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VCU
Richmond, Virginia
Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management
LEADERSHIP PROFILE
Winter 2012
WITT / KIEFFER
Virginia Commonwealth University Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management
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THE OPPORTUNITY
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) invites applications and nominations for the
position of Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management.
The Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management – a newly created position – will report
to the Provost and lead the development, articulation and implementation of the university’s
new strategic vision through redefined enrollment strategies. As the university’s chief
enrollment officer, the Vice Provost will work collaboratively across the university and provide
the leadership for a comprehensive enrollment strategy that is aggressive and forward looking
and is consistent with the goals, mission, and resources of VCU, and is aligned with the
university’s recently completed strategic plan, Quest for Distinction. The enrollment strategy
will expand the university’s ability to attract, select, enroll, and retain a highly diverse and
increasingly talented group of students. She/he will be expected to lead all areas involved in
student recruitment and student enrollment services, including undergraduate, graduate and
international admissions, financial aid, records and registration, student accounting and the
student services center functions with management responsibility for over 110 professional
faculty and staff.
The successful candidate will be an experienced and visionary enrollment professional with a
commitment to the value provided by an urban public research university. The Vice Provost
will bring exceptional planning, analytical and organizational skills, a thorough understanding
of enrollment management concepts, and a demonstrated ability to develop and implement
successful enrollment strategies or initiatives. She/he will also possess superior interpersonal
communication skills, an ability to manage and motivate a diverse professional staff, a
demonstrated experience working in and fostering a diverse faculty, staff, and student
environment or commitment to do so as a faculty member at VCU, and a record of exemplary
personal and professional integrity. A Master’s degree is required; an earned doctorate degree
is preferred.
Virginia Commonwealth University is one of the state’s largest universities and ranks among
the top universities in the country in sponsored research. It enrolls over 30,000 students in 216
certificate and degree programs. Sixty-nine of the programs are unique in Virginia, many of
them crossing the disciplines of VCU’s thirteen schools and one college. VCU is located on two
downtown Richmond campuses – the Monroe Park Campus and the Medical College of
Virginia Campus. As an urban institution of higher learning, VCU and its partners have
contributed immeasurably to the development of the fabric of the City of Richmond,
transforming it into a center of artistic and cultural growth, business development, and social
services.
Information about how to nominate a candidate or to apply for this opportunity may be found
later in this document in the section entitled “Procedure for Candidacy.”
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ENROLLMENT SERVICES AT VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY
Enrollment Services provides essential financial and records services from a student's first
contact with admissions counselors until the final details of graduation. The division consists of
the offices of undergraduate, graduate and international admissions, financial aid, records and
registration, student accounting and the student services center.
Virginia Commonwealth University enrolls 31,899 students, representing 47 states plus
Washington, D.C., Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and 107 countries. VCU is the most
diverse of Virginia's public universities with 40 percent of students from minority populations;
more than five percent of students are international.
For the Class of 2015, applications were received from 14,336 freshmen candidates. From those
applicants, 9,412 were selected and 3,803 first-year students enrolled (a yield of 40 percent).
The middle 50 percent of admitted students on the Critical Reading portion of the SAT scored
500 to 620; the middle 50 percent on the Mathematics portion scored 500 to 620; and the middle
50 percent scored 21 to 27 on the ACT. VCU's top overlap institutions for freshmen are James
Virginia Commonwealth University Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management
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Madison University, George Mason University, Old Dominion University, Virginia Tech and
University of Virginia.
The university received 6,283 applications for graduate admission for fall 2011, with 2,538
students accepted. VCU’s top competing graduate/professional institutions vary by program
area. Overall they are Virginia Tech, University of Virginia, George Mason University,
University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins University. For the School of the Arts, the
competing institutions are Yale, Rhode Island School of Design and University of Chicago. For
the School of Education the institutions are Virginia Tech, University of Virginia and College of
William & Mary.
