What Does An Admissions Counselor Do?
Admissions counselors have the important job of helping students decide what school program may be right for them. If an admissions counselor works at a high school, their job is to help juniors and seniors prepare for college applications and admissions. If they work at a post-secondary school, their most important job is to help find new students to sign up for the school’s programs.
Within a university or college setting, admissions counselors have a variety of tasks and responsibilities. Within the university or college application process, the admissions counselor is generally the first individual you may meet before you apply to a university or college.
Admissions counselors work to improve upon the institution’s visibility within the large pool of colleges and universities, in order to attract potential applicants.
The responsibilities of the admissions counselor include determining how many students can be admitted to the university or college, create promotional materials, and meet with prospective students. If you have a passion for higher education and want to help prospective students through the academic process, you may want to explore becoming an admissions counselor.
Admissions counselors can be found working in several places, including:
- high schools
- community colleges
- technical schools
- universities
As an admissions counselor, you will be expected to learn and be an expert on the college or university’s programs and admissions process. You should have a clear understanding of the applicants and assist them during the admissions process.
Admissions counselors review applications, travel the country to speak to high school students, and promote their university or college to parents and students. Recruitment and providing guidance are essential to an admissions counselor’s job duties.
The discussion of grants, scholarships, and application status are also a part of the admission counselor’s responsibilities. The most important aspect of the admissions counselor’s agenda is to form a bond between counselor and prospective student. The admissions counselor is the first link to post-secondary world for a new, prospective student.
High school admissions counselors work with upper level students, juniors and seniors, to help them get ready for the transition to an educational program after high school. They often help each student decide what kind of career makes the most sense for them, depending on their personality and their skills.
High school admissions counselors must be knowledgeable about available schools and programs, and understand the admission process in general. They must also know how to find information about each school’s different admission rules.
They often gather up application materials from certain schools that they think are a good match for a student. They also help students organize and set up volunteer and community service activities to improve their application.
They meet with students, in small groups or one on one, to help them look at their class schedules and make sure they are taking all the classes they need to get accepted to the program that they have chosen.
Whether they have chosen a technical school, a community college, or a university program, the admissions counselor helps each student prepare and organize their application paperwork. Admissions counselors also help them revise and edit application essays to improve their chances of being accepted.
Post-secondary admission counselors, those that work for technical schools, community colleges, and universities, have a different job.
Each school figures out how may new students they need to enroll each year to reach their financial goals. It is the admission counselor’s responsibility to make sure that enough new students apply, and sign up, to meet the school’s goal.
Admission counselors must develop informational brochures and presentations, and go to college fairs and high school career events. They also plan and host community events. At these events, they must present information about their school and all the different programs that are offered.
To do this, admissions counselors must keep in touch with alumni, the people who have already graduated from the school. They gather alumni and train them to teach possible future students about the school. Then the alumni attend the events where they can meet high school students who are looking at their educational options.
The admissions counselor must be ready to answer questions and help future students decide if it is the right school for them. They are also in charge of taking visiting families on tours to show them the school campus and all the school has to offer.
After meeting possible new students and their families, the admissions counselor must follow up and stay in touch. They do this by hosting follow up meetings, making phone calls, and sending emails and letters. They need the students to feel comfortable asking questions, and they don’t want them to choose a different school.
It is the admissions counselor’s job to organize the application materials from students who are applying. They must make sure that each student has met the application requirements. They also help make admissions decisions about who gets accepted and who doesn’t.
Then they meet with incoming students and go over all sorts of information, including:
- application status
- tuition and fees
- financial aid
- scholarships
- academic programs
- housing and residence life
Admissions counselors are also responsible for helping students who want to transfer to their program from another school.
They look at the list of classes that the student has already taken, and figure out which classes will count for credit at the new school. Then they help the student decide what classes they need to take to get into the program of their choice, and help them through the application process.
Another part of an admissions counselor’s job is to figure out what is and isn’t working as far as bringing in new students. They collect information by interviewing students who chose their school, as well as those that decided to go somewhere else.
Using email, phone calls, meetings, and letters, they ask very clear questions. Then they study the answers to decide what is working, what isn’t working, and what they need to change. After that they use the information to change current programs and design new ones to attract new students to the school.
The job of an admissions counselor requires great communication and organizational skills. In order to do their job well, they must enjoy working with many different people in a school setting.
If you wish to pursue a career within admissions counseling, you will need to obtain a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree with a post-secondary educational major. It is also important to obtain practical, education-based work experience. Admissions counselors need to have exemplary interpersonal skills, computer skills, organizational skills, and problem solving skills.
It is crucial to build and foster a relationship between admissions counselor and prospective student, parents, and colleagues. An admission counselor needs to be personable, outgoing, and encouraging towards a prospective student.
It is also essential for an admissions counselor to have superb computer skills, as they will be entering data and compiling information about many students at their college or university. Organization is key when sorting through hundreds of records and e-mails of prospective students or prioritizing tasks. Admissions counselors need to be able to solve issues right away, while responding to prospective students to formulate creative solutions to any issues.
Career Spotlight: Admissions Counselor
An admissions counselor works in an educational setting, usually a college or university, to publicize their institution and recruit students to apply. They also help students through the admissions p[...]
