Student Recruitment Email… the impact of Hurricane Sandy
In my last entry to this series, I noted that too many emails had arrived to cover all of them in a single blog post (26 to be exact). The first 13 were reviewed in that last entry, with a promise to add the next 13 “ASAP.” The ASAP date has arrived… here are the final 13 received between October 17 to November 1. Note that three of these were prompted by Hurricane Sandy and the need to extend early admissions deadlines.
The October 17 to November 1 emails are from 5 of our 6 schools. The “public honors college in New York” (the least frequent email communicator since June) is absent from this series.
Two special note: (1) nothing has yet arrived from any of our schools about academic program interest that was a required part of most inquiry forms completed in June and (2) Hurricane Sandy emails arrived from our “private university in Connecticut,” the first email since July.
Here are the details:
- October 17: Back with a final “Reminder” to register for the October 20 Open House is our “private university in Massachusetts.” I’ve seen the large photo of students sitting on the steps in front of a building with tall pillars before. Time for a change? (If I can’t get to the Open House there is a visible link to register for a “regularly scheduled campus visit.”)
- October 18: A November 4 Open House invite from the “private college in upstate NY” to join the president and director of admissions to learn about internship programs that give a “distinct career advantage” and the “education of a life time.”
- October 19: The “private university in Massachusetts” uses the subject line to tell me that the school “can open doors” for me. The email highlights a 2012 graduate employed in a field far removed from my academic interest area. The photo is a live link that leads not to more about the profile person but to a video where several other students talk about their experience at the university. Other links connect to social media, the admissions application, and tomorrow’s October 20 Open House. Needed here: more on opening those doors as promised in the subject line.
- October 22: The “private college in upstate NY” again reminds me in the subject line that I’m “clear to apply with NO fee.” The email includes the advantages mentioned in earlier email. New is a P.S. to tell me that costs here are 17% lower than the schools “top 10 private competitors.” If I apply I’ll learn more.
- October 22: From the “private college in Rhode Island” comes a final invitation to the October 27 Open House, with a note that both an athletic and a fine arts event are available for people staying the weekend. Once again, no use of my name and no name at the end of the email.
- October 23: The admissions director at the “private college in upstate NY” is writing to say that she’s noticed I have not yet registered for the November 4 Open House where I’ll be able to meet “professors from your academic area” and learn about internships.
- October 25: Three days have passed and it is time for the “private college in upstate NY” to remind me that they are “most excited to review” my “Fast Forward” application before by a November 15 deadline. Reminders of advantages are included: no essay, no fee, automatic scholarship consideration.
- October 26: The “private university in Connecticut” is back after no contact since July 13 using the subject line to alert me that the early action admissions deadline has been extended due to “inclement weather.” That’s code for Hurricane Sandy. The email includes my name as well as the dean of enrollment and a hope that my family and I will “weather this storm safely.”
- October 28: A second storm-related email from the “private university in Connecticut” to tell me of two days the school will close and to remind me of the “early action” extension.
- October 29: The “most selective university” in our group returns at 11:13 AM today to tell me of a chat session at 7 PM tonight. Advice: put white space between the paragraphs here to make things much easier to read. If I can’t make the chat I can follow the link to the admissions Facebook page and ask questions there. (When I visited, at least two people had done that.)
- October 29: Hurricane Sandy again: The “private college in Rhode Island” writes to tell me of an extension to the Early Action admissions deadline.
- October 31: Hurricane Sandy another time: the “private university in Connecticut” sends notice of a further extension of the Early Action deadline.
- November 1: Was the machine that churns out “Fast Forward” application reminders for the “private college in upstate NY” aware of Hurricane Sandy when it sent this reminder of the November 15 deadline? Many of the applicants to this school are in areas impacted by the storm.
Expect another update the week after Thanksgiving reporting on at least 7 more emails received after November 1.
That’s all for now.
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