What is Demonstrated Interest and Why is it Important?
Demonstrated Interest (DI) is the level of interest that the applicant demonstrates throughout the college search and application process in that particular college or university.
DI is important because many colleges track an applicant’s history of DI and use this as a factor in the admissions process. Whether we like it or not, colleges are businesses and like most business, success is dependent on their yield - the percentage of students they accept who will actually attend.
You’ll likely hear stories about perfect students being denied to their safety school or to a school in which their profile was a clear fit. This can happen if the college does not feel that the student is serious about attending their institution. That student randomly threw in an application without any record of DI. Admissions may decide to offer the spot to a less qualified student who has demonstrated that they are serious about attending that college.
How does an applicant demonstrate interest? A few ways include:
Visit
Sign up for emails, open them and read them (this is sometimes tracked!)
Go to that school’s presentation when they visit your HS
Reach out to the regional admissions rep, ask questions (that can’t already be answered by looking at the website) and/or ask for an interview
Join the school’s Facebook page or follow them on Twitter
Don’t forget to keep notes about what you learn when you have these conversations or learn new information. It will help you down the line when many colleges ask you “Why do you want to attend our college” on the application!
Lastly, many of you have already attended our workshop, “De-Mystifying the College Application Process”. If you find the tips provided in the College Crier useful or felt that the workshop was a worthwhile two and a half hours of time, please pass along this information!