Admissions and Enrollments
First-time Freshmen
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Applications 8,540 9,435 9,836 11,764 13,155 15,160 17,489 16,915 14,086 14,336
Acceptances 6,206 6,993 7,315 8,020 8,671 9,331 10,193 10,055 9,246 9,412
Enrollments 3,048 3,326 3,364 3,540 3,540 3,882 3,724 3,665 3,615 3,803
Acceptance
Rate 73% 74% 74% 68% 66% 32% 58% 59% 66% 66%
Yield Rate 49% 48% 46% 44% 41% 42% 37% 36% 39% 40%
VCU Graduate School
Applicants Who Enrolled
Resident Non-Resident International Total
Doctoral 95 86 61 242
Masters 842 281 161 1284
Fall 2011 Post-Masters
Cert 43 3
46
Post-Bac Cert 123 27 2 152
Total 1103 397 224 1724
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THE ROLE OF THE VICE PROVOST FOR STRATEGIC ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT
The Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management has primary responsibility for
developing, articulating, and implementing a dynamic enrollment management plan that aligns
with the university’s recently completed strategic plan, Quest for Distinction. As the university’s
first-ever chief enrollment management officer, the Vice Provost will need to spend
considerable time defining and structuring the division and engaging in the kinds of cross-
institutional conversations that convey the power of effective strategic enrollment planning and
management. Reporting to the Provost and working collaboratively with the deans of the
university’s schools and colleges and other university offices, the Vice Provost assumes broad
leadership within the university, providing the vision and strategy to optimize Virginia
Commonwealth’s current and future enrollment and to retain students.
The leadership of the university seeks to be dynamic, innovative, and nimble in every phase of
the enrollment process, building academic excellence while further strengthening a diverse
student population. As a university that prides itself on innovative thinking, exceptional
research, and excellence in teaching, Virginia Commonwealth seeks an enrollment leader and
thinker who will grasp the essential nature of this distinctive institution and employ both
traditional and non-traditional means to expand the university’s visibility so as to attract, select,
enroll, and retain a highly diverse and increasingly talented group of students.
As Virginia Commonwealth seeks greater impact on a broad scale, so too it seeks for its
enrollment leader to use his or her position both as an opportunity to consider how best to
enroll the most appropriate entering classes, and to occupy a leadership position in determining
how the nation’s leading public urban universities might best conduct enrollment practice. The
university’s Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management will be an innovative, forward-
thinking, collaborative, and highly experienced enrollment professional who has the vision and
confidence to combine best practice with theory so as to lead the way for Virginia
Commonwealth. In overseeing enrollment functions for undergraduate, graduate, and
international students as well as the offices of financial aid, records and registration, student
accounting and the student services center, the Vice Provost will have management
responsibility for over 110 staff and an operating budget of over $8.4 million.
It is essential that the Vice Provost lead the way in setting the message for those who assist with
the enrollment effort, reaching out to and engaging all those in the Virginia Commonwealth
community. The Vice Provost must ensure excellent relationships with secondary schools while
overseeing a rapidly changing student profile; lead an enrollment team that proactively and
strategically anticipates and responds to enrollment challenges and is optimistic, opportunistic,
forward-looking, innovative, and results-oriented; employ both traditional and cutting-edge
methods to engage prospective and current students; keep student welfare always at the
forefront including an anticipation of and responsiveness to matters that influence retention;
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and broaden dramatically the reach of the university in every part of the state, the region, and
nationally as well as globally.
It is worth emphasizing that this is not a status quo position: Virginia Commonwealth
University, in its quest to serve as a distinctive, student-centered national urban research
university and as a force for societal good, seeks an enrollment professional who is a bold and
pioneering thought leader, willing to take calculated risks and engage students and families in
new ways. The Vice Provost is expected to capitalize on the considerable existing level of
forward momentum and institutional support for his or her area with vigor, enthusiasm, an
inclusive leadership style, outstanding communication skills, and an eye to the possible,
reflecting the entrepreneurial outlook that characterizes the university.
OPPORTUNITIES AND EXPECTATIONS FOR LEADERSHIP
The Vice Provost will have the opportunity to make a significant impact in shaping the vision
and direction of enrollment at VCU. For a talented and resourceful professional, this is a
transformational position in which he or she will be able to lead VCU to a new phase of success
in recruiting, admitting, and graduating a talented and diverse student body.
