It is often said that the college admission profession attracts two types of people: those who see it as a steppingstone in their careers and those who dedicate their lives to the work. When I accepted the position of transfer admission counselor 22 years ago, I wasn't sure which path I would follow. Looking back though, I realized I was always meant to be a lifer—I just didn't know it yet.

A few months ago, I wrote about stepping into a new role—new title, new responsibilities, and a brand-new level of “oh wow, that decision really does come to me now.” After a few months in the seat, I realized there’s another part of the job worth talking about:

Back in the day, we got all our Iowa ACAC updates by snail mail—postcards, flyers, newsletters. Now it’s all digital (yay for less paper!). But I know how easy it is to feel buried in emails and miss things...I know I overlook sometimes.

Is it summer yet? It’s funny how we work all year long for a very short period of time where we all sit anxiously and wait for the numbers to start going up and can’t wait to just rip the band-aid off. 

Lots of happenings in the world of Iowa ACAC!

With temperatures cooling down and the recent time change, fall is among us and so is the month of Thanksgiving. As Admissions professionals, we can get caught up in the preparation of who can open their application first and get the biggest head start to applicants, what college has the most impressive materials to share with prospective students and who has the most fall visits scheduled for students to have the most amazing experience.

Has anyone else noticed that there is a gift guide for everything now? They’re all over social media this time of year! Gift guides for him, gift guides for her, gift guides for teens, for moms, for dogs; I’ve even seen gift guides based on the different enneagram types. So I figured it was time someone made a gift guide for admission representatives. Here’s my 2021 holiday admissions gift guide: 

Six hundred and twenty-eight days is the time between when our whole world changed and when I am writing this. Obviously, we need no reminders about the differences that we have faced in our industry due to Covid-19 or in our personal lives, but for some reason this year feels different. We are relatively back to normal, hosting tours and on-campus events, and with that comes the usual stress, burnout and overall exhaustion of the fall. 

Where to start? What to do? Your mind is probably needing a break from the consecutive days on the road mixed with the busy visit days happening back on campus. As the weather is cooling off, it’s likely your travel schedule is, too. If you’re a seasoned road warrior, you know this transition all too well. If you’re newer to the road, you may feel a little discombobulated. Start with a deep breath. What we set out to complete amidst the chaos of travel season may not always materialize. You may realize that you didn’t email every student you spoke with at a high school visit or college fair this fall. You might have missed a congratulations text to a new commit or a next steps call to a new prospect. As you turn in your rental keys, fill out your final reimbursement forms and unpack your travel bags, here are a few tips to help with your transition back to the office.

Promotions/new positions, new team members and bidding farewell - check out the Changes of Scenery in some of our member offices. Do you have big news to share? Major changes in your offices in the past few months – new colleagues, promotions, weddings, babies, etc. – let us know and we'll share the news with your Iowa ACAC colleagues!

Everyone’s clothing shrunk during the pandemic, right?

I’m sure we can all agree it’s been a weird year. Many of our offices have had to make adjustments that we never thought would be necessary, and we’ve all attended an excess of virtual events. But everything changed for people outside of the office as well.

Our relationship with our supervisors is one of the most important relationships that we have in our career, but it times it can also feel the most complicated. As three admissions professionals who have been in the field for a while, here are some things that we have learned over the years that can help you establish a great relationship with your supervisor.

If you are anything like me, you likely left work on Friday, March 13, 2020, expecting to return on Monday. When you ultimately did return to your office, perhaps you found a time-capsule of life “pre-pandemic” – calendar still on March, piles of papers on your desk, mystery food in your work fridge, etc.

Mount Mercy University is thrilled to welcome Todd Coleman as their new Assistant Vice-President for Enrollment & Marketing and Sabrina Tapps-Fee as the Director of Undergraduate Admissions!

In light of everything happening in our society today, you might think that professional development has been put on the backburner, but it is actually quite the opposite. Each type of company, association, and higher education news website is trying so hard to provide guidance and assistance to all of us in higher education as we navigate these unprecedented times. While we have continued to stay busy, it is a different type of busy that might offer more flexibility in our daily schedules, allowing us to catch some of these webinars and professional development experiences.

Last month I had the opportunity to attend the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education (NADOHE) conference in San Diego, CA. The theme of the conference was “crossing borders and bridging communities”. There was one particular session I attended during my time at the conference that stuck out to me and it was a session about generational diversity.