By: Denae Herrman
4/7/2005

College admissions representatives have a difficult but rewarding job, said Amber Harshbarger, a Friends University representative.

Harshbarger has been an admissions representative for the University since April 2004, one month before she graduated from college.  She quickly realized that the job required hard work, but the chance to work with students and make a difference in their lives was worth it for her.  She liked the idea of students being more than just a number.

"I love the contact with students," she said.

Although Harshbarger loves her job, she said that it is filled with pressures.  She handles the affairs of several incoming students each month. Also, her office deals with people on a daily basis; sometimes that means working with people who aren't willing to work with her.  If someone doesn't return her calls, she is still responsible for reaching that person.  There is an incredible amount of stress, and the job can be consuming, she said.

Admissions representatives are not paid on an hourly basis. Instead, they receive a flat salary.  This means they have to stay until the job is finished, even at the expense of long hours.  Harshbarger said she works an average of 45 hours per week, although once she put in 80 hours.      

"There's always more to do," she said.

Daily tasks of admissions representatives include:

--Involvement with visitation programs, including trips to schools and tour days at the University, such as Friday with Friends.
       
--Contacting students by phone and mail.
       
--Getting students to come on campus and, for those who are  interested, to auditions for music and drama or to tryouts for sports.
       
--Helping students with the financial aid process and informing them of scholarships.
   
For some representatives, the requirements can be overwhelming, Harshbarger said.

"It's a very goal-oriented position," she said.

Each month, the office targets a number of students who have applied or registered to the University.  Harshbarger declined to give a specific number.  She emphasized that each student is a person to her and her co-workers and not just a number.  
Because there are always goals to be met, Harshbarger said there are times when she has left work at the end of the day without feeling finished, but she appreciates her
co-workers for giving her the support she needs to make her job possible. 

Even though Harshbarger has only been a representative for a year, she is no stranger to the Friends campus.  She attended the University for four years and graduated with a degree in music and a minor in religion.

Harshbarger had been looking for a college in the area because she had family here.  She found Friends through talking with her cousin who had graduated from the University.  Harshbarger decided to make the move to Kansas from Texas, where she had lived with her parents. 

However, Harshbarger's college career goes beyond her time at Friends.  She began college at the University of North Texas when she was 16.  Harshbarger participated in a special program there called the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science.  The program allowed Harshbarger to obtain credit for high school and college while living on campus and experiencing college life.  She graduated from high school with 60 hours of college credit.

While this might seem like a lot of work, Harshbarger said it was a great experience.

"I would definitely do it again," she said.

Harshbarger decided to get a degree in music, simply because she loved it.  Her specialty is the French horn, which she has played in numerous productions, including a solo in the Friends Alumni Choir Concert.
She is also committed to her family, especially her husband of almost three years, Kary. They met during their freshman year at Friends and were married shortly after their sophomore year.  Kary is a fifth year senior at Friends, and their focus now is to get his schooling finished. They are both active in their church, where Amber participates in music.

Harshbarger is considering graduate school at Wichita State University or the University of North Texas, where she would get her master's degree in horn performance. She will take lessons with a horn principal with the Wichita Symphony Orchestra this May or June. Her dream is to become a stay-at-home mom, but she said that is a few years away.

For now, Harshbarger believes her purpose is to be faithful in all the little aspