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September 12, 2005
On the road again...................
The thermometer my still tell us the temperature is in the mid-80s, but it is fall travel season. The admission office staff is climbing into their rented cars with boxes and boxes of supplies in order to find students that are good matches for out next freshman class. Admission counselors will spend the next two to three months talking to high school sophomores, juniors and seniors, guidance counselors and parents. Before you sit down and chat with an Albright representative or someone from another college or university, I think it is important you understand what a September or October day is like for someone in this profession.
I am luck in my office; most of my travel is within a few hours of home. Several of my co-workers will not see their homes or beds for weeks at a time. They will spend their mornings eating a continental breakfast at a Holiday or Hampton Inn and speed off by 7 am in order to arrive at their first high school visit by 8 am (hopefully traffic will cooperate). There will usually be five such visits in a day spent talking to high school student and their counselors. Lunch will be squeezed in between an 11 am and 1 pm visit, more than likely at a mini-mart or fast food joint. This will allow my office mates to pick up their second cup of coffee for the day and energize themselves for the afternoon conversations.
Most evenings there will be a college fair to attend. The schedule is usually 6 pm to 9 pm or in that range. This rarely permits an admission person to have a good sit down meal because if a fair starts at 6 pm, you must arrive around 5:30 to set up and account for any potential traffic problems that may arise.
When the fair concludes, after three hours on their feet, a counselor will drive to the next hotel and set their course for the next morning. The fall brings long days, but the conversation that we have with students are what make them go by quickly. So if you see one of my co-workers on the road or talk to someone from another school please do so with an engaging smile and ask them how their morning or afternoon coffee was.
I spend this week in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. I will let you know how my travels and others in our office go this fall. I also will post interesting articles about Albright and college admission and financial aid as much as possible.
Hope to talk to you soon!!!!
Posted by Chris Boehm at September 12, 2005 2:49 PM