Scaring away prospective students
Do prospective students get overwhelmed/scared when they come in for an initial interview and they are told everything about the program? Everything would include attendance, tuition, what they would have to know about to get in to that specific program that they are inquiring.
I think that there is a balance when sharing information with a given student. As agents, we need to be sure to be informative but not robotic in our responses. Be sure to share school facts with the students (perhaps leaving tuition as last on the list) and also bring your personality into the mix. I believe that students want to know information but they also want to feel welcome when choosing a school. If they can connect with you and your personality and get great facts about the school, then I am sure that you will produce great results as an agent.
Ashley:
While the amount of information can be overwhelming, it is important that students are informed about all critical elements of the program prior to their enrollment so that they may make an informed decison about whether they want to enroll.
You have to help the student understand that the interview process is a way for them and their parents to get a better feel for the school and to see if its the right fit/place for their education needs. I tell kids that visiting schools is only part of the process, but in order to really understand if a college is the right place for you, that asking questions and talking to admissions people will really open up doors that have those answeres they are looking for. I also tell them it's nothing to stress over and that they should enjoy the time as a way to relax them.
I believe it is very important to inform the student of every step to the enrollment process. After each statement to the student is made I ask questions to make sure they understood the statement. The better they understand each area of the process the more relaxed they become and the better they understand what is exspected of them.
Students like to know what they are getting themselves into. It is frustrating when something comes up that has not been explained to the student. From my experience, there is nothing worse than finding out that you missed a step that could have aided in your success. Informing the student about everything you can is also one way to build a good rapport.
It is important that the student has all their questions answered and leave with a full understanding of the school. I try to put myself in the student's position and read their body language to make sure I'm not going to fast or saying too much. Sometimes less is more. Giving them the truth on what we can offer them and how we can make this step happen for them develops a sound student.
When I do an interview, I try to get to know the student first. Making them totally comfortable with me. By doing that they feel more able to ask questions becasue they know that I am here to help them do something better for themselves and/or family. Therefore, I try to make sure all questions are answered at the time that they come in, if not I follow-up with them.
I can certainly understand how this could be a very intimidating situation for the prospective students. I also realize why it's so important to go over everything in great detail, but you also need to be careful with how you present the information. As an agent, it's important to make them see why these things are so vital to their success. For example, explain to them that poor attendance means they are going to miss out on something that they will most likely need to know when they enter the workforce.
I think the information about the course load and the tuition are probably the most intimidating things for them to hear. I feel like it would be a good idea to break these things up. Talking about the most intimidating things consecutively could really overwhelm the prospective student. I would suggest maybe talking about the course load and then go into something a little less intimidating; something like career services. Let them know that career services are there to help them and offer all kinds of resources for them. Then maybe after you explain career services, you can get into the tuition.
I feel like that would help and make the student feel less bombarded with this "scary" info.
I like to answer their current questions, not overload them, and try to leave room for more discussions. It is too easy to answer everything up front and possibly overwhelm them and blow their intial excitement. A few calls to cover different topics is perfect for me.
I don't believe so. I think the objective of the initial interview is to give them what they came looking for. We can not assume that every prospective student comes to the interview, already having all the answers. With that being said, we do have to have the skill-set to make them feel comfortable with this process.
Most prospective students tend to be overwhelmed/scared when coming for an initial interview with a college or University. Most students fall on one of two categories. Those who have recently graduated from high school and those who have been away from high school or college for some years and have recently decided to return school.They are afraid of the unknown and need an Admissions person to explain the process as well as give them the confidence and support to feel that they can complete the program succesfully. I ask them about themselves and what they expect to get from attending school. I assure them that I will be able to answer most questions or find the answer for them. And in any event in the future, I will be there for them. I will give thank them and give them my phone number, e-mail address and business card and ask them to contact me in the future for additional questions.
I honestly think that at this point most of these students are already wearing their "application hats". These are the students that have already gone on a few College tours and are really invested in their futures. I also believe that our interview process is also a lot about getting to know that student. Helping them figure out which program would be a good match for THEM! I think they can really feel that we are there for them and they appreciate that!
I feel it is important to make sure students understand upfront what is expected of them. I feel they may get overwhelmed or scared but it will help determine if they are going to be able to face the challenges that are ahead of them as a student.
Visiting a school is a new experience and can be intimidating to high school students. Parents sometime step in and answer the questions for their children. Some students are even too nervous to fill out the visit form. Adults are usually not intimidated.
I usually try to break the tension by telling the visitor that they will receive a lot of information, that it may seem overwhelming and that it is very normal to feel that way. I always explain that I will hit the important highlights and they they will be able to take all of the information home with them to let it digest. I also offer every visitor a tour of the campus. This is exciting for them and also helps them to feel a little more relaxed about the whole process.
I, agree, that paying attention to a prospective student's body language is important in making sure that they do have a thorough understanding of the program requirements, fees, and other costs associated with the program. Also, give the student an opportunity to ask questions and voice any concerns or reservations they might have in applying to the program.
A great deal of the time, much of the information that the student needs to receive can be presented in the process of answering the questions asked by the student.
This is one way of breaking up the information into non-intimidating bytes that the prospective student can relate to and digest more easily. The questions might come while in the admissions reps office, or on a tour of the school.
This form of behavioral flexibility is not as easy for the rep as presenting a canned set of facts and statistics to the prospective student, but it is certainly more likely to avoid having them leave feeling overwhelmed or disappointed that no one had not really connected with what they were looking for.
That is a great question Ashley! I think anytime you are doing something new and stepping out of your comfort zone, you have the tendency to feel a little intimidated. I am sure our students feel the same way. Receiving so much information in one setting can be very overwhelming. We encourage our students and assist them in researching as much as possible on our website before their initial visit. That way the information we are covering is not completely new. We also encourage our prospective students to bring a support person with them to help them remember key elements, think of additional questions that they may not think of and be an emotional support to them through the admissions process. What do you do to ease the anxiety of the initial interview?
I agree. A way to remain calm and encouraging is to just take things step by step so that it does not appear overwellming for the student. As others stated Ashley I just try to put yourself in the shoes of the student. It is an exciting life changing day for them! Be positive, but also informative :)
