The Vandy Admissions Blog

Thom November 11th, 2009

Today we debuted our newly structured and redesigned website to our prospective students families and high school partners.   Features of the new site include:

• A streamlined and dramatically simplified structure where all of the admissions/financial aid/Vanderbilt information you’ve asked for is one click away including a “find your major” drop down.  No more having to crawl through dozens of websites just to find your major.
• A media player where to watch video interviews from Vanderbilt students and faculty.
• An Admissions Quick Guide that puts 100% of our application process into simple steps without any buzz words or admissions jargon.
• A social media toolbar that lets you take Vandy with you, either through Facebook, Twitter, Youtube or by loading our RSS feed into your feed reader.
• Easily share information with your friends through our “Share this Page” section.

Have a great Wednesday blogland!

• Academic Life , Application Process
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Thom May 7th, 2009

We will start making offers of admission from our waitlist and we will begin doing so starting this evening and tomorrow.  A review of our deposits reveals that we are exactly where we had hoped to be, that is, to be able to admit from the waitlist.  I do not know how many offers we will ultimately make as it will depend on how many students accept our offers.  Here’s how this process will work:

• Students selected to be admitted from the waitlist will be called on the phone by their assigned admissions officer.  We call using the phone numbers provided on the student’s application, and we will continue calling until we can reach the student.
• Once we have the student on the phone, we will indicate that we would like to offer him or her admission to the Vanderbilt 2013 class and will ask if he or she is still interested in being offered admission.
• If the student says yes, an emailed offer of admission will be sent to the student within 24 hours. 
• If the student applied for need-based financial aid (and the Office of Student Financial Aid and Undergraduate Scholarships has received all necessary application materials) the student will be emailed an estimated financial aid offer.  The emailed offer of admission and financial aid offer should arrive on the same day.  We will also mail hard copies of everything to the student.
• Once we email you all your admission materials, you must respond within 7 days.  If you wish to accept our offer of admission, we must receive your reply form and matriculation deposit within 7 days of the receipt of your emailed offer of admission. 

Students who either did not apply for need-based financial aid, or did not have a complete financial aid application, will not receive the financial aid offer email.  If you are admitted and do not receive an offer of need-based financial aid, and you thought you had applied, contact the financial aid office.

Like last year, we will make offers in small waves, which allows us to observe our yield and avoid over-enrolling the class.  That means that we will be making these calls over the next several weeks and months.

Congratulations to the latest group of admitted students to Vanderbilt.

• Waitlist
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Thom May 1st, 2009

Greetings from rainy Nashville.  Today marks the National Candidate Reply deadline. At Vanderbilt, the May 1st deadline is a postmarked deadline so for those accepted students waiting until the last minute, your reply to us MUST get in the mail today. How you send it doesn’t really matter (i.e.,you don’t have to overnight it or anything).

For everyone on the waitlist, you’ve waited patiently to hear if we will be making offers from the waitlist. As it looks today, it does appear that we will be able to make some offers of admission from the waitlist. When we will be able to start making those offers, and how many we will be able to make are not yet known. Since our deadline is a postmarked deadline, we’ll have to watch how things roll in this weekend and early next week. I would anticipate knowing more towards the middle of next week.   Again, stay tuned.

• I've been admitted - now what? , Waitlist
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Thom April 1st, 2009

I had mentioned on this blog before that the time will come when us admissions folks will wait on your decisions. That time has officially arrived. We actually received our first response card on Monday believe it or not.  Our office gets a daily report of all the students who turn in their response cards, who deposited (yea) and who declined - including where they are going instead (which most students tell us on their reply card). While we are truly happy for the students not picking Vandy that they found a great college home elsewhere, we are, by nature, competitive people. I think most people in admissions are that way.

One decision I’ll be watching is actually from a person who doesn’t exist in real life.  If you’ve been watching Friday Night Lights, you know that Vanderbilt is the character Lyla Garrity’s dream school.  My good friends over at BlogVU have been tweeting with FNL’s Garrity (the character, not the actress) to do their part to recruit her to Nashville.  Quite funny.

Waitlist info will be coming soon, so hang tight.

• I've been admitted - now what? , Nashville , Vanderbilt in Pop Culture
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Thom March 31st, 2009

The letters have gone and been received by most across the country.  Usually at this point, the readership of our blog becomes a little segmented depending on which envelope you received from us.  The informational needs of each of the different groups certainly keep us busy enough to fill the time vacated by less reading.  My hope this week is to provide some “what now” information to our admitted students (today) and our waitlisted students (later this week).  For students who were denied and who wish to appeal our decision, see the comments section from the last post (3/26) for details about that process.

For those of you who were offered a spot in the incoming class, let me be the latest person to wish you congratulations.  Here’s a short list of some questions/concerns you might have (but please use the comments section to add yours to the list):

1) I thought I had applied for financial aid but there was nothing in the admit packet:  Contact the Office of Student Financial Aid and Undergraduate Scholarships and inquire (800.288.0204).  It very well could be that they received some but not all of your application materials.

2) There was no mention of a merit-based scholarship in our admit packet, have they all been awarded?:  Yes.  However, if you are a National Merit Finalist, you have until late April to list Vanderbilt as your top choice and still qualify for our National Merit scholarship.  Make sure to follow whatever processes and procedures NMSC has detailed on their website.

3) We want to see campus one more time (or for the first time), what are the options?:  First, I would encourage you to look at the Open Houses that are hosted by Arts and Science, Engineering, and Peabody.   These programs allow for the greatest depth in the most efficient format (all one-day programs).  They are hosted by the staff of these three colleges, so the content is very specific to each of their academic offerings and unique qualities.  If you’ve been admitted to the Blair School of Music and are visiting campus, contact their office to inquire about meeting with someone.  Next, consider one of our daily information sessions, as well as simply meeting an admissions officer (possibly your personal admissions officer if they are available) to get your questions answered.  These sessions a very full these days.  We are trying to add more to meet the demand (as a LOT of juniors are visiting during their spring breaks right now) but call soon to make sure to get a spot.

4) The admit packet mentions Vanderbilt and You receptions, what are those?:  Vanderbilt and You are events hosted by Vanderbilt alumni in 40 cities across the U.S. and abroad.  They are a time for you to meet local alums and other students from your area who are considering Vanderbilt, as well as a representative from the OUA who will be in attendance at most U.S. Vanderbilt and You programs.  Registration instructions were included in your admit packet, but are also available on our website.  These programs are reserved for admitted students only.

5) When do I have to tell you my decision? May 1st (postmarked).  Included in your admit packet is a response form for you to complete.  Of course, if you decide before May 1 (either yes or no) you should send it it and let us know.

I know you have a big decision ahead of you.  Let our office know how we can help you and your family.  Feel free to leave any questions you have in the comments section.  Or, if you’re a literalist, feel free to just leave a comment in the comments section.  I mean . . . you don’t have to leave a question if you don’t want to.  I’m shutting up now.

• Blair School of Music , College of Arts and Science , I've been admitted - now what? , Peabody College of Education and Human Development , Scholarships and Financial Aid , School of Engineering , Waitlist
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