How to see your decision on the big day

There have been so many questions about how decisions will be seen lately! Let's go over how this works. First of all, we won't be emailing you anything. You need to log into Student Self-Service within the Student Information System (SIS) to view your decision. Decisions are posted at 5 PM on notification day (again, I'll post the date as soon as I know it). When you log in that evening, you'll see a link for "Admission". Click the link and you'll come to a page with "View Decision" at the bottom (you might have to scroll down a little if your monitor is small). Click that link and you'll be shown a short statement revealing your decision. Sound good? In the past, I'd sit at my computer and type some code to make decisions pop up. Now, the system is programed to show those links at 5 PM. There is no point in "hammering" the site. In fact, that will probably slow it down. Watch a reliable clock and log in after it hits 5 PM. If you never logged into the SIS, search your email folders. That email contains instructions for generating a password for your SIS account. Follow the steps very carefully...the password generation process is a little tricky. DO NOT email your SSN, high school, address, favorite color, debit card PIN or any other information. Just send your full name and date of birth. It'd be really nice if you made that info the subject line of your email, come to think of it. Send this email NOW. I guarantee that if you wait to send this email until the day before or the day of notification, you will be one of hundreds doing so and the lone staff member who handles that email account will be overwhelmed and unable to reply to everyone.

Practice logging in today to make sure you're ready for the big day!

In case you need some smiles

One reader requested some pictures of CavDog smiling. He's a serious little pup, but I've managed to put together a slide show to fulfill the request. I hope the smiles are contagious!

Update by picture (and What is it? answers revealed)

Undoubtedly, some of you have been waiting with bated breath to hear the answers to the "What is it?" posts from yesterday (okay, maybe not). Here are your answers and some more pictures.

#1 Boxes of letterhead

#2 Toner cartridges ordered specifically for letter generation

We're getting close! When I went to see where we were this morning, I found the printers getting a check up. We would hate to have printing come to a halt because one of the printers broke down.



We're probably a day or two away from printing at this point. We are still working through some decisions.

BTW, students volunteer to hang out in the reception area during their free time to chat with visitors. I just went out into the reception area to find a student dressed as a banana answering a prospective student's questions. Spring Fever appears to have hit UVa.

The essay wall

Some of you have read old posts that mention my essay wall. In the past, when an essay has struck me as particularly good, I've photocopied it and posted it on my door. Now that we've gone paperless, this is a little more cumbersome...I have to take a screen shot, put it into Word or Paint, and print the resulting document. The essay wall isn't quite as big this year as in years past, but as promised, here's a picture:

The topics vary dramatically, from the silly to the serious. The common thread is that they are personal and unique. Thanks for sharing a little bit of yourselves with us through your essays. They really make each application come alive more than forms and statistics do.

The office is very busy right now. I do not have any time to crunch statistics and have already written that I will get to that when I have time. Please don't ask for statistics right now.

Notification Day still not known (Please read!)

Each entry seems to have a comment asking when decisions will be released (nothing wrong with that, I know you're anxious).

We can usually predict if we will be early when printing starts. Our staff has been doing this for so long that as soon as the printers start working, they know how many days printing and stuffing the envelopes will take. Last year, I knew the decision day would be early on March 24th. So, it's possible that by the end of the week, I'll know what day will be The Big Day.

Hang in there!

Notification is around the corner!

Echols notification has begun

Apparently, the Echols Scholars Program has changed their plans and instead of mailing invitations to the program later this week, they have started to email students. If you get one of these emails, congratulations! It means that the suspense is over. You have been offered a spot in the Class of 2013!

As far as I know, Echols is the only group contacting students at this time. If I get information about Rodman or College Science Scholars, I will post it immediately.

Click the "Echols" link above to go to the Echols website and the tag below to read past posts, which explain Echols and how Echols Scholars are selected.

What is it?

What do you think is in these boxes? Post your answer in the comments.

