The past two days, the campus teemed with over 750 prospective students exploring Brown through A Day on College Hill. The University will welcome another 500 admitted students next weekend, marking the first time that ADOCH has been split into two programs, as The Herald previously reported.
“We know very conclusively from our survey data and our enrollment data that students who visit campus are more likely to enroll,” said Dean of Admission Logan Powell. “So it was important for us to have two programs for those students who might have had a scheduling conflict that would have precluded them from attending at all in the past. … We really would love for as many students as possible to be able to visit campus.”
In addition, the budget for travel grants was doubled, allowing 423 admitted students to receive fully subsidized travel to and from campus, Powell wrote in a follow-up email to The Herald.
This year, ADOCH was shortened from three days to two days, which posed a challenge for Jardelle Johnson ’19, ADOCH student co-coordinator. “We were required to think about what was most important, because there was just no way we could (include) everything they had for the past ADOCHs,” Johnson said. “I think we’ve been pretty successful.”
Sunday’s events — which included an activities fair, a talent show and a new food truck festival — focused on giving prospective students a taste of life outside the classroom. On Monday, visiting students were invited to shop classes and attend faculty lectures and panel sessions to learn about academic life.
“We have a lot going on. … We deliberately made it that way so that they can pick and choose what they want to go to,” Johnson said. “I really hope that they will value how much freedom they will have at Brown.”
Additionally, visiting students were placed into units similar to first-year units. “If they’re coming alone, we don’t want them to be wandering around by themselves,” Johnson said. “We want to give them an already built-in community.”
Units were a welcome feature among prospective students. “The units are really great for meeting new people,” said Carlos Tejada of Passaic, New Jersey. Tejada added that he enjoyed competing with his unit in Brown’s Amazing Race, a campus-wide scavenger hunt. While Tejada was “pretty sure” about committing to Brown before coming to campus, he said his experience at ADOCH made him far more likely to enroll.
Unlike in recent years, students admitted through early decision were also invited to participate. “Expanding the program this year to include early decision students … will add a lot of energy and vitality to the mix” because early decision students are sure they will be enrolling, Powell said.
“I’m excited we got to come this year,” said Yenteen Hu of Westfield, New Jersey, who applied in the early decision pool. Hu added that she was glad ADOCH allowed her “to explore parts of campus I didn’t know about.”
Aditya Hoque of Marlborough, Massachusetts, another early decision admit, agreed with Hu. “It’s been good to meet everyone we’ve seen on social media for the last few months,” Hoque said. Even though Hoque needed no convincing to attend Brown, he was especially enthusiastic to visit campus for ADOCH. “I ED’d here for a reason,” he said.
Provost Richard Locke P’18 and Alexia Melendez Martineau ’18, ADOCH student co-coordinator, joined Powell and Johnson in welcoming the prospective students at a reception in the Salomon Center Sunday.
Locke and Powell both praised the class of 2022 during the reception. This year, the Admission Office “read and assessed more than 35,000 applicants, the largest applicant pool in Brown’s history,” Locke said. “(The Admission Office) had the inspired choice of zeroing in on each of you, and they were able to identify you as Brown students.”
Pointing to the size of the applicant pool and the low acceptance rate, Powell told the crowd of admitted students, “You’re about to make history as the greatest Brown class ever.”
“Now, I may have said the same thing last year to the class of 2021,” Powell joked. “But I really mean it this time.”
“You’re going to discover the answer to that question of ‘Why Brown?’ today and tomorrow,” Powell continued. “Savor every moment you’re here, and then come back in the fall and savor four years with us.”
