More than 2,000 prospective Eagles flocked to Chestnut Hill on Sunday for the first of five Admitted Eagle Days that will occur throughout the coming months. Visitors toured the campus, attended information sessions, and learned about student life from a variety of student and faculty volunteers.
For the first time, the Student Admissions Program (SAP) assembled a team of student volunteers to staff the event and help visitors around campus for the duration of the day.
Previous Admitted Eagle Days worked slightly differently, according to Christopher O’Brien, associate director of undergraduate admissions.
“In the past, we had nothing set up like this,” O’Brien said. “We had volunteers, of course, but they would serve an hour at a time and really didn’t have a knowledge of the entire program. They had one role and they left. These volunteers were much different. They were here at 7:30 a.m. and finished at 3 p.m.”
Throughout the day, student volunteers helped guide prospective students and their families around the campus and provided a welcoming environment for visitors.
“The Admitted Eagle team welcomed visitors from the garages to the entrance of Conte to the first sessions of the day,” O’Brien said. “They didn’t do panels and tours, per se, but they were available to visitors at lunch and staffed the residence halls for tours of Upper. They also had the opportunity to work with any family that needed extra assistance throughout the day.”
Over 200 interested students applied for only 40 spots to be student volunteers during Admitted Eagle Day. Students selected were mainly freshmen and sophomores, but some upperclassmen, as well. Volunteers that were selected had training sessions last week in preparation for the Admitted Eagle Day on Sunday. O’Brien spoke highly of the volunteers and said the program was a success.
“In all, the feedback was very good,” O’Brien said. “Families told me that it was very helpful to identify the volunteers, by virtue of their gold vests, and they all were very helpful. On my end, I was happy that not only did the team seem to enjoy helping our visitors, but enjoyed working with each other.”
As an organization, SAP also sponsors tours and panels during day visits for students who are considering applying to Boston College, and greets students and families when they visit the campus.
“I spoke to everyone on the team today—it is clear to me that many of these students will have very successful careers in the Student Admission Program, perhaps even become leaders in SAP,” O’Brien said.
The student volunteers will also staff the other two Admitted Eagle Days and the two Honors Admitted Eagle Days this spring.
