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Hi Reader,
Yes, we're talking about demonstrated interest — again. Here's why it matters…
You’ve heard about it. Your child has heard about it. And yet, here we are bringing it up again.
Why?
Because demonstrated interest really matters —not just because some colleges track it, but because these interactions (even if small) are how students begin to figure out which schools belong on their best-fit list.
Building a strong, personalized best-fit college list
Classic ways to show interest:
- Campus Visits: A visit shows you’re serious. It also helps students feel out the campus vibe.
- Info Sessions & Virtual Events: Many colleges take attendance at these—virtual or in-person—as a measure of engagement.
- Chatting with Admissions Reps: Whether it’s at a college fair or via email, building a relationship with an admissions counselor matters.
We also encourage students not to overlook these subtle ways to demonstrate interest:
- Following colleges on social media
- Signing up for college newsletters
- Requesting info on college websites
These digital breadcrumbs are often tracked too and can unlock valuable insights about the school.
For more information about demonstrated interest, check out this new handout we created for our students.
🧠 Pro Tip: When students register for tours or sign up for emails, they should use their personal email (not a parent’s and not a school one they rarely check). Once they do, their inbox will fill up with messages, and trust us, there’s gold in there.
In fact, our team subscribes to these emails too, and here’s what we discovered just this week:
- 🧪 Wake Forest has an Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities Center where students can collaborate with faculty and showcase their work — even in their first year.
- 🎶 Case Western offers quirky and meaningful clubs like Dhamakapella (South Asian fusion a cappella), Art Forward (art projects with youth in detention centers), and the Weatherhead Economics Society (peer mentoring and econ exploration).
- 🔬 Villanova has a Match Research Program just for first-year students — giving them access to research projects as early as their first semester.
All of this was found in emails. Not tours. Not info sessions.
That’s why we say: opening those college emails is a game-changer.
📣 Coming Soon: We’re launching a College Email Scavenger Hunt! The student who finds the most fun and useful facts from reading college emails will win a prize pack from us. Stay tuned for details next week!
In the meantime, encourage your student to start signing up for these emails — and reading them — now. Their future favorite school may already be sitting in their inbox.
But remember, your child doesn’t need to have their list finalized to start thinking about their essays.