College admission officers just want the balloons, videotapes, and toddler photos to stop:
Forget transcripts and neatly completed paperwork when it comes to prestigious schools or state college programs that are difficult to get into. One student wrapped his University of Notre Dame application in a leprechaun made of balloons. Another sent Indiana University photographs of herself as a toddler in a crimson cheerleading skirt to show a lifelong passion for all things Hoosier. Others include resumes, videotaped pleas for acceptance and newspaper clippings of high school highlights.Most of the frills are unwanted, but college admissions officials report a surge of them in this year's applications. More than 50,000 will reach Indiana colleges and universities this year, many arriving before the year ends Saturday...
More extreme efforts could backfire. Just ask Notre Dame recruiters about the leprechaun balloons and the hundreds of unnecessary resumes, digital-video discs and homemade brochures they open in a year. "Is that a good way to get our attention? No," said Daniel Saracino, who runs Notre Dame's undergraduate admissions office. "You realize there must be something wrong with this applicant, because he's trying to wow us with something we don't need. The best way to get our attention is with an application that's compelling."
One admission officer notes his favorite example, "the student who not only sent everything about himself, but included details about his siblings, apparently to show he was from 'good stock'." I don't think that matters in college - not even for the agriculture majors.
Posted by kswygert at December 27, 2005 03:18 PM