How to navigate the college enrollment process, with Andrea Konkol

Dr. Ralph Ford, chancellor of Penn State Behrend, talks with Andrea Konkol, director of enrollment management, about the FAFSA and other steps in the college admissions process. 

Transcript

Dr. Ralph Ford: 0:05

I'm Dr. Ralph Ford, Chancellor of Penn State Behrend and you're listening to Behrend Talks. My guest today is Andrea Konkol, Director of Enrollment Management here at Penn State Behrend. And I joke and say that because you've been on the show before, and we always have great things to talk about. So welcome to the show, Andrea.

Andrea Konkol: 0:21

Thanks, Ralph.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 0:22

For those who don't know, Andrea oversees our admissions and financial aid offices here on campus. And you are a member of our senior leadership team. You have a very unique vantage point here at Penn State Behrend. And I think a really actually noble purpose in what your group does. And I say that and you get to give advice to a lot of students who are trying to think about their future. So you and the admissions team get to work with students trying to figure out if Penn State Behrend or other places are the right fit for them. And not only that, not only do you welcome the new classes when they come to campus every fall the incoming class, you also get to read their names at graduation, which is a lot of fun. So anyway, so you've been on the show. Let's get into it. I will talk a little bit though, about your background. We know you're an MIS Management Information Systems graduate from Penn State Behrend. So what's the path from MIS into admissions?

Andrea Konkol: 1:17

Yeah, so during my time at Behrend, I was a campus tour guide. I also worked in the registrar's office. So I think that was kind of my connection. Back to Behrend, I always say worked in the real world for a year, I worked at Erie Insurance after I graduated, I was a computer programmer. And I just really missed people. It kind of was cubicle job, a lot of programming and saw this job in the newspaper at that time, we still advertised for jobs in the newspaper, applied, and I've been here ever since. It's been a really great career for me, I'm able to include a lot of what my undergraduate degree kind of entailed as far as technology and databases, understanding data helps me to this day in my job, so it's fun, I get the data side, and I also get the people side.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 2:09

And you were an admissions counselor, and then assistant or associate director for a number of years. So you met with many students, and you've been director now help me on my memory to three years? How long? Have you been director of the admissions enrollment?

Andrea Konkol: 2:25

For almost a year and then Director for two years now.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 2:29

What I recall about that is I believe we did the search during the pandemic.

Andrea Konkol: 2:32

Yes, those were high pandemic times.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 2:34

All right. So when it was difficult times, because a lot of students were not choosing to come to universities at that point. So into the fire. Anyways, why don't we talk a bit about this idea of fit? Because that's something we, we know, is important as we talk to those students. So what do you mean by fit? And how does that factor into your discussions with prospective families?

Andrea Konkol: 2:59

So fit, I often equate to a feeling right, it's the emotional part of a college decision in many aspects. So when students come to visit us on campus, or when we're speaking with them at their high school or college fair, we'd really try to suss out a lot of what their interests are. So whether they have particular academic interests at that point, or whether they have activities that they're looking for, they might be a student athlete or really into music and want someplace that has a core. So there are a lot of things that we can ask them. And we can talk about what we have here at Behrend that might align with their interests, but I think fit a lot of time comes down to is it a place where they can see themselves for the next four years? Does it feel comfortable to them? Do they feel at home, and then a lot of times it's a financial fit as well. So that's a big part of a student's decision. But I really think coming to visit is the best way to determine fit. Sometimes it's that getting out of the car experience. This is a place I can see myself.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 4:08

Right. So many students say when they drive onto a college campus. They describe that experience of they knew this was the place for them. And I think that's that holds pretty well, whether it's here or some other place that often feels like it's the right place where they met people. So if someone is interested in Behrend they apply. Walk us through the process of like, what does it take to apply to Penn State University and Penn State Behrend? I want to get into some of these discussions about the complexity of the FAFSA form that's in the current news and everything but just you know, if somebody's interested, what should they do?

