- Do hire a full time Admission professional, also called an Admission Director. The role of building external relationships and nurturing families through the application process is too demanding and important to be left to volunteers or a busy Head of School.
- Do focus all of your communications. Define in writing exactly how your school is unique, how you differ from the competition. Develop a short "sound bite" which summarizes your school's distinctive qualities and make sure that the faculty and administration know it well. Repeat it often in print and in verbal communications.
- Do define the precise characteristics of the student you are seeking to recruit in as much specificity as possible. The criteria should relate both to the types of students you can currently serve and those you cannot. Then make certain your Faculty Admission Decision Committee is careful only to admit students who meet these criteria. To do otherwise will cause you to admit students who will likely not succeed at your school, which will tax your staff beyond its ability to deliver, and will ultimately hurt your school's reputation when the students leave the school.
- Do develop comprehensive plans for each individual feeder school and its director, staff and parents, to build intimate familiarity with the wonderful qualities of your school and the successful track record of the feeder school's graduates at your school.
- Do make the admission process for a prospective student as user friendly as possible beginning with getting the prospects to inquire about the school, getting them to visit the school, helping them complete the application process, and finally having them matriculate. Actively monitor the status of each potential student prospect—via a searchable electronic database if possible—through the admission process of inquiry, visitation, application, and through to matriculation. Keep notes about contacts with them and keep in touch with them all the way through the process.
- Do develop a written, proactive, comprehensive Admission plan/calendar. Develop a plan for each of the Critical Points in Admission and keep statistics to measure success. This calendar should be widely communicated to all relevant school constituencies so they know about critical events, e.g., open houses, parlor meeting and school visits, and can support them. This calendar should be integrated with the school's overall calendar for coordination purposes. The Critical Points are:
- Generate inquiries
- Turn inquiries into visits
- Turn visits into completed applications
- Improve the "yield" (accepted students who sign contracts and enroll)
- Nurture families from enrollment to matriculation (no withdrawals between enrollment and the first day of school)
- Decrease attrition (i.e., keep families enrolled through graduation)
- Do create a cadre of motivated and trained volunteers to help with admission from among your school's students, parents (non-Board members), and alumni/ae. The Admission Director should be the impresario who selects and mobilizes these individuals in support of key events, telephone calls, emails, and panel discussions to ensure the appropriate people are available to follow all candidates through to successful matriculation.
- Do respond to and care for current students and their families as though they are candidates for continual internal recruitment. By applying the same consistent nurturing to current students as you do for prospective students, schools avoid attrition.
- Do professionalize your admission office by following best practices in staff roles, developing acceptance criteria, carrying out an internal calendar, communicate deadlines and materials checklist to applicants clearly.
- Stay up to date with the latest books, articles, and resources. Participate in a Community of Practice. Seek out your local independent school professional association. If you can't find what you are looking for, post your question here.
Adapted From: http://www.peje.org/docs/RheuaAdmissionProgramReport.pdf
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