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Fourth Quarter - December 2025
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Congratulations on a job well done! As we approach the last days of 2025, I want to thank all of you for another amazing year in Admissions. Working in college admissions can be one of the most joyful and rewarding jobs in the field of education. We help people connect promise with opportunity on a daily basis, and no one does this better than our team at George Mason University.
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We have great momentum heading into 2026. We just released over 16,000 admission decisions for fall 2026 this afternoon, which represents the largest decision release for early action that we have had to date. This would not have been possible without heroic efforts from several members of our staff. Due to an unexpected challenge with receiving transcripts this fall, we had to make some last-minute adjustments to get decisions out on time. I want to thank everyone who did what was necessary to pull this off. Kudos to the Document Center and all of our application readers for turning lemons into lemonade. There are thousands of students who will realize their dream of being admitted to George Mason University this week because of your hard work. I look forward to welcoming the first round of admitted students for fall 2026 at the Welcome to Mason Nation virtual event on Wednesday evening.
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This is a hectic time of year as we enter our final push for spring 2026 enrollment. I want to thank everyone who will be working over Winter Break to process spring applications. Our applications and deposits are currently down for the spring term, so your contributions will be extremely important to help us make up some ground. I also want to send a shout out to everyone who has been putting in long hours on the Patriot Connect project. We appreciate all of the great work that you have been doing on our behalf. You are building a better foundation for our institution one brick at a time.
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The spring semester will be extremely busy for us in all phases of recruitment, so please take full advantage of your time off to relax and recharge for yield season. Thanks for all that you do to keep our office moving in the right direction. It is a please to serve with you in this very important work, and I hope you enjoy your well-deserved break. I wish you and your families the best for the holiday season.
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WELCOME TO OUR TEAM!
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Callia Barwick
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Honors College Admissions Counselor
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Team: Outreach & Partnerships
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Started: December 10, 2025
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We also want to welcome to the team GOLDIE, our new AI Recruiter,
that will be helping with student outreach!
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Special Features in this Edition
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OneTeam SPOTLIGHT on Lavanya Iruvanti and Conor Krouse
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UNIT UPDATES
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HR & Finance
Hi All, we want to highlight two important policies:
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Inclement Weather and Telework Policy. If we have inclement weather and the university closes, all benefited employees must telework regardless of telework agreements on file. If there is a business need, wage and student wage employee are allowed to work remotely as well. More details on the policy are available at https://hr.gmu.edu/inclement-weather-and-telework-policy-2207/
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We hope you have a fun and safe break!
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Operations
It has been a packed year, and we are grateful for everyone’s hard work!
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Document Center
The Document Center had an exceptionally busy fall, our highest-volume season of the year. The rush surrounding the November 1 Early Decision deadline kept us moving straight into winter break. Alongside our regular processing, we partnered closely with the Tech and Relationship Management teams to ensure any freshman applications affected by technical issues were completed as quickly as possible.
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We also welcomed three new student workers, with a fourth joining in January. Their contributions have already made an immediate impact.
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Transfer Credit Evaluation Team
By the end of November, the Transfer Credit Evaluation team completed nearly 18,000 evaluations for 2025—an increase of 1,500 over last year. This milestone is especially noteworthy given the manual work required without Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) or Optical Character Recognition (OCR) support.
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To improve clarity and consistency, the team is transitioning course equivalents from being tied to a student’s matriculation term to reflecting the actual content of the transfer course when it was taken. Only a small number of exceptions will remain due to Transfer VA and SCHEV requirements.
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New Tool Launch: Transfer Credit Evaluation Card in Patriot Web
We are excited to announce the launch of the new Transfer Credit Evaluation card in Patriot Web. This feature gives staff and advisors access to transfer credit information for any student with a G#—even before intent to enroll is submitted. Thank you to Nian Ma in ITS and everyone involved in testing for bringing this important tool to life.
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INTO Admissions
The INTO Admissions team remains steady as we work through the transition following the end of the INTO Mason partnership. While the final pathway term will be fall 2026, we look forward to the launch of Mason’s in-house Academic English program in spring 2027.
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Applications for spring 2026 and fall 2026 continue to arrive, with roughly 270 applications reviewed this quarter. Though slightly lower than last year, we have seen a strong uptick in recent weeks.
