ALMA — Alma College Admissions staff have revamped their slate of events, altered their daily visit structure and are excited to welcome prospective students for the 2022-23 recruitment cycle.
With a heavy emphasis on creating authentic student experiences, Alma College will begin to welcome high schoolers, transfer students and international students with an event on Friday, Oct. 7, called Destination Alma. The new events calendar continues all the way through April 2023, dotted by a new daily visit structure that will continue through the entire academic year.
“It’s important to have fun during a campus visit, but now more than ever, it’s important to be relevant and focused on what day-to-day life will be like for students on campus,” said Shelly Buschle, senior director of recruitment at Alma College. “Where am I going to live? Who will my professors be? What am I going to do for fun while I’m there?
“We don’t want to talk at you — we want to listen to you, to have an interactive experience, where you’re meeting the people who ultimately guide you throughout your college experience.”
For full descriptions of each event, visit Alma’s newly redesigned Campus Visits web page, alma.edu/admissions/campus-visits. Admissions staff can also be reached via email at admissions@alma.edu or phone at 1-800-321-ALMA.
Scholarships are available for students who take part in in-person campus visits and travel reimbursements are available as well.
Daily visits have changed, Buschle said, in order to maximize opportunities for students to make connections with fellow students, faculty and staff. Among the changes:
In order to emphasize small group visits, daily visits are now offered on weekdays at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., and on select Saturdays at 9:30 a.m. and noon.
“Agile tours” have been implemented, meaning that one current-student tour guide will lead the first half of the tour and then switch with another current-student tour guide, who will finish the tour.
Despite the changes, students are still given the opportunity to request individual meetings with faculty, staff, and coaches after tours have concluded.
The calendar of admissions events has changed, too, starting with Destination Alma on Oct. 7 and continuing on Oct. 21 and 28. At these events, students will hear from admissions representatives, take an interactive tour and mingle with campus partners over lunch. These events, as well as others on the calendar, are inclusive of transfer students.
Other events throughout the year include:
Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022: Fall Open House
Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2022 and Thursday, April 27, 2023: Virtual Transfer Open House
Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023: Alma Scot Dinner
Thursdays, Jan. 26 and Feb. 16, 2023: Presidential Scholars Event
Saturdays, Jan. 21 and March 11, 2023: All in for Alma
Thursday, March 9, 2023: Model UN Workshop
Fridays, March 24 and 31, and April 14, 2023: First Week Fridays
Tuesday, March 28 and Thursday, July 27, 2023: Transfer Student Open House
Saturday, April 15, 2023: Preview Day
An Instagram series, “A Day in the Life,” featuring current students, are held in November 2022 and February 2023. For performing arts students, formal audition days are held on select dates from October 2022 through February 2023.
Jenny Cooley, director of campus engagement and events at Alma College, said the changes are in line with industry best practices, using surveys and data relevant to Generation Z students and their families from Generation X.
“Students today have more choices than ever before,” Cooley said. “It’s important to make ourselves available and show why Alma College is the best choice for them.”