<p>Hi... In regards to Notre Dame. Does the Regional admissions counselor
for my area review my application and have any say? Who exactly makes
the decision on whether we are admitted or not? </p>
<p>Thanks for your inputs...</p>
<p>When I applied six years ago I believe they did have a say. It is my understanding that admissions decisions are rendered in a committee with multiple counselors and the director present. I am not positive on this though and I bet some of the posters who have worked in admissions might have a clearer idea.</p>
<p>When my daughter applied, she made sure she met her regional admissions counselor when he visited our school. She really got to talk and make an impression on him. When we went to the ND open house in Manhattan, he remembered her and greeted her using her first name (and there were a lot of kids there). I don’t know if this info helps but I think it is beneficial to establish a relationship with your regional counselor. It puts someone in the room who has seen you face-to-face and that can’t hurt!</p>
<p>My understanding is that your local admissions counselor is the first person to review your application, and may make comments or recommendations to the whole committee.</p>
<p>Establishing a good relationship with your counselor can be beneficial, but not if it’s overdone. Emailing them with real, relevant questions, saying hello at admissions events, etc. are all good ideas. Don’t pester them or send a thousand emails with unnecessary information or fake questions, though…they’re very busy!</p>
<p>I think it is especially important to get in touch with your admissions counselor if you are waitlisted. In that case, write them a letter immediately and get your name out there. Chances are, they will be the ones going to bat for you in the waitlist process.</p>
<p>So, in short…yes, it can be helpful to get to know your counselor, but what’s most important is building a strong application and writing solid essays.</p>
<p>Your regional advisor is one of two people who review your application (legacies get a third) - they also fight for your application and argue on your behalf, so getting to know this is very important but as rose pointed out - do not over do it or else it could be fatal.
That said there are people accepted who never meet their regional advisor.</p>
<p>however, they do become more important during the waitlist</p>
<p>I also heard that there’re some people to read minority students’apps. When I was at ND on the Diversity Weekend, I met some of these people who are very young and nice. The people I met were ND alumni.</p>
<p>rose39 & hawkswim09,</p>
<p>Comments are right on the money. In EA and RD the ND requirements for letters of rec are all they need and want to see. Local admissions counselor contact is of great benefit to undergrad hopefuls if students can meet with them and “show a face” while in high school at a regional meeting. Relevant contact with them through the Senior year of high school is a distinct positive.</p>
<p>The arena of waitlist is where our local admissions counselor went the extra mile. Her direction on what our son should do next was amazing and her genuine kindness was all that the Notre Dame family embodies. She really became part of our family in such a stressfull time! To me, that is what this University is all about.</p>
<p>I was a little lucky because my regional counselor and the main transfer counselor are the same person. I live near Notre Dame so I got to meet with her twice to discuss my scheduling and how I should fill out my application and what I should (and shouldn’t) talk about in my essay. She was extremely helpful and basically went step-by-step with me. After my first semester GPA wasn’t so good, she told what I’d need to get second semester to even be considered. Now that I got in, I’m really glad I decided to go see her because from reading this, it seems like it really helped me.</p>
<p>Just as an aside, if you will be applying to ND this coming year and happen to be at ND for a program or camp, I highly recommend you make an appointment and visit your regional admissions counselor. It shows a lot of initiative and like KK448 says above, it can be very informative as well.</p>