Complexity in College Admissions: Facts and
Myths
March 28, 2010
1:00PM EST
Presenters:
Arlene Cash
Brad Quin
Bruce Walker
Learning to Lead:
Admissions in the 21st Century Webinar Series
Advocacy & Policy Center
Mission:
To increase the number of students who earn a college
degree and who are prepared to succeed in the 21st
century.
Approach:
Areas of Focus
College Preparation & Access
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Arts at the Core
The CollegeKeys Compact™
School Counselor Advocacy
Teacher Advocacy
Minority Male Achievement
Undocumented Students and the DREAM Act
The National Commission on Writing
College Affordability & Financial Aid
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Cracking the Student Aid Code
Rethinking Student Aid
Trends in Higher Education
Education Pays
Simplifying State Aid Processes
College Admission & Completion
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College Completion Agenda
Admissions in the 21st Century
Access & Diversity Collaborative
Community College Transfer & Retention
Study Overview
Objective:
 Explore the topic of complexity in the admission process through
research based on student and parent perceptions
 Measure student and parent perceptions of complexity
 Differentiate responses by income, race and ethnicity, first
generation status and geography
 Identify which subgroups find the process (or aspects of it) complex
and why
 Identify possible responses to key findings
Survey Overview:
 600 students planning to enroll in a 4-year college
 300 parents of students planning to enroll in a 4-year college
A Closer Look: Fact or Urban Myth?
Examined 7 Areas from the Student & Parent View:
 Getting Information about College
 Application Process: General
 Application Process: Schools to which students applied
 Application Process: Features of the application process
 Application Process: By school type & size
 Sources of Help During the College Application Process
 Overall Perceptions of the College Application Process
 Parents Experiences with the College Application
Process
 Demographics
Getting Information about Colleges
Learning to Lead:
Admissions in the 21st Century Webinar Series
Application Process: General
Learning to Lead:
Admissions in the 21st Century Webinar Series
Respondents’ Suggestions for Making the Process
Less Confusing/Complex
Top Four Suggestions:
Students
Top Four Suggestions:
Parents
 Better instructions/Step-by-step
guides/Clear checklist: 15%
 Improve college websites/Make
websites more user- friendly/ Better
information on websites: 14%
 Use a common application/Have
everything in one place or on one
website: 10%
 Better communication between
colleges and students, parents,
high school staff/Better or more
timely notification when items are
missing: 9%
 Better communication between
colleges and students, parents,
high school staff/Better or more
timely notification when items are
missing: 11%
 Improve college websites/Make
websites more user- friendly/ Better
information on websites: 10%
 Better instructions/Step-by-step
guides/Clear checklist: 9%
 Use a common application/Have
everything in one place or on one
website: 7%
Application Process:
Schools to Which Students Applied
Learning to Lead:
Admissions in the 21st Century Webinar Series
Application Process:
Features of the Application Process
Learning to Lead:
Admissions in the 21st Century Webinar Series
How Confusing Were Specific Features of the
Admissions Process? Top Three
From a List of Standard Processes;
Scale 1 Low, 10 High
From a List of “special” processes;
Scale 1 Low, 10 High
 Knowing how admission
decisions are made
 Write an essay
 Students: 3.32
 Parents: 3.64
 Being able to find information
they needed on a college’s
website
 Students: 2.68
 Parents: 2.24
 Completing the application form
 Students: 2.62
 Parents: 2.47
 Students: 3.50
 Parents: 3.14
 Apply for admission to a specific
college within the school
 Students: 2.64
 Parents: 2.33
 Submit samples of high school
coursework
 Students: 2.49
 Parents: 2.26
Application Process:
By School Type and Size
Learning to Lead:
Admissions in the 21st Century Webinar Series
Does Complexity Vary by School Type or Size?
Students:
Rating 1 Low, 10 High
Parents:
Rating 1 Low, 10 High
 Public: 2.55
 Private: 2.51
 Small: 2.54
 < 4,000
 Medium: 2.67
 4,000 to 9,999
 Large: 2.55
 >10,000
 Public: 2.26
 Private: 2.31
 Small: 2.02
 < 4,000
 Medium: 2.52
 4,000 to 9,999
 Large: 2.32
 >10,000
Does Complexity of Specific Tasks Vary by School
Type: Top 5
Public:
Rating 1 Low, 10 High
Private:
Rating 1 Low , 10 High
 Write an essay: 3.37
 Apply for admission to a
specific college within the
school: 2.51
 Submit samples of high school
coursework: 2.48
 Have an interview with
admissions staff: 2.43
 Get letters of
recommendation:2.07
 Write an essay: 3.21
 Submit samples of high school
coursework: 2.44
 Have an interview with
admissions staff: 2.41
 Get letters of recommendation:
2.31
 Apply for admission to a specific
college within the school: 2.12
Does Confusion about Features of the Process
Vary with School Size: Top 3
 Knowing how admission decisions are made
 Small: 3.47
 Medium: 2.63
 Large: 2.57
 Knowing if all required materials were submitted
 Small: 3.16
 Medium: 2.43
 Large: 2.54
 Being able to find information they needed on a college’s website
 Small: 3.21
 Medium: 2.59
 Large: 2.62
Sources of Help During the College
Application Process
Learning to Lead:
Admissions in the 21st Century Webinar Series
Overall Perceptions of the College
Application Process
Learning to Lead:
Admissions in the 21st Century Webinar Series
Stressors in the Process: Top 3
Those factors that were
not stressful (rated 1-5)
Those factors that were
stressful (rated 6-10)
 Was not complicated/All
