Greetings from PA!

Hello everyone! It's been a long fall for us in the Admissions world but as always a fun one :) I'm currently in Philadelphia recruiting all week and will finish up my travels in Northern Worcester County, MA next week. Just a quick reminder: Early Action and Early Decision applications are due by November 1st. If you missed the deadline you can still apply Regular Decision by January 15th.

Last weekend I had the opportunity to visit Miami and Ft. Lauderdale to go to some college fairs. I've been to Florida several times but never to Miami- very exciting, especially considering it was snowing in the Northeast for the majority of the weekend! I'm not going to lie- escaping to the sun and beaches wasn't a very painful way to spend the weekend. Although I had work commitments for the majority of the weekend, I was able to spend about an hour on the beach. There was also a dinner cruise sponsored by the Miami Invitational College fair. I took some photos from the top of the boat and posted them below. Enjoy!


















Recruiting in Philadelphia is always one of my favorite weeks during the fall. I have a lot of friends and family in the area so it's great to spend some of my free time with people I don't get to see as often as I would like. There's also some fantastic schools in the Main Line area that I look forward to visiting each year. I've added some new schools to my list that I've never been to which will mix things up a bit. I'll have a full travel report (not to mention my travel superlatives) in a couple of weeks. Until then, get those Early Action and Early Decision applications in and enjoy what's left of the fall!

SC = Southern California!!!

Hello! This is Andrew Leahy, one of the Admissions Counselors here at Stonehill. I just returned from an amazing week of recruiting in San Diego County in southern California! This is the first time Stonehill has been to CA to recruit students even though we have several Californians on campus already.

The weather was unbelievable! Plus, my younger brother is stationed at the Naval Base in San Diego so I got to spend some time with him in between recruiting appointments. SD is a lot of fun! We hit up Sea World, the Zoo, a Harbor Tour, the Wild Animal Park…just about everything! As part of my trip, I started a little list of superlatives to highlight some of the best times during my vacation…I mean work…in CA.

And the winners are…
Best Music: Poway HS Marching Band! They were practicing for homecoming as I walked into the school for my visit. Poway – you guys were amazing! Keep up the good work!

Best View: Academy of Our Lady of Peace! Leaving their college fair at night, overlooking all the lights of San Diego was absolutely breathtaking. OLP also wins for “Most Food & Variety of Food at a College Fair”! Every time I turned around there was another student with a tray of brownies, cookies, m&m’s or drinks. Thanks, OLP!

Most Beautiful Location: The Bishop’s School! Bishop’s is in gorgeous La Jolla and the campus is absolutely beautiful. Even the parking garage was pristine!

Best Lunch: Coronado HS! Coronado wins for their awesome quad with volleyball court, picnic tables in beach sand and music during lunch. Lunch never looked like more fun!

Most Questions: Cathedral Catholic HS! Not only did you guys ask a lot of questions, but they were GREAT questions to ask. Thanks for making the visit an exciting one!

Best Goodie Bag: La Jolla Country Day School! It doesn’t take much to keep Admissions Counselors happy and a little bag with a bottle of water, a granola bar, and some candy will do the trick! Plus, there was a Twix inside. I love Twix. Enough said.

Best Local Honey: San Pasqual HS! Okay, actually it’s Hernandez Farms which is about 5 minutes from San Pasqual HS just up the road. Orange blossom honey. I tried it. Bought two containers. Can’t wait to go back and get more.

Most Interesting Curriculum: Canyon Crest Academy! What an awesome integration of math and sciences and the arts. Enjoy it and take advantage of as much as you can Ravens!

Most Posters & Pennants: Rancho Bernardo HS! I don’t know if there’s much more wall space, but I’m sending a Stonehill poster and pennant along!

Thanks to all of you students and Counselors for making my travels out west a success! I hope you will take some time and learn more about Stonehill by visiting our website, coming to campus for a tour if you are out east or asking me questions! My email address is aleahy@stonehill.edu if you need to contact me. Also, two of your fellow Californians are writing blogs on our Admissions page. Check out Marco’s and Kathleen’s journals. To those of you who have already applied – I look forward to reviewing your application! All the best for a successful and fun senior year!

10 Dos and Don'ts- College Fair Style

What a long overdue post about this subject! For all that have attended a college fair, you know how overwhelming the experience can be. There are sometimes hundreds of college reps and thousands of students to navigate through in order to get the information you really need. Hopefully a few pointers below can help you through the process. And remember, college fairs are fun and informative!

Do:

1.Fill out inquiry cards. This will ensure that a college can update your information, send you materials relevant to your academic and extracurricular interests. There are also a good number of schools (like Stonehill) that track a student's interest in a school. When we read your applicant file we can see that you met a representative at a college fair- we know you mean business!