Key challenges and opportunities for the Vice Provost’s first few years in office include, but are
not limited to, the following:
Develop a comprehensive and forward-looking enrollment strategy
Upon coming to VCU, the Vice Provost will thoroughly examine current enrollment practices to
assure an informed and analytical approach to crafting a shared vision for enrollment that all
can embrace. The university has already identified several areas of opportunity including
continuing to improve the academic profile of incoming students and increasing out-of-state
enrollment, but the Vice Provost will truly have the opportunity to shape and implement a new
vision for enrollment strategy at VCU. In building this plan, the Vice Provost will work with
the President, the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, and other university
officials to develop an integrated, comprehensive and redefined six-year strategic student
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enrollment plan. This plan will guide the enrollment staff in supporting the university’s
academic and strategic plans, shaping the university’s goals to be optimally positioned for
success while making the best use of available resources.
As part of this effort, the new Vice Provost will work with individual units to assess their
enrollment projections and make recommendations for developing an informed enrollment
target. He or she will lead the deans in discussing the profile of students that make up their
incoming classes and the implications for overall university enrollment in maintaining varying
admissions criteria among different units.
Engage the entire campus community in discussing enrollment management strategy,
fostering a culture of openness and inclusion
The Vice Provost will build a culture of collective discussion and maintain strong, collaborative,
and facilitative relationships with leadership across the university. Frequent and ongoing
dialogue with senior administrators and faculty will engender cooperation, trust, and
confidence and will be essential to the success of the enrollment functions. She/he will work
collaboratively with schools and colleges to actively develop and manage student enrollment
goals, and hold the schools and colleges accountable for those goals, with the overall objective
of everyone working toward the same target. The Vice Provost will convey the vision for
enrollment and promote a tone in the VCU community of open conversation and common
goals, so as to engage and galvanize students, staff, faculty, parents, and alumni in helping
achieve the enrollment vision.
Work collaboratively across the university to enroll a highly talented and diverse student
body
Virginia Commonwealth University is committed to the City of Richmond and the students it
serves. With recent success in growing university enrollment, VCU is refocusing its efforts to
continue to increase academic quality in the incoming class. This is critical to achieving
academic excellence and reflects VCU's aspirations as a premier research institution. In
achieving this effort, VCU will be well served by an ambitious and forward-thinking enrollment
leader who is committed to quality, access, and VCU's position as an urban public research
university. VCU has already made progress toward this effort by bringing in a more selective
freshmen class each year, and the Vice Provost will continue to move the academic bar by
enrolling an increasingly talented freshmen class of students who are prepared for the rigors of
a research university. Additionally, the Vice Provost will work toward increasing diversity in
all its forms, including the geographic, socio-economic, and racial diversity of both the
undergraduate and graduate student populations.
He or she will be charged with raising the level of discourse across the university in regard to
targeted enrollment and the apropriate mix of students, and the Vice Provost will strategically
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employ both new and proven outreach methods so as to increase these populations within the
student body, working in partnership with all areas of the university.
Develop a solid financial aid strategy that is aligned with the Quest for Distinction
The Vice Provost will continuously evaluate and be an advocate for financial aid policy and
packaging so that it is used strategically and creatively and ensures maximum benefit to the
university and its students. In doing so, the Vice Provost will align financial aid strategy with
the Quest for Distinction strategic plan. There is need for ongoing analysis of data to shape
strategic directions, ensuring a program that is proactive and responsive to market forces and
student needs.
