Filed Under: President's Post, Featured Articles

As we prepare for a new academic year, University leadership is already looking ahead to next year and will hit the road this fall for the annual True Blue Tour to recruit top students. Joining me on this year’s recruitment tour will be other top University administrators, deans from the University’s academic colleges, the dean of Walker Library, and counselors from the Financial Aid and Admissions offices.

With the addition of three out-of-state visits, the True Blue Tour is expanding this year from six to nine stops. In Tennessee, the tour will again visit Chattanooga, Johnson City, Knoxville, Nashville, Memphis, and Jackson. New out-of-state stops include Atlanta, Georgia; Huntsville, Alabama; and Bowling Green, Kentucky.

During the out-of-state visits, University leaders will emphasize MTSU’s Academic Common Market program. This tuition-savings program allows prospective students who live in participating states to qualify for in-state tuition rates for academic majors not offered in their states.

The True Blue Tour is an annual opportunity for prospective students and their parents to hear firsthand from MTSU representatives, and get important information from counselors about admissions and financial aid. This is our chance to explain the remarkable educational experience MTSU offers. Admissions counselors will also meet with high school counselors at eight of the tour stops and provide them with campus and program updates.

The Fall True Blue Tour Reception Sites: Sept. 29: Chattanooga Convention Center, 1 Carter Plaza, Chattanooga Sept. 30: Cobb Galleria Centre, 2 Galleria Pkwy SE, Atlanta Oct. 19: The Millennium Centre, 2001 Millennium Place, Johnson City Oct. 20: The Foundry on the Fair Site, 747 World’s Fair Park Drive, Knoxville Oct. 22: Renaissance Nashville Hotel, 611 Commerce St., Nashville Nov. 4: U.S. Space and Rocket Center, 1 Tranquility Base, Huntsville, Alabama Nov. 11: Holiday Inn University Plaza, 1021 Wilkinson Trace, Bowling Green, Kentucky Nov. 16: The Peabody Memphis, 149 Union Ave., Memphis Nov. 17: Jackson Country Club, 31 Jackson Country Club Drive, Jackson

Other Admissions Highlights: • Freshman students who meet all scholarship criteria, and who complete applications for MTSU admission by no later than Dec. 1 will receive guaranteed awards. Transfer students who meet all transfer scholarship criteria and who complete applications for fall admission no later than Feb. 15 will also receive guaranteed awards. • MTSU is reaching out to thousands of Tennessee high school seniors with ACT scores of 19 and higher by mailing a brochure inviting them to attend a True Blue Tour event and visit the Murfreesboro campus. • Fall Preview Days have been scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 26, and Saturday, Nov. 7, starting at 8:00 a.m. in the Student Union Building. • As part of the 2014-15 recruiting cycle, admissions staff drove enough miles to circle the earth three times and still have miles enough left to drive to the North Pole. They logged more than 87,000 miles! • Transfer recruiters traveled over 10,000 miles to make more than 150 visits to community college campuses, fairs, and events. • More than 9,000 visitors took part in campus tours between January and July of 2015. • To close the deal on the incoming fall 2015 class, admissions staff made more than 5,500 phone calls to students who had been admitted but had not yet signed up for their CUSTOMS orientation session. • During 2014–15, the Financial Aid Office and Bursar processed financial assistance in the amount of $241,293,298 to 21,901 unduplicated students. • Scholarship awards have been combined and edited to create a more streamlined and easy-to-understand menu of opportunities for our best and brightest students. • The Transfer Guaranteed Scholarship GPA requirement, previously a 3.5 GPA for students from non-TBR institutions, has been adjusted to a 3.0 in order to be consistent with the awards we make to transfer students from other TBR institutions.