Some of these changes may have been discussed already, but I thought this article might be of interest to parents of high schoolers. It’s written from the perspective of a VP of Admissions.
"This year’s admissions headlines covered selectivity rates, surviving the process, getting into the dream school, and Costco. On the whole, the headlines were fairly predictable. But next year?
A look into the future suggests next year will be uncertain and even chaotic for students, families, and most colleges during the admissions process. The emergence of the new application and portfolio system of the Coalition for Access, Affordability, and Success, along with the National Association of College Admissions Counselors’ reassessment of the Statement of Principles and Good Practices, are the smallest of disruptions in comparison to what is on the horizon.
As an enrollment manager, I have been wishing for change to the system in the same way a parent awaits good news of the healthy birth of a child. But can so many changes be good for families sending a child off to college?
In the coming year, we will see changes in standardized testing, use of prior-prior year tax information in applying for financial aid, elimination of colleges’ access to the selected institution list on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, and the likely expansion of Simplified Needs Testing resulting from Medicaid expansion. These and other factors like demographic shifts, ability to pay, and public support for higher education represent unprecedented changes to the world of college admissions."
Why does it matter if a college can see the other schools listed on the FAFSA? I can’t see how that affects college admissions at most schools…where th financial aid office is totally in a separate place from admissions.
Need aware schools admissions would know the student financial need…but not see the FAFSA…or list of schools. Sorry…this seems like a non-issue to me.
I’m sure you saw the study about how it DID affect admissions, and financial aid, @thumper1 - you’ve been hanging out in the FA forum longer than I have!
Colleges that use “level of applicant’s interest” in admissions may have used it to determine whether they are a high choice or a low choice (applicants apparently commonly list colleges starting with their top choices).
Well, isn’t that a shame if the colleges lose a little edge in knowing what order students have listed their schools. No sympathy here! They never should have had that access to start with.