Admissions SIG report

Admissions: The Enrolment Interview | strategies and techniques 

By Karen Smith
Registrar, William Clarke College

The Admissions Team were pleased to be first cab off the ranks with a SIG entitled, “The Enrolment Interview: strategies and techniques”.  This is clearly a topic everyone was keen to engage with as we had 87 registrations, 50 of which came from outside NSW!

Our panelists David Anderson (William Clarke College), Yvette Graniero (Santa Sabina) and Pauline Shuttleworth (Loreto Kirribilli) did a wonderful job sharing their combined expertise and experience about the Enrolment Process.

After setting the context of our experts, we began by considering our strategic approach to interviews: when do we interview and why?  It was particularly interesting to hear about:

1. how far out from commencement the interviews take place and,
2. who conducts the enrolment interviews at the school; the Principal, Senior Leaders or Registrar.

We then moved on to Interview Techniques and how we can leverage the interview.  It was helpful to hear some of the key questions asked at interview and which ones gave the greatest insight into the families that would fit best in the school.

Finally, in the spirit of Educate Plus, our panellists shared forms they use to elicit key information from applicants prior to interview.

A big thank you to our Chapter President, Myfanwy who Chaired the discussion, our experts and all those who listened and sent questions.  It certainly gave us all time to consider our own procedures and reflect on best practice.

If you missed the SIG, you can view it on-line via the Educate Plus website.