A note to prospective applicants from our director of undergraduate admission, Liz Kinsley:

Despite profound changes and challenges this August, last week brought familiar energy and optimism to our Admissions Zoom meetings: our 2020–21 applications went live, and our team got to work planning regional outreach activities for the coming months. Here comes Northwestern’s Class of 2025. It feels good to look ahead.

Of course, the changes and challenges remain in the picture, too. For one, August usually finds us finalizing our admissions “territories” and planning our fall travel: who will go where to connect with prospective applicants in their own high schools or hometowns? How can we help as diverse and far-flung an audience as possible learn more about Northwestern? But unfortunately, circumstances this fall will prevent us from traveling to you.

Instead, we’ll soon be rolling out a new “regional teams” model where multiple staff members will collaborate as contacts and readers for a particular region. You’ll still have an individual point of contact if you need it; but you’ll also have opportunities to meet multiple members of your regional team in regularly scheduled digital Q&A sessions. Additionally, we’ll make every effort to connect with you through virtual workshops, panels, college fairs, joint presentations with other colleges, digital high school visits, and other creative outreach approaches that emerge in the current landscape. Later this month, we will post regional contacts and programing on our website.

Another big change for us—one we’ve been adjusting to all summer—is the suspension of on-campus programming for prospective students. Our Segal Visitors Center closed its doors in mid-March, and for the safety of our campus community and visitors alike, it’s not likely we’ll be able to welcome families for daily sessions or tours until 2021.

That said, we’ve developed a range of digital programming to help you get to know us, from traditional information sessions and campus tours that provide an overview, to student panels, performance showcases, and local food reviews that carry across the intangibles you’d hope to get on a campus visit. In almost every case, we offer live Q&A with admission directors and/or current students. And while we don’t treat demonstrated interest as a tally of touchpoints that carries weight in our review process, we do value our connections with you and have set up registration links to help us stay in touch.

The pandemic has kept us from the campus we love, too. But Northwestern’s vibrant community has always stretched far beyond Evanston and Chicago, and its reach is only more assertive now as we make the most of things together in today’s climate.

Plus, campus life persists even as many community members stay remote: last weekend, my family made the short drive from Chicago to Evanston to explore alongside the lake and show our almost-two-year-old where mommy and daddy went to school (my husband as an undergrad, me as a PhD student). I wasn’t sure what to expect, having worked at home for the past five months. But what we found was heartening: hardly deserted, the paths welcomed families, students, runners, readers, walkers, dogs, geese, seagulls, strollers—socially distanced, wearing masks (well, not the animals), but nonetheless in good company. The scene had a sort of serene bustle to it, at once calming and invigorating.

If you find yourself in the area, you, too, are welcome on these paths. Please wear a mask (after Labor Day, you’ll find extras, along with self-guided tours and hand sanitizer, in an exterior hospitality station at our Segal Visitors Center), and respect Northwestern’s health and safety guidelines. I assure you, the spirit of this place, unlike the coronavirus, will easily carry across facial coverings and 6-feet of distance between you and others.

In late May, I wrote the following in a letter to college counselors: “No amount of careful planning or communication can forecast exactly what high school and college will look like come fall.” At the time, I didn’t realize we’d be confronting these unknowns in such an extreme way even as the new academic year begins. But this is our reality. And besides, what I wrote next is more important and, I hope, grounding:

Luckily, we do have clarity on what the college process will look like, at least at its core: although the pandemic may necessitate modified mechanics for this process, the substance of applying to college won’t change. As always, we are making every effort to reach an increasingly diverse and talented population of students around the world to show them what makes Northwestern special. Come fall, we will hope to see that diversity and talent reflected in our applicant pool. And our review process will remain grounded in a holistic approach coupled with a commitment to college access.

As we head into a fall unlike any other, remember that applying to college has not changed at any fundamental level. As our Early Decision deadline approaches, we’ll share more about navigating those modified mechanics I mention above. For now, explore colleges widely (if mostly virtually), with a sense of optimism for all you can learn about yourself and the world in the years ahead. We look forward to seeing you online!