Andrea Konkol: 4:45

So I think the process can start early on in their high school careers. So students should be thinking about things early on. So even late in their middle school years, if they're headed towards college, making sure that they're scheduling all of the right courses is a really important thing. And that's something that I ended up having to work with a lot of students, when they apply, they might not have taken all of the right math courses that are required. World Language, foreign language courses, a lot of times catch a lot of students up. So starting to think very early on in their high school career, that college might be a possibility for me, and then working with their school counselors to make sure that they're scheduling the right classes. And then I think, moving through high school, once a student gets into 11th grade starting to visit the schools that they're interested in is really important so that they can determine things like fit. And then really, the application process starts for a student of the beginning of their 12th grade year. So students can apply to Penn State through multiple platforms, there's something called the Common Application, which many schools are part of where students can choose to apply to multiple schools on the same application. Usually, schools have their own application platform as well, which Penn State does. So applying early on in the senior year. And then we like to get decisions to students during that fall of their senior year. So usually, we ask students to apply by November 1 of their senior year, we like to get them that decision before the December holidays, so that they have plenty of time to make an admissions decision, if they haven't visited yet come visit. If they need to explore academic programs more, we can set them up with a faculty member, or some of our current students in those programs to learn more. So that gives them plenty of time so that by the time they are at the end of their senior year, they're able to make an informed decision.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 6:45

And that idea that we give them an answer, if they apply by November 1 and generally hear from us in December. That's fairly new. I think we've really pushed that forward.

Andrea Konkol: 6:56

We have Yes, so it previously was November 30, was our date that we used to use, we are rolling admissions. So not every student knows that they're going to apply by November 1, not every student is ready to apply. Not every student has found us by November 1 of their senior year. So that's an important thing to know is that we do have rolling admissions, we like to get decisions to students early. But there are students that because of home situations, or schools that might have less resources that are applying late and we can absolutely accommodate those students too.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 7:34

You know, one of the things I think about is for us, you and I deal with this every day we've been at this for many years, it's very natural, right. But it's pretty intimidating, actually, for a family, or for a student often to walk onto a college campus. So walk us through so somebody's applied, they've been accepted. They want to visit campus. What's that experience like for them? What should they be thinking about as they meet with you and your team?

Andrea Konkol: 8:02

There are lots of different types of visit opportunities. So some students want to feel a little bit more anonymous when they come on campus. So attending an event, like a large scale, open house might feel more comfortable for them. We also have individual appointments as well. So a student that might be ready to ask some more in depth questions, or have some personal circumstances that they want to discuss with us. We also have individual appointments. I think when visiting schools, one of the most important things that a student and family can do is assess how they're treated during that visit, that gives you a good idea of how you'll be treated as a student. So when you walk into the admissions office or to an event, how are you greeted, as you are working with staff and faculty and students? Are they excited about their programs? And do you feel comfortable talking to them? Do you feel like they have care and concern for your situation? So as families are visiting, that's something that I think caring a little bit more than everybody else is a great strategy for us. Making sure that students feel like they're number one, when they walk in our office is so important. We don't want them to feel uncomfortable.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 9:22

I love the fact that they're just different opportunities and ways for people to come and engage. Now you have two daughters that are college age. And if you don't mind me saying they're here at Behrend, did they look at other institutions as well.

Andrea Konkol: 9:35

They looked within Penn State. So we visited University Park, they decided that was not for them, but not outside of Penn State. They did not look at other institutions. But I will say that, so they're twins, just like so everybody's like this seems like a weird conversation. So two daughters. Yes, they're twins. So we went through this process last year. And what was interesting is I was able to see a lot of their really close friends go through the application process and admissions process here at Penn State as well. And I will say it fundamentally changed me in the way that I kind of interact now with students and parents, I realized that it takes a lot, we throw a lot of information at students and ask them to digest it and make decisions on it. My daughter's had me as a resource, and they still had questions. So I think now and as we've gone through this new admission cycle, I've really looked at the way that we communicate with students, we're throwing a lot at them, can we make it simpler for them? Can we help them through this process? Not that we want to completely hold their hand? But can we make it a little bit easier?

Dr. Ralph Ford: 10:51

Well, I just think about you come to an open house at any institution. And there are all these tables with all these different things. And then you go to an orientation session, there is a lot to take in, well, what I'm confident in. And I can say this, because we just got a lot of data. You know, I think it's one of those things that we do really well here at Behrend, and it doesn't mean we can't get better. But I will talk a little bit about my two kids. And they both looked at other institutions, and they ended up here and they graduated, then I'll make the point out is is don't take for granted that every school is the same. I think you made that point. And what I and I won't name the institutions, I thought one did a phenomenal job that one of my both of my sons looked at. And I thought it was just outstanding, and we had a lot to learn. The other one I found very interesting, because it was more about how we were going to select you out and how kind of open they were about if you're good enough to get in the door here. And you know, maybe they have that luxury to do that. But I think it's a little bit more in the culture of the type of institution they're in. So to your point, try to figure out the culture, is it one that is going to be welcoming and helpful and give you the support network that you need? So maybe enough set around that? Let's switch the cost. Okay. So, as a family is thinking about it, this is also another part that is tremendously confusing, right? So they're trying to figure out what the cost is to go to a university, trying to get the true cost to understand what it's going to look like 2, 3, 4 years from now, what financial aid is, help us understand this process? And what's your advice?

