At many schools and institutions, admissions officers often operate behind the scenes. As a parent or potential student yourself, you may have interacted with them while applying to a private institution – perhaps without even knowing of their existence! Yet it is important to note that admissions is a profession in and of itself: multi-faceted, versatile and rich in opportunities. Now that the academic year is over, Geneva Business News decided to explore what an admissions officer actually does, so that we understand a bit more about this little-known yet important role in any school.
More than shifting papers
At some institutions, the role of the admissions officer is mainly to process registrations or matriculations. At North-American, British, Australian and New Zealand-based universities, as well as at many specialized and private schools, admissions officers do much more. They have the great responsibility of spreading the word about the institution, determining which applicants can be accepted, welcoming new students and ensuring that the school enrolls the right number of new students with the right set of qualifications.
What do the admissions people do at international schools? Switzerland, and particularly the Geneva-Lac Léman region, is dotted with numerous international schools providing preschool through to secondary education (ages 3-19). La Côte International School (LCIS), currently located in Vich, is one international school which is undergoing interesting changes, not the least of which is a move to a brand new campus in Aubonne in September. We asked Jennifer McLin, Director of Admissions & Marketing, to tell Geneva Business News readers about the work of her team in this context.
A young school with a promising future
LCIS first opened in 2008 with only 42 students. In 2011, it joined the Nord Anglia Education Group which operates 28 schools around the world (three in Switzerland) and is reputed for its unique educational approach, High Performance Learning (see below). Today, LCIS has almost 200 students from over 20 nationalities. In September, the school will move to a custom-built modern campus in Aubonne. It plans significant growth in the next 10 years.
The library at the new Aubonne campus
The Admissions & Marketing team at LCIS currently includes two people in addition to Ms. McLin: Sabine Luethy, Admissions Officer and Fiona Chossis, Communications Officer. This small team is responsible not only for admissions and communications but also for marketing the LCIS “brand” as well as that of Nord Anglia Education. Serving a highly mobile and transient international community, as well as local Swiss students, LCIS operates an ongoing admissions process where students can enroll at any point in the academic year. “We view each child as an individual”, says Ms. McLin. “We meet with each family as often and as long as they feel they need to, in order for them to understand our school well and to feel comfortable making what is truly one of the most important decisions they can make for their child”.
First impressions are everything
The admissions office is the first point of contact for most families when they inquire about the school. Ms. McLin and her team are responsible for making sure that this first interaction leaves a good impression. This is the cornerstone of a relationship which, depending on the age of the children, might last a decade or longer.
All about the right fit
International schools come in all shapes and sizes. Families have a great variety to choose from, and this is indeed one of the most important decisions facing international families. Decision factors include the size of the school, the educational program offered, the location and facilities, the offer of special education services, extra-curricular activities, services such as transportation and lunch, the price, and of course, the intangible but all-important culture of the school: what is the atmosphere like? What values are important to this community? Do the other students seem like they could be friends? Do they look happy, and does the environment suit the child?
To answer these questions, there is nothing like a visit. Ms. McLin and her colleagues spend time – sometimes many hours – with each family individually, showing them around the school and answering questions. These discussions aim to clarify the family’s unique needs and, as Ms. McLin knows so well, sometimes it takes some experience and intuition to figure out the real concerns hiding behind the questions actually being voiced. The role of the admissions counselor is to provide enough information and advice to help the family decide if this school will be the right one for them. The admissions office thus enables the school to carry out its mission, ensuring that the student community can be served well by all the school has to offer.
High Performance Learning
By joining the Nord Anglia Education Group, LCIS chose to adhere to the Group’s educational philosophy, developed by its Education Director, Prof. Deborah Eyre. It integrates recent neuroscience and psychology research findings related to how children learn. The approach is called “High Performance Learning” and is based on the assumption that our capacity to learn and reach high levels of cognitive performance is not limited by our inherited abilities, but rather can be stretched and developed with the right nurturing conditions. The approach translates this theory into school-wide practices which focus on defining a set of objectives for each individual student and providing them with a variety of tools and resources to work toward these goals. Not least among these resources are Nord Anglia’s teachers, who benefit from the Group’s in-house training program coined “Nord Anglia University”.
This focus on the individual is visible not only in the teaching culture, but all throughout the school. It explains the highly customized service and the amount of time that school officials spend with each family, starting with the admissions process. It also explains the school’s ability to accept applications all year long, allowing it to respond to the needs of each individual family. As Ms. McLin puts it, “we are a small school with a big heart”.
Admissions as a strategic partner:”We have a voice and a role to play”
As the LCIS admissions story unfolds, it reveals the strategic position of the Admissions & Marketing team within the school. In addition to setting the tone for each family’s subsequent school experience, this department rallies other members of staff, including teachers, around a common set of key messages, articulating clearly the school’s mission and translating it into practice. Indeed, the admission process often includes other colleagues: families are encouraged to interact with teachers during sample class visits; they might need to talk to the Special Education Needs specialists, meet with department heads and contact members of the administrative team. It is imperative that the entire school present a consistent message and display a coherent set of values. It is the Admissions & Marketing Department’s job to make sure these elements are clear to all involved and provide reassurance, training and advice to colleagues who might be less comfortable in this role.
