Holistic Admissions Must Guide Counselor Outreach

Admissions directors rarely say it outright, but here’s the truth: time is their team’s most valuable resource, and it’s slipping through their fingers.

Counselors are overwhelmed, managing thousands of applicants and admitted students while being tasked with creating personal connections. The tools they’ve relied on for decades—mass emails, blanket event invites, and “list-of-the-day” call strategies—aren’t just outdated. They’re wasteful. Too much effort is spent chasing students who won’t enroll, leaving less time for the ones who will. The result? Counselors burn out, enrollment numbers suffer, and the mission of providing a personalized experience falls flat.

Holistic admissions is often heralded as the solution, but it’s usually confined to the pre-decision phase. We use it to see the "whole student," balancing GPAs, extracurriculars, and personal stories to craft diverse and dynamic classes. But here’s the problem: once the decisions are made, holistic admissions gets tossed aside, and teams revert to one-size-fits-all strategies. This misses the bigger opportunity—to use the same principles to manage counselors’ time and attention after decisions go out.

What would it look like to extend holistic admissions into post-decision engagement? It starts with data. Every admitted student sends signals—portal logins, email clicks, event RSVPs—that reveal their level of interest and intent. Machine learning tools can analyze these signals in real time, showing which students are actively deciding, which are drifting away, and which need a nudge. Armed with these insights, admissions directors can direct their counselors to focus where their time will have the greatest impact.

This isn’t about replacing human connection with algorithms; it’s about empowering counselors to work smarter, not harder. When machine learning handles the heavy lifting of sorting through thousands of data points, counselors can focus their energy on meaningful, relationship-driven work. That means personalized calls to the students who need it most and tailored follow-ups that address real concerns—not wasted hours chasing disengaged students or following up on irrelevant metrics.

The benefits are clear. Counselors feel more effective and less overwhelmed, leading to better morale. Yield improves because the right students get the attention they need. And the institution wins by making the most of its resources without sacrificing the personal touch that makes holistic admissions so powerful.

Admissions leaders must redefine holistic admissions as more than just a tool for selecting students—it’s the framework for everything that comes after. Managing time and attention post-decision isn’t just a tactical adjustment; it’s a philosophical one. If institutions truly believe in treating students as individuals, they must embrace a smarter, data-driven approach to yield. Because when it comes to enrollment, precision isn’t optional—it’s everything.

‍

Colleges love to champion holistic admissions as a badge of honor. It’s a process that looks beyond GPAs and test scores to see the “whole student,” and it’s often held up as the moral high ground in the admissions landscape. But here’s the problem no one wants to talk about: once the acceptance letter is sent, holistic admissions all but vanishes.

Think about it. The same institutions that spend months dissecting every nuance of an applicant’s background suddenly treat admitted students as one-size-fits-all. Whether it’s a high-achieving student who attended every info session or someone who barely responds to emails, they’re lumped into the same yield strategy: generic emails, mass invitations to events, and endless follow-ups with little regard for the signals those students are sending.

This approach is lazy, wasteful, and hypocritical. Admissions teams claim to care deeply about individual students—until the decision is made. Then, counselors are left guessing who to prioritize while students who might otherwise enroll feel ignored or overwhelmed. It’s no wonder yield is a constant uphill battle.

Here’s the truth: holistic admissions doesn’t stop when the application process ends. It should be the foundation for post-decision engagement, where understanding individual behaviors becomes the key to guiding students toward enrollment. And this is where machine learning comes in.

By analyzing behavioral signals like portal activity, event attendance, and email responses, machine learning reveals what students won’t always say outright: who’s deciding, who’s drifting, and who needs encouragement. This isn’t just data; it’s a roadmap for prioritizing counselor time and attention. Why waste hours chasing disengaged students when technology can help you focus on those ready to commit?

Let’s stop pretending holistic admissions is enough if it ends at the decision letter. If we’re truly committed to seeing the whole student, we must respect the signals they send after being admitted. Anything less is just marketing dressed up as morality. Real holistic admissions doesn’t stop at “you're in”—it continues all the way to enrollment.

‍

Holistic admissions has been championed as the antidote to reductive, numbers-driven decision-making. By considering the full breadth of an applicant’s background, experiences, and potential, institutions proudly craft classes that reflect their values. But here’s the uncomfortable truth: most colleges abandon the principles of holistic admissions the moment the acceptance letter is sent.

Why do we stop listening?

Admissions teams pour resources into understanding who students are before they’re admitted, but once decisions are made, they often revert to outdated, scattershot approaches to yield management. Every admitted student is treated the same, despite the clear signals they send about their level of interest, intent, and engagement. This approach wastes time, alienates students, and undermines the entire purpose of holistic admissions.

It’s time to redefine holistic admissions—not as a process that ends with an offer, but as a commitment to respecting and responding to each student’s journey through their decision-making process. Machine learning makes this possible, revealing the hidden patterns in post-admission behaviors like event attendance, email replies, and portal activity. These signals hold the key to understanding where students stand and what they need to convert.

Instead of flooding students with generic outreach, machine learning enables admissions teams to prioritize their efforts where they matter most: with high-potential students who are actively deciding, or those who need encouragement to stay engaged. By ignoring these signals, institutions squander their counselors’ time and lose valuable opportunities to connect with students who might otherwise enroll.

Redefining holistic admissions demands that we extend its principles beyond the decision. The same care used to admit students should be applied to yield them. If institutions truly believe in treating students as more than data points, they must commit to engaging admitted students with the same intentionality—powered by machine learning and the respect for individual signals it enables. Anything less is a betrayal of the values holistic admissions claims to champion.

‍