I agree. I tell students that my expertise is with my school and not other institutions in the area.
We discuss what the advantages are for attending our campus. Give a tour and let the students make there own comparisons.
I agree with this. I would not want to take any of the "fun" out of searching for schools--I would think the Reps need only mention all that our school offer's, and, hopefully, the prospective student can then go "shopping" to identify what other schools offer. It would (should) be a no-brainer after that!!!
I agree with most of the previous posts. It is most beneficial to focus on what YOUR institution has to offer, and simply state that you have no information about the other institution.
A representative should focus on Concorde's information, they should be accurate, truthful, and inform the prospective student about our programs and our strenghts, and also avoid talking about another school.
I agree Frederick many students enter our campuses knowing the answers to most of their questions. However, it is my practice to always be honest and informed the student that I have knowledge of only what concorde have to offer and they should seek those answers for themselves.
I would try to focus on our school and try not to talk about the other school.
Great answer, I believe that speaking about the quality and reputation of another institution would have a much more negative affect. Such statements would discredit our professionalism as an organization. It would cause the student to question our ethical and moral behavior. Having been a student, I want to hear solely about the positives and advantages of what you can offer me.
our admissions coordinators should simply respond, that they do not have enough information to make any comparisons. They should just talk about our school.
I always encourage students to research other competitive institutions, but bring the focus back to what my institution has to offer.
Encourage them to do there own research.
I had to think about this one. As someone who just recently moved into administration from a professor role here are my thoughts. Instead of comparing to just one school, why can't we look at say universities or community colleges as a whole to show the difference in schedules and accelerated programs. So often students enroll in our program not understanding the true definition of acceleration, and when the homework load becomes overbearing for them, the instructors are the first one to take the bullet. If we could use this comparison in course breakdown, workload, etc., perhaps it would become more clear to students just exactly what they have signed up for. In doing so, they could possibly adjust their personal commitments accordingly.
Should not discuss other instiution
I would respond by telling the student that while I am not sure how other schools are, I would point out what is taught here at this school. That way the inquiring student can do some research and do the comparing themselfs.
Trying to compare one institution to another is not appropriate. It is better to discuss the benefits/merits of the institution's program. The potential student can then take this information and use it to assess the pros and cons of each institution.
When this question has been posed to me, I have simply referred the student back to their admissions counselor. I have also stated that I was not familiar with other schools policies or what they had to offer.
the response i give is that each institute is different. i get asked this question often. the answer is from a financial aid view. when it comes to a students financial aid we really cant compare. however we can inform you, the student about our school and if you did pursue an education through us. you will at least know what your financial aid breakdown would potentially look like. we can answer any financial aid questions that pertain to our campus. from there it's a matter of what opinion you form upon the information that is provided to you. ultimately its truly you, the student that has the finally say in where you want to receive your education from. just know that if you pursue enrolling and going to school here that any questions you have we will assist you to the best of our potential as well as making sure your completely ready for when school starts.
My answer is always "I'm not sure what they offer but this is how we do it." I high light what I believe puts our school above the rest of the trade schools in our area and let the student or candidate make their decission. I work in Career Services and I started this career after 25 years trade experience in my field. I always tell them that I chose to work for this school because I believe in the programs, and coming from an "Old Technician" it seems to carry some clout.
I agree Melissa. We never want to speak poorly about another institution, we just want to highlight the strengths of our school and want we can offer.
I agree with your answer Brittney. When I was working in Admissions, I would get this question regularly. Trying to promote our school's strengths while encouraging the student to do the research was how I handled it.
