Navigate Contract Season With This Step-by-Step Guide

Derek Nichols

For most schools, contract season is in full swing! To help you navigate this hectic time, here's a three-part guide to having a successful contract season.With the end of the year now upon us, many schools are likely deep into what is known as “contract season.” Since this is typically a very busy time for the Admissions staff, with a lot of moving parts and important elements to remember, we developed a three-part guide to help support those of you working in Admissions.



Ultimately, the goal of this contract season series is to highlight important elements as well as offer general tips and tricks to hopefully facilitate a smoother process. Let's break it down!



Part 1 – Setup and Preparation



The first part of our contract season series focuses on setup, data verification, and things to keep in mind. Typically, this phase kicks off in November through the end of the year and it's critical to avoiding headaches later on. Ensuring that not only is your data ready to go, but that your system is set up correctly can save tons of effort and time down the road.



This blog covers all the specific things to know, gotchas to watch out for, specific data points to verify, and even covers what to do with integrated contracts. Take a look at the full post here.



Part 2 – Communication



Phase two of contract season—kicking off in January of each year—relates specifically to effectively communicating with families and getting the information you need. This covers topics like making sure to set clear deadlines, setting expectations, and “gotchas” that may crop up.



Schools will also want information on additional data fields that should be prioritized for validation—like school programs, which have a higher likelihood of changing after initial setup. For more details and additional resources, have a look at this blog.



Part 3 – Getting Support



Look, we understand that you can’t plan for everything, with even the most prepared occasionally running into trouble. So, for phase three, we've examined the most common errors and issues that can come up during contract season and how to fix them.



Obviously, not everything can be solved just through a blog post, so if you're in need of additional help, that’s where our support team comes in.



While the team is always standing by to assist, there are some things you can prepare before calling that will not only be a massive help but could possibly solve your issue faster. This blog puts together a list of information to gather before calling in, such as when the issue started, who or what it is impacting, and more. Check out the final part right here.



We hope this information comes in handy for you this season. Best of luck!