Updates Galore (with pictures)

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The month of June has arrived, the unofficial start of summer (supposedly Memorial Day weekend) has come and gone, and I have returned from my first of a number of post-Admissions cycle vacations. A lot has taken place over the last month, so I thought it would be best that my first blog entry on my return be an update entry. Yes, as the title states, here comes a galore of updates. But where to begin … hmmmmmmm …

Newsworthy: Johns Hopkins University Wins 2007 NCAA Division I Men’s Lacrosse Championship
It has been 10 days but as you can imagine we are all still celebrating. What a game – I hope many of you watched either live in Baltimore or on ESPN on Memorial Day. Not only did Hopkins claim its 9th Lacrosse national championship (that’s a record) but we did it by defeating Duke by a one goal margin (12-11). The victory was reminiscent of our championship victory in 2005 over Duke by one goal, but something was different this year.

Maybe it was the fact that no one predicted Hopkins would win when the tournament began. We JHU fans knew we had a strong team with great senior leadership in goaltender in Jesse Schwartzman and attack Jake Byrne, some great new freshman additions in Michael Kimmel and Steven Boyle, and probably the best midfielders in the country in juniors Paul Rabil and Stephen Peyser. But this had been an up-and-down season. Thankfully as the tournament commenced the team began to gel and by the time the championship game came around Coach Dave Pietramala’s team was ready to win their second championship in three years. However, no one was talking about Hopkins.

The national story was Duke for reasons that I will not discuss here. Even while in the Bahamas on vacation I had to hear and read about Duke this and Duke that and how they were the “Cinderella team.” The news, sports news and mainstream media, were ignoring Hopkins — the most storied program in all of Lacrosse history — as well as ignoring Cornell — the only undefeated team in the country going into the Final Four — and also Delaware — which was making their first Final Four appearance and were the true Cinderellas of the weekend. For all that, the victory was much more satisfying than in 2005.

All in all, the Lacrosse championship is where it belongs in the city of Baltimore and on the Homewood campus. Great job Blue Jays!!! To read more about the victory check out this Baltimore Sun article, and also you can download desktop wallpapers of the championship here.

Update: Transfer Decisions
Just about a week ago the Admissions Office released all transfer decisions via email and postal mail. (I guess I timed the posting of my Transfer Blog entry perfectly.) The final decisions resulted in the transfer team offering admission to 62 of the 721 applicants, just over an 8% admit rate. My sincere congratulations goes out to those students offered admission, and we hope that as you go through the accepted student materials that many of you will choose to enroll at Hopkins. Don’t forget to use the Hopkins Interactive forums to ask questions of current students and also read through all the admitted student freshman questions from back in April. A special congratulations goes out to Tanya Lukasik (Tanya922) one of the most frequent commenters on this blog over the last year — great job Tanya!!!

Update: Wait List Decisions
As my previous wait list update (May 18) discussed, we completed a first round of wait list decisions in the middle of May. At that time we accepted 36 students off the wait list. Since then we have been waiting for responses from those students and as usual checking the enrollment numbers for the Fall. We are tasked with yielding a class of 1204 students starting in September — no more, no less. For that reason we need to be quite methodical about our decision making when it comes to wait list students. On our end it is being careful, on your end it seems as we are just wasting time and “stringing you along.”

The expectation is that in the next few days we will select a few more students to be admitted off the wait list. When I write “a few” you all should read that as 10 or less. As well, I wrote the word “expectation” because nothing is currently set in stone. The Admissions team will continue these discussions over the next couple of days, so things may change. All you can do right now is continue to be patient. Please do not call or email us with questions about the wait list, questions about your individual position on the wait list, or anything else regarding the wait list. You will not get any additional information than what I just wrote above — you need to allow us to complete our analysis and work.

Besides the question of whether or not to admit a few more students now, we will also be discussing whether we will be offering some students a place on our extended summer wait list. What is this summer wait list you ask? It is something we have used in the past. The Admissions committee selects a small group of currently wait listed students (~100) and offer them a place on the extended summer wait list. Those students are notified that we have met our enrollment targets but in the rare event that space becomes available later in the summer they will be considered for one of those spots. The chances for admission are slim and only will occur in the rare case that more spaces become available. Please note that the Admissions committee selects the students to be offered a spot of the summer wait list, it is not something a wait listed student may request.

Finally, a quick note about notifications: If we choose to admit any more students off the wait list now we will contact those students directly by phone or email. Notifications about the summer wait list, if we choose to have one, will be sent through the postal mail and probably through email as well. Once those decisions have been made and completed, we then will send letters through the postal mail to the remainder of the students who remained on the wait list letting them know that enrollment targets have been met and we are releasing them.

To all of you wait list students, I personally extend my appreciation for your patience. If it doesn’t work out for JHU, I wish you all the best of luck at the institution you will attend this fall. Every year these decisions are quite difficult to make, and I hope you understand how much we agonize over these decisions. Having personally been wait listed from one of my top choice schools, I can relate. But I also assure you that after your first week in college you will forget all about wait lists.

