Overheard in Committee: A Good Read

We Admit It!  Despite a few interruptions from Mother Nature, Committee is progressing well.  We’ve admitted some really outstanding students, we’ve started to see the Class of 2019 take shape and we’ve eaten our collective weight in M&Ms, Hershey’s Kisses, Goldfish, Combos, cupcakes, donuts, Animal Crackers, fruit snacks and potato chips.  But we know your primary interest is in what was said, not what was eaten.  So dear readers, here’s this week’s installment of Overheard in Committee.

Overheard in Committee: This was just a really enjoyable read.

We were sitting around the conference room table, discussing an applicant who was fine on paper – strong even – but just not terribly distinctive from the other fine – strong even – applicants we had already reviewed today.  As the regional dean was presenting this student’s case, she acknowledged that both she and the other reader (remember, every application is read by two different members of our staff, one of whom is always the student’s regional dean) found the application to be a genuinely enjoyable read.  What exactly does that mean?  It just means that as each component of the application was read (the transcript, extracurricular resume, letters of recommendation, essays and in this case an interview) the readers got good vibes.  Each piece of the application built on the previous one and altogether painted a genuinely good picture of the student applying.

Good reads stand out to us because we truly get a full picture of the applicant.  Good reads feel different, elevated somehow from the other files we read.  That doesn’t necessarily mean they’re more competitive or better applicants, they just come across in a very personable way.  With a “good read” we often feel like we genuinely got to know the student applying.  Not all good reads are admitted; and that’s because a good read alone cannot compensate for lackluster areas of an application.  But, when the application was strong overall just not distinctive in any one area, a “good read” can be a salient factor in determining the outcome.

We hope this shows a bit more of the human side of what we do.  Yes, part of our job is to look at numbers (GPAs, SATs, number of AP/IB/Dual Enrollment classes taken), but admission is often more of an art than a science.  We, the Committee, are real people, with real emotions and real reactions to the stories we read in application files.  There are times when we can’t help but be moved by the compelling tales we read or the feel we get from an application file.  The class we are creating is made up of individuals; not numbers or credentials (although those of course play a role).  Sometimes a good read is just that.  We appreciated the application but it may not amount to enough to be admitted.  Other times a good read is just the tip factor we need to move us to vote to admit.

As we return to Committee after our late start (thank you Mother Nature for our third snowfall in as many weeks) we will continue to look for good students, good stories and yes, good reads.

Wendy Livingston ’03, M.Ed. ‘09
Associate Dean of Admission

Categories: Admission, Faculty & Staff Blogs Tags: , ,
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