Andrea Konkol: 12:23

Yeah, so actually, I was able to speak with one of our classes here at Behrend yesterday was the resident assistant class. That's the class that prepares students to go on to be Resident Assistants. And we're in good discussion about students coming from different backgrounds and understanding that, and one of the things that they said was most confusing to them was the financial aid process. And so some of that is out of Penn State's control. So some of the financial aid process is through something that we call the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. So that is the federal form that students fill out. So the process of applying for financial aid, in most circumstances starts with a student or family filing their FAFSA form. And then, based on information from the FAFSA, each school that they're applying to receives that information, and then puts together a financial aid package for the student. And so, at the end of the day, there are many different types of aid that a student can both apply for receive, and then they have to look at their bottom line costs as well. And so it can be really confusing when you're applying to different types of schools. So you know, Penn State, as a land grant institution, we're committed to keeping our tuition as low as possible and being accessible for students. private institutions are very different. They might have a higher tuition, but offer students more scholarships. And so as we work with students through the admissions process, we try to give them a few examples of what that might look like for them so that they can say, for each school that they're applying to, what is the base cost, tuition and fees? And what does it cost to live on campus? What am I qualifying for? What scholarships Am I getting? And then looking at that bottom line number when they're trying to determine whether the school is the right fit for them as far as cost goes.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 14:26

And your team will sit down and help them through that process?

Andrea Konkol: 14:29

We do? Yeah, and we do actually lay out examples for students in a very visual way. And we say, whether your family uses a notebook, whether it's a post it note, whether you create an Excel spreadsheet, do this for each school that you're considering so that you truly know what your cost will be.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 14:48

And I think we've gotten a lot better as an institution and I everybody has because laying it out in a way families can understand and I think that that's to everyone's benefit, I'm sure we have further to go. Since you've mentioned the FASFA, you know, it's in the news. It was very hot in the news. Tell us why it's in the news, what's going on? And frankly, it's impacting students this year who are applying to college, but at least it's impacting everybody who's applying.

Andrea Konkol: 15:17

So this all started with the FAFSA Simplification Act, which was passed by Congress in 2021. And so this has been right now we're in 2024. So this has been a three year project. And so the reason that FAFSA is being redone is that it is incredibly complicated. The old FAFSA had over 100 questions that a family or student had to answer. The new FAFSA will have 36 questions, it will better be able to interact with the IRS system and pull in tax information. So because there are fewer questions, we expect that it will be more accessible for families, it won't seem like such a barrier to apply, and that more students will be eligible for aid. So in the end, this is a very good thing. This is kind of a crazy year, though. So in a typical year, students who'd be able to start applying for financial aid in October 1, so October 1 of their senior year, because of the changes in the fastest system, the FAFSA hasn't opened until December 31, it's opened very late. And there's also a lot of testing, that has to happen both on the faster side. And also on all of the colleges and university side. It's a completely different data system. So the way that we receive information is different. And I guess maybe this is an MIS thing that I can think about is we have to take a completely new data set from the federal government and figure out how that works with Penn State Systems, and then what the students financial aid package will look like in the end. So there's a lot of testing that has to take place. So in a normal year, we would expect that students would have their financial aid packages in mid February, this year, and we keep getting news about continued delays. We're not even expecting to get information from FAFSA until mid March, which means that our financial aid packages probably will not be available to students until late March or early April. So we're trying to be flexible with students are trying to know that they're getting this information that's really important to their college decision very late. The normal kind of college national decision date is May 1, it's possible that that date could be delayed by many institutions across the United States. So just starting to see that now. Yeah, so we're really working and up there. And because of our size, we can be more flexible with students. So as we get more information and aid packages start being released. We'll work very closely with students and families to make sure they understand and have the information they need before they have to make a decision.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 18:08

So people will need some extra patience this year, no matter what institutions are looking at. Just take your time. You don't have to make your decision till June 1, we need to watch the news and see how this plays out. Well, one of the awards that we created as a university a few years ago, something known as the Discover award. And it is particularly good for students who want to go to Penn State Behrend in particular, and provides an aid package for those who are out of state and we're expanding it this year. So why don't you tell us what that is and what the opportunities are there because it is significant.

