Stealth Applicants
I came across an interesting article recently in ASCA’s
School Counselor journal. “Tracking Trends” was written by Robert Bardwell and
his article was basically a review of the latest stuff related to college
admissions. I felt vindicated that most of what the article contained was not
news to me. However, there was one minor point that struck me. In a section on
how technology was impacting college applications Bardwell used a term that was
new to me. The term that was struck me was ‘stealth applicant.’
Admittedly my first impression of the term stealth applicant
was that of total coolness. When I was a kid, stealth technology was just
emerging and it was HOT. I remember seeing an Air Force PR video of the B2
Stealth Bomber and having my jaw drop. Every boy wanted one for Christmas.
Stealth was IN.
Anyway, stealth is NOT cool when it comes to being a college
applicant. It does not mean that you sneak your way into a college admissions
office with your ninja skills and adjust a school’s decision in your favor
under cover of darkness. No, stealth is not a good thing.
Let’s see what Bardwell has to say about the stealth
applicant:
“…one [term] for which the application is the first contact
the student has with the institution – no visit, no inquiry, no face-to-face
conversation with an admissions staffer. …it raises the question of how
committed this student is to the institution.”
Now does that sound good to you?
If you answered NO then give yourself a cookie. If you
answered YES, well… read on.
When possible, you want admissions to see your personal
interest in their program. As one admissions counselor I know states, “I admit
people not numbers.” This does not mean that you have to stalk admissions
counselors. A restraining order probably isn’t going to help your admissions
prospects. Some of the little things you do as part of your research can help
you here: attending a representative’s visit to the school, filling out one of
their interest surveys (postcard OR online), visiting the school, posting a
question on the school’s admissions blog. It’s the little things here. I’m not
advocating gimmicks. Gimmicks historically don’t work.
The BIG tag line here is that you want to research the
colleges you’re applying to and allow admissions to know that you’re an
interested applicant.
Bardwell, R. (2008). Tracking Trends. School Counselor, 46 (2), 32-37.