What is it like working as a school Admissions Officer?

[Dreamerinme]

If you are in a school Admissions Officer role could you please tell me how you find the job, what you enjoy about it, the challenges, anything you don’t like etc? Also if you work in the state or private sector as I’m aware they usually have some different responsibilities.

I do currently work in a school part-time admin role but I’m looking to move into a full-time job and I have been looking at Admissions roles, but I’m curious to hear from someone who is actually doing the job.

I process admissions for the secondary school I work in. It is only part of my job, I am also the Head’s PA. Across the city I live and work in I think most of the admissions officers have dual roles, but admissions arrangements vary from place to place, so it may well be full time in other places. I would check the job description carefully for mention of other duties.i would also want to know who on SLT is the link person for admissions as you’ll probably work quite closely with them.

Things I like about the job include being able to call and email people to offer a space, especially when they’ve been on the waiting list for a while. Always a pleasure to do that. I like appeal hearings because it’s a change from the norm.

Read through the 2021 Admissions Code.

I've got to take a child to work, but I’ll be back. Admissions is interesting and can be quite varied, if I was moving on, I would be interested in something that allowed me to specialise in it.

My friend is one in an independent school.

They do everything from individual tours, open mornings/days, booking interviews online and in person, organising entrance exams, posting out hoodies for joiners, organising and running prep school events. They do all the paperwork, get references etc
Go to all the promo events, visit feeder schools.

Quite busy really.

Usually they are part of another role in most schools, such as Office Manager or Business Manager, or PA to headteacher. It’s a busy role, and you need to be incredibly organised.

I should have said, I’m in a state school. A friend of mine has worked in private school admissions and it does seem very different. I don’t do tours, I will arrange for the year team to meet and tour them, so that they can meet the people and some of the students they’ll spend most time with.

I think the trickiest thing is the unpredictable nature of mid year applications. We can have nothing for several weeks, then a flurry, often just before a holiday, as people are moving home. I’ve had about 12 applications in the last week, having had none all term.

Also, I currently have one year group that I just cannot fill. No rhyme or reason to it, all the other year groups are full with big waiting lists.

if you’re in state, the run up to autumn census can be mad, as schools need and want to be full, so you can be admitting students and losing students in the run up.

These are all pretty minor things, I like working in admissions and would recommend it.