I don’t know if I am permitted to name him directly, but I wanted to say that the admissions counselor at Dickinson who deals with our geographical region was fantastic. He is a young guy who only graduated last year, and my daughter interviewed with him during our visit on the very first day of classes at Dickinson. It turned out they had some very interesting things in common, because he had personal experience with an issue my daughter was researching for her IB extended essay. They stayed in touch by email and when he was coming to a college fair at a school in our area, he met my daughter for coffee at her request. We also saw him at a local event at an alumnus’ house. After my daughter got her acceptance, he wrote her the nicest handwritten card and remembered so many things about her. Sadly, my daughter declined the offer of acceptance as she had received an acceptance from her early decision school, but she made a point of writing him a personal note. I plan to contact the school admissions office to let them know what a wonderful job this young man is doing. While I am very happy with the college my daughter will be attending, I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to say how very impressed we were with Dickinson and with this particular representative of the school. I felt the desire to post this in light of some recent negative threads about the school. Of course, I have no idea what my daughter’s experience would have been if she actually attended, but all of our experiences with Dickinson during the college search process were extremely positive.
On my family’s visits and interactions with Dickinson, we always found the admissions’ staff very professional, helpful, and welcoming. They definitely put a good foot forward as ambassadors for the college.
Definitely send an email or letter to the head of admissions praising the counselor. So many people these days are quick to complain so it makes a complimentary letter stand out even more.
My daughter’s regional counselor is also great. She sent a personalized handwritten card following my daughter’s EA acceptance. She is also a relatively recent graduate and shares common interests with my daughter. I called the school to arrange a campus visit and they were extremely helpful in coming up with a schedule that would best fit her interests and the time she has available.
We too had very positive experiences with Dickinson. When DS went back for re-visit day and went to pick up his name tag, someone (not the rep) said “So great to meet you in person - we loved your essay!” In a process that can feel so harsh and impersonal, the interactions that signal that they know - and value - that you’re a person make such a difference. That day in particular really propelled Dickinson into his top choices, and we and DS both felt it was the quality of the personal interactions that stood out. While DS ultimately chose to go elsewhere, I feel very comfortable recommending this school to others.