2. Bring pre-printed labels. The savvy student knows that filling out inquiry cards can be a pain! Pre-printed sticky labels with your address, email, class year, high school name, DOB, academic and extracurricular interest will save you a lot of time and help avoid writer's cramp...plus it's easier for us to input in our computer system. Win win!

3. Ask questions- that's what we're there for! Your guidance/college counselor may be able to provide you with a list of good questions to ask or you could brainstorm on your own. Either way, it's never a bad idea to have a few questions in mind regarding academics, campus life, housing options, etc.

4. Do your homework! Most fairs will provide a list of colleges to expect at the fair. Try to come up with a list of schools that you want to visit to help make good use of your time. It's also not a bad idea to check out their websites to get some basic information and know what you want to talk about with the college rep.

5. Keep an open mind. Try to visit schools you may not have heard of and explore all that the fair has to offer. You never know what you'll find.


Don't:

1. Dress inappropriately, this may be your first and last impression! It's hard for us to take you seriously when you're wearing Sponge Bob PJ pants. Keep the sleepwear, sweatpants and other lounge wear at home.

2. Be afraid to speak up. While we love talking with parents, we want to interact with you as well. Introduce yourself and make sure we get to know you!

3. Hesitate to ask for the contact information of a rep. if the table is busy and you have more questions. We try as best as possible to speak with every student but this can be difficult at busy fairs. We never want you to walk away from our table with unanswered questions.

4. "Grab and go" a.k.a. take a brochure from every table- it's just wasteful! There is no possible way that every school will be a good match for you or that you'll be able to read every single one. Try to talk to a rep, see if the school is a good match and then take their materials. Consider this a good move for the environment as well :)

5. Travel in packs. Just because all your friends like a school, it doesn't mean it's the best place for you. Try to branch off on your own and go see the schools that you're really interested in attending.

Early Action or Decision?

Well it's October and that means two things:

Playoff Baseball is here (go Sox!) and Early Admissions deadlines are around the corner.

Our Early Admissions Deadline is November 1. Still trying to decide between Early Action (EA) and Early Decision (ED)? Maybe you're not sure if you should apply EA or Regular. Read on and I will do my best to clarify your options...

• Remember that while both ED and EA are "Early" admissions options, ED is a binding program.By applying ED you are telling that institution that you will definitely attend if you are accepted and your financial need is met. Because of this, ED should only be used if you are 100% sure that the school is for you. In most cases you must commit by the end of December, which is 5 months earlier than the normal commitment deadline of May 1st.
  
• EA gives you a chance to sit on the fence for a while.EA can be a good alternative for students who have a strong interest in 1 or 2 schools but maybe aren't as ready to make that commitment so early. typically colleges notify their EA applicants of a decision in early January, some 4 months before they have to commit.
  
• Want to compare Financial Aid packages?By applying EA you have the ability to compare financial aid packages with other institutions. When you apply ED and are accepted you must withdraw all other applications so there is no chance to do some comparison shopping. If Financial Aid will play a role in your decision it may be best to avoid ED altogether.
  
• Is it easier to get in EA vs. Regular Decision? Statistically our acceptance rate is higher for EA applicants vs. Regular applicants. Having said that, I bet you would see this trend with a majority of schools. Reason being, those who apply Early typically are the higher achieving students. The academic profile of EA applicants on the whole are stronger, which leads to the higher acceptance rate. So while I won't say it is necessarily easier, EA does give those students who are "on the bubble" a chance to be deferred and re-reviewed with the Regular decision pool.
  
• Are you applying early so X school knows you're really interested? Well you don't have to! One of the biggest trends lately is to apply early at more and more schools. Some students even feel pressure to apply early because they see all of their friends doing it. If you need the extra time to complete your application, don't rush to get it in for Nov. 1. If you are worried that by applying regular will lead the school to believe that you aren't that interested there are some steps you can take to show otherwise.

Go on an official visit.Many schools track who visits. By taking the time to visit the school in person you are showing interest in the school. Check out what each school offers. Some offer Group Info Sessions, Tours, Class Visit Programs, and a combination of all 3.

Include a supplemental personal statement. By taking the time to write a short statement about why you are interested in "X School", you can show that you have "done your homework" by discussing why specific programs and opportunities that the College has to offer are perfect for you. You can also talk about why you applied Regular as opposed to Early. Maybe you are taking the SAT or ACT again and want to wait for those score results. Maybe you are doing really well in your senior year and you want "X School" to see both first and second quarter grades. By taking these extra steps, in my mind, you have applied early!

Still nor sure? Contact your Admissions Counselor.Each Admissions Office has a counselor that is assigned to your area. Reach out to them and ask your questions. We are a friendly bunch so questions are ok with us! By reviewing with you your individual situation we can try to advise you the best route to take for applying.

In the end, the decision is up to you. But remember that it isn't when you send us your application that matters, it is what is IN your application that is the most important. Good luck!