Measuring for Higher Education
In Measure What Matters, a book by Katie Paine, the last chapter talks
about measuring data in higher education. The chapter really stuck with me
because, at the moment, I am looking for admissions counselor jobs at colleges.
I have applied for two admissions jobs so far
at Trine University and Hillsdale College. One of the main things you need to
do in an admissions job is to look over data about students coming to your
college. You need to compare demographic, look at faculty retention, look at
alumni involvement. You should always shoot to gain more students than the past
year which a lot of colleges are struggling with right now.
You also should just look
at the data once a year, but more like 12 times a year. Students may drop out
or transfer, faculty might quit or be let go. All these things can affect
admissions in some way or another. To be able to read the data and understand
the failure would be the biggest thing because then you can learn how to not
have these failures anymore. The better your admissions program is the better
chance you will have at gaining more students than the previous year.
I agree that colleges shouldn't just look at data once a year. I personally believe a lot more colleges should be more selective in their admission process. I believe it wouldn't just benefit the colleges overall rating but it would boost our economy as well. So many colleges admit students who are more than likely going to drop out after a year of college from either not having the grades or not being able to financially afford it. If colleges were more selective it would allow prospecting students who maybe didn't get accepted take that time to save and truly decide if that particular college, or just college in general is the right decision for them.
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