Record numbers of students attended the Ontario Universities'' Fair this past weekend, held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. And York’s booth was a destination for many of the students, parents and friends who took in the event.
"The turnout was amazing!" said Joanna Pesaro, York director of admissions. "We figure the vast majority came to the York booth, given the number of handbooks that we gave away – 40,000. It was definitely heavier traffic for York this year. We’re still awaiting final tallies, but it would appear that approximately 65,000 came to see the fair over the three days, compared to 47,000 last year.
Don Murdoch, admissions manager of national recruitment and special events, pointed out that last year York gave away about 29,000 Admissions handbooks "so with over 40,000 give away this year, our demand increased approximately 38 per cent.... The dramatic increase in attendance was due in large part to the ''double cohort''. Fair organizers knew there would be an increased demand, but I don''t think anyone really could have anticipated the sheer size and depth of the crowds.
"I think it''s important to recognize that about 150 York students, staff and faculty gave up some or all of their weekend to represent the University so well," added Murdoch.
According to the fair’s Web site, it began in 1997 as a one-stop-shopping event to help high school students in the Toronto area to gather information about universities in the province. Students can talk to representatives from all across Ontario about programs, campus life etc. to enable them make a decision about which university to choose.