Andrea Konkol: 18:47

Yeah, we are so excited about the changes to the Discover award this year at Behrend. So the Discover award is $6,000. Award for each year. So up to $24,000 total, in previous iterations of this award, it has only been available to contiguous states, so states that bordered Pennsylvania this year, it's actually opened up to all 49 states and US territories outside of Pennsylvania. So basically, if you're a US citizen, and you don't reside in Pennsylvania, you are now eligible to be considered for this scholarship. And we've always had a lot of students that come to us from out of state. So last year in our incoming class, we had students from 29 states, I think it's really going to be a game changer for us. Our athletic coaches are so excited about this opportunity. Many of them recruit and further afield areas likeTexas, Illinois, Michigan, California, a couple of them called very excited because Puerto Rico has been on their radar. And this really is going to allow them to recruit further afield and support out of state students.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 20:04

Great opportunity. And I tell people, you know, they're often asking the question, where do your students come from? And I always surprise them. When I say, you know, we get students from California, and there are reasons why we get them, we get students from a whole lot of different places. Just want to stay on this topic of cost and aid. And the other thing that we all know is really important is student loan debt. And what's the discussion that you have with students? And how do you help them minimize the amount of debt they have to take on to come to a four year university

Andrea Konkol: 20:35

Yeah, so I think as far as student debt goes, I like us? mean, one of the biggest things that a family can do is consider what a student is paying over their four years, and how that can most be minimized. And so one of the things that we talk with families about early on in the process is, look, we're telling you what your cost is likely to be across each year that you attend, the best way that you can save is to actually graduate in a four year timeframe. And so that's something that we talk with families early on in the process, and what does it mean? And how do you graduate in a

Dr. Ralph Ford: 21:16

Now, really great advice, and leads into my four year timeframe? Look, all of our degree programs at Penn State are designed to be finished in a four year timeframe. So working with your academic advisor to make sure that you're on track and getting to graduation, don't miss a course don't get to that last semester and say, Oh, no, I needed a foreign language class in order to graduate. So the best way that students can minimize student debt is to think about time to graduation. I also think speaking with families early on in the process, about other scholarship opportunities outside of what you might qualify for in federal or state aid. So looking into opportunities through their high schools are great sources. So their school counselors will have lists of local kinds of scholarships that might be available. Your Community Foundation has a great listing of scholarships on their website, and most communities have something similar. Thinking about other sources, like families that might have a parent that served in the military, using military benefits students, doing National Guard or ROTC is a great opportunity. So there are some things that families can do early on, and be thinking about applying for other scholarship opportunities outside of the institution that they're applying for. next line of questions which people think about the admissions process, and they think about you just getting students here, but it doesn't end there. You work with students, and then they go through this new student orientation in the summer. And then we actually have a lot of support systems here on campus, like the first six weeks program, we'll talk about that. But explain, you know, so once a student is accepted, and they make that decision, then they enter into the next phase even before they get here.

Andrea Konkol: 23:10

Yeah, and our admissions work doesn't stop until the student arrives here on campus. And so we continue to communicate with students. So they've made the decision that they're going to attend Penn State bear, and they commit, they pay their deposit, but the communication and the counseling through all of that doesn't stop there. And so we're in continuous contact with the student, they need to take a lot of steps that landed them in the classroom on that first day. So New Student Orientation is a big part of that. So we're communicating with students, and parents making sure they understand all of the next steps that are required for New Student Orientation. Parents are a huge factor in supporting their student and actually getting here on that first day. And we've seen over the years, parents wanting to be more involved in students want their parents to be more involved as well. And so we've added a lot of communications coming out from my office, parents want to know, give me a checklist, what are the things that I can help support my students over these next couple months? And then when they get here, you've mentioned the first six weeks initiative. I think making sure students know about all of the resources that are available to them. I mentioned a good story that illustrates this. I mentioned that I was talking to the RA class yesterday. And a student said, you know, I graduated from a really small high school. And at my high school, there was one guidance counselor, and I knew that she was my person. And what was really hard for me when I got to Behrend is I didn't have one person. There's a lot of people trying to help me and I couldn't figure out exactly where I needed to be or who I needed to talk to you for each individual thing. And the way I responded to that was, I'm your admissions counselor, you can always step into the Mesker building. Don't be afraid Need to ask who you should be talking to are where I can get those resources, admissions doesn't stop once a student enrolls, someone can always step into the Metzgar building and we can help direct them.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 25:16

The Metzgar Building... now that you mentioned, beautiful inside, yes, you are fortunate to be in one of the gorgeous spaces on campus is right when you drive down to campus here so an alumni can come back as well. So it's always open for somebody who has questions. Absolutely. It's a great space. Let's talk about living on campus. So Behrend is a residential campus, large 850 acre campus here, a lot to do, why should or should not a student live on campus in their first year.

