The Vandy Admissions Blog

Thom May 4th, 2009

Allow me this interlude . . . The week is senior week here at Vanderbilt. Commencement activities start winding up on Wednesday, which by the way you can follow on Twitter.  There’s a story unfolding at this year’s graduation that reminds me why I love this time of year, and why Vandy is a special place to me.

It is an annual debate I hold with myself: which season is greater, Fall or Spring. Across the world, Fall takes no more majestic shape than on a college campus. While the rest of the world finds autumn as a winding down of the year, at college, it is a starting up of the academic season.

Spring is the true time of renewal, of new green leaves and fresh sprung flowers. Here, it is the time of commencement, a going forth into the world.  As many of you know, I have been at Vanderbilt going on three years now and have fallen in love with its charm. This week I have come across a story of a graduating senior that seems to encapsulate why I think Vandy is such a unique place.  It’s the story of graduating senior Kelly Finan, and her long and inspirational path to this week’s commencement.  It represents the Vanderbilt I have come to know and is well worth the time to read it.

Congratulations to Kelly and all graduating seniors on your own accomplishments going forth from Vanderbilt.

• Commencement , Peabody College of Education and Human Development
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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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