Newsworthy: Mason Hall Nears Completion
A few times over the last year I have mentioned that this fall the Admissions Office will have a new home. We are all pretty excited about this new locale which will be part of the new Decker Quad, and the excitement for us increases each day now as the project nears its end. First the underground garage and new computational sciences buildings were constructed and nearly completed this past fall, winter, and through the early spring. Next the building frame for Mason Hall has been completed and the brick facade has come into focus. Then the windows were added. Now the grass was laid out for the Quad, and the sprinkler system was tested. As well, they have laid the bricks for the Quad, planted a few trees, and are working on the new entrance to the campus. Check out the pictures to see the progress, and as the summer nears an end I will let you know more about the new home of Admissions. (And oh yeah, I get my own office — woo hoo!)

Update: Class of 2011
Check back Monday, June 18 for my farewell post and I will return to the special Facebook group soon.

Final Note:
I hope you all found these updates and newsworthy items helpful. Starting next week I will be updating the blog more frequently (probably once a week), and have some interesting thoughts and ideas to share. Like what a season finale for LOST!!! And oh yeah, some college search counseling too. So stay tuned…

And as a final farewell, I thought you would all enjoy some pictures from my vacation to Paradise. It was amazing.

So Your Heart Must Be Fonder By Now?

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So the old saying goes, ABSENCE makes the heart grow fonder? If that is true, than my nearly one month absence from updating the Hopkins Insider blog must mean that my readers and I are now in a serious, committed relationship and true love is on the horizon. Actually, I suspect the opposite is true … and that my absence has bothered a number of you. Well I am hear to declare loudly, in the words of my favorite sports radio personality Mike Greenberg, that "I’m back and better than ever!"

Many of you are probably wondering what happened to me since April 23rd. As I write this I feel like I should have some grand reason to discuss. Maybe a story about how I was kidnapped by a rival university and tortured to share all the hidden Admissions secrets of JHU (been watching too much 24!). Or maybe a tale about how I got a call from the executives at some major television company who flew me to Hollywood to determine their coming fall line-up of new and returning shows (more shows like Heroes, LOST, House, and less CSI and reality TV). Or how about the guy I met in the deli who heard me order a ham sandwich and thought that I had a great voice for radio and made me the new play-by-play guy for the New York Mets (in another life I wish). All would have been great stories to tell, but all would have been based around my dreams.

In reality, a number of "forces" kept me from posting. First, there were the responsibilities of the job that kept me out of the office — a conference to attend and a week of spring travel throughout New England which I will write more about soon. Then, there were the in-office tasks of wrapping up the year both in relation to the 2006-07 admissions cycle but also the 2006-07 semester. This involved a lot of paper work, organizing, brainstorming, and oh yeah a number of parties and "thank you" dinners. Outside of the job there was also the reconnecting with my social life (no more working 7 days a week), enjoying everything I watch on my new TV, and celebrating a "special" web site that let’s me watch movies that are currently in theatres for free on my laptop (shhhhh!!!). And oh yeah, to be honest there was a lot of procrastinating involved…

See after the overwhelming pace of the last 6 months and the volume of work involved, there comes a time when I need to unwind. The first phase of that is to stop working at 200% my capacity, and rather drop down to about 75% for a few weeks. (I hope the boss is not reading this.) The second phase is always a long vacation – but I’ll get to that. So all in all, my apologies for keeping you all in the dark for the past month, and I set forth to update more regularly from now on.

So I guess you all are wondering what’s been up in the Admissions world. Well as I see it the majority of those who are reading this right now fall into one of these categories: (1) Transfer applicants; (2) Wait listed students; (3) Enrolling students of the Class of 2011; (4) Prospective students for the Classes of 2012 and beyond; and (5) Others. For each of these groups, I have an update.

Transfer Applicants
I know, I know, I know — I owe you all a special transfer post. This post has been a work in progress for about a month, and I promise I have not forgotten about you all. I am 80% done, and will make sure it is my next post. As far as an update though, the Transfer review committee (which sadly I am not part of) is at the tail-end of reviewing all the transfer applications and the plan is to release decisions by the end of the month. I would not be surprised if transfer decisions begin to be released by the end of next week, but do not quote me on that.

This year’s transfer applicant pool is about the same as last year’s total, just over 700 applications. Last year’s total was a noticeable jump from previous years, so we are happy to see that number continue this year. As the reviews are coming to an end, the main discussion is on-going about how many transfer applicants will be offered admission and will continue up until the point decisions are released. The number of transfer admits we can offer is directly tied to the number of spaces available in the class which is related to the number of enrolling freshmen and the retention rates of the current classes. So there are a lot of numbers that need to be figured out in the next week or so — but do know the Transfer team is hard at work.

Wait List Students
Earlier this week, the Hopkins Admissions committee did something we have not done in the past two years — we admitted a handful of students off the wait list. By handful I mean approximately 40 wait listed students were contacted by a member of the Admissions staff and offered a spot in the class of 2011. Congratulations to those students, but for the rest of you please understand that this is just step one in our process.