Andrea Konkol: 25:45

So I think it depends on a student and the experience that they're looking for. So we have great on campus spaces, we have students coming to us from across the United States, we have international students, and students are able Good advice. Let's talk about two other things that are often to live on campus and kind of build that community. It makes it easy for students to get involved, they have a lot of built in support system, we have great Residence Life staff that they are knocking on doors and checking on students and making sure that they're alright. So it's a great supportive environment, we have some living learning communities, which are interesting. So we have an engineering house, we have our Honors house, we have our global borders, which is for students that are internationally minded, we have our Honors house. So there are some great ways that students can find a community within their residence life experience as well. But we have the opportunity for students to be able to commute to campus and for students that live in our local area, commuting to campus and saving that money that they would be spending on housing contracts, and a meal plan can be a game changer for them in affording a Penn State education. So the beautiful thing is that, yes, if you want that residential experience, you can live on campus. But if commuting from home is either more comfortable for you, or a way to save on your college expenses, you have that option, you have an option to get a Penn State degree at great cost in your backyard too. seen as part of the process. As a college essay, do students have to write a college essay to come here. So the essay for the Penn State application is completely optional. And it does say optional. When you apply, I always suggest to students that don't make it a barrier for submitting the application. So don't feel like you need to stress out about what you write there. But if there's something else about your background that you feel is important in the admissions decision that you want us to know about, write it in there. We just had a situation yesterday, one of the other counselors in the office took a call. It was a mom, a student was not admitted. And she had some questions. And we started kind of talking through options. And what we actually found out when we went in and took a closer look at the application is that the student had some pretty traumatic experiences during high school that affected one or two years of their high school experience. And so we're able to kind of take those things into consideration. So the essay, yes, I recommended that students do it. Don't stress out about it. Tell us something we don't know.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 28:36

Okay. Good advice. And the other thing I heard there is if you have questions, ask, reach out. SATs and ACTs? What about those?

Andrea Konkol: 28:45

So Penn State is test optional. We became a test optional during the pandemic as a lot of schools did. But even prior to the pandemic, there was kind of this movement towards test optional. And Penn State has not made the official decision. I'm not giving official decision here yet. But I expect that we will probably remain test optional. About 60% of our students apply test optional. It's taken a lot of the stress off of students around test taking not everyone's a great standardized test taker. So yes, I imagine we will probably stay test optional and the majority of our students apply test optional.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 29:27

All right, well, we're getting close to the end of our time. And one more question and then you can close with whatever you'd like. But what's your pitch? Why Penn State Behrend we didn't talk about that we talked about the process, but why should the student consider Penn State Behrend?

Andrea Konkol: 29:42

So I think Penn State Behrend is a great opportunity within the Penn State system. So you are not only getting all of the things that Penn State Behrend offers and and we'll touch on that. But you're also getting a degree that says Penn State University so no matter where you attend within Penn State, your diploma says the Pennsylvania State University now we dig into Penn State there. And I think what I like to talk to students about is thinking about the gold star moments that you can accumulate at Behrend and gold star moments can be a lot of different things. So it could be their open lab experiences that they're involved in. So open lab being involved with industry or community organizations on real world projects, doing research, having an internship during their time, it could be all of the activities, it could be athletics that they're involved in, they could be writing for the weekend, which is the Behrend newspaper, could be having a show on BBC Radio. So the Gold Star moments are the things if you equate it to going back to kindergarten and getting a star on the chart. These are the things that you can accumulate during your time at Penn State, that when you get to commencement, that's your resume, right? So start building your resume from the very first moment that you walk in the door.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 31:07

That's great advice, because our students have many opportunities after they graduate as well. Is there anything else you'd like to add?

Andrea Konkol: 31:16

I would just say, you've already said it Ralph, is asked questions. And one of the things that kind of hurts my heart is when a parent calls and says, I don't want to bother you. But I have this question. And we truly are here to help our students and our parents through this process. So ask the question, that's absolutely what we're there for.

Dr. Ralph Ford: 31:37

Right? Right. bother us. Yeah. Okay. All right. Yeah. All right. Well, great advice to end this. I'm Dr. Ralph Ford, Chancellor of Penn State Behrend and my guest today has been Andrea Konkol, the Director of Enrollment Management here at Penn State Behrend. Great to have you back on the show. Thank you.

Andrea Konkol: 31:52

Yep, thanks.