Size Doesn't Matter When it Comes to a Notice of Admission
It used to be a rule that a thick envelope from a college was good news and a thin envelope was bad. That's no longer the case. Smaller schools are trying to keep the process as personal as possible.
"The notion that thick letters being good news from admission offices and thin being bad is generally true. After all, if a student is not being offered a place in the class, there is only so much you can say and most of it won't be read anyway," says William J. Brown, Jr., Dean of Admission and Financial Aid at Lebanon Valley College in Annville, PA.
Lebanon Valley College, however, keeps its letters thin and tries to make the receipt of an admission offer an obvious special event, says Brown.
"We close the envelope with a gold seal. It's hard to imagine bad news with a gold seal on it. Our letter treatment has been received very well and we get numerous compliments on the presentation of the acceptance letters," says Brown.
If you get a notice of admission from Roanoke College in Salem, VA, you can expect a personal letter signed by the college's president, notes Michael C. Maxey, Dean of Admissions at Roanoke College.
"We want students to know that we respect them as individuals and we want to communicate that message from the start. The rest of the information can come later after the student has the opportunity to celebrate this important step in life," says Maxey.
Larger schools tend to stuff other literature into their "good news" notice of admission because it's more efficient, but thin is in at Salisbury State University and other schools around the country.
"We notify applicants via the 'thin' envelope," says Paul Zimmerman Jr., assistant dean of admissions at Salisbury State University in Salisbury, MD. "This may generate some drama, because students will not know of their acceptance until they open the envelope and actually read the first line or two of the letter. Students aren't able to accurately predict the admissions decision from just the sheer weight, bulk or appearance of our mailing."
Zimmerman believes that, drama aside, students may find this approach appealing because it is more personal.
"They are not overwhelmed or distracted from the good news presented by admissions with a college catalogue--chances are that they already have one by this time--or seemingly endless paper work from the housing office, dining services, student employment, and campus recreation," says Zimmerman.
Students get the rest of their information in the mail after accepting the offer of admission or during new student orientation and registration.
"We send a very personalized decision letter and we mention something about her that is noteworthy, such as a message wishing her good luck with the lead role in an upcoming play or congratulations on being selected homecoming queen," says Mary Pat Nolan, director of admissions at Saint Mary's College, a women's Catholic college in South Bend, IN.
Saint Mary's uses a six-inch by nine-inch envelope because the size allows the school to stand out a bit more in the daily mail, says Nolan. The mailing includes instructions on how to accept the offer. After the initial "good news" mailing, the college sends a series of mailings from various Saint Mary's community members who will extend their congratulations and offer information about their areas.
"We market ourselves as a small institution that takes a big personal interest in our students, so we try to keep the acceptance letter as simple and as special as possible," says Brian Barden, director of admissions at Mansfield University of Pennsylvania, a rural 3,000-student public university.
"Keeping the letter special means not using it as yet another way to sell something to the applicant. Getting accepted to college is an important day in any student's life. They really don't care what else comes out of the envelope so we don't spoil the moment for them," says Barden.
You don't need to wait for snail mail to find out if you are accepted to Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania. The college allows accepted applicants to get the good news a few days earlier through technology, says David Trott, associate dean of admissions at Gettysburg College.
Last spring, applicants were able to access the college's web page--after the date the mailed acceptance and rejection letters were mailed--to get the news. The students needed to enter their names and a password to get the information. Students who had been accepted were
then told of their acceptance and given information on the college's "Spring Get Acquainted Day." Students not accepted get a mailed response.
Trott says the admissions office plans to do something similar this spring and will notify students by postcard of their ability to access the web page.
Look for a thin envelope from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale but expect a lot of mailings and telephone calls from the university's professional staff, says Jean K. Lewis, director of admissions at Nova Southeastern University.
"We find that putting too much in one envelope confuses the student, confuses the parents, and results in lost information so we go with multiple mailings," says Lewis.
Texas Christian University's letter of admission has an embossed gold seal complete with purple ribbons and, of course, the dean's handwritten signature.
"It arrives flat and in a spectacular envelope so students can frame it," says Sandra Ware, dean of admissions at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth.
Editors & Reporters:
For more information, contact Brown, LVC, at 717-867-6181 (office); Maxey, Roanoke, at 540-375-2270 (office) or 540-387-2127 (home); Zimmerman, SSU, at 410-543-6161 (office) or 410-546-0465 (home); Nolan, SMC, at 219-284-4587 (office), Barden, Mansfield, at 717-662-4813 (office) and 717-662-7803 (home); Trott, Gettysburg, 717- 337-6100 (office); Lewis, NSU, at 954-262-8003 (office); or Ware, TCU, at 817-921-7490 (office).
Please contact Steve Infanti of Dick Jones Communications at 814-867-1963 if you need any assistance.
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