Your independent school’s open house may be over, but admissions season is just getting started. Fall ushers in a constant revolving door of tours, shadow visits, interviews and testing..
There’s a lot to do to keep your funnel moving and make each touch and visit personal to every prospect and applicant. We’ve put together some tips (and PRO TIPS) to help:
- Don’t forget about applicants already in the pipeline. Be sure to keep in contact with those families who’ve already visited, completed a shadow day and interview and even applied prior to the open house. Reach out to see if they have questions and invite them to any on campus events (student musicals, performances, sports or robotics events). The same goes for inquiries who attend your open house but have yet to apply. Reach out with polite reminders about deadlines, and be sure they receive invitations to upcoming events. It is an excellent way to showcase your school beyond academics.
PRO TIP: Assign a student or parent ambassador to greet them at the event.
- Send a Thanksgiving or winter holiday greeting to all applicants (and inquiries, if your application deadline has not passed). Even better: send a video of your students singing a holiday greeting. This is a great opportunity to showcase the warmth of your school community.
PRO TIP: Ask a trusted student to produce the greeting and give them credit. It shows authentic student work and opportunities to shine at your school.
- Always send a handwritten thank-you note to applicants who visit during admissions season.Your student ambassadors can write a quick message to the applicant, and you can send a note to the parents. It is a personal touch and it keeps your applicants and their families connected to your school.
PRO TIP: If a student makes a particularly positive connection with a faculty member during a shadow visit, ask that teacher to send a quick note to the student. Providing the teacher with a pre-addressed and stamped envelope is the key!
- Send friendly reminders to applicants about submitting forms as application deadlines approach. Keep in mind that language barriers may impede a parent’s ability to complete the forms, including the application and financial aid documents. If you have faculty or staff who speak other languages, consider offering assistance to these families. Hold a session for families who speak different languages to come in and complete the application.
PRO TIP: Consider asking current parents who are bilingual to help with the application session. Train them and discuss how to handle general financial aid questions.
- Consider hosting an event at the home of a current family in any area where you have a strong pool of applicants from a specific zip code or county.
PRO TIP: If you offer transportation to and from that area, prepare a handout with information on the route.
- Be proactive in making it easier to receive transcripts and recommendation forms, as admissions season brings lots of materials—both digital and paper—for your office and your feeder schools. Send an email to your feeder school offices that includes your correct email address and full contact information, dates and any event details. And be sure to thank them in advance! You want to have a good working relationship with whomever is in that office. You will likely be calling them as deadlines approach. Many families wait until the last minute to submit their forms, and often it is that school administrative assistant who becomes your best friend!
PRO TIP: Dedicate a person in your office to cultivating and communicating feeder school contacts. Consistency is appreciated!
- Have a plan to prevent attrition, track retention risks, and stay aware of potential issues. New applicants are essential, but so is keeping the students you already have! Do you know how many current students might be considering other schools? Retention plays a crucial role in enrollment. Maybe a teacher overheard a student mentioning interest in other schools, or a parent reached out with concerns about your school. While you’ve held your open house, some of your current students may be attending those of competing schools. As you focus on welcoming new members to your community, ensure someone is focused on those who might be considering leaving. Establish an outreach plan, and keep teachers, administrators, and admissions staff informed.
PRO TIP: Start a possible attrition list in September and discuss it weekly with the school leadership team. Include a plan for who is reaching out to the family and discuss updates and next steps weekly.
- Create opportunities to showcase your school’s programs to applicants for smaller groups. Older applicant families may enjoy a session about curriculum, experiential learning programs or a session with your coaches and a few athletes. For your youngest applicants, invite parents to attend a coffee during their student’s group assessment, hosted by your best parent ambassadors. This is a great way to keep these parents engaged, on campus and in contact with current parents who are your strongest advocates.
PRO TIP: Talk to your faculty to see if applicants could attend specific events to experience your programs first hand like Robotics Club for the STEM applicant or AP Portfolio class for an artist.
With planning, personalization and perseverance (the three Ps of admissions season), you will create a great program that connects to every applicant and prospect.
How can Kalix help you address your admissions and enrollment needs? Let’s talk.