In addition, the Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management will:
Promote the mission of Virginia Commonwealth University and the welfare of its students;
Lead Virginia Commonwealth’s enrollment function with vision, integrity, inclusiveness,
sound judgment, wisdom and energy, engendering a team approach across its integrated
functions;
Further develop and support a strong enrollment staff that is optimistic, excited about
change, responsive, innovative, analytical, results oriented, and student centered;
Continue the development and implementation of the university’s comprehensive
enrollment program, including market segmentation, brand marketing, promotional
strategies, and recruitment tactics to meet the university’s enrollment goals; among these
goals are: continuing to increase academic quality in the incoming classes, growing
enrollments in specific programs and departments, growing geographic diversity, growing
socio-economic and racial diversity, growing the size of the applicant pool, and enhancing
retention;
Present enrollment and recruitment reports to the Vice Presidents, President and
University’s Board of Visitors; develop enrollment projections to meet the goals of the
University’s six-year plan;
Make data-informed proposals and decisions while seeking both standard and creative
ways to achieve enrollment goals;
Routinely analyze data to shape strategic directions and make appropriate adjustments to
an integrated marketing plan that clearly identifies and defines historical university
enrollment patterns and forecasts trends in new student markets; regularly reassess
effectiveness of recruitment activities and financial aid programs and make appropriate
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adjustments so as to lead an effort that is continuously proactive and responsive to market
forces and university needs;
Develop and continuously evaluate and refine a strategic plan that builds on Virginia
Commonwealth’s recent successes in attracting increasingly strong undergraduate and
graduate students;
Possess a keen, proactive, and forceful understanding of marketing opportunities and
potential, as well as the ability to execute new initiatives with great finesse and work
collaboratively and actively with the university’s marketing professionals to ensure
marketing campaigns support the redefined enrollment strategies;
Develop and direct the implementation of plans to expand recruitment and enrollment of
students from outside Virginia;
Optimize financial aid and the leveraging of institutional resources to recruit and retain
students;
Communicate regularly with the university community to inform and broaden enrollment
initiatives, progress and results, including frequent dialogue with deans, faculty, and senior
administration, conveying the vision for, tradeoffs and complexities involved in meeting
enrollment goals and promoting open conversation so as to engage and galvanize the entire
VCU community in helping achieve the enrollment vision;
Provide the vision for a state-of-the-art records management and registration operation, and
empower the Registrar to continually assess and refine the strategy and tactics needed to
provide excellent service to prospective and current students in a rapidly-changing
technological environment;
Promote frequent personal interactions with prospective students and their families by
developing programs and creative initiatives to appropriately engage Virginia
Commonwealth faculty, staff, students, alumni, trustees, and parents in the enrollment
effort;
Promote the importance of customer service in enrollment services offices as part of
enhancing the student experience;
Exhibit great skill, grace, and expertise in balancing the many complex and sometimes
competing interests in selecting and building the incoming class;
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Lead a transparent and forward-looking budgeting process for the enrollment area that
aims high, projects clear outcomes for expenditures, and evaluates achievements in the
context of cost effectiveness;
Build on VCU’s ability to attract and enroll a strong and diverse student body, including
those from socioeconomic, ethnic, or racial backgrounds underrepresented in higher
education, through bold and creative uses of marketing and technological tools;
Ensure compliance with federal and state laws, regulations and guidelines and external
reporting requirements in the areas for which responsible;
Exploit cutting-edge communications technology to reach students in the ways they can best
hear and respond to; and
Fulfill other duties as assigned by the Provost.
QUALITIES AND QUALIFICATIONS
The ideal candidate must demonstrate progressive experience at a senior level in successfully
developing, implementing, and evaluating an enrollment management strategy emphasizing
vision and synergy across all enrollment functions. Experience and success at leading a large,
complex organization is critical. Experience with appropriate information technology and the
use of sophisticated data analysis to inform strategic decisions is critical, as is familiarity with
marketing and financial aid leveraging for recruitment and retention.
