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Holy Cross received a record 6,700 applications for admission to the Class of 2010—a 41 percent increase from the previous year. The increase is due to a mix of factors and new initiatives, according to director of admissions, Ann B. McDermott '79.
We're seeing the results of our recruitment strategy and proactive outreach to prospective students," she says. "We now have exciting new publications that successfully tell the Holy Cross story. Students, parents, and teachers are reading about—and responding to—what makes the College distinctive. They are visiting campus in far greater numbers, and they're participating in our new programs, such as special advisory days for high school juniors and a new and heavily promoted series of online chats."
The outreach and new recruitment materials were in place several years before the College announced last spring that standardized testing would be an optional part of the application process (see HCM summer '05 issue).
"We were already on their radar; and believe the positive attention generated by the SAT-optional announcement gave more students a reason to look at Holy Cross again."
Approximately 80 percent of the applicants chose to submit their standardized test scores.
The across-the-board application increase is also notable, McDermott says. "Every identifiable geographic and demographic group was up—yet all were proportionate to past trends in areas such as male vs. female, public vs. private high school, percentage of ALANA students, and so on."
Early decision applications were also significantly higher, with about 200 more than last year, McDermott says. She anticipates that the Class of 2010 will enroll approximately 730 students.
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