As always, we are quite deliberate in our process regarding wait listed students. Everything is tied to the number of students in the enrolling class and the number currently is quite close to our target of 1205. We have not in the past, and will not this year make any quick decisions. Over the next couple of weeks, the staff will continue to monitor the numbers and discuss wait list issues. We hope to have final decisions by mid-June for all of the students who remained on the wait list. Once we have reached a decision, all students who selected to remain on the wait list will be notified by mail or email.

There are a number of directions we can go in the coming weeks. We could continue to admit small amounts of students off the wait list if the Director determines there is still space in the class. We could decide the class is full and release all the students on the wait list. We could also choose to select some students for an extended summer wait list and release all the others. Clearly there are a number of paths we need to discuss, and all we ask from you all is patience.

The Incoming Class of 2011
This will actually be one of the last times I address you all as a blog audience. Now that you are future members of Hopkins, your connection with the Admissions Office and process our over. I do have a final sort of farewell post for you all that I will complete soon, but until now I just wanted to wish you the best of luck with the final days of your senior year. Good luck with finals, APs, IBs, and have fun with graduation and prom. Enjoy yourselves, and then have an amazing summer preparing for your arrival in Baltimore.

If not already, in the coming days you will be contacted by the Advising Offices and begin the process of registering for your first set of classes. The first step will be the receipt of your JHED ID and from there you can set-up your JHU e-mail address. I know what a big step that will be for many of you – getting the email address has become proof to many nowadays that you are actually enrolling at Hopkins.

I also recommend that you all join and participate in the special Incoming Class of 2011 Facebook group that we have set-up for you. This group will act as a forum for all incoming freshman. Use this forum as a way to meet your future classmates and also as a central place to ask questions about getting ready for Hopkins. Throughout the summer many updates will also be posted on the group so check back frequently. And as always, the Hopkins Interactive students are there to answer your pressing questions.

I personally look forward every year to reading the forum discussions, as it is amazing to see all the great qualities of our incoming class. Plus, I am on the look-out for freshmen bloggers – but more will follow on that later this summer.

Prospective Students – Classes of 2012 and beyond
The numbers show that the blog is getting more readers every day, and that can only mean one thing — a new batch of prospective students. As the summer officially commences, the blog topics and entries will shift from the Class of 2011 and move to addressing topics you all will find quite interesting. I have an ambitious agenda for the coming months, so keep checking back. And don’t forget to use the comments section.

The Others
When I type "Others" my mind goes directly to thoughts of Benjamin Linus / Henry Gale — who gets that reference??? But in fact I know there are some of you who read my blog who don’t fall into one of the categories above. Sorry I don’t have a special update for you all, but I do have one last things to let you all know before I complete this post.

I AM ON VACATION! Yes, I actually wrote this entry a day ago but set it to post today … May 18 … the first official day of my two week vacation. As you all enjoy the return of the Hopkins Insider Blog, I will be enjoying days of relaxation in the Bahamas – Paradise Island – the Atlantis Hotel to be exact. JEALOUS???

Schedule Change

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Greetings faithful Insider blog readers,

After a lovely weekend I face a daunting series of activities. First on Sunday evening is the final Admitted Student Chat. Then on Monday I have a conference to attend – boring! Tuesday is the final Admitted Student Open House – woo hoo – and a celebration dinner with all the students who make up Hopkins Interactive. Wednesday and Thursday will be filled with office work and lots of emails to catch up with, and then Friday I depart for my spring travel. I had hoped to be productive over the weekend with my blogging, but the 80 degree weather distracted me. SORRY, after the month of horrible weather we have had to endure, I need to enjoy myself.

So I need to adjust the blogging schedule I laid out in my April 16 entry a bit:

• The advice column for those admitted students still debating whether to attend Hopkins will post Monday (4/23) evening. (This is going to be a good one – stay tuned.)
• The post for transfer applicants will be delayed until Wednesday (4/24).
• The Class of 2011 (30 Things) will be pushed back a bit, so that I have time to make it perfect. Expect that entry for when I return from spring travel.
• The help Admissions_Daniel thread (You all will love this one!!!) will post over the weekend (4/28 or 4/29).
• And remember all next week I will be blogging from the road once again.

OK, chat time…

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Thursday, April 26

Quick Update

Transfer students: I have not forgotten about you nor I have I forgotten about the post I have promised you all. I am awaiting some information from the Transfer team and once I get those details I will post your update. Thanks for your patience.

A Post for Those on the Wait List

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So I finish my week of "catch-up" blogging with a post for those of you who received a wait list decision a few weeks ago. In the on-going debate about college admissions practices, the discussion over wait list policies is one of the most popular. Just do a Google search and you will find tons of newspaper articles about the subject and also "supposed" services or advice columns on how wait list works. Read the first type of articles if you are interested, but please ignore the second type … they are not worth it!

In my years of experience, wait list decisions are the hardest to discuss. Many students have told me that receiving the news that you have been offered a spot on the wait list is considered worse than just being denied outright. I completely understand and sympathize with all the conflicting emotions involved — back in the day I also dealt with the aftermath of being wait listed by a top school of mine.

