How to Hold an 'Open House' when Campus is Closed
Rolling Out the Virtual Welcome Mat for Admitted Students
The COVID-19 pandemic made it impossible for students admitted to colleges across the nation to visit campus this spring, so admissions staff at Bentley got creative and held “virtual open houses” for undergraduate and graduate students that included a video tour of the campus, a welcome from President Davis-Blake, live chats with student ambassadors, and sessions with professors on topics from negotiating to business engineering to data mining.
More than 1,278 students admitted to the Class of 2024 took part in the Virtual Admitted Student Day for undergraduates, a larger turnout than when the event was held on campus in past years.
“Nothing can replace an in-person visit to get the feel of a campus community, but the virtual event actually presented an opportunity to reach a larger and broader audience,” says Brittney Jackson, senior associate director of undergraduate admission. “Our goal was to make the college decision process a little less stressful by giving admitted students that power to ask questions during live video sessions with current students and faculty members, take virtual tours and meet with financial aid counselors.”
For the undergraduate event, a total of 3,500 visits were counted to various online “breakout sessions” including career education, majors and minors, paying for college, and Q&As with current students. One student from Hawaii reported waking up at 3 a.m. to log on.
Many admitted students shared their feedback in real time on the university’s Undergraduate Admissions Instagram.
“My favorite part of the admitted student’s day was the Bentley academic experience webinar and the live chat about student life,” posted one student. “It was amazing to get to know part of the staff and be able to participate in various activities to get to know my future home away from home.”
Another admitted student expressed appreciation for a live chat with a Bentley senior named “Nicolas.” “He told me all about his internship with the Statehouse in Boston,” the student wrote, “super helpful.”
Jackson and the Undergraduate Admission team put together the online event in three weeks, after the university shifted to online learning to protect the health of students, faculty and staff as the coronavirus spread.
To plan the event, early items on the to-do list included choosing the most user-friendly technology platforms to hold live chat and group video meetings with admitted students; designing an engaging website landing page; and pre-registering participants to reduce access requirements and glitches on the morning of the event.
Missed the Admitted Student Day for Undergraduates?
Luckily for the undergraduate admission team, they were able to tap the expertise of their Graduate Admission colleagues, who had held an online Preview Day for admitted graduate students the week before.
“Undergraduate and Graduate Admission collaborated before each event to ensure day-of success,” says Senior Assistant Director of Graduate Admission Alyssa Orlando. “They were able to see our event plans and gave feedback, and we were able to make suggestions for their event because it took place the week after ours. The two teams really came together to support each other in executing two outstanding events.”
During a regular year— without a quarantine — the format of the two events differs because of the different demographics of admitted undergraduate and graduate students. Graduate Admission traditionally hosts a combination on-campus and online event for both applicants and admitted students. At this year’s all-virtual event, which included eight sample graduate classes, faculty and staff panels, and time for candidates to connect with current students, there was a 10 percent increase in applicants and admitted student participation compared to last year.
“We received extremely positive feedback that the event gave students a snapshot of their future Bentley experience,” Orlando says. “For admitted students, the day gives them the information they need to choose Bentley. For applicants, it affirms their decision to continue in the admission process.”
Jackson said the key to the success of the two online events was giving a true sense of the Bentley community to admitted students who were not able to experience it on campus.
“It’s not just what they see, it’s how they feel,” Jackson says. “Our goal was to help make this extremely stressful process of choosing a college a little bit less stressful with the tools that we have.”
And there may be lessons from this year’s virtual events — including the ability to reach international students and high school counselors — that the university continues long after the pandemic ends.
“Given the positive feedback we’ve received,” Jackson says, “I have a feeling that we will incorporate more virtual sessions in future events.”