The fall in which students apply to colleges is a fraught period in any high schooler’s life, but complications due to coronavirus have multiplied that stress. Students are not only unsure if they’re investing their money in the right thing, but if in-person school will be happening at all — and if it is, do they even want to go?
Most of the stress arises from the uncertainty of admission. Getting into a school is never a guarantee, but students can generally tell where they stand based on grades and test scores. Not this year. Since March 13, students’ lives in terms of applications have been black holes: no full-fledged grades, no extracurriculars, no community service, no standardized tests. To help students in this year’s application process, I reached out to admissions officers at the three local schools IHS graduates attend most frequently and received responses from two of them: Cornell University (CU) and Ithaca College (IC). I asked both of them the same six questions about the admissions process this year.
Anna Westwig ‘21: What has been the percentage of student deferment for the 2020-2021 school year? Do you expect this to significantly affect the acceptance rate for students applying this fall?
Cornell University: As you might expect, like many colleges and universities, we indeed have more first-year students requesting deferrals this year due to the myriad and far-reaching effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. And we won’t know what direct impact the pandemic will have on our application numbers for a few months (The Spring 2021 transfer application deadline is October 15, 2020. The Fall 2021 early decision application deadline is November 1, 2020. The Fall 2021 regular decision application deadline is January 2, 2021. The Fall 2021 transfer application deadline is March 15, 2021).
Ithaca College: At this time we have about 5% of our incoming class deferring for either one semester or two. While this is, unsurprisingly, a higher number of deferrals than a typical year, this is of course not a typical year for any student or institution. That said, we do not expect this to have a significant impact on the way we review or admit applicants for the 2021-2022 academic year.
AW: If a student applies Early Decision to your institution, can they choose to defer admission? What is the likelihood that a deferment application will be accepted and by what date do students have to decide to defer?
CU: Early Decision admitted and enrolling students are indeed able to request a deferral of enrollment. The deadline for early decision enrolling students to submit a deferral request is March 1.
IC: Yes, any student can request to defer their admission regardless of which application process they choose, including Early Decision. We don’t know what our ultimate deferral deadline will be for 21-22, but typically the deadline would be a few weeks before classes start (so early August). Ithaca College is supportive of students who wish to defer their admission for a range of reasons, including pursuing activities that contribute to their development and preparation for college. Reasons for postponing enrollment that would be granted may include: volunteer or community service opportunities, civic engagement, pursuit of specialized training, travel opportunities, assisting family members, participating in internships, and conducting research. We also support students who wish to defer for reasons related to COVID-19 including but not limited to health and safety considerations or not wanting a hybrid or virtual learning environment. In the majority of cases listed above, we are able to grant the deferral request.
AW: Will your institution’s ability to offer financial aid be at all impacted by the coronavirus?
CU: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the university is already planning for and anticipates an increase in financial aid demand, resulting from the current, ongoing crisis. We remain fully committed to meeting the financial aid needs of our students, even in this challenging time.
IC: At this time we do not have information regarding if and how financial aid may be impacted in the future by the effects of COVID-19. What I can share is that our Office of Student Financial Services has been working closely with students to reevaluate aid packages in light of families’ financial situations changing as a result of COVID-19 in order to support our students in funding their education as best as possible.
AW: Standardized testing scores are being deemphasized in this year’s college admissions process, due to testing schedules being interrupted by coronavirus. How can students reveal the skills tested by the SAT/ACT in other areas of their application?
CU: When reviewing applications during the 2020-2021 cycle, when test scores are not available, Cornell readers will consider with increased scrutiny other application documents, looking for different evidence of excellent academic preparation, including:
- Challenging courses and excellent grades (including pass grades) in each secondary school (high school) context
- Evidence of commitment and effort to pursuing other challenging learning experiences
- Results from other kinds of secondary, college-preparatory, and university-qualifying testing where available and verifiable
- Care, craft, and authenticity in their writing submissions
- Wherever practical and available, details, insight, and analysis from secondary school counselors and teachers.
IC: Ithaca College has been and continues to be standardized test-optional. Instead of using test scores to determine a student’s potential for success on our campus, we consider applicants through a comprehensive and holistic review process. This means that a student’s high school transcript(s), letter(s) of recommendation, personal essay, and anything else they choose to share with us all carry equal weight and we are confident that combination of materials provides us with the best picture of who a student is, if they’re a good fit for IC, and if IC is a good fit for them.
AW: Since high schools around the country shut down mid-March and, as such, most grading systems changed to accommodate, will you be still be considering students’ grades for the second semester of junior year or discounting them?
CU: We regret that learning opportunities and momentum have been disrupted by the global COVID-19 pandemic, and we want Cornell applicants to know that we will honor their efforts and the success they had earned prior to school closing or transition to online learning. There will be no negative interpretation for schools and students applying to Cornell who have had only pass/fail or similar grading options during 2020.
IC: We are committed to being flexible by working with students and their high schools to support them in their college search and navigate this new territory together. This means that we will work hard to accommodate whatever academic information schools are able to provide over the next several years. It will also mean the way we engage with applicants and their schools will likely look a little different in that we’ll be connecting with them even more to discuss each unique circumstance as necessary.
AW: Has the coronavirus affected your consideration of an applicant’s state of residence?
CU: No. We will continue to welcome applications from all interested students throughout the US and from around the world.
IC: No. If there are still restrictions on certain states in the future due to COVID-19, we will not consider that in the application review process. We remain student-centered in our approach by working to provide equal access to admission for every qualified applicant.