|
Department Spotlight
The Office of Undergraduate Admissions
Staff of the Office of Undergraduate Admissions travel more than 100,000 miles a year to recruit students for UNH.
Meet the Staff (above image)
|
The Undergraduate Admissions Staff, front row, from left: Felecia Edwards, Assistant Director of admissions; Sandy Sugrue, Administrative Secretary; Ligia Correia, Data Communications Specialist; Jynika Craig, Administrative Clerk; Pauline Hill, Director of Operations; Kathy Kasmin, Administrative Clerk; Karen Ludington, Associate Director of International Admissions.
Second row, from left: Gil Rogers, Assistant Director of Admissions; Whitney Kolwicz, Assistant Director of Admissions; Steve Brown, Associate Director of Admissions; Dina Jonelis, Administrative Clerk.
Third row, from left: Stephanie Romano, Assistant Director of Admissions; Melissa Laskowki, Associate Director of Admissions; Kevin J. Phillips, Director of Undergraduate Admissions; Jeff Gootman, Assistant Director of Admissions; Tammy George, Administrative Clerk; Monique Bolt, Assistant Director of Operations.
Front row, on floor: Alick Letang, Associate Director of Admissions. Not pictured: Linda Morris, Executive Secretary and Dennis Nostrand, Vice President for Enrollment Management.
|
An Interview with Kevin J. Phillips, Director of Undergraduate Admissions
Briefly, What is the Goal of Undergraduate Admissions?
The goal is to enroll the new class, but in doing so we are really trying to provide service to the students. We personalize the process by holding a series of events in which prospective students come to campus, sit in class and meet with faculty members. We guide them through the process as soon as they show interest. Our job is to get as many qualified students to enroll as we can.
How Do You Accomplish This?
We are open seven days a week for information sessions and campus tours, which is a little unusual. Most institutions don’t have that kind of availability. The admissions staff attends college fairs and visits high schools from September through November and February through May. But we are working twelve months a year, both on campus and off campus.
Each admissions counselor and assistant director is assigned a specific territory. We have the entire country covered. For example, we have one person assigned to New Jersey. Then we have primary territories. One person is assigned to cover Massachusetts, along with Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire. We have three counselors assigned to Connecticut, and we split the state into counties because we have so many students from Connecticut who attend.
Counselors also have secondary territories. The counselor in New Jersey, for example, handles the Ohio territory. That person would be the main contact for someone applying from those areas.
Tell Us About Your Staff.
We have twenty-three staff members, including eight counselors, a part-time admissions counselor and clerical staff. We have three associate directors: Steve Brown, Alick Letang and Melissa Laskowski, an international recruiter. We also have five assistant directors, and we are currently hiring a new counselor.
What is Your Busiest Time of Year, and What Departments Do You Work with Most Frequently?
It’s always busy but it's probably busiest in the fall, because we’re traveling so much and that’s when students are applying. From September to December prospective students visit campus and make inquiries. From October through May students start applying. Because we work on a rolling admissions basis, it basically never stops.
We work with nearly every department. Faculty is a particularly important part of the recruiting process. We work with Student Affairs, Student Activities, Residential Life, Disability Services, and definitely Marketing. We need numerous publications. We work with Athletics, and we work with Facilities, too, because it’s important for the campus to look as good as it can on the days we have events.
Share an Anecdote about Your Experience with Undergraduate Admissions.
I saw a parent and his daughter arguing over which major she was interested in. She said, "Accounting" and he said, "I’m not paying for this if you don’t choose Pre-Med!" Parents are more involved in the process, more so than they used to be. It can be overwhelming for some people.
|
