New England College has signed up with Niche Direct Admissions, a program under which students who create a profile on Niche and meet NEC’s academic criteria receive an immediate offer of admission and scholarship consideration, with no other application required.
This makes the Henniker college one of more than 100, including UNH, who have paid Niche to be part of the company program. The move reflects national efforts to make college applications easier as competition for new students grows tougher due to declining numbers of graduating high-schoolers and the federal government’s attitude towards international students who would otherwise have come to the U.S. for college.
Colleges and universities are bracing for a “demographic cliff” caused by Americans having fewer babies, a trend that began around 2007 and has not changed much since.
“Partnering with Niche allows us to remove barriers and open doors for students who might not have otherwise considered NEC,” said Brad Poznanski, Vice President for Enrollment at New England College.
Niche.com has long been a platform for ranking and getting information on colleges. It claims that more than 50 million high schoolers create accounts on the platform to see the data.
The company’s direct admission program launched this year.