The National Association for College Association for College Admissions Counseling (NACAC) released its latest State of College Admission Report. The report covers eight broad topics relating to college admission: High School Graduation and College Enrolment, Applications to College; Admission Strategies; Factors in the Admission Decision; School Counsellors and College Counselling; The College Admission Office; Transfer Students; and International Education.
Below are key findings to each of the eight sections.
1. High School Graduation and College Enrolment: After years of constant growth, the number of US high school graduates peaked in 2011 – 2012 with 3.45 million students with decline in post-secondary enrolment between 2010 and 2012. Racial and ethnic minorities continue to be under-represented in high school and college.
2. Applications to College: With students applying to more universities, 70% of colleges and universities are reporting an increase of applications. On-line applications remain to be the norm with universities receiving, on average, 92 per cent of applications on-line.
3. Admissions Strategies: More students are applying to college earlier. 56% of colleges and universities are reporting increases in Early Decision applications and 78% reported an increase in Early Action applications. Wait-lists policies remained unchanged.
4. Factors in the Admission Decision: Students’ academic achievements – grades, strength of curriculum and admission test scores – remain the most important factors for admissions officers. About a quarter of colleges consider race/ethnicity, first generation and high school attended to be moderately important in the admission decision.
5. School Counsellors and College Counselling: in 2013, 31% of public schools and 71% of private school have at least one staff exclusively dedicated to college counselling. For those whose main focus is not college counselling, public school counsellor dedicated 76% of their time to other counselling needs compared to their private school counterparts who spent 48% of their time on those needs. On average, public school counsellors have 475 students on their workload.
6. The College Admission Office: Nearly half of college reported that their admissions budget remained the same with 19% having a decrease and 31% reporting an increase. On average, universities are spending $384 to recruit each applicant for the Autumn 2013 admission cycle, $654 to recruit and admit each student, and $2,231 to recruit and enrol each student.
7. Transfer Students: 58% of colleges and universities view transfer students to be increasingly important with 2% reported that it will be less important. Colleges and universities are partnering with community colleges as part of their recruitment strategies.
8. International Education: The projected number of students pursuing international education is expected to reach 7 million by 2025. In 2011-2012, the number of US citizen pursuing full undergraduate degrees outside of the US grew by 11%. On the secondary education level, a small number of high schools are actively recruiting international students.
To view the full report, please visit the NACAC website: www.nacacnet.org.
Founded in 1937, NACAC is member organization for primary and secondary school counsellors, college admission and financial aid officers, enrolment managers and other professionals whose work is to help students transition from high school or post-secondary education.