As members of the class of 2005 adjust to life on the Hill, many of the people who admitted them no longer work at the University. In an unusually high annual turnover, seven of Tufts' 12 undergraduate admissions counselors have left over the past nine months.
While all but one of the openings have been filled, the exodus calls into question the office's ability to cope with Tufts' ever-expanding pool of applicants. One former admissions officer, who spoke to the Daily on the condition of anonymity, said that many staff members were frustrated that Tufts' admissions office had not altered its administrative organization to accommodate the 60 percent increase in applications since 1995.
Saying that the new hires would fill the gaps left by their predecessors, Dean of Admissions David Cuttino maintained he is confident that the turnover will not affect this year's admissions process. "We have a wonderful group of new people," Cuttino said.
"They'll be getting acquainted with what we're doing here, the students and faculty, and alumni around the country," he added. "They bring a range of experience and perspectives that will be helpful to us."
But former Tufts admissions officers and their counterparts at other schools say that a turnover of that size negatively affects the decision-making process.
"If you lost a lot of people in one year, you would be behind the eight-ball for sure," said Richard Nesbitt, director of admissions at Williams College. "When you hire new people, there's a tremendous amount of training that has to go on, particularly if you lose a lot of senior people who have a lot of expertise in one area."
While Tufts has employed new technology and hired more staff members to help read the 14,000 applications that Tufts receives annually, "the office didn't adapt well to some of the new realities of Tufts' selectivity," said the former officer. "There was a lot of frustration." Admissions has used a similar process for the past six years, during which time annual applications have increased by over 5,000.
Cuttino said that the seven departures make this year unusual. Last year, the office experienced no turnover at all.
Admissions officers at Tufts and its benchmark universities typically leave after four years, according to Nesbitt, the Williams' admissions director. "We generally expect one, two, maybe three people to leave each year," he said.
The turnover is especially high for recent college graduates, who regard the position as temporary employment. While often enthusiastic about their new positions, Nesbitt said young admissions staff lack the necessary experience and connections of their predecessors.
"There's a lot of experience lost in working with current students and schools, and you don't replace it over night," said the former Tufts employee. "Experience is great, and it's helpful. Enthusiasm is nice also, but I do think you lose some history."
Cuttino, however, said the new hires are equipped to handle the responsibility. "We're looking at people who can be effective, will be good planners, and flexible enough to handle this kind of a schedule," he said.
Admissions officers are required to travel - often cross-country - during the fall, spend long hours reading applications during the winter, and speak to thousands of prospective students and parents during the spring. Despite the intense workload, the position is sought after as a training ground for graduate schools and a jumpstart to other career paths.
"Our admissions office has an outstanding reputation in the larger academic community," said Executive Director of Human Resources Larry Hunt. "Through the years, the people who get experience there work very hard, but they also are very marketable. Because they come from Tufts they are high quality applicants."
Of the admissions officers who left, two were hired by other college admissions offices and two became college counselors at private high schools.
According to University officials, the admissions office has not experienced difficulty finding replacements for the vacant spots. "[The positions] have really filled pretty quickly when there have been openings," Hunt said.
"Generally," he said, "there is a lot of interest in student affairs-related positions at Tufts."