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Transfer Processing
The Transfer team is processing spring 2026 applications at record speed, helping students receive quicker decisions and giving all of us a smoother transition into the holidays. Fall 2026 applications opened on December 1, and reviews are already underway, setting us up for a successful cycle.
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Domicile Review
The Domicile team has also achieved record turnaround times, completing same-day reviews for freshman decision files. Outstanding work.
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Patriot Connect Highlight
Thank you to all Patriot Connect Change Champions and Peer Trainers for your leadership and energy during this transition. Your support is invaluable.
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Congratulations!
A heartfelt thank you to Shashi Gara for his invaluable support in Admissions during his time as a graduate student at Mason. While we are sad to see him go, we are thrilled to congratulate him on his graduation and his new role at Amazon in Seattle. We wish him all the best in this exciting next chapter.
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Wishing you all a wonderful holiday season and even better 2026!
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Transfer Recruitment
It's hard to believe it's the end of the year! 2025 went quickly, and we accomplished a lot as a team. We are proud of the large classes of transfer and ADVANCE students that enrolled this year, and are working diligently, even in December, to recruit more students for the Spring 2026 term. Unfortunately, our admission funnel for transfer is down across the board for Spring. We anticipate we will close the gap slightly on transfer applications, and we will pick up more admits and deposits. Our deposit deadline has come and gone, but we still continue to take more deposits. We know that when we come back from Winter Break, our Office of Transfer Services will be busy with students looking to enroll before the start of term. We stand ready to assist them!
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Please note the Northern Virginia Community College ADVANCE declaration has closed for the Spring 2026 term. The declaration will re-open on March 1st for the Fall 2026 term. Our regular transfer application for the Fall 2026 term opened on December 1st, and our numbers look good (it's way early, but we will take being up in applications where we can!). Our Spring 2026 transfer application remains open, as does our MVP ADVANCE declaration.
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Work aside, in this holiday season, please take time to be with those you love whatever that looks like. Appreciate the little moments. Create the memories. Have fun. Take pictures. Enjoy the time away from work and see you in 2026!
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Graduate Admissions
The Office of Graduate Admissions is hard at work processing last-minute spring applications and the first wave of fall applications; both are keeping us busy! We’re excited to see these numbers grow in the coming weeks.
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As I reminded the team, please take time to rest and recharge over the winter break because big changes are coming in the new year! There will be a lot to learn, and we’ll need patience and collaboration as we build the new Patriot Connect system together.
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Wishing you all a wonderful break, and we look forward to working with you even more in the year ahead!
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Freshman Recruitment
'Tis the season for updates and shout outs!
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As we count down the hours to winter break, the Relationship Management team is set to send out over 16,000 admission decisions for the fall 2026 freshmen class. The team ran around the country from August to November completing over 750 individual recruitment activities (high school visits, college fairs, etc.), then from November 2nd to December 10th, this group read over 18,000 applications. The team has earned a much-needed break, but they have done everything we could to set ourselves up for yield season when we return in January.
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When things get going in January we will: Attend nine yield National College Fairs (NACACs) in different cities throughout the spring; host at least six out-of-state counselor breakfasts; host 14 separate yield events in our key markets (in-state and out-of-state); attend countless admitted student events on campus; host a virtual series of yield events; and maybe even read some more applications along the way. I lay this all out because it takes a village to get to where we are going and Ops, International, Events, Military, and Tech teams all have a major role in the success we hope to have with this freshman class. So, for all that we have done already, and for all that we plan to do, I just want to thank everyone for making teamwork make this dream work. 2026 will be a fun challenge to take on together!
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International
I am so proud of how hard everyone is working to get the Early Action decisions done! It has been a tough year for international applicants, but hopefully the numbers will work out okay in the end.
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We had a successful fall recruitment season! We were able to visit, Argentina, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Paraguay, Ecuador, Vietnam, India, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Oman, Jordan, Egypt, Bahrain, Azerbaijan, and Kazakhstan. It was great to see so many students all over the world, and we have already seen many of them applying for Fall 2026.