I think that the reason there is such animosity towards and anxiety about wait list decisions is that such decisions are in fact not definitive. A while back I read in an article a great definition for the college wait list and I wrote it down in a folder of articles I save. Though I unfortunately forget the source, I do feel the quote is worth re-printing here:

"A wait list is sort of the purgartory of college admissions. When you end up on a wait list, you’re in the twilight zone; you’re not in but you’re not out. You’re sort of on-call."

Wait list decisions exist because of the sheer competition to get into college these days, and they work as a form of protection for schools to make sure they yield their class each year. It would be wonderful to exist in a world with definitive decisions and no wait lists, but unfortunately that ideal just doesn’t exist.

So what do you do? Well first it is important to know that being placed on the Johns Hopkins wait list is NOT a rejection of you and your abilities. It is a statement about the exceptional quality of our applicants pool and the limited of number of spots we can offer to make our class. We respect the frustration and apprehension that exists with being placed in a state of limbo, so to assist we try to provide as much information as we can along the way.

A few weeks ago Admissions_Mark and I sat down and composed an extensive list of frequently asked questions and answers about how the Hopkins wait list works. That list is posted below to attempt to assist you along the way. We have also created a discussion thread for you to ask us questions, and for us to post updates when they become available. We hope this helps.

I still really want to go to Hopkins. What should I do if I want to remain on the wait list?
To remain on the wait list we ask the complete and mail back the blue Wait List Reply Card that is included with your decision letter. Send this card back as soon as possible – it needs to be postmarked by May 1. We do not have an online form for submitting this information and we would prefer to receive the reply card back rather than fielding “remain on wait list” responses through email or phone. For students living abroad, you may send an e-mail titled “Remain on the Wait List” to <gotojhu@jhu.edu>, since international postal times do vary so much. Finally, it is very important to note that only those who select to remain on the wait list option will be considered for a spot in the class if spaces become available.

Should I do anything else besides sending back the card? I heard we can update our applications. Is that true, and what kind of updates can we submit?
You may certainly send updates that you would like added to your application. Such information can assist the Admissions committee if we do review wait list candidates for admission. We suggest the following if updating your application:

• A Letter of Interest – A one or two page letter to the Admissions Committee that states why you are interested in Hopkins, why you feel it is the right school for you, and why you should be admitted from the wait list.
• Updated resume – Let us know what you have gotten involved with during your senior year. This should include updated information not in your original application.
• Recommendations – One or two additional or updated letters.
• Updated transcript – Your most recent grades, even beyond the mid-year report can be helpful. Ask your guidance counselor to submit them if possible.

Please DO NOT send the following: (1) additional writing samples; (2) supplemental materials such as CDs, slides, portfolios, etc.; (3) research or term papers. Just stick to the list above.

Do note that you are not required to submit any additional materials. Also it important that if you choose to submit updates to your file that they will contribute in a substantive way or provide new information. All updates should be mailed to the Admissions Office, we can not process application updates submitted through email. When mailing, do include your full name, birth date, school name, and a note that the materials are to be used as a wait list update.

Why was I wait listed? Was this just a way to break the bad news more gently?
Admissions decisions are comprehensive decisions that take into account many factors included in each individual application within the context of the overall applicant pool. In every application we are searching for the ideal fit with the university based on the information in the applicant files. The Admissions Committee is unable to discuss with applicants why we were not able to offer admission, but it is important to know that offering a student a spot on our wait list is not done out of a courtesy or lessen the impact of our decision. Any student on the wait list who chooses to remain on the wait list will have a chance for admission if spaces in the class become available.

How big is this year’s wait list? Is the wait list ranked?
We will not know the size of this year’s wait list until we receive all wait list reply cards back. We expect that about 1000 students will request to keep their position on our wait list.

In no way, shape, or form is our wait list ranked. If spaces in the class become available, we will review the application of each and every student who selected to remain on the wait list.

What are my chances of being admitted from the wait list?
It is impossible at this time to predict any individual’s chances of being admitted from the wait list. Admission will depend on how many admitted students accept their offer from Hopkins, how many students send back their wait list replay cards, and a series of other enrollment factors. There is just no way of telling, so we request your patience and understanding.

When will I hear if I’ve been accepted off the wait list? The other schools I was admitted to require a deposit by May 1 – should I wait until I hear from Hopkins?
Once again that all depends on the response from our admitted students. Our decision as to whether we will admit students off the wait list will not be made prior to May 1 and it is more likely we will make that determination closer to June 1. We strongly recommend that you submit your deposit to a school where you have been accepted. If you are later admitted to Hopkins from the wait list and choose to attend, you will withdraw your enrollment from the other school and forfeit the previous deposit.

I want to come see the campus in April. Can I visit, and what kind of visit programs can I participate in?
You are welcome to visit Hopkins in the month of April. Our offices are open Monday – Friday, 8:30am – 4:30pm. Tours are offered on weekdays at 11am and 2pm, and information sessions are available at 10:00am and 1:00pm. There are some exceptions, so check out the visit section on our web site: http://apply.jhu.edu/visit/guidedtours.html. We regret that we are unable to accommodate any requests for overnights and/or day visits from wait listed students. Additionally, our Open House programs in April are for admitted students only.

