Daemen College : Student Life : Daemen Insight : Daemen College's Scholar's day 2011
Daemen College's Scholar's day 2011
By Emily Stoll
The RIC was bustling with 240 hopeful new students and their families on Saturday, Feb. 5 as interviews and programs for Scholar’s Day were held.
For those new students, it certainly was a busy day, packed with interviews, campus tours, and numerous presentations by different offices and programs. But the work began long ago. According to the Director of Enrollment Research, the process begins when students are nominated to be a part of the day. Nominees must then complete an application and essay and submit academic and leadership records.
These incoming freshmen aren’t the only ones who put a lot into this day, though. Admissions students, Student Alumni Ambassadors, and former Trustee Scholarship winners—also known as Trustee Scholars— gather to help out, getting up very early in the morning and dedicating an entire Saturday to the event.
Current students helping with the day are basically there to help nominees be more at ease. People find it comforting to talk to someone who has had first-hand experience. Nominees are nervous, since they don’t know what to expect.
Though any interview can be nerve-wracking, the interviewers make many of the students feel very comfortable. Interviewers and current students seem to know just what to say to calm the students down. Many nominees felt more at ease just from talking to people who are social and personable.
Nominees, however, are not the only ones who need help and advice from current students.
“Sometimes I think the parents are more nervous than the students,” said one Admissions student. But, despite their nerves, parents claimed to be very impressed.
According to one woman, the event was well-organized with good signage and plenty of people to help. She appreciated the schedule and felt that all of the information given was “so appropriate.” Some parents encountered difficulty tracking down their child’s admissions counselor, but they still felt the day was very well planned.
Scholar’s Day is a good opportunity for nominees to see everything they may have missed at open houses. They have a chance to talk to current students and hear of past Trustee Scholars’ experiences. According to the Director of Enrollment Research, one parent was glad that his daughter had a chance to see the other students who she was competing against, since it drove home the idea that Daemen is a competitive school.
Many nominees and parents are still a bit nervous about the beginning of the semester, but, in the words of a Trustee Scholar, “It all turns out okay.” Both the students and their parents adjust gradually as the semester goes on.
But when the interviews end and the tension wraps up, everyone heads over to Wick for what some Admissions students claim is their favorite part of the day: lunch. They enjoy getting to know the students when the stress is behind them and they’re more relaxed. “It’s interesting to see them again,” said a current student who previously met the incoming freshmen at an open house. Some feel it’s fun because “you were there before.”
Overall, Scholar’s Day is a very impressive, well-planned event, enjoyable for everyone from nominees to parents to those working for the day. From the very beginning of planning to the end of the day and selection of new Trustee Scholars, everything is meticulously planned and well-executed. And, according to one parent, the scholarship is “just a bonus.”