Hi everyone.
I want to email my admissions reps at some of the schools I am applying to but am not sure what kind of questions people ask them. Can anyone provide some examples of questions that would be good to email to an admissions officer?
Before you email admissions officers:
– See if the school even cares about demonstrated interest. Google each school’s common data set and check section C.
– Keep in mind that admission officers are very busy. If you send them an email to ask a question it should be something that you are interested in but that cannot be answered by looking at the school’s website. It should be specific to you – your academic/EC/social/ interests etc.
Definitely avoid asking questions that can be answered by looking at the website.
My D emailed reps with program-specific questions or seeking general information about campus culture, percentages of students selecting certain fields of study, study abroad programs, scheduling interviews, thanking them for answering her questions during school visits, etc., etc.
Don’t email just to get attention. They can smell a fake question a mile away, and you won’t improve your odds of getting in. If you can tell from their common data set that interest matters, show it by visiting campus, visiting their table at a college fair, getting on the college email list, or going to an open house if they have one in your area.
I agree with @intparent, although it’s not always feasible to visit campuses nor do students always have opportunities to attend open houses. I don’t think that it’s bad to get on local admissions reps’ radar via email for schools that take interest into account if you can’t avail yourself of other options. But only do it if you have something worthwhile to say or ask. Ultimately, they’re the ones that go to bat for you, so if you can establish a meaningful dialogue do it – otherwise don’t waste their time.