The ideal candidate will have the following professional qualifications and personal
characteristics:
Proven effectiveness and expertise in enrollment and change management: significant
professional experience managing the complex interplay of marketing and recruiting
strategies, enrollment goals, yield, and financial aid; knowledge of the strategic use of
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financial aid; genuine enjoyment in leading, managing, and implementing large-scale
innovation;
Vision and leadership: ability to lead the creation of VCU’s future student body with vision
and creativity; an entrepreneurial outlook and eye to new possibilities and emerging
challenges; capacity to independently make strategic decisions, generate innovative ideas
and solutions, and multitask; ability to develop and manage relationships with a diverse
array of partners that play different and divergent roles in the university community; ability
to manage and motivate a diverse professional staff, and to inspire joy in one’s work;
A thorough understanding of enrollment management concepts: a demonstrated ability to
develop and implement successful enrollment strategies or initiatives;
Demonstrated ability in creatively marketing a selective institution so as to achieve superior
levels of enrollment performance: proven success in innovative thinking and risk-taking
combined with excellent execution of both complex and routine marketing strategies; a
record of taking programs to new levels of success; ability to carry out marketing functions
with close attention to the needs of the university and the match between it and its potential
students; ability to think creatively and to leverage technology with a sensitivity to and
understanding of the human/cultural impact;
An ability to keep both the big picture and operational details at the forefront: evidence of
ability to focus and lead an organization to achieve the elements of a strategic plan, and to
continuously refine the organizational plan, structure, and operations as the plan evolves;
comfort with delegating day-to-day management and decision making to senior managers;
and sophisticated understanding of the laws and regulations that significantly impact
enrollment operations;
Mature communication skills: strong speaking and writing skills with the ability to
articulate a vision effectively to all constituencies, including prospective students and their
families, the enrollment staff, faculty and staff, alumni, trustees, and the public;
Strong analytical capacity: the ability to produce forward-looking, transparent strategic
plans and budgets that link expenditures to outcomes; to assess the effectiveness of how
recruitment and financial aid funds are employed to achieve enrollment goals; to produce
regular and systematic comparative reports that detail month-to-month as well as annual
progress toward enrollment goals; to employ information on national and international
trends in higher education and on developments in competitor institutions effectively in
planning;
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Personal qualities: a sense of urgency and engagement; articulateness; honesty, integrity,
candor, and a strong internal moral compass; hard work; a joy in one’s work; optimism,
confidence, and excitement about change; a genuine interest in forming a team with the
President, Provost, and deans; loyalty; a personal presence that is active and inclusive;
proven skill dealing with complex and diverse cultures, backgrounds, and perspectives;
ability to observe, listen, learn, and clarify needs while engendering trust quickly among
various constituencies; wisdom, sound judgment; good sense of humor; and
Credentials: A Master’s degree or higher with qualifying experience is required; an earned
doctorate or other appropriate terminal degree is preferred.
VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY: AN OVERVIEW
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is rooted in the
histories of two campuses: the MCV Campus, which was founded
in 1838 as the Medical College of Virginia, and the Monroe Park
Campus, which began as the Richmond School of Social Work and
Public Health in 1917. The two campuses merged in 1968 to
become Virginia Commonwealth University, the most
comprehensive urban university in the state and one of the top
research universities in the nation.
As an urban institution of higher learning, VCU and its partners
have contributed immeasurably to the development of the fabric
of the City of Richmond, transforming it into a center of artistic
and cultural growth, business development and social services. In
consequence, the city and its leadership in business, industry and
cultural affairs have given extraordinary support to the university’s growth, complementing the
support of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Richmond, the capital of Virginia, is a diverse
cultural city, surrounded by historic neighborhoods, parks and the scenic James River.
Today, VCU is one of the state’s largest universities and ranks among the top universities in the
country in sponsored research. Located on two downtown campuses in Richmond, VCU
enrolls more than 31,000 students in 211 certificate and degree programs in the arts, sciences
and humanities. Sixty-nine of the programs are unique in Virginia, many of them crossing the
disciplines of VCU’s thirteen schools and one college. MCV Hospitals and the health sciences
schools of Virginia Commonwealth University compose the VCU Medical Center, one of the
nation’s leading academic medical centers. VCU’s third campus is located in Doha, Qatar and is
a cornerstone of Education City, which is now host to five other branch campuses of prestigious
American universities – Texas A&M University at Qatar, Weill Cornell Medical College in
Virginia Commonwealth University Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management
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Qatar, Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar, Northwestern University in Qatar and Georgetown
University School of Foreign Service Qatar.
Mission and Vision
Mission: As the premier urban, public research university in Virginia, VCU’s mission is to
advance knowledge and student success through its commitments to:
an engaged, learner-centered environment that fosters inquiry, discovery and innovation in
a global setting;
research that expands the boundaries of knowledge and creative expression and promotes
translational applications to improve human health;
interdisciplinary collaborations that bring new perspectives to complex problems and
mobilize creative energies that advance innovation and solve global challenges;
health care that strives to preserve and restore health for all people, seek the cause and cure
of diseases through groundbreaking research, and educate those who serve humanity;
diversity that provides a climate of inclusion, a dedication to addressing disparities
wherever they exist, and an opportunity to explore and create in an environment of trust;
sustainable, university-community partnerships that enhance the educational, economic and
cultural vitality of the communities VCU serves in Virginia and around the world.
