They move in herds, led across Grounds by a well-dressed University Guide.
Prospective applicants come to the University each day to tour Grounds and to ask questions about the application process.
Both the Office of Admission and the Alumni Association offer special services for prospective first-year and transfer students. Each office, however, takes a slightly different approach to attracting applicants.
The Admission Liaison Program
One service available exclusively to children of alumni is the Admission Liaison Program. This program allows legacy applicants to have their high school transcript reviewed by an advisor in Alumni Hall and to receive advice about how to better their chances of being admitted.
"As an additional service for children of alumni, what we provide is a point of contact in an advisory context," Alumni Association President Tom Faulders said.
Alumni Services Director Cindy Garver said one of the benefits of the program is that it involves alumni parents in their children's college search.
"One of the things that we're able to do is create a relationship with the families," Garver said. "They want to know that there's someone at the University who knows who they are and that they have a child applying to the University."
Garver said the Office of Admission often does not have enough staff to provide personal University contacts to all prospective students. The Admission Liaison Program is a way of bridging the gap between the University and the applicant, Garver said. While the Office of Admission provides statistics and answers common questions at its office and on its Web site, Faulders said the Alumni Association provides similar information in a more personal context.
"A lot of what we talk about is pretty much the same thing the Admissions Office does, but ... we do provide one-on-one counseling and we take a look at their high school transcript," Faulders said.
Faulders noted liaisons can be a valuable resource for high school students who may not be sure what will be expected of them when they apply for admission to the University.
He added that often the program is most beneficial for high school freshmen and sophomores who still have time to build an impressive academic record.
"I think, particularly if they're early on in their high school career, it provides them a pretty good set of guidelines that they can follow to make sure that their application is as competitive as possible," Faulders said.
In addition, Faulders added that liaisons can also help students set realistic expectations about their chances of gaining admission to the University.
"What we want to do is make sure that they have the appropriate expectations," Faulders said. "We don't want them to think they will get in just because they're the son or daughter of ... alumni."
In addition to the liaison program, Faulders said the Alumni Association offers an information session every morning at 9 a.m. before the tour and information session conducted by the University. These information sessions include historical statistics on the acceptance rate for legacies and non-legacies as well as for in-state and out-of-state students, according to Garver.
Of the 1,400 legacy applicants who normally seek admission, about half are accepted. Historically, legacy students make up 10 to 13 percent of the entering class each year.
Is it fair?
Faulders said he does not believe the program provides an unfair advantage for legacy applicants. He said the Alumni Association funds the program and is independent of the Office of Admission.
"In reality, we don't do all that much more than the Admissions Office does," Faulders said, adding that the Alumni Association does not make recommendations to the Office of Admission.
Garver echoed that sentiment, noting that the Office of Admission seeks a diverse class of qualified students regardless of legacy or non-legacy status.
"I would say that we're just one piece of an admission effort that does seek to help some of those groups," Garver said. "We just offer services to get one more population."
The dean of the day
The Office of Admission also offers advisory services and information sessions, according to Dean of Admissions John Blackburn.
Every day, one of the deans in the Office of Admissions acts as a "dean of the day" to answer questions and talk to prospective students, Blackburn said. The dean of the day holds an hour-long group meeting that provides an overview of University life, followed by a question and answer session.
After the group meeting, students take part in a tour held by the University Guide Service. There are two meetings and two tours each day, both presided over by the dean of the day.
The dean of the day is also available to answer individual questions that students may not want to ask in a group setting, Blackburn said.
Assistant Dean of Admissions Valerie Gregory said the dean of the day is also available to review transcripts and talk to prospective students.
"Anybody can drop in and do that at any point in time," Gregory said. "It's a way to make sure that someone is always on duty to answer any questions about admissions."
Outreach and working together
Faulders said the Alumni Association has launched a new program in cooperation with the Office of Admission to meet prospective students' needs. The Virginia Alumni Admission Network recruits alumni to speak with prospective applicants and to increase the reach of the University across the country.
"The idea behind that is to have alumni who live in places outside of Charlottesville be resources for high school students who are thinking of applying to the University," Faulders said. "Our alumni are tremendously loyal and love the University. That can't help but come out in these discussions."
Alumni across the country meet with interested students, attend high school college nights and sometimes host social events and cookouts for admitted students, according to Gregory.
Garver said the program currently exists in five metropolitan areas: New York, Baltimore, Charlotte, Atlanta and Tidewater Virginia, The goal is to extend the program nationally.
Facebook your dean
Blackburn said the University will also begin stepping up recruitment via the Internet.
"We're getting into Facebook," Blackburn said. "Prospective students would see a little bit of the sense of humor of the U.Va. Cavaliers and a little more of the real life of the University."
He said he would like to upload videos showing the more social, light-hearted side of life at the University -- possibly even the Cav Man videos that appear before home football games.
"Not long ago it was seen as inappropriate [for an institution to be on Facebook], but that's where the people are," Blackburn said.
Some students say the most helpful things are the face-to-face encounters with members of the University community.
"What really helped me was going to see people," first-year College student Caitlin Carr said. "I stayed overnight two times and that really helped me make my decision"
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