815 North Broadway
Saratoga Springs,
New York, 12866
SKIDMORE PHONE
518-580-5000
Admission
Skidmore seeks students who demonstrate
strong academic ability, intellectual curiosity, open-mindedness,
and an energetic commitment to learning. Since students learn
not only from the faculty but from each other, Skidmore also
seeks diversity in its student body, looking for a wide geographical
distribution and a variety of talents, interests, and backgrounds.
Because the number of qualified students applying for admission
exceeds the limited size of each entering class, it is not possible
to admit all candidates who could be expected to succeed at
Skidmore. The Admissions Committee strives to admit those students
whose abilities, interests, character, and background give them
the greatest promise of profiting from and contributing to Skidmore
College.
The committee's primary emphasis is on the strength of a student's
academic record, as evidenced by quality of secondary school
courses, classroom achievement, and standardized test scores.
Personal qualities, accomplishments, interests, and capacity
for growth are also strongly considered, so careful attention
is paid to recommendations, the student's personal statement,
co-curricular activities, and, where applicable, the interview.
Application
Guidelines
The admissions staff welcomes communication with prospective
candidates, their parents, and school advisors. Correspondence
should be addressed to: Director of Admissions, Skidmore College,
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866-1632, or via e-mail at admissions@skidmore.edu.
Students apply for admission by completing the application and
returning it to the Admissions Office accompanied by the application
fee of $50. No application can be processed until this fee is
received. The fee is a service charge and is not refundable,
nor is it credited on any subsequent bill. In cases of economic
hardship and on the recommendation of the high school principal
or guidance counselor, the application fee may be waived. Requests
for a fee waiver should be sent to the director of admissions.
Skidmore College participates in the Common Application in use
by more than 200 colleges and universities in the United States.
Applicants may submit the Skidmore application obtained directly
from the Admissions Office or the Common Application available
at most secondary schools across the country. The Admissions
Committee does not give preference to one form over the other.
Required supplementary forms and instructions are included with
application materials sent to candidates from the Admissions
Office. Students filing the Common Application must submit a
recommendation from their guidance counselor, assessments from
two academic (English, math, science, foreign language, or social
science) teachers, and the Skidmore supplement to the Common
Application. All supplementary forms should be returned to the
Admissions Office by February 1.
Skidmore College encourages applications from economically and
academically disadvantaged students. Those who are eligible
New York State residents will be referred to the Higher Education
Opportunity Program (HEOP) for consideration. Those who are
ineligible for HEOP will be referred to the Academic Opportunity
Program (AOP) for consideration. To obtain information about
HEOP/AOP, contact:
Director, HEOP/AOP
Skidmore College
815 North Broadway
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866-1632
Early
Decision
Skidmore's Early Decision (ED) Plans are designed for qualified
high school seniors who have examined their college preferences
thoroughly and have decided that Skidmore College is their first
choice. Although candidates for Early Decision at Skidmore may
initiate applications to other colleges, it is understood that
they will immediately withdraw them and enroll at Skidmore if
accepted under an Early Decision Plan. ED applicants should
make a special effort to have their first set of senior grades
sent to the Admissions Office as soon as possible.
Skidmore offers both Round I and Round II Early Decision Plans.
Applications for the Round I Early Decision Plan may be submitted
any time up to December 1, with notification by January 1. The
Round II application deadline is January 15, with notification
by February 15.
Most Early Decision candidates who are not admitted under an
ED plan will be deferred for reconsideration without prejudice
during the "regular" admissions process. ED applicants who clearly
would be inadmissible in the spring are given a final negative
decision at the time of Early Decision.
Financial aid applicants who are applying for admission under
either Early Decision Plan must file the PROFILE form of the
College Scholarship Service by the appropriate Early Decision
application deadline, December 1 or January 15.
For further information on Early Decision, contact the Admissions
Office.
Requirements
for Admission
Candidates for admission are expected to complete a secondary
school program with a minimum of four academic subjects each
year, or the equivalent of sixteen college-preparatory credits.
Qualified juniors may be considered for early admission. For
further information, see Early Admission.
Preparation for Skidmore should include four years of English,
three or more years of mathematics, three or more years of social
science, two or more years of laboratory science, and three
or more years of a foreign language.
The Admissions Committee, recognizing that school curricula
vary, is always willing to consider the application of an able
student whose preparation, while differing from the plan suggested,
nevertheless gives evidence of continuity in the study of fundamental
subjects and readiness for college.
Applications should be submitted as early as possible in the
senior year but no later than January 15. High school transcripts
and teacher recommendations should also be on file in the Admissions
Office by January 15.
An informational brochure and instruction sheet on financial
aid are included with the application packet. For details in
this catalog, see Financial Aid.
While prospective studio art majors are not required to submit
a portfolio, they are welcome to send ten to twenty 35mm slides
of their work to the Admissions Office no later than January
15. Slides should be encased in 9-by-11-inch plastic slide sheets
and clearly labeled with name, medium, size, date, and "top"
of work. Applicants who wish their slides to be returned should
include a stamped, self-addressed envelope.
Although a decision on each application is given by the Admissions
Committee in late March, all offers of admission are contingent
upon the satisfactory completion of the senior year at an academic
and personal level comparable to that on which the acceptance
was based. The committee reserves the right to rescind an offer
of admission if subsequent evidence is presented that a candidate
has misrepresented himself or herself, has purposely violated
application procedures, or has failed to complete his or her
senior year in a satisfactory manner.