During my visit can I get an interview or meet with an Admissions counselor one-on-one?
Unfortunately, no. We are unable to grant interview or meeting requests for wait listed students. Instead, we ask that you put any information or updates in a written letter which will be added to your application file. If you do have a specific question, you may email your regional counselor: http://apply.jhu.edu/contact/staff.html.

If I am accepted off the wait list and I applied for financial aid, will I receive any financial assistance?
There is no guarantee of financial assistance for students accepted from the wait list. It all depends on whether there is available funding after the numbers are crunched from the admitted students who have chosen to enroll.

If I am accepted off the wait list, am I bound to enroll at Johns Hopkins?
No. If we offer places in the class to students on the wait list, those students will have the chance to select whether they want to enroll at Hopkins or stick with the other University that they had previously selected. We provide students with about a two-week deadline for responding to our offer of admission from the wait list. Submitting the Wait List Reply card and selecting that you want to remain on the wait list is not a commitment to enroll at Hopkins if admitted.

Do you have any historical data of how many students were admitted from the wait list in previous years?
Though every year is different and the numbers vary, here is what happened the past few years:
• 2006 – No offers of admission from the wait list.
• 2005 – No offers of admission from the wait list.
• 2004 – Approximately 150 students were admitted from the wait list.
• 2003 – Approximately 100 offers.
• 2002 – No offers.
• 2001 – Approximately 50 offers.
• 2000 – No offers.

A Post for the Admits – Congratulations!!!

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(composed at 9:30pm, Wednesday, April 18)

Just three weeks ago (March 28 post) I was sitting on the floor in the living room of my apartment finishing a long day, typing up the last update to a full day of "live blogging," and getting ready to watch LOST. I find myself 21 days later in that same position; finishing a long day, typing a blog entry, waiting for LOST. Though some things feel similar this evening, a lot has changed.

I am well-rested (FINALLY!). My long day was not at work but at the Department of Motor Vehicle (aaaahhhhh!). Baseball season has started and the Mets are looking real good (beating up big time on the Marlins as I type). My Islanders made it into the Playoffs (barely) and hopefully they can come back against Buffalo (fingers crossed). Hopkins Lacrosse is winning again. I am more eagerly anticipating watching LOST tonight because the last three episodes have been AMAZING! And oh yeah, my dreams are no longer haunted by the fear that I have tons and tons of applications to read and committee discussions to face.

Yes the times have changed, but the work is not done. Since the release of decisions the Hopkins community has rolled the red carpet out for two great Admitted Student Open Houses (one more left on the 24th!!!) and welcomed thousands of visitors to campus. We’ve maintained a great Admitted Student Web Site, launched four Hopkins Cribs videos, held three admitted student online chats, hosted two successful overnight programs, and organized a number of other admitted student celebrations. Despite the crazy weather, the last three weeks have been a whirlwind of activity full of on-campus conversations with admitted students and families, responding to tons of e-mails, monitoring the message boards, and attempting as best as possible to help the admits gather information to aid in their decision making. And clearly the answer is always to become a Blue Jay and a member of the Johns Hopkins Class of 2011 (wink, wink).

I have always enjoyed the month of April in Admissions — the events, the conversations, the counseling — all of it is so compelling and stimulating. To me though the most interesting part is that the tables have completely flipped. Between November thru March, the question is about FIT — the Admissions Committee mulling over thousands of applications and selecting those who we feel best FIT what we are searching for in shaping the incoming class. But now in April the question of FIT is being posed by the admitted students and we in Admissions have to sit back and wait until May 1st to see who will "accept" us.

As I compiled last year, this entry is dedicated to the 3,591 students offered a spot in the JHU Class of 2011. Each and every one of you should feel a great sense of accomplishment and honor. You should know that by offering you a spot in the Hopkins community we are saying loud and clear we think you FIT. We think you will make a difference at Johns Hopkins and that we can provide you with the challenge and excitement you are looking for. I know it has been said before but this past admissions cycle was the most competitive in Hopkins history and after all the hard work my colleagues and I feel we have admitted the strongest and most unique class ever.

One of the things I am always asked about are the Admissions statistics. I posted the ED stats a while back and now to appease I will post the overall stats. I am not sure why this is so pertinent after the decisions have been made, but you all clamor for the details and I abide. In addition to the stats, you should also check out the JHU Gazette article and News-Letter story that were published earlier this month.

• Total Freshman Applications = 14,842 (a 7% increase over last year, a 30% increase in the past two years, and an over 50% increase since 2002).
• Overall Admit Rate = 24% (down from 35% just two years ago)
• Students not offered admission = 11,251 (up dramatically from 7,370 in 2005).
• 189 International (non-US citizens) admitted – they make up 5.3% of the admits and come from 57 countries.
• We have an admit from all 50 states, D.C., Guam, and Puerto Rico.
• 31 Baltimore Scholars.
• A record number of under-represented minority students = 325 self-identified as African-American, 302 Hispanic, and 21 Native American.
• Top 5 States in Admits = NY, CA, MD, NJ, PA
• 48% female / 52% male (10 years ago the split was 40% / 60%)
• Some other points of note: 45 admits selected Classics as their first choice major; about 15% of our admits have participated in a CTY or Hopkins Summer program; 20 admits submitted the SAT subject exam in German as one of their 3 recommended SAT II Subject exams; 8% of the admits are first generation college students; 10 of our admits were fully home-schooled; and 0 of our admits have made it to the finals of American Idol.

