Report on my first reading day

Yesterday I spent the day at my kitchen table, reading applications.  Here are a few observations.  First, there are a lot of great people out there doing really interesting things.  Reading the applications was a pleasure.  Second, those who choose to apply by the Early Notification deadline tend to be well organized — otherwise they would let the early deadline go by.  As a reader, it’s always nice to see applications with everything in place.  Last, I realize how much of my reading must take place in February, because I wrote February as the date on about half the note sheets.

While I was reading, a helpful list of suggestions for blog topics came in on the survey I posted on Monday.  And it’s not too late to respond — I’ll keep checking the survey for the next few weeks.  But, without delay, here’s the answer to one question provided by a reader.  The reader/survey respondent asked about the decision release schedule for EN applications.  Naturally, we’re always a bit cagey in answering this question, and we don’t have a specific day yet anyway.  The Admissions Committee will meet next Friday, the 7th, which is the first step in the process of making final decisions.  Friday, December 21 is the last day of work before the University closes for the holiday.  All the remaining work related to the release of decisions will take place within that two week window.

Finally, lest I raise anxiety in those who haven’t applied yet, I want to say that there’s no quota of Early Notification applications, but we’re also careful not to overfill the class without seeing the full applicant pool.  Even after the EN decisions have been made, there will be plenty of admission offers waiting to be made.