#1

#2

Questions answered

If you go back to a post where you asked a question, you'll probably see an answer. Comments have been closed on those old posts to make it a little easier for me to get answers to you. When I have to check 4-5 different entries, it gets a little time consuming.

I have not forgotten about you!

Dear readers, I haven't forgotten about you. I know that there are many comments that need responses right now. Please bear with me. We are very, very busy right now. I hope to have a few office pictures and replies to post by the end of the day.

I usually end posts made at this time of year with "hang in there" and I think I need to do the same. Let's hang in there together today.

Don't worry...there will be more news soon

CavDog on The Lawn

Amazingly, we're expecting rain and freezing rain today. We went from snow, to a few 80+ degree days, to this! I have a feeling CavDog wishes we were getting snow...

My iMovie skills aren't stellar, so please be kind.
I was thrilled just to figure out how to get music and the fade outs in there.

Offer Rates

Offer rates fluctuate from year to year. Because it seems as though many don't go looking for the stats available on the Office of Institutional Assessment's website (and every one of your schools should have a site where you can see this data), I thought I'd post a few screen shots for you to look over.

Basic math tells you that with 22,000 applications this year, the offer rate will go down. I don't have a statistic for you yet, as we are still working on finalizing decisions. As always, as soon as I have numbers for you, I will post them. The state mandate that 2/3 of our students be from Virginia has not changed.

General admission stats, going back to 1980

Admission stats by residency, going back to 2000

You can get older data on the website. I just posted what I could fit in a screen shot.

Carpe Donut

In an entry about free and cheap entertainment in Charlottesville last year, I posted about Marco & Luca, the dumpling shop on the Downtown Mall that has a cult following. The post has loads of comments about those dumplings and I hope those who wound up at UVa have had a chance to try them by now.

I feel that I must tell you about another snack that Charlottesville residents find addictive because it is parked outside of Peabody Hall right now: Carpe Donut. It's a donut cart. I'm not trying to turn this blog into an advertising vehicle. When a donut cart shows up at your office, it's worth mentioning.


Carpe Donut is a fixture on the Downtown Mall. You can often find it at the Saturday morning city market (a food and crafts market in a parking lot behind the mall), at events at the Pavilion, and parked near the central part of the mall. Apparently, an office here on Grounds hired the cart for a few hours, which is why it's parked outside my building.

If you wind up at UVa and see this thing parked somewhere, check it out. I don't even like donuts and I'm tempted to run out to it right now.

Days on The Lawn 2009

The Days on The Lawn schedule for 2009 has been set and it's a little different this year. DOTL are open houses for admitted students.

Saturday, April 4th will be Scholars Day. This day is set up specifically for the students invited into the Echols, Rodman, and College Science Scholars programs. You aren't required to attend this day and you can attend a different DOTL if it doesn't work with your schedule.

The regular Days on The Lawn are:
Monday, April 6th
Monday, April 13th
Friday, April 17th
Monday, April 20th

You are not required to attend. In the past, we've had many students show up for what some call a "victory lap", meaning they are already decided and have deposited at UVa. While we love having you here, keep in mind that these events are crucial for students who are still weighing their college options. We want to allow those students to get as much time with us as they need so that all of their questions can be answered.

Juniors and sophomores, if you are planning to visit us in April, please try to avoid these days. The Grounds are packed full of visitors and parking is very, very difficult as a result.

For more info, see the Plan a Visit page on our website. See past entries about DOTL by clicking the tag below this post.

A note about parking: We have rented out the entire Emmet/Ivy Garage for DOTL. For those familiar with Grounds, that is the garage behind The Cavalier Inn, at the intersection of Emmet Street (Route 29) and Ivy Road. The UVa bus has a stop right outside the garage for those who don't want to take the short walk up to Grounds. We will not be validating for the Central Grounds Garage that day. We want that garage to remain as open as possible for people who have other business on Grounds on DOTL days.

Q&A with Dean J

A few months ago, a reader said that it would be fun to know a little bit more about me. I've resisted making this blog a personal journal, but I realize that you may be curious about who I am.