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We are also working with our incoming Spring 2026 students. We are actively issuing I-20s for both our undergraduate and graduate admitted students. Eriko, Addy, Ben, and Austin will be working a few days over break to catch any emergency I-20 requests to make sure the students can get their visas and arrive to the US on time for the start of classes. OIPS has added some travel suggestions for international students in January to their website https://oips.gmu.edu/travel-and-re-entry/. Changes can be announced at any time and so we are recommending that students check the OIPS website regularly.
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Keep sending us your international transcript questions! I have heard from many of you and enjoy working with everyone to help get those GPAs calculated appropriately. Please remember that if an applicant attended an international high school and there are international grades on the US high school transcript, we will still need to see the original international transcript to compare the grade evaluation. Please reach out to the high school Counselor or student for this information. It is not necessary if the international high school is accredited by a Mason accepted accreditation.
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I hope everyone has a wonderful Holiday Season!
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Military Services
As Fall 2025 comes to a close, I wanted to share some information for you to carry into your talking points and recruitment strategies.
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George Mason University continues to demonstrate its commitment to military-connected students and families, who now represent 15% of the enrolled student body. Mason’s strategic location near Washington, D.C., major military installations, and the Northern Virginia technology corridor provides unparalleled opportunities for academic and professional growth. Through strong partnerships with federal agencies, defense contractors, and innovative tech firms, Mason ensures that military-affiliated students have access to resources and networks that support their success. The Office of Military Services plays a pivotal role in this effort, offering tailored programs and guidance to help students thrive both inside and outside the classroom. Beyond academics, Mason provides comprehensive support for veterans and their families through initiatives that address legal, mental health, and cultural needs. For over two decades, the M-VETS Legal Clinic has delivered free legal assistance to service members, veterans, and their dependents, while the GMU Center for Community Health offers free mental health care to veterans. Additionally, the Veterans and the Arts Initiative has engaged more than 16,000 military-connected individuals since 2014, fostering community through creative workshops, exhibitions, and performances. Our office effort and programming across Mason really show Mason's dedication to serving our military and veteran community.
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Wishing you a joyful holiday season! We look forward to making 2026 even better!
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What are your job duties in the office?
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Review applicants' residency status to determine eligibility for in-state tuition, communicate with applicants regarding their domicile status, request information or provide clarification, collaborate with the Registrar's office and other teams to ensure timely, accurate domicile processing.
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What do you like most about working at Mason?
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Being able to help students and being surrounded by such a vibrant, academic environment is extremely fulfilling!
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What 3 words would you use to describe Mason?
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Diverse. Innovative. Dynamic.
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Psychologist/Guidance Counselor at an Elementary School in India
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Do you have any Pets?
No pets, but maybe someday soon.
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What are your hobbies or
spare time activities?
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I enjoy movies, traveling, gardening and just relaxing with my family.
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Share a FUN FACT about you.
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I had a side job reading sports news on
All India Radio—despite not being an
avid sports fan myself.
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Favorite Food and Beverage
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Any vegetarian food and water.
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Anywhere with vegetarian options.
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Favorite TV Show, Movie, or Book
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Loki, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings
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Favorite Quote or Movie Line
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“I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”
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Favorite Band or Musician
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What are your job duties in the office?
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Recruit/attend prospective student fairs for the Central Virginia/Richmond region. Review undergraduate applications for prospective freshman. Present informational sessions to tour groups. Conduct case management, and walk-in admissions counseling for prospective freshman and transfer students. Attend admissions events for on-campus outreach both during the school year, and summer sessions.
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What do you like most about working at Mason?
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The atmosphere, as well as the team is so friendly, and helpful. In my first year at George Mason University, I have learned so much about not only the admissions process but have earned about the overall mission and vision of George Mason University.
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What 3 word would you use to describe Mason?
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Driven. Helpful. Opportunistic.
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Tell us more about you!
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What are your hobbies or
spare time activities?
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I enjoy hiking and anything outdoors,
video games, reading historical fiction novels, writing, and traveling.
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Share a FUN FACT about you.
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I was a member of a competitive
acapella group in college.
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Favorite Food and Beverage
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Favorite TV Show, Movie, or Book
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Favorite Quote or Movie Line
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Comparison is the thief of joy.
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Favorite Band or Musician
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