, which involved hearing and representing the collective voice of NACAC’s more than 25,000 high school counselors and college admission officers. His priorities include making NACAC a more effective learning organization, with an emphasis on ethics and redefining advocacy.

We hope you enjoy the conversation.

Play-by-play

  • 2:04 - Introductions

  • 3:03 - What is the State of College Admission report?

  • 5:48 - How can students, parents, and counselors use this report?

  • 9:50 - Which factors of admissions decisions are most important to colleges?

  • 13:34 - How are “positive character attributes” assessed?

  • 18:00 - What are some specific qualities that are important to colleges?

  • 20:46 - How do students show these qualities in their applications?

  • 25:33 - How has the importance of the college essay shifted in recent years?

  • 27:13 - Which colleges seem to value the essay more highly?

  • 28:47 - How does a student’s interest in attending a particular school influence admissions decisions?

  • 32:30 - How are counselor & teacher recommendations assessed?

  • 33:58 - What are admissions officers looking for in extracurricular activities?

  • 37:38 - Why is high school class rank dropping in rank of importance? 

  • 39:30 - Do colleges still want to see standardized test scores?

  • 42:52 - Quick thoughts on creative portfolios, interviews, work experience, state exam scores, and subject test scores

  • 44:49 - David shares predictions on shifts in equity and inclusion in the future of admissions

  • 48:57 - Closing thoughts 

Resources