Even under the modified semester, the Messiah University Admissions Office upholds its mission to provide prospective students with a resource for any questions or concerns about the college search process. Admissions employees continue to extend the Messiah community through both virtual and in-person capabilities.
The university will virtually host larger events like open houses and spotlight days. Almost every weekday from now until Thanksgiving break, prospective students also have an opportunity to visit the campus in person through individual meetings.
“That visit includes a campus tour with one of our admissions tour guides and a meeting with an admissions counselor,” the Associate Director of Admissions, Visit and Event Programming, Kristin Thomas, said. “Most of them have a meeting with a faculty member as well, and then lunch at Lottie.”
Currently, prospective students must sign up for visits online, registering for a particular time slot. Families can consist of up to four people, and a limit of 10 families can visit per day.
“We’re keeping it pretty strict,” Thomas said. “We want to know who’s on campus to keep people as safe as possible.”
The registration form also contains questions similar to the daily health checks for students and staff members. This monitors important coronavirus-related questions, including the health of each family member, any recent traveling and where they are visiting from.
“If they are visiting from a state on Pennsylvania’s high risk state list, they are not allowed to visit right now,” Thomas said. “Or, if they’ve been to one of those states, we follow up with them to get an exact timeline.”
Once Admissions receives and accepts the form, families receive an email alerting them of the specific regulations Messiah has in place. Like everyone on campus, these visitors must wear proper masks at all times and social distance when possible.
Working under the current school rules, the Admissions Office has modified the campus tour itself. Tour guides lead the visitors around campus, steering clear of new class locations and the residence halls.
For visitors who are not accustomed to the new regulations on campus, following these rules can sometimes seem overwhelming.
“We’re trying to do our best to give them very clear instructions,” Thomas said. “We want to keep them informed but keep them visiting so we can still recruit.”
The Admissions team remains committed to ensuring the safety of both current and prospective students by communicating these rules clearly to anyone who comes into their offices.