Hello Loggers!

With the spring semester now in full swing, I thought it was the perfect time to share some updates from the world of Admission. Like many of you, the Office of Admission has resumed modified in-person operations. It has been over a year since the dedication of the Welcome Center, and this last week marked our first official days working in the building.

While we are still settling in and unpacking boxes, the Admission team is thrilled with space and cannot wait to begin welcoming visitors. We are offering a limited number of guided campus tours starting today, February 16. Tours will be offered four times per day, Tuesday – Friday. Starting March 1, tours will also be offered on Saturdays.

At this time, tours will only be offered to admitted students. In keeping with campus guidelines, all visitors will be required to wear masks, maintain 6 feet of distance from others, and complete a health screening form prior to arrival. Visitors will be escorted around campus by our student tour guides. We will be entering some buildings, and contact has been made with office and facility managers to ensure the safety of our campus community. We will continue to offer virtual information sessions for all prospective students.

Despite the uncertainty of the last year, students are forging ahead with their college searches, and we are heartened to have a pool of applicants with a strong academic profile. Nationally, applications to colleges have decreased. While we have also seen this decrease (-3.8%), the quality in our applicant pool has allowed us to admit more (+2.5%) students than last year. It is still early in the decision cycle for students, yet we are optimistic that we will successfully meet our first-time-in-college enrollment goal of 585 students and our transfer enrollment goal of 45 students for Fall 2021.

We have a great pool of admitted students, but now we need to enroll them! The Office of Admission is happy to lead our efforts to enroll new undergraduate students, but we can’t do it alone. Every one of us has a part to play in enrolling in the Class of 2025. We have an aggressive yield goal, and with the whole community involved, we know we can meet that goal. Students choose Puget Sound because of the gorgeous campus, the amazing residential experience, the quality of the academic experience, the connections with faculty, the support of staff, and the co-curricular experiences. Each of us plays a role in helping students choose Puget Sound.

Over the coming weeks, we will be coming to you with specific ways in which you can be involved our efforts to support students as they determine whether or not to choose Puget Sound, including:

  • Participation in virtual yield events;
  • Letter writing campaigns; and
  • Short talks in our online communities.

Students want to see and experience the campus community, and we want to make opportunities for those campus connections possible. If you have ideas for how you can help yield students, please let me know. Otherwise, keep an eye out for our next communication with a clear outline of how you can help.

Thank you for the many ways that you have risen to the challenges of the last year. Keeping our campus community safe yet active and vibrant is no easy task. Each of you contributes to this effort daily, and it is the work that we do together that makes a difference. 

With Logger Pride,

Shannon
Shannon Carr | Associate Vice President of Admission