Vision: VCU will be a premier urban, public research university distinguished by its
commitment to:
the intellectual and academic success of a diverse student body
research and discovery that advances knowledge, inspires creativity and improves human
health;
the global engagement of students, faculty and staff that transforms lives and communities.
Core values:
Accountability – committing to the efficient and transparent stewardship of our resources to
achieve institutional excellence;
Virginia Commonwealth University Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management
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Achievement – ensuring distinction in learning, research and scholarly pursuits, service and
patient care;
Collaboration – fostering collegiality and cooperation to advance learning, entrepreneurship
and inquiry;
Freedom – striving for intellectual truth with responsibility and civility, respecting the
dignity of all individuals;
Innovation – cultivating discovery, creativity, originality, inventiveness and talent;
Service – engaging in the application of learning and discovery to improve the human
condition and support the public good at home and abroad;
Diversity – ensuring a climate of trust, honesty and integrity where all people are valued
and differences are recognized as an asset;
Integrity – adhering to the highest standards of honesty, respect and professional and
scholarly ethics.
Schools and Colleges
Virginia Commonwealth University offers academic programs in the following schools and
colleges:
College of Humanities and Sciences
o School of Government and
Public Affairs
o School of Mass Communications
o School of World Studies
School of Allied Health Professions
School of the Arts
School of Business
School of Dentistry
School of Education
School of Engineering
School of Medicine
School of Nursing
School of Pharmacy
School of Social Work
University College
VCU Graduate School
VCU Honors College
VCU Life Sciences
More information on Virginia Commonwealth University may be found at its Web site:
www.VCU.edu.
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PROCEDURE FOR CANDIDACY
Recruitment will continue until the position is filled. Nominations, expressions of interest, and
applications (including a cover letter and resume) should be submitted via email to
Confidential inquiries and questions about this position may be directed to the university’s
consultants on this search, Robin Mamlet, Amy Crutchfield or Mary Elizabeth Taylor through
the office of Kelly Torres at (630) 575-6118.
Virginia Commonwealth University is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer. Women,
minorities and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply.
The material presented in this position specification should be relied on for informational
purposes only. This material has been copied, compiled, or quoted in part from Virginia
Commonwealth University documents and personal interviews and is believed to be reliable.
Naturally, while every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this information, the
original source documents and factual situations govern.
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APPENDIX I – ORGANIZATION CHART
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APPENDIX II – ENROLLMENTS, FALL 2011
Fall headcount – 31,899
Annual FTE (estimated) – 28,775
Student level: Student type:
Undergraduate 23,754 Day 27,744
Graduate 6,454 Evening 2,504
First professional 1,691 Off-campus 1,651
Gender: Residency:
Male 42% In-state 85%
Female 57% Out-of-state 15%
Not reported 1%
Race/ethnicity: Status:
Am Indian/Alaskan <1% Full-time 78%
Asian 11% Part-time 22%
Black/Af-American 16%
Hawaiian/Pac Island <1%
Hispanic/Latino 5%
International 5%
Multi-racial 3%
Unknown 5%
White 55%
International students – 1,500
Incoming freshmen enrolled – 3,803
Transfers enrolled – 2,114
Honors students enrolled – 917
Number of living alumni:
Total 159,683
Virginia 102,633
Richmond metro 60,534
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APPENDIX III
Offices within Strategic Enrollment Management
Office of Admissions
Undergraduate
The Office of Undergraduate Admissions oversees the implementation of recruitment and
marketing strategies to attract new freshmen and transfers, as well as overseeing the processing
and review of applications for admission to undergraduate programs at VCU.
Processes nearly 21,500 undergraduate applications per year.
Actively recruits prospective students using advertising and promotional materials,
electronic communications, publications and direct mail, travel/college fairs and high
school visits, and on-and off-campus events.
Coordinates four large open houses which together bring more than 3,000 prospective
students to the university; hosts about 14 receptions, both on-campus and off-campus,
for prospective students, parents and guidance counselors, including two events
targeting academically talented students.
