The Secret to Admissions Success

Fall 2016 saw the largest incoming freshman class in many years.  
Image courtesy of  Jasmine Rose Photography

With such a large freshman class here this semester, there are a lot of questions on everyone’s mind. Greg King, Vice President for Enrollment Management in the Admissions department, made it clear that Concord is taking strides in their plans to grow as a University and that he doesn’t plan for it to stop.  

“We actually partnered the entire year with a different marketing firm that helped us get the word out about everything that’s going on here. In years past where we were getting maybe 2,000 or 2,500 applicants, we had almost 6,000 applications this year. So more people were getting to learn about Concord, getting to see Concord… That was a big part, a little bit of marketing and we traveled a little differently this year. Just visiting more places, of course all over the state and spent more time in Roanoke, South West Virginia, down I-77 towards Charlotte, Greensboro, and Winston-Salem. A lot of growth this year was out-of-state, so we saw some good return on that,” said King.  

How good of a return did we really see in the class of 2020 with these new marketing methods and new traveling experiences? “Our total freshman class this year was up about 50 students, that’s a little more than 10 %. If you compared our out-of-state students to our out-of-country students this year, that number is actually up 70% and they’re all living on campus. So with our new students last year, we had 300 students who decided to live on campus, but we had 366 students on campus this year so it’s really a win for everybody... We had more West Virginia counties represented in this class then we had in years past,” King explained. 

With all of this hype about the large freshman class, what can returning students expect from this growth? “I think they can expect a better classroom experience. All the general education classes are packed and all the classes a typical freshman would take are packed. Full classes create a different environment,” said King.

    “Hopefully all of our students will find more people to connect with. Really the more connection points that we have, a student is more likely to have a good experience and come back and graduate in a timely manner,” he adds.

With the obvious arrival of the new WVU Tech campus in Beckley, is the large freshman class beneficial for Concord? “Yes! I think that this was a great year for us. It really solidified the market a little bit. We had about 350 more freshmen than WVU Tech in Beckley and we had about 60 more freshman than WV State had. This really was the year for us to say, ‘we’re Concord.’” said King.  “It’s a great place and we don’t care who is in our backyard. We’re going to make sure we thrive and that our message is heard… Tech is a different place than we are, they have different programs, different fields, so hopefully they’ll do what they do well, and we’ll do what we do well and the state will win”. 

So what are the plans to keep Concord’s incoming freshmen classes big? “You know, I think there is a number on this campus that we can serve before you can start to see any kind of diminishing returns. So, we got a little bit more room in the resident halls, getting ready to finish up the tower’s renovations, so that’s going to be nice. So I think if we continue to have classes that grow between 5-10% that’s going to be great for everybody. The more tuition dollars we can generate, the more reinvestment that can be done on campus. So yes, I hope to see another class that is similar to this one,” King said. 

    King really wanted to add, “I would like the Concord student body to know that they are a big part of this effort. When a student and their family come to our campus, they always comment on, ‘Wow, the students are really friendly.’ ‘I met this ambassador and they did a great job.’ ‘I enjoyed talking to this faculty member, that really sealed it for me.’ ‘The folks in the dining hall were even kind.’ Those things go a long way. So I would want everybody to know they are a big part of this effort. The better we do as a campus, the more resources we have to invest in everyone’s experience.”  

Alyson Christian, a freshman at Concord gave her personal insights of being a part of the large class of 2020.  “I actually didn’t know how big our class was until we had PlayFair. Then I realized that our class was huge. In a way, it made me feel better because I knew there was going to be people who could relate to the homesick feeling I was having. But I also knew that my classes were going to be completely full. I’m not complaining though, because freshmen would understand what I’m going through because they are as well,” Alyson said. 

When learning about Concord, Alyson’s high school did not seem to play a large role. “My high school didn’t seem to really care if their students went to college or not. So, I had to learn about Concord on my own, for the most part. Luckily, my brother and his friends welcomed me with open arms and helped me get to know more! I was filling out scholarships a lot my senior year, but that was really it. They weren’t very involved with colleges and the decisions we made,” Alyson said. 

But when asked what efforts Concord made, things were a little different: “Concord honestly did make an effort. My high school wasn’t very involved with my college career, it was refreshing to have a school actually wanting me to be there,” said Alyson. 

Now that Alyson is here and in full swing with her classes, she is confident in her choice. “I believe I did [make the right decision]. It’s so easy to go home on the weekends or know that I have familiar faces here”.