Do College Admissions Need to be Disrupted?

Celebrating the leaders and experts that are powering education into the future, host JW Marshall sets out to ask the “right questions” in EdTech to understand the changes in policy and technology that will power our universities, tradeschools, and companies – and drive growth in upskilling certifications.

The process of applying to college continues to get more complex, especially for international students. The burden is on the student, requiring time, money, and research. That creates inequities, but the platform Concourse is changing that. Voices of eLearning host JW Marshall sat down with the company’s Founder and CEO, Joe Morrison.

Morrison has a rich technology background and later became familiar with higher education through his wife’s company Grok Global and working in China. He realized there were significant challenges in the college admissions process, and Concourse was the solution..

“The university admissions process is too complicated. It’s hard to navigate, and there’s a lot of anxiety. It’s also challenging for university recruiters to get their stories out there. It’s two problems our platform solves. The premise is having universities apply for students, flipping the marketplace,” Morrison explained.

Students create profiles with their grades, interests, criteria, and budget. Counselors then verify the accounts. Next, universities search for students and extend offers. “It’s an empowering process for students,” Morrison added.

It’s also helping admissions offices to evolve. They can see where they have gaps in programs and offer more admissions in those. They aren’t waiting for applications to come in and have access to real-time data through the platform’s dashboard.

Thus far, the platform has facilitated many positive outcomes. “Last year, our admit rate was 72 percent. So, seven out of 10 times, universities admitted the students they were matched with. Even better, 95% of the participating students received at least one admission offer.

The system is really for students who are unsure of where they want to go and what they want to do. “It helps them find options for a one-time fee of only $75. Many discover what they want in the process, like an Egyptian student I spoke to recently. She had six offers from five countries and found the right program.”

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