One thing missing from this year’s stats breakdown are the academic profile numbers, by that I mean the average GPA, standardized test scores, etc. Why is that? Well, very simple — in my humble opinion, posting those numbers in no way will represent the strength of the class or paint an accurate picture of what makes our admits so unique. Despite the dramatic increase in applications over the last few years, and the significant drop in the admit rate, the average GPA or the mean SAT or the number of students in the top 5% of their class has not changed drastically. The reason for this is despite more competition we do not abandon our holistic, comprehensive approach to application review – we choose those who FIT.

With all that said, let me finish with a note to those admitted students who still have yet to make up there mind. May 1st is fast approaching and in these final few weeks you have to make the big decision of which school is the right one for you. I understand what a daunting task that can be, but I do encourage you to embrace this challenge. Try to enjoy this decision making process, and have confidence that your final decision will be the right one.

Since this is the Hopkins Insider blog I would be remiss if I did not do a bit of promoting. As you work your way to making that final decision, here are a number of ways you can still connect with the Hopkins community and see if we fit what you are looking for:

• Our final Admitted Student Open House will be held next Tuesday, April 24. Visiting during an Open House is the best way to get the most comprehensive view of life at JHU. Plus, the weather looks like it will be great next Tuesday.
• If you can’t make it on the 24th, we still offer weekday tours, information sessions and class visit options for admitted students. Just check out the special Admitted Student Web site for all the details.
• This Sunday, April 22 the Hopkins Interactive students will hold the final Admitted Student Online Chat — log-on and connect with those who may be your future classmates.
• And probably the best source of information for you all right now is the Johns Hopkins Forums. There are a ton of interesting discussion threads that have already begun, and if you still have questions post them there and watch as you get extensive feedback from current students.

Once again, congratulations. Best of luck and check back over the next couple of weeks for mode updates.

I leave you with some pictures of blog entries to stay tuned for — our Bluejay mascot Anne Jay Leena attended the first Open House and will report on all the happenings. And Open House employee Felina will have her own Guest Blog entry soon.

Decision Day Has Arrived – Live Blogging All Day

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WE ARE DONE! Well, sort of…

The arduous five month application review process is complete and as of this morning (Wednesday, March 28) the 14,000+ decision notifications have been delivered to the Baltimore postal center. The e-mail decisions will start going out at 5:00 PM EDT — but please know it could take up to five hours for all the e-mails to be sent. Please refer to my March 12 entry for further information on how we release decisions. [We will not release decisions over the phone!]

As I did last year, I wanted to provide you all a look into the last 48 hours. But there is a new twist — I will be updating the blog throughout the day (live blogging?) with additions to the time line and pictures. So check back regularly throughout the day and next few days, with a ton of information about the release of decisions.

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Tuesday, March 27

12:15 PM – Director of Admissions John Latting emerges from his office and declares that the class is sealed and all the letters are signed and ready to be stuffed. A loud ovation is heard throughout Garland Hall.

12:17 PM - After two minutes of celebrating, the sorting, stuffing, and sealing begins. Financial Aid takes over the basement file room to add their award packages, as the Operations team begins to go through one last roster check confirming final decisions.

5:00 PM - Chinese food arrives. The staff digs in.

5:01 PM – The beverages arrive. Staff washes down the food.

5:03 PM - The pizza arrives. The students volunteers celebrate.

5:03:30 PM – The pizza gone. The students are stuffed.

5:30 PM – The Operations team, counseling staff members, and a cadre of current student volunteers heads downstairs to stuff and seal all the admits packets.

6:20 PM - The affixing of postage commences.

7:32 PM – We are done. In record time! A process that took nearly 5 hours last year, took only two. Wow. The student volunteers, as always, were amazing.

8:02 PM – Uh oh. We need to sort some of the international mailings. Can you say finding a needle in a haystack.

8:31 PM – Actually it was not that difficult. Team work really does work.

9:05 PM – Admissions_Daniel heads home. Colleagues follow hoping for the first good night sleep in weeks.

10:54 PM – Just before heading to bed, Admissions_Daniel posts an update to the Hopkins Insider blog with a very auspicious final picture.

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Stay tuned … more updates to follow … including the procession of mail bins and our visits to the postal centers …

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I’m back and ready to take you through the tales of today – D-Day…

Wednesday, March 28

7:15 AM – Arrive to the office feeling like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders. Hmmm … what is this strange sensation. Oh, I am relaxed!!!

~8:30 AM – The rest of the staff trickles in and we scan over all the bins of mail, excited about what lies ahead. Now we all wait for the arrival of Director Latting and the go-ahead to move the bins out.

9:45 AM - The procession begins. It takes four huge mail carts, a hand truck, and two trips to move all the bins to the waiting four SUVs. (Sorry Al Gore, no hybrid cars used to deliver our mail.)

