Every year, the closing date for school applications demands parents make tough decisions regarding the future of their children and which school might benefit them the most. There are so many factors to weigh up. Which schools are realistically accessible each morning, which is going to support and develop the child’s talents and interests the most? Even in a ‘normal’ year, school decisions are complex and result in a 5-7 year-long journey that parents want to get right.
This year, the situation involves a whole new level of complication as parents are not able to visit most of the schools they might be considering.
Some schools are continuing with in-person visits or tours in small groups with socially distanced measures in place but, the majority have chosen the virtual route. Parents and prospective students can watch drone videos of school campuses and listen to pre-recorded talks from Head’s and departmental leads. Whilst these do get across key information and many films are very engaging, it is not the same as actually being in a school where you can touch, smell and see works of art, drama costumes, science labs, and hockey pitches.
However effective a virtual tour is, it cannot replace the immersive experience of an actual visit.
The situation is unlikely to subside for the next 6-months. Schools are doing a great job of manoeuvring a rapidly changing situation whilst trying to deliver their number one priority, educating students in their care. Unsurprisingly, staff are feeling stretched with the additional heavy workload that COVID has created. Admissions+ cannot deliver a real-life tour of a school, what it does deliver is some peace of mind during a turbulent time.
Our platform summarises the key stage of each school application in a colourful dashboard graph which updates in real-time as applications progress. Students and parents complete their school data online and it is securely stored in Admissions+. Once completed, it is easily transferred into SIMS and other MIS platforms with the click of a button. Any future data updates can be added in and data transfer works both ways, into and out of the school MIS and Admissions+.
Our platform is now in use by over 350 schools in the UK and overseas and many of our schools have been using the platform to deliver virtual open days. Events can be managed online with sign-up via the school website and the data captured into Admissions+. Key timings and information is emailed out to parents and individual meetings can be arranged with ease if needed. Students can be added to specific groups for online tours and presentations.
Whilst online solutions will never be a complete replacement for face to face interactions, Admissions+ goes a very long way to managing the data, admin, and applications in a quick and efficient manner freeing up core admissions staff to focus on the interactivity that they can deliver, be that small group visits or a virtual tour.
Book our FREE 30-minute webinar on Thursday 22nd October at 10 am.Â