information needed in one
place/Process was selfexplanatory: 32%
 Waiting for the answer was the
stressful part/Not knowing if
they would be accepted: 15%
 Different applications have
different requirements/Difficult
to gather all the required items:
14%
 Different applications have
different requirements/Difficult
to gather all the required items:
34%
 Worried about
deadlines/Difficult to meet
deadlines: 26%
 Very time consuming/Hard to
balance with work, school, and
extracurricular activities: 18%
Demographics
Learning to Lead:
Admissions in the 21st Century Webinar Series
Student Demographics
Type of high school student
attends
Students
(N=600)
Parents
(N=300)
Students
(N=600)
Parents
(N=300)
Public school
88%
86%
2.99 or less
11%
6%
Private school
11%
12%
3.00 to 3.24
13%
13%
Home school
1%
2%
3.25 to 3.49
12%
10%
Students
(N=600)
Parents
(N=300)
3.50 to 3.74
19%
21%
3.75 to 3.99
19%
19%
Life sciences
19%
14%
4.00 or greater
18%
14%
Physical sciences
17%
17%
Don’t know
8%
17%
Social sciences
17%
11%
Business
16%
14%
Students
(N=600)
Parents
(N=300)
Medical sciences
11%
13%
% taking SAT
98%
97%
Liberal arts
10%
9%
% taking ACT
48%
61%
Education
8%
10%
Combined SAT score
Communications
4%
6%
Students
(N=457)
Parents
(N=138)
Undecided
9%
6%
Mean SAT score (std. deviation)
1574
(306.50)
1529
(351.09)
1570
1540
Students
(N=237)
Parents
(N=76)
Mean ACT score (std. deviation)
24.37
(5.23)
25.08
(5.93)
Median
24.00
25.00
Student’s anticipated major field*
High school GPA
Standardized tests taken
Median
Combined ACT score
General Demographics
Students
(N=600)
Parents
(N=300)
Less than $20,000
10%
6%
$20,000 but less than $40,000
18%
18%
$40,000 but less than $75,000
23%
26%
$75,000 but less than $150,000
21%
27%
$150,000 or more
8%
12%
Don’t know
18%
1%
Refused
2%
10%
Students
(N=600)
Parents
(N=300)
Male
42%
32%
Female
58%
68%
Parent’s Household Income
Gender of Respondent
Conclusions and Recommendations
Learning to Lead:
Admissions in the 21st Century Webinar Series
Getting Information About College
 Findings:
 Parents and students offered college application process
classes or seminars found them helpful
 Recommendation:
 Work with high schools to develop college information
programs
 Establish guidelines and evaluation to ensure programs
are effective
Application Process: General
 Findings:
 College choice is only moderately complicated; multiple
college choices increase complexity
 College choice is generally made by student, or jointly
between student and parent
 First-generation students report making decision solely
 Recommendation:
 Develop materials targeted to first-generation students
 Develop suggestions to help all students make wise
decisions on college type, needs and goals
Schools which Students Applied
 Findings:
 Students apply to ~ 4 colleges/universities on average
 Students most frequently apply to public schools and
in-state schools
 First-generation and lower-income students are less
like to apply to private/out-of-state schools
 Recommendation:
 Investigate the barriers preventing first-generation
and lower income students from applying to
private/out-of-state schools
Features of the Application Process
 Findings:
 Applying to college was a fairly simple and clear process
for students
 More difficult when applying to numerous schools
 Most students complete applications online
 Knowing how admission decisions are made is most
unclear
 Writing essays and submitting recommendation letters
were fairly simple
 No major barriers identified for students from lowincome families, first-generation or geographical location
Features of the Application Process
 Recommendation:
 Encourage colleges to be more transparent regarding
the admission decision-making process
By School Type & Size
 Finding:
 Slight differences emerged based on type of size but
not significant to provoke change
 Recommendation:
 Develop suggestions to help all students make wise
decisions on college type, needs and goals
Sources of Help
 Findings:
 Students rely on parents and high school counselors
 First-generation and lower income students are less
likely to receive help from parents
 More likely to receive help from school counselors, teachers, friends,
and older siblings
 Recommendation:
 Encourage colleges to have informative, up-to-date,
and easy to navigate websites
 Assist schools with the development of additional basic
information about the college application process
Overall Perceptions
 Findings:
 Moderately stressful to apply to college
 Stress is based on outcomes not process
 Secondary stress:
 Different applications have different requirements
 Balance between application process and high school life
 Parents and students are confident about college
choices
 Overall, respondents felt the application process is
easy and self-explanatory
Part II: Complexity Report
 Objective:
 To understand how much , when and why students – particularly
those form disadvantaged backgrounds – fall out of the process
or otherwise aim too low in pursing college, given their academic
qualifications
 If complexity in the application process is not a significant factor
(see Phase I research findings), what other factors are impacting
college attendance outcomes
 Target Populations
 Low-Income, low-socioeconomic status, first-generation
 Release Date
 Fall 2011
Upcoming Webinars
Learning to Lead: Admissions in the 21st Century Webinar Series
 Cracking the Student Aid Code
April 28, 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. EDT
 Leadership, Access and Institutional Mission
May 18, 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. EDT
To download Complexity in College Admissions: Fact or
Urban Myth and register for the upcoming webinars, visit
http://advocacy.collegeboard.org.