Hard to believe this is already our final July blog post! We are working hard to gear up for August :)
BIGGEST COLLEGE-RELATED NEWS OF THE WEEK
COMMON APPLICATION® RELEASE
The 2021-2022 Common Application® will be released Sunday, August 1, after a several-day shutdown period. We’re excited! We will be hard at work updating all of our application guides, and our clients and membership vault subscribers will have access early next week!
SUNI LEE HEADED TO AUBURN UNIVERSITY
Suni Lee, the American gymnast who just won gold in the all-around gymnastics competition, has big plans for after her return: she’ll be reporting to Auburn University just a week after returning from Tokyo for her freshman year. She’ll be attending the university on a gymnastics scholarship, and said she looks forward to a more fun, less highly competitive experience.
WALMART PAYS COLLEGE TUITION FOR EMPLOYEES
Walmart announced Tuesday that it will be doing away with the $1 a day fee that employees formerly paid for college, and now pay for 100% college tuition. They will also pay for books. The program allows employees to choose from ten different academic partners, including the University of Arizona and Southern New Hampshire University. Walmart is the country’s largest employer, with 1.5 million employees.
UPENN ADDS BITCOIN TO PORTFOLIO
After receiving a $5 million donation in bitcoin earlier this year, the University of Pennsylvania confirmed that it still holds some of the funding in the cryptocurrency. Penn typically immediately liquidates these types of donations as per university policy, but in this case the anonymous donor wanted the university to hold onto some of the donation (it did liquidate a portion).
COLLEGES PROVIDE VACCINATION INCENTIVES FOR STUDENTS
While many colleges have announced that they will be requiring students to get vaccinated, some have gone beyond the requirement to provide incentives to vaccinated students. Auburn University, for example, is giving prizes like $1,000 scholarships, meal plan upgrades, and prime parking spots to vaccinated students. The University of Alabama is offering all vaccinated students $20 in Bama Cash to spend at restaurants and stores around Tuscaloosa. Rider University in New Jersey and Ohio Wesleyan University are taking it a step further - Rider will choose three vaccinated students at random to win a year of free tuition, and Ohio Wesleyan has opened up fifty additional spots for incoming vaccinated first-year or transfer students. Each of these fifty students will be eligible to receive a $25,000 scholarship as long as they meet basic admissions criteria. Pretty good!
“Currently, only a handful of colleges in Ohio are requiring all students to be vaccinated,” said Stefanie Niles, Ed.D., Ohio Wesleyan’s vice president for enrollment and communications. “We know that many students out there would prefer to live and learn on a campus where they feel safe and where they know they won’t have to experience another year of mask-wearing and social distancing.”
BEST ARTICLES OF THE WEEK
COVID-19 is continuing to impact college enrollment. After record low levels of enrollment last year, many schools were hoping to recoup tuition dollars and see a more typical campus environment in the fall. But with the spread of the Delta variant, over one-third of college-age students are reconsidering their college plans. Some will go to college closer to home, or attend a community college to save money. Others won’t go to college at all.
The impact on students who did continue their education during the pandemic exists as well. While the college Class of 2021 will likely have an easier time with the job search than the Class of 2020, this is still a strange year, with many students still looking for full-time employment. If you are searching for your first post-grad job, check out this article with tips to stand out during the hiring process.
OFFICE HAPPENINGS
We are completely full for Class of 2022 students in our initial cohort, but have spots on our Late Start Waitlist for students who still need assistance beginning in late August/early September. Check out our Late Start Waitlist page if you’re wondering how it works, and fill out this form to be added to the list!
In other news, Common App® is rolling over from the 2020-2021 version to the 2021-2022 version this weekend, and we will hit the ground running on Monday with our Class of 2022 students as we help them navigate this rollover process. Check out our June 11 weekly update for a quick refresher of what that entails!
August is our busiest month of the year, but we love seeing our students’ hard work all come together!
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