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Becoming familiar with CMC's campus starts months before many prospective students visit the admission office. That's because the nature of bringing an intimate, liberal arts college of 1,000-plus to the world is no small undertaking; an endlessly calculated job that puts admission representatives on the road all over the nation for about six weeks of the academic year. Ironically, the biggest chunk of on-the-road work happens in fall, when CMCers new and old are settling into college life.
Richard C. Vos, vice president and dean of admission and financial aid, took his first recruiting trip to San Diego in mid-August, tripping a domino effect for colleagues Adam Sapp, Jennifer Wong, Victoria Romero, Donesha Dennis, and Bernie Burrola. By the end of fall, the admission team will have traveled to a combined 450 high schools in more than 40 cities throughout the country, and will have logged countless hours at college fairs.
Director of Admission Jennifer Wong '90, says readying for the trips involves the predictable (contacting high schools, arranging for hotels and rental cars) and the sometimes not-so-predictable (consulting maps; soliciting dining tips; calculating driving time). "In general," Wong says, "being on the road is a lot of fun. But it can also be sometimes harrowing, occasionally lonely, and definitely hectic. We're typically visiting four to five high schools a day, and you're on the go from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. You quickly learn how to multitask in the car: read a map, eat, repair a torn stocking, brush your teeth, and field directions if MapQuest doesn't work."
Some of the road-recruiting is done with other small liberal arts colleges. For instance, in the Eight of the Best series, CMC teams with Haverford, Grinnell, and Macalester colleges as a collegiate conglomerate, setting up shop in cities from Portland, Ore., to New York City. The series includes short presentations and opportunities for students to ask questions of individual college representatives. Additionally, the admission staff travels everywhere from Waikiki to Dallas with Scripps, Pitzer, and Harvey Mudd recruiters to spread word of The Claremont Colleges unique consortium system.
In this role, says Vos, the CMC admission staff conducts a student forum in a city, and the following morning, holds a breakfast with high school counselors.
Admission staff members say people's perceptions of CMC vary considerably. On the East Coast, "you get plenty of blank looks," Wong says. "And on the West Coast, such as Washington, I'm a minor celebrity when representing Claremont McKenna College."
By the time suitcases are returned to attics in late fall, (and CMC and its mission statement are clarified for audiences), the admission team reassembles for yet another significant task: reading thousands of student application files.
"The rhythm of the admission year is something most of us enjoy," Vos says, "although too much travel leads to burnout. Just about the time I start to really miss my family, I get to come home."
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CMC Vice President and Dean of Admission and Financial Aid, Dick Vos, says recruiting college students is a year-round job requiring about six weeks of travel every fall.
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