“I was surprised by the complexity of schools”, says Jennifer McLin, whose previous experience was not in education. “There are many moving parts and a school needs to be a well-oiled machine… Everything we do matters”.
As the first point of contact for new families, this department is additionally charged with the school’s positioning and growth – which explains why the functions of admissions, marketing and communications are all located under one roof. The new campus in Aubonne will have a capacity for 850 students, four times the current student numbers at LCIS.
Ms. McLin articulates growth strategies for LCIS around evidence-based, credible communication of the school’s unique features and the strong academic and extra-curricular offer. She relies primarily on direct and indirect marketing, including word-of-mouth publicity, believing that nothing is more effective than the authentic testimonial of another family who has had a good experience at the school. “The challenge for LCIS”, she says, “will be to achieve significant growth while maintaining our positive school culture. We value our culture that keeps the child at the center of education. We have already spent a lot of time clearly defining our culture and putting in place ways to ensure we maintain it as we grow larger. This work will continue once we move to Aubonne”.
A challenging environment
Jennifer McLin recognizes the challenges of the Geneva-Lac Léman area, where the market for international education is increasingly competitive. A large number of schools compete for a prospect pool that has been experiencing slower growth in recent years. It might be due to the lingering uncertainty of local financial and tax regulations, which has resulted in a smaller number of new foreign investment groups and multinationals relocating to this area. At the same time, many multinational companies have been limiting the benefits of their expatriate packages, sometimes resulting in difficulties for families who have to pay international school fees out of pocket.
On the other hand, other target segments are growing. An increasing number of expatriate families are electing to remain in Switzerland for indefinite periods of time beyond their initial overseas assignment and their children remain enrolled at their initial international school. A portion of Swiss families are also considering alternatives to the public education system, focusing on innovative educational approaches and a strong emphasis on the English language. For them, too, local international schooling is a viable and attractive option.
Faced with these conditions, clear branding and consistent positioning are key – and no one is better placed to promote these than the marketing, admissions and communications front-liners.
The La Côte International School “brand” centers on the school’s pursuit of excellence in all its activities: in the curriculum, offering the English National Curriculum in the early years and Primary School, followed by the International Baccalaureate program in the Secondary School; in the teaching staff and their ongoing training; in the offer of extra-curricular activities; in the quality of the counseling; and in the state-of-the-art facilities of the new Aubonne campus.
So who can be an admissions officer?
To be a successful member of Ms. McLin’s team, staff members need to be comfortable around people and skillful at developing strong relationships. It is no surprise that admissions professionals are often described as extroverts. They need to have the insight and sensitivity to identify the underlying needs and concerns of prospective students and families. They must be reliable and proactive, all the more so in a small team. In this highly international environment, languages are an obvious advantage, as well as the ability to fully grasp the nuances and specificities of the school’s academic curriculum. Admissions folks tend to be good with words, both in person and in writing. Charm and charisma are always a plus in these highly public roles. “The fit needs to be right and the passion for the school and education in general needs to be there”, insists Ms. McLin.
Admissions: opening doors
Admissions officers are sometimes portrayed as “gatekeepers”, entrusted with the task of letting in only the select few. At La Côte International School, however, as at many international schools around the world, the role of the Admissions Office is larger - and more inclusive. The tasks are varied and make for days that bear little resemblance from one to another: from campus tours to data reports, from training colleagues to leading a team, from public presentations to written communication strategies… These activities require a wide array of skills and appeal to a diverse range of personalities, which all add up to a rich and interesting profession. “Our role as a school”, says Ms. McLin, “is to help each child shine, inside and out”. A far cry indeed from shifting paper.
Jennifer McLin: a life-long learner
Jennifer McLin
Jennifer McLin’s career provides a great example of skills that can be transferred across industries. Having started her career by launching popular consumer brands in emerging markets, she always knew she “wanted to work for a cause”, she says, even while completing a prestigious MBA in the USA. Life landed her a position in Geneva, where her career took off at large Non-Governmental Organizations promoting environmental causes, such as the the World Wide Fund for Nature and the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Having later trained as a certified health coach with a focus on child and family well-being, the transition into education was a natural move for this “product” of the classic North-American liberal arts tradition. “Ensuring this generation is well-educated is critical to ensuring it is equipped to help solve some of the greatest challenges facing our world. No one can predict what the world will look like in 20, 30 or 50 years from now. At LCIS, we feel strongly that we need to prepare our students for this unknown.”
“High Performance Learning” in ISIS, International Schools in Switzerland Magazine, Spring 2014 Issue 2.
The Gatekeepers: Inside the Admissions Process of a Premier College. Jacques Steinberg. Penguin Books, USA, 2003.
Photo credits: La Côte International School
