Tuesday, January 13, 2009

In the midst of reading

Ok, so this is my very first blog posting! -- how exciting! I decided to type in purple, not sure why, just wanted to test this thing out.

We're in the midst of reading season and I can honestly say it's a really fun time of year. I sat at home yesterday and got to read some wonderful essays. Our applicants put tons of time into their applications and it shows. The toughest thing for us at Lehigh is that the very large majority of our applicants are qualified to be admitted to Lehigh, however, we only have a limited number of spots in the class. We have to make very tough decisions and find those students that will truly make an impact on our campus. Luckily, we have an amazing staff (which is part of the reason I've been here almost 10 years - wow, time flies!) and we collaborate on so many things. Although I've read the applications for students in my territory, another member of the staff with give me a second opinion on many of the files -- some will go to committee where we present all the students' qualities and then vote. It can be very stressful!

I will say, however, that this is one of the most rewarding points in the year for us. I love being able to advocate for my students -- especially those I've gotten to know well through high school visits or college fairs this past fall.

Remember how I said this time of year is "fun" -- well, I was lying a little. My desk is filled with files for me to process so I better get to it. More on reading season later......


No comments:

Post a Comment