9:48 AM – The loading of the cars begins. Many hands make quick work.

10:15 AM - The four SUVs driven by John, Jameel, Jeremiah and I depart for I-83. Three of the SUVs go south towards the Baltimore Postal Center, and one goes north to the Johns Hopkins postal center in Mount Washington.

11:00 AM – Less than 45 minutes later, the last admit packet and the last deny and wait list letters are handed over. Now the Class of 2011 is officially official – no more changes can be made.

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Even more updates … and a few more photos to follow…

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The live blogging continues … hope you all are enjoying the tales as you await the release of the e-mails. Back to the time line.

12:00 PM – PARTY TIME!!! Yes, the Admissions and Financial Aid teams joined for a bit of a celebration and a nice catered lunch. You can clearly see the stressed had washed away from us all, and we got to relax, reflect, and rejuvenate. Good food can always do that.

12:20 PM - Congratulations! Dean Conley and Director Latting extended their heartfelt thanks to every staff member. And then allowed us to leave early …. woooooo hoooooo.

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One last update …

5:00 PM – The sending of the e-mails commences. This process will take some time.

5:01:30 PM - The questions have already begun. In response, here are some answers…

• Why didn’t I get an email?: If an applicant does not receive an email it is because either there was no email provided with the application, the email provided no longer works, there is a spam filter blocking the message, or some error occurred causing a bounceback. We do not re-send emails, so in such situations the student must wait for the mail to arrive. We will not release decisions over the phone until Monday, April 2 and then only to the applicant, a parent or guardian, or the applicant’s high school guidance counselor. Decisions will only be released over the phone if the identity of the caller can be reasonably assured.
• I applied to the BME program, did I get in?: Decisions about acceptance into the Biomedical Engineering (BME) major are departmental decisions and therefore we do not release such information through email or over the phone. All applicants who applied to the BME program will learn of their decision when they receive their acceptance package. Further details can be found by clicking here.
• Did I receive a scholarships?: Scholarship award notifications are included in the acceptance package of those students awarded one of our merit awards. We do not release these decisions through email or over the phone.
• I submitted an application for the Woodrow Wilson Research Fellowship; did I get it?: Once again these notifications are only released through the postal mail, not through email or over the phone.
• What is my financial aid package?: Financial aid awards for those who completed an application will be included in the acceptance packet. You can also check your award by logging into your ISIS account. If you have any questions or need access to ISIS, please contact the Office of Student Financial Services at fin_aid@jhu.edu or 410-516-8028.

We know there will be many, many, many more questions and we will have answers. Just not right at this moment.

For me the day is coming to an end. And I have two things to look forward to: LOST and my BED!!!

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More posts will follow throughout the week, so stay tuned!

Cheers.

So Close…

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I promise, we are almost there …

… while you wait enjoy these pictures from the first truly amazing spring day of the year.

*                  Hmmm??? Something is missing from that last picture …

The End is Near…

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The light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter. It is just about 6:00am EDT on Tuesday, March 27 and I am waking up from a night of restless sleep and a variety of psychotics dreams and creepy nightmares. My dedication to the process though was really tested last night when I decided to skip my commitment to Monday night television (Prison Break, 24, the Riches, and the Black Donnellys) and work through the evening instead. No worries, my trusty 2 TiVos caught all my show, and once letters are mailed I will have a stock-pile of episodes to catch up on.

Speaking of letters, we are getting very close. I know you applicants are getting very anxious and the best I can tell you is that we are working as fast as we can. Once it is officially determined when the letters will hit the mail and the emails will be sent, I promise to let you all know. If I were a betting man (which I am no longer because of this year of March Madness), I’d be putting my money down on Wednesday or Thursday — but that is no guarantee.

Before I share a few more photos, if you haven’t read it yet — go back to my March 12th entry where I answer all the questions you have about how decisions will be released — click here for the “What Time Is It” entry.

Photo Captions: (top row-left to right, then down to 2nd row left to right, etc.)

* “The Signature Process” – Our Director of Admissions, John Latting, will sign all the admit letters. Yes, his hand hurts at the end!!!

* “The last decisions” – Mark, John, and Shannon work in the file room on those last critical final decisions.

* “Waiting” – The admit packets just wait for the signed letters and the call that the class is complete and it is time to stuff and seal and send.

* “Good luck” – Lilly just wanted to say hi and wish you all the best of luck.

Are We Done Yet?

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So that is the big question right now … are we done yet? Not yet, but close. The final stages have begun and I have posted photographic proof below.

As the Counseling Team finalizes those last admit, wait list, and deny decisions, the Operations team (with the help of many amazing students) has begun the process of generating the letters and preparing for the mailing of the over 14,000 decisions. This is not an easy process and it pretty much takes a full week of 18+ hour days. But we will get it done and make sure that all the mail is out by the end of the month.

I thought I would share some photographs I took on Friday, truly displaying how hectic the office has become. Enjoy the pictures and scroll to the bottom of this entry for photo captions.