Campus
Visits and Admission Interviews
Skidmore College welcomes visits from prospective students and
families. Although an interview is not required, a personal
interview allows the Admissions Committee to learn more about
the candidate as an individual and enables the candidate to
learn more about Skidmore. For those reasons, high school seniors
are urged to visit campus for an interview between May 1 and
February 1. Interviews are typically preceded or followed by
a campus tour with a student guide. Interviews are offered weekdays
from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m and on Saturday mornings from September
through January. For students who prefer group information sessions,
they are offered throughout the spring, summer, and fall. Appointments
should be made well in advance by contacting the Admissions
Office at 800-867-6007 or 518-580-5570. If a campus visit is
impossible, the Admissions Office can help candidates arrange
interviews with alumni admissions representatives in their home
areas. Candidates can also visit Skidmore on the Web at hudson2.skidmore.edu.
While students and parents are welcome to visit academic departments
when Skidmore is in session, they are asked to remember that
the faculty have primary commitments to teaching, advising,
and scholarship. Accordingly, if a meeting with a faculty member
in a particular department is desired, prospective candidates
are requested to make arrangements through the Admissions Office
well in advance of their intended visits.
Information
for Students with Disabilities
Applicants who identify themselves as having a disability during
the admissions process are considered for admission on the same
competitive basis as other applicants. The Office of the Dean
of Studies is glad to review available services with and provide
advice to students with disabilities. Although no formal program
exists at the college, Skidmore does employ a disabilities specialist
who acts as a resource for students in need of modifications
and accommodations on campus and in the classroom. If a student
anticipates requesting services from the disabilities specialist,
he/she should be prepared to provide the following information
at the time of enrollment:
1. Documentation and diagnosis of a specific handicapping condition
that is not older than three years. The evaluation should be
completed by a specialist in the area of the handicapping condition
(e.g., educational psychologist, certified school psychologist,
psychiatrist).
2. Specific recommendations from the professional conducting
the evaluation, which list reasonable accommodations and modifications
that would benefit the student on a college campus.
All enrolled students receive an application for accommodation
for students with disabilities. Students with a documented disability
should complete the application and return it with the required
documentation to the disabilities specialist in the Dean of
Studies Office. Using the information from the application and
the diagnostic materials provided, the disabilities specialist
will assist the student in developing an individualized system
of support that is specific to the student's needs. After their
arrival at Skidmore, students will then meet with the disabilities
specialist.
Among the most commonly requested accommodations are extended
time on tests, alternate testing locations, permission to use
tape recorders and laptop computers in class, peer tutors, and
assistance with skills such as time management and organization.
Skidmore also provides an excellent range of academic support
services for the general student population, services that may
also be of help to students with disabilities. These academic
supports include a writing center, a math and computer science
laboratory, a foreign language laboratory, peer tutoring for
most courses offered by the college, and a counseling center.
Applicants should bear in mind that all students must fulfill
foreign language, expository writing, mathe-matics, laboratory
science, and other requirements of the Skidmore curriculum.
Since the curriculum represents Skidmore's definition of a sound
liberal arts education, requirements are never waived. However,
under a few exceptional circumstances, the college may consider
substituting a course or courses for a curriculum requirement.
In such instances, students must submit diagnostic documentation
that confirms the presence of a specific disability that would
prohibit them from achieving the goals of this requirement.
For more information, contact the disabilities specialist in
the Office of the Dean of Studies: 518-580-5720.
Standardized
Testing
While the Admissions Committee considers a student's classroom
performance in a rigorous academic program to be the best indicator
of potential for success at Skidmore, standardized test scores
may also provide useful measures of academic promise. Skidmore
requires either the College Board Scholastic Assessment Test
(SAT I) or the ACT examination of the American Testing Service,
and strongly recommends (but does not require) three SAT II:
Subject Tests, including Writing. A foreign language subject
test is recommended for placement purposes. If a student does
not take a foreign language subject test, he or she will be
asked to take a similar placement examination during first-year
student orientation. Students for whom English is not their
first language should submit the results of the Test of English
as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) in addition to either the SAT
I or ACT. All testing should be completed by December of the
applicant's final year of high school.
SAT I, ACT, SAT II: Subject Tests, and TOEFL registration forms
are available in high school guidance offices. The College Entrance
Examination Board and the American College Testing Service will
also send free of charge to any school or applicant a copy of
its bulletin, which contains all information on test fees and
examination centers. The CEEB booklet may be obtained by writing
to the College Board, ATP, Box 592, Princeton, NJ 08541. The
ACT booklet is available at P.O. Box 414, Iowa City, IA 52243.
For credit granted by Skidmore for Advanced Placement Tests,
see Credit
by Examination.
The Admissions Office requests that the results of all standardized
testing be sent directly to Skidmore College from the appropriate
testing service.
Midyear
Admission
Skidmore welcomes applications on a space available basis for
midyear admission from students who will be beginning their
college careers in the spring semester and from transfer students
who have at least one full semester of transferable credit from
another college. Students interested in midyear admission should
submit their applications by November 15.
Early
Admission
The Admissions Committee will consider applications for fall
admission from candidates who wish to enter college prior to
the normal completion of a secondary school program of study,
i.e., at the end of the junior year of high school. In such
a case, the committee gives special consideration to the reasons
for the candidate's desiring such admission, the recommendation
of secondary school guidance officials, and the candidate's
maturity and potential for dealing with both the academic and
social demands of college life. An interview with a member of
the admissions staff is strongly recommended for all candidates
seeking admission under the Early Admission Plan.
