The number of applicants for the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry has increased for the 2010-11 academic year from last year, said Susan Sanford, director of admissions and inter-institutional relations at ESF.

This is the fifth year in a row that ESF has seen an increase in applicants. The college is taking measures to increase applications and is planning to continue the successful recruitment strategies currently in place, Sanford said.

‘We are expanding our marketing activities at the national level, engaging in more contacts with prospective students and applicants and promoting the value and excellence of an ESF education,’ she said.

While there has already been an increase in applicants, it’s too early to tell exactly how much of an increase there will be this year. While incoming freshman applications were due Jan. 15, the application deadline for transfer students is not until March 1, Sanford said.

New construction projects such as the Gateway building and ESF-only dormitory, both of which will be built in an environmentally friendly manner, may have an effect on the number of students applying to ESF, Sanford said.

An increased number of SUNY campuses are using both the Common Application and the SUNY application this year. This will lead to more accurate statistics about applicants to the SUNY schools because all the data is collected later in the spring, Sanford said.

With applications on the rise, ESF continues to focus on selecting the students that best fit the ideal criteria.

‘(We are looking for) one who demonstrates a good fit between their interests and goals and our specialized programs of study and who has excelled in a challenging college preparatory curriculum,’ Sanford said.

Transfer applications have also increased since last year, but it is difficult to determine the total increase because the school is still accepting transfer student applications, Sanford said. Final statistics will not be available until the end of the academic year.

ESF looks for transfer students with the same qualities they look for in high school students, along with excellent performance in college-level studies, Sanford said.

While most students come from New York, 25 percent of high school applicants come from out of state, and slightly less than 25 percent of transfer students are from out of state, she said.

Tuition increases have not greatly affected the number of students applying to ESF, Sanford said.

‘The value of an ESF education and student experience is one of the factors students cite among reasons they seek admission to ESF,’ Sanford said.

jlsiart@esf.edu

Published on February 17, 2010 at 12:00 pm