I will try as best as possible to post every couple of days with more pictures and updates… (click on picture for full view…)

• Photo Captions: (top row-left to right, then down to 2nd row left to right, etc.)
• * “Admit inserts” – those admit packets come with a lot of inserts and the basement file room is the staging area for the stuffing of the packets.
• * “Letterhead” – lots and lots of letterhead is needed to print all the letters.
• * “Spending money” – Jameel and Jeremiah looking over files for possible scholarship contenders.
• * “Rachel +1″ – A pregnant Rachel enjoys an easy job – putting labels on envelopes.
• * “More labeling” – Emily also labels…
• * “Even more labeling” – Scott also … well, you get the point.
• * “Hard at work?” – Thumbs up for sorting of letters.
• * “One last check” – Mark taking on last look at one of the applicants.
• * “Drawer checks” – Preparing for the arduous process of drawer checks where we confirm the correct decision letter will go to the right applicant.
• * “Stuffing” – The ladies working hard (?) to stuff letters and add labels.
• * “Slacking off” – Mark “fake filing” because he just likes having his photo taken.
• * “Last Year” – A flashback to last year when our Director pushed one of our bins of mail out of the building on the way to the post office.

What time is it?

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Greetings from the madness. That is my newly minted nickname for this time of year in the world of Hopkins Admissions. The initial reviews of this year’s 14,800+ applications are complete, but we are no where close from being DONE. Now the so-called “fun” begins … as we spend the next two and half weeks shaping and putting together the final class. Committee reviews have commenced and the arduous reviews of our reviews is are primary focus.

Evaluating 40+ applications day, 7 days a week, for nearly three months is quite overwhelming, but these next round of committee days are hard to explain. Let me take a stab at defining them though — how about excruciating, maddening, stimulating, distressing and formidable all wrap together. Just look at what it has done to Soze…

 

Actually I think what did this to Soze and what has added to the madness is this whole early Day Light Savings time change. On Sunday when I was in the office (yup, no rest for the weary) my watch, clock, computer clock, and phone clock all had different times. Though it is nice that daylight now stays with us longer after our clocks “sprang ahead” (especially on a warm day like today), the early change has definitely messed with my fragile sleep schedule and internal clock. And time is a truly precious thing right now … as the mail date looms.

Speaking of the mail date, for us it is the light at the end of the tunnel, but for many of you it is that moment you have been counting down since you clicked submit or stamped that envelope to Baltimore. As well, the subject of mail date is the source of one of the most frequently asked questions we address at this time of year. So I thought, as I do from time to time, I would create a FAQ list entry to answer the most pressing questions. Hope this helps!

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When will decisions be released?

Though the exact date has not been finalized, we currently are targeting a mail date during the last week of March (between the 26th – 30th). As soon as we know an official mail date I will update the blog. (Do know though that last minute changes do occur and the official mail date is not official until the mail arrives at the Baltimore post office — just check the blog arrives from last March.)

How will decisions be released?

We will release decisions the same way we did for Early Decision. First, all the decision letters (admits, wait lists, and denies) must leave the Admissions Office and arrive at the Baltimore main postal center. Then we will follow-up later that day with email decisions to those applicants who provided a current and working email address with their application. Decisions will not be released over the phone until a week after the mail date. There is no way to determine at what time the emails will be sent. As well, please be aware we do not have an online system for checking application status.

What if my email or mailing address has changed?

Well, then you need to update us. Please send an email to apphelp@jhu.edu as soon as possible. Include your address update along with your full name, birth date, school, and old address.

I am wondering if my application is complete?

Applicants interested in checking if their application has been received and whether it is complete must call the Admissions Office at 410-516-8171. This information will only be discussed over the phone (not through email). Please note that our staff will only confirm if your application has been received and if any required application materials are missing. We are unable to confirm that supplemental materials or specific letters of recommendation have been processed. Rest assured that all applicants’ files are carefully checked for completion. We notify applicants who have incomplete files, and give those students an opportunity to provide us with any missing items, before we evaluate their applications. Once again, if anything is missing, someone from our office will contact you. Be assured that we will not make a decision on your file until it is complete.

I got an email saying my application is incomplete, will this hurt my chances?

No. That is why we contact our incomplete applicants and provide them time to send in the necessary materials. Those applications will be reviewed in the same manner as all other applications.

I’d like to update my application. Will anything I send now be considered?

You may feel free to update your application any time by sending something through the mail or via fax, 410-516-6025. (Updates through email will not be processed.) Chances are unlikely though that updates will be processed in time to be considered by the Admissions Committee.

I was admitted Early Decision and sent in my enrollment form and deposit. When should I expect to receive more information?

Just be a bit more patient. At the end of the month you will receive your next mailing and it will include information about housing selection. Also keep an eye out for an email from us at the end of the month detailing the launch of a special Class of 2011 forum … stay tuned.

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OK, I am off to go figure out what time (and day) it is … one of my clocks needs to be correct.

P.S. Admissions_Daniel and the Hopkins Insider continue to make news. Take a look at this recent articles:

* The Chronicle of Higher Education’s Wired Campus column – “Demystifying College Admissions” — click here.