<p>Facing a burst of qualified applicants, higher education institutions in the U.S. are increasingly offering mid-year enrollment.</p>
<p>For</a> some college freshmen, the first day of school comes a bit late - Los Angeles Times</p>
<p>What a great idea! </p>
<p>I know from experience that in some tough majors at some schools, 20 to 25 percent of the freshman class doesn't survive the first year. So why not fill those empty dorm spaces mid-year with qualified students?</p>
<p>Beginning your freshman year in the spring is tough. My niece was admitted in the spring at a college that had the program she most wanted. She was admitted at all the colleges she applied to, and that was the only one with a Spring admittance. She ended up deciding to stick with the school with the program she wanted. </p>
<p>She has had many second thoughts and has been depressed now that her boyfriend and friends are heading off to college. I am sure that when she gets to college in January all will be fine, but it is tough right now.</p>
<p>^Agree that it can be tough when all your friends go off to college, so it's not for everyone. You have to have a plan and things to keep you busy until January.</p>
<p>It's definitely a wonderful option to have out there, because everyone's situation is different.</p>
<p>What a wonderful opportunity to do some charity work for a few months, or work to earn money a little longer. While all the newbie freshmen are heading off right now, and likely going to all those parties and misbehaving, you can stay sane, sober, earn some money and avoid all the pitfalls.</p>
<p>I was accepted as a midyear at Brandeis University, and will be starting there in January! Brandeis has several great midyear policies. For example, they renovate a dorm in the fall where all midyears live together, we have our own orientation in January, and we have midyear mentors. It's hard to think that everyone else is starting right now, but I still 140 days to wait. However, I'm putting my time to good use - volunteering at a Heifer International Learning Center. Hopefully the time will pass quickly!</p>
<p>...and here I thought this was just a thread for colleges on quarters instead of semesters... OSU first day of class: September 24.</p>
<p>If colleges are doing this, why not ask the applicants if they would mind (and/or prefer) a mid-year admission? I can see many students jumping at the opportunity of a "gap semester" to make some money for college or to "find themselves." This would also provide a more random mix of students admitted in the fall vs. mid-year, so no one would be labeled a "Feb."</p>
<p>If it wasn't for financial reasons, I would have accepted a spring admission over a fall admissions to a somewhat more prestigious university. It's a very good idea.</p>
<p>I agree with you, SamK...I bet many students would jump at the chance for a semester-long break if they knew it would not jeopordize their chances for admission, financial aid or housing.
I think it's a great opportunity for students to do internships that are impacted in the summer and not during the school year, like volunteering in DC. This fall, it would be fascinating to volunteer on a presidential campaign.</p>
<p>The key is finding an institution that has a significant number of new students in the second semester, and that has a good solid second semester orientation program, and preferably additional introduction, welcome, and orientation activities. Second semester freshmen and transfer students are far too often treated like second class citizens.
Also important to check how scholarships, financial aid, housing, and registration will be made available, as second semester students can be placed at a significant disadvantage in these areas.</p>
<p>Dr. Andrew Flagel
Dean of Admissions
George Mason University
Not</a> Your Average Admissions Blog “A Beneath the Surface Look At Everything College Admissions (with a few shameless plugs)”</p>
<p>I am in this position too, I'll be starting at UC Berkeley in January. I'm going to Paris for the first semester, so that shouldn't be too tough, but I hope that my transition socially into college will go OK.</p>
<p>FYI - the Service Academies actually start in June - 6 weeks of Beast Barracks at Army and whatever the call it at Navy. My son had three days of freedom after his high school graduation before he had to report to West Point.</p>
<p>This happened to me at 2 schools and could have possibly happened at 3 if I had stayed on the waiting list. I think its great, because it gives me options. I am enrolling in a local school I got into for the fall, and if I don't like it I can just move to one of the other 2 schools in January. The only problem is having to deal with my parents. The were deadset on me going to a school I got into for January and tried everything to see if they could convince the admissions counselors to let me come in the fall, but I honestly didn't care. Its not about prestige, its about being happy.</p>
<p>I think the only people that should do this are those who know they really want to go to a specific college.
I would personally be pretty disappointed if I waited a whole semester to start college, went on campus, and found out that I hated the place.</p>
<p>I know many students that have enrolled at USC in the spring semester and have had a very positive experience. They have many options in the fall - enroll in a community college and get some of their gen. ed. requirements out of the way, travel, volunteer, etc. Another great benefit at a private university like USC: the parents can save $$ on tuition for one semester.</p>
<p>
What a great idea, Sam K! Those colleges (like Brandeis) that know they will have a January admissions group could have questions on their applications to ask everyone how they feel about this. "Would you prefer mid-year admission?" "Would you accept mid-year admission?" I don't know if any college asks these questions now. I haven't heard of it.</p>
<p>For students in some majors, the idea of starting in January makes things impossible and is a deal breaker; for students in other majors or for undecided students, a fall semester "off" for work or community service or travel (or a fall at local community college) is just fine or is preferable! </p>
<p>If the colleges offered everyone this option (rather than offering a few students this as their only option - spring admission or nothing), I think a reasonable number of students would request this and there would be more happy freshmen.</p>
<p>Has anyone mentioned yet: Many colleges have extra dorm-room space in the spring, since this is the more popular semester for study abroad.</p>
<p>Just thought I'd offer some insight, being a January- admit student myself- I am so happy the OP started this thread. I feel like most people have either never heard of or don't understand that late-admit programs exist. I appreciate the exposure :) I will be a "January Program" student at Washington University in St. Louis this spring. I have to say it was upsetting to find out in March that I had to wait to go to school until January or that I couldn't go to WashU at all (which was my number one choice, deferred ED as well). Right now, it is difficult to hear about all of my friends (many who are already at WashU) and their special orientation activities when I am still at home. I guess I am still bitter that this program is not on the application. So many kids would like to defer their admission for a semester, but instead, kids like me (who are so enthusiastic about going to college) are told they have to wait around for a semester. My goal by the time I graduate WashU is to get this program on the application. At WashU, the program is pretty much a secret until you find out you got chosen for it. They tell us that there isn't room for us right now, but in the spring some of the juniors study abroad, and we can take their place at that time. That part makes sense. What doesn't make sense to me is why it can't be a voluntary program. Also, I agree that doing something meaningful during the off-semester is important. Because I could not imagine living at home for much longer, I decided to look for an internship. Turn out I will be in DC for the fall semester interning in the office of one of my state's senators. I'm glad I was lucky enough to land an internship or else this semester would probably have been even more depressing.</p>
<p>The success of programs like this really depends, as a previous poster noted, on the strength of orientation and housing options for the late arrivals, and that will vary by college.</p>
<p>My daughter's friend was a January admit to SUNY Bing last year. There were some bumps in the road in her case. She had to enroll in classes after she arrived, long after everyone else. Consequently, many courses she wanted to take were closed. Also, she had some housing issues. She was put in a double room with someone whose roommate had moved out two weeks after the fall semester started. That meant the girl had had the double room to herself for months. It was an adjustment welcoming a new roommate in January. But all told my daughter's friend was happy to have gotten into Bing and adjusted pretty well. She carried 10 college credits in with her from high school and took an online class over the summer. So she's now a full sophomore like everybody else.</p>
<p>I read somewhere that colleges don't have to average in the SAT scores of the January admits the same as the regular freshmen. So this would be a way to enroll kids with strong grades and ECs and just have testing scores that would otherwise bring the college's ranking down. Does anyone know about that? Dean Flagel?</p>