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December 14, 2005
It's all worth it...
Counselors are now hunkering down to review applications and it can be a time of late nights with big pots of coffee right by our side. When reviewing applications, it can be nice when you have had an opportunity to meet the student (and their family) either on campus or on the road. It is especially nice when you are able to remember that interaction when reviewing the student's application. These personal connections are valuable because they can add so much more depth to that student and their application. I experienced such an instance this fall.
I recruit in Connecticut and New York City so I often have to provide descriptions regarding the weather in Cleveland, what the midwest is like, the campus environment, etc. and sometimes it can be challenging to find the right words. This particular student(I will call him Michael) had a sincere interest in Case as his mother had grown up in Cleveland and still had siblings and family living in the area. Michael and his mother live in CT and made a visit to the campus this past spring. They did a group information session and tour on campus and I believe they also visited the Cleveland Museum of Art. I just happened to be the counselor conducting the group session on that day and informed them that I worked with students from CT. At the end of their visit, they told me that they loved what they had learned so far and the campus was just goregous. It also happened to be a sunny day so that worked in our favor as well. They inquired about the possibility of an interview (which isn't required for admission but recommended) and I told them I would be visiting CT in the fall and information would be posted regarding hometown interviews on our website by September.
True enough when I looked over the list of students that I would be interviewing in CT Michael's name was there and I was really impressed. Not only was I impressed that he was taking the time to interview with me but his school (he attends a boarding school) was at least an hour away from the location in which I was interviewing. I later found out that his mother drove from their house, which was about 15 minutes from the hotel, to pick him up at school and after the interview drove him back to school, and THEN she returned home. That's at least a 2 hour drive roundtrip!
When we had a chance to meet, I was truly impressed with him as a person and I thought he would be a great addition to Case. He applied early action and was offered admission. We are currently in the process of notifying students that have applied early action and in addition to letter notification students can check their status online. Before the ink was dry on his admission letter, he had checked his status online. He was ecstatic! He was so happy that he sent me an email and let me know his thoughts. He was honored to be offered a place in the class at Case, he liked the programs, the campus - he feels that it is a great place where he can grow and develop as a person. He liked the fact that he knows about his decision now in December even though he is still waiting to hear from some other schools who won't notify him until April. We are "tops" on his list and according to Michael "I will simply continue to replay all the wonderful things about Case and try not to think about how difficult it will be to chose among schools (if I'm so lucky) as great as Case."
I was left speechless. It all makes sense now. This is why we do what we do.
Posted by cxc70 at December 14, 2005 04:05 PM
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