By Jeremy Tiers, Senior Director of Admissions Services
1 minute read
One of the most common mysteries admissions counselors are trying to solve right now has to do with an admitted student’s timeline for making their decision.
Within your admitted population, you have a group of students and families who once they receive their financial aid packages, will be ready to wrap things up and submit their deposit within a few weeks… maybe even a few days.
Just because they haven’t communicated it to you doesn’t mean you can’t find out who those students are.
This is where the magic of “And then what?” comes into play.
If you want to try and identify them, follow this simple strategy. It works best on the phone or through texting.
Start by asking “What do you see as the next step in your college search?”
The student might respond with “We’re waiting to see what the financial aid offers are.”
Immediately follow-up with, “And then what?”
The student might say, “Well then my parents and I will sit down and see what we think the best option is.”
Immediately follow-up with, “Okay, and then what?
The student might say, “Well after that, I’m pretty sure like sometime in March or so, I’ll make my decision.”
By repeatedly asking that simple follow-up question…
- You can find out what they see as the next step.
- You can find out who will help them with their decision.
- You can find out what, if any, extra steps they feel still need to happen before they decide.
- And finally, you might even we find out a timeframe for when the decision will be made.
Without utilizing a strategy like this it will be harder for admissions counselors to have a better feel for when they should ‘make the ask’ and encourage their admits to submit their deposit.
If you’d like to talk about something I said in this article, I’m happy to connect. Just reply back, or email me here.
And if you found this article helpful, forward it to someone else on your campus who could also benefit from reading it.