So, to keep you occupied until I'm back in front of a computer on Sunday night, feel free to post any questions you have about me in the comments. Obviously, I reserve the right not to answer some questions if they're a little too personal.

Again, this was another reader's idea for a post. I hope we can have a little fun with it.

Have a great weekend, all!

Out of the Office

I'll be away from the blog until Sunday night, at which time I'll respond to questions that have been posted in the last day or so.

These kids are good: Madison House

I'm watching one of our Public Access channels right now because CavDog was tapped to open a show (the producer shot some video of him on the Downtown Mall this morning) and one of the guests is from Madison House, which is something I haven't mentioned on the blog this year. Madison House is our volunteer clearinghouse, of sorts. Thousands of students are active in this organization, which is student led, with a professional staff of four. The professional staff does not run things. Rather, they train the student leaders early on and support them as they manage the organization. This is yet another example of student self-governance, something that is considered one of UVa's hallmarks.

One of the student directors at Madison House, Stephanie Passman, is a former Office of Admission intern. Stephanie just started a blog to document the service work she's doing this semester. I hope you'll check it out.

Likely Letters, round 2

Another batch of Likely Letters should hit the mail over the weekend. Everything we mail has to go to the central mail services to be sealed and metered, so I don't know exactly when they'll be released to the US Postal Service. Sorry I can't be more specific about the time frame. I don't think there will be another "wave" of these letters.

Read past posts about these letters and then read the following before posting questions:

1. A small number of likely letters are sent each year. There is no set number of letters sent.

2. The letters are sent in waves, not at once. I can't predict when a letter will arrive. I can only tell you when letters left my office.

3. The absence of a letter does not mean you are going to be waitlisted or denied. The vast majority of admitted students never receive one. Assume that you won't get one and then it'll be a little surprise if you do.

4. There is no relationship between likely letters and Echols/Rodman/College Science Scholars.

5. The letter means exactly what it says, no more, no less. It is not an offer letter. We have not made final decisions yet.

6. International students can get one of these letters, but the letters are sent via regular mail, which can take a long time.

7. We do not expect replies to these letters.

Okay...let's hear those questions!

Double eek! My application is still incomplete!

If you are a first year applicant with items on your to do list and you have not gotten an email from us asking for the item, relax.

Do not send unsolicited duplicates of any credentials. Only send additional copies of documents if someone from the Office of Admission contacts you. Please monitor your email and make sure uvaapplicationinfo@virginia.edu is in your address book. You still need to monitor your spam folder, as some staff members will email you directly and not use that general email account.

Frequent, repetitive questions

An anonymous reader asked a question today that I think I'll turn into a full post. The question:

Dean J -- Do you ever get frustrated with the constant, and I'm sure, repetitive questions? I imagine you get all sorts of e-mails and blog posts of students freaking out about this time of year.

-Wondering

In a nutshell, the answer is no.

Application review season is definitely stressful, but I come to the blog to take a break from that. I get email updates when any of you comment and there are times when I'm tempted to take a break sooner than I should to come see what you all are talking about. I enjoy this! If I'm frustrated about something, I usually won't post at all. There are times when I think that I should be using smiley faces and "LOL" to show you all that I'm not annoyed.

The repetitive questions don't bother me all that much, but they sometimes make me wonder if some of our applicants are ready to move on to college, where deadlines aren't as soft as in admission and professors might not be so amused by having to repeat themselves (how many times have I written the words "you will not be penalized" in the past month?).

I really enjoy the comments posted by readers who use a consistent alias (hit the "Name/URL" button when you post a comment and you can pick a name). In past years, I've had a few students come up to me at Days on The Lawn and introduce themselves by their nickname. It's always great to put a face with those names.


I should add that I used to add nice language to "frame" my answers when I emailed or chatted with students online, but feared that my answers got lost. That's why my responses to questions are in the format they are: reader's name in bold, short answer to question. I want you all to be able to zero in on the question right away, without a lot of extra fluff.

Snow Day at UVa

As always, click to enlarge!