Operates a Welcome Center which conducts information sessions and tours Mondays
through Saturdays, except holiday weekends. Also, hosts approximately 1500 students
and their families (a total of 2500 people) during high school spring break weeks each
spring.
Coordinates the awarding of merit based scholarships to incoming freshmen.
Operate offices to attract transfer students at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College
and Northern Virginia Community College.
International
The International Admissions Office is primarily responsible for the recruitment and admission
of non-immigrant students (temporary visa holders). The staff review and evaluate all non-U.S.
credentials for admissibility to undergraduate, graduate and professional programs. Credential
evaluations are also provided to academic departments to assist them in making a
determination for appropriate VCU transfer credit.
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Specific figures for first time international freshmen were 429 applications for fall 2011, with 358
admitted and 79 enrolled.
Financial Aid
The Financial Aid Office at Virginia Commonwealth University seeks to assist students and
their families so that any qualified student who desires to pursue an education at VCU may do
so without the hindrance of financial barriers. The office supports enrollment and retention by
identifying resources and educating parents and students so that they may make sound
financial decisions.
For the current year, nearly $90 million will be awarded through VCU to its students ($49.5
million in federal and state funded scholarships and $40 million in university funding). The
university funding is a combination of need-based aid, scholarships, fellowships, tuition
waivers and graduate student wages (see Appendix IV).
For fiscal year 2010-11:
32,285 FAFSA applications were processed
23,565 students received some form of financial aid
$323,103,660 was distributed in financial aid awards to 20,547 students (does not
include outside scholarships or tuition
Records and Registration
University Records and Registration is responsible for registering students for classes and
recording their academic achievements so that the credit they earn at VCU becomes part of a
permanent record available for certifying their degrees, applying for employment and gaining
admittance to higher education programs.
For fiscal year 2010-11:
Processed over 45,000 transcript requests, assisting hundreds of students per day by e-
mail, and thousands by phone each week in various areas including academic records,
registration, graduation, veteran services, residency, athletic certification, course and
room scheduling.
Processed over 7,000 graduation applications.
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Certified over 900 students to receive veteran benefits.
Imaged thousands of documents for easy retrieval; processed thousands of course and
room changes; reviewed hundreds of residency appeals; and processed several hundred
enrollment verifications or forwarded them to the National Student Clearinghouse for
processing.
Verified the eligibility of 264 athletes to compete in their sport.
Student Accounting
The Student Accounting Department is responsible for the assessment, billing and collection of
tuition, housing and dining charges, and other university fees including the billing and
collection of third-party sponsors and the issuing of refunds to eligible students and parents.
For fiscal year 2010-11:
Assessed tuition, fees, housing, dining and other miscellaneous fees totaling
$398,460,979.
Processed third party contract transactions on 5,432 accounts totaling $22,959,567
according to billing authorizations.
Processed paid scholarships on 4,342 accounts totaling $12,867,474.
Processed refunds on 29,871 accounts totaling $115,530,295.
Processed 47,894 1098 T tax forms.
Processed waivers on 3,433 accounts totaling $6,198,802.
Processed 130 refund waiver appeals.
Student Services Center
The Student Services Center is designed to be a "one-stop shopping" experience for students to
have questions answered related to enrollment services. The Student Services Center provides
a convenient single point of contact for students to conduct business with the university,
consolidating enrollment related functions and services. Services related to financial aid,
registration, student accounting and cashiering are handled in the center. Students can
Virginia Commonwealth University Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management
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register/add/drop/withdraw classes, have verifications and deferments completed, change
addresses, change majors, request transcripts, check their student bill, garner financial aid
information and have documents reviewed at the Harris Hall Services Center.
Virginia Commonwealth University Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management
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APPENDIX IV
2011-12 University Budget Plan
Student Financial Assistance
Overview
Student Financial Assistance includes scholarships, grants and fellowships awarded to students
without requiring work or service, and work-related programs. Amounts for the Federal Work
Study Program and Supplemental Education Opportunity Grants are federal matching funds.
Related University portions are reported in the various budgets where the expenditures are
incurred. Tuition waivers and the undergraduate scholars program are also excluded.
Highlights
A summary of sources and uses is presented in Table A. Preliminary estimates assume sources
and uses of approximately $49.5 million in 2011-12 through the Student Financial Assistance
program budget.
Changes from the 2010-11 budget include:
The majority of this increase over the 2010-11 budget year is due the implementation of Year
Round Pell legislation that was not included in the original 2010-11 budget figure. Students
were eligible to receive up to two scheduled Pell awards (fall, spring, summer) in one year
versus one scheduled Pell award (fall, spring) if they were enrolled full time for the fall and
spring semester and then enrolled for summer semester. The University had a 16 percent
increase in the amount of Pell disbursed for summer 2010 due to the change in legislation
for the Pell Grant Program. The Pell Grant Program maximum award of $5,550 will not
change for the 2011-12 academic year.
The Academic Competiveness Grants (ACG) and National Science and Mathematics Access
to Retain Talent Grants (SMART) will no longer be funded by the federal government for
the 2011-12 academic school year.
Additional state general fund support of $1.5 million for need-based undergraduate
scholarship through the Virginia Student Financial Assistance Program, as recommended in
the Governor’s 2010-12 biennial budget and approved by the 2011 Session of the General
Assembly.
The decrease in the College Scholarship Assistance Program and Supplemental Education
Opportunity Grant for the 2011-12 academic year is due to federal budget cuts.
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In addition to the federal and state funded scholarships summarized on Table A, the University
will fund an additional $40.0 million in need-based aid, scholarships, fellowships, tuition
waivers and graduate student wages within other University programs (see Table B).
Table A 2010-11
2011-12
Change
Budget
Budget
Over
DESCRIPTION Plan Plan 2010-11
A. Federal*
1. Grants and Scholarships
a. Pell Grants $ 21,630
$
25,866
19.6%
b.
Academic Competitiveness Grants and
National 1,571
-
-100.0%
Science and Mathematics Access Grants
c. Supplemental Education Opportunity Grants 574
507
-11.7%
d. Total Grants and Scholarships $ 23,775
$
26,373
10.9%
2. Federal Work Study 1,067
1,056
-1.0%
3. Total Federal $ 24,842
$
27,429
10.4%
B. State
1. Virginia Student Financial Assistance Program
a. Scholarships $ 17,515
$
19,064
8.8%
b. Fellowships 2,635
2,635
0.0%
c.
Total Virginia Student Financial Assistance
Program $ 20,150
$
21,699
7.7%
2. College Scholarship Assistance Program 414
362
-12.6%
3. Total State $ 20,564
$
22,061
7.3%
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C. Total Sources and Uses $ 45,406
$49,490
9.0%
Note: The 2011-12 budget is based on the 2011-12 University Budget Plan.
*Figures are subject to change based on pending interpretation by the United States Department of Education on recent
Congressional legislation involving the federal budget.
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Table B: Summary of Other Sources of Student Financial Aid
(in thousands)
Change
Over
2010-11
2011-12
2010-11
E&G Programs*
Tuition waivers; scholarships and wages for
graduate
$32,585
$29,919
-8.2%
teaching assistants; merit-based aid; and need-
based aid
Facilities and Administrative Cost Recoveries
Funding for 50 graduate fellowships
1,598
1,666
4.3%
Auxiliary Enterprise Programs
Athletic scholarships
3,625
3,860
6.5%
University Funds
Scholarships and fellowships
3,886
3,688
-5.1%
School/departmental awards
1,370
876
-36.1%
Total $43,064
$40,009
-7.1%
Note: $12.05 million of need-based aid is included in E&G programs in 2010-11 and $8.05 million in 2011-12.
*The decrease in E&G funding for scholarships and fellowships reflects the $4.0 million in one-time student financial aid
assistance committed in FY 2011. A portion of these one-time funds will be carried forward and allocated in FY 2012
and FY 2013 to help ensure retention and graduation of continuing students with high achievement and financial need;
however, the funding for all three years is budgeted in FY 2011. VCU was provided an additional $1.5 million of state
general fund support in the 2011 Appropriation Act to support need-based undergraduate scholarships.
Virginia Commonwealth University Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management
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