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Four Virginia schools join effort to revamp admissions process
4 Va. schools join effort to revamp admissions processPosted: Monday, September 28, 2015 10:30 pm
By KARIN KAPSIDELIS Richmond Times-Dispatch
kkapsidelis@timesdispatch.com
(804) 649-6119
Four Virginia schools are part of a coalition of 80 public and private colleges and universities that announced plans Monday to revamp and reform the admissions process.
The College of William and Mary, the University of Virginia, Virginia Tech and James Madison University have joined with the Coalition for Access, Affordability, and Success to develop a free platform of online tools as a way to get students thinking about college their freshman year of high school.
But the new tools also are intended to streamline application and financial aid processes as a way to reduce barriers for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, who often fail to receive all the consideration and financial aid they are due, the coalition said.
Some of the online tools will become available in January, but the rollout of the new application portal is not expected to begin until next summer, which means it will not be available to current seniors.
By KARIN KAPSIDELIS Richmond Times-Dispatch
kkapsidelis@timesdispatch.com
(804) 649-6119
Four Virginia schools are part of a coalition of 80 public and private colleges and universities that announced plans Monday to revamp and reform the admissions process.
The College of William and Mary, the University of Virginia, Virginia Tech and James Madison University have joined with the Coalition for Access, Affordability, and Success to develop a free platform of online tools as a way to get students thinking about college their freshman year of high school.
But the new tools also are intended to streamline application and financial aid processes as a way to reduce barriers for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, who often fail to receive all the consideration and financial aid they are due, the coalition said.
Some of the online tools will become available in January, but the rollout of the new application portal is not expected to begin until next summer, which means it will not be available to current seniors.
Admissions Revolution
September 29, 2015
By Scott Jaschik
Eighty leading colleges and universities on Monday announced a plan to reverse a decades-long process by which colleges have -- largely through the Common Application -- made their applications increasingly similar.
Further, the colleges and universities are creating a platform for new online portfolios for high school students. The idea is to encourage ninth graders begin thinking more deeply about what they are learning or accomplishing in high school, to create new ways for college admissions officers, community organizations and others to coach them, and to help them emerge in their senior years with a body of work that can be used to help identify appropriate colleges and apply to them. Organizers of the new effort hope it will minimize some of the disadvantages faced by high school students without access to well-staffed guidance offices or private counselors.
While the goals of the effort are ambitious, so are the resources and clout of the colleges participating in this campaign. These colleges include every Ivy League university, Stanford University and the University of Chicago; liberal arts colleges such as Amherst, Swarthmore and Williams Colleges; and leading public institutions such as the Universities of Michigan, North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Virginia. The 80 members expect more institutions to join. ... While they aim to create a new way for students to apply, they also hope the portfolio system they create prods changes in high school education that could have an impact beyond those who apply to these institutions.
The new group is called the Coalition for Access, Affordability and Success. It will be open to public institutions with “affordable tuition along with need-based financial aid for in-state residents,” according to an outline provided by the coalition. (There isn't a clear definition yet for “affordable.”)
By Scott Jaschik
Eighty leading colleges and universities on Monday announced a plan to reverse a decades-long process by which colleges have -- largely through the Common Application -- made their applications increasingly similar.
Further, the colleges and universities are creating a platform for new online portfolios for high school students. The idea is to encourage ninth graders begin thinking more deeply about what they are learning or accomplishing in high school, to create new ways for college admissions officers, community organizations and others to coach them, and to help them emerge in their senior years with a body of work that can be used to help identify appropriate colleges and apply to them. Organizers of the new effort hope it will minimize some of the disadvantages faced by high school students without access to well-staffed guidance offices or private counselors.
While the goals of the effort are ambitious, so are the resources and clout of the colleges participating in this campaign. These colleges include every Ivy League university, Stanford University and the University of Chicago; liberal arts colleges such as Amherst, Swarthmore and Williams Colleges; and leading public institutions such as the Universities of Michigan, North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Virginia. The 80 members expect more institutions to join. ... While they aim to create a new way for students to apply, they also hope the portfolio system they create prods changes in high school education that could have an impact beyond those who apply to these institutions.
The new group is called the Coalition for Access, Affordability and Success. It will be open to public institutions with “affordable tuition along with need-based financial aid for in-state residents,” according to an outline provided by the coalition. (There isn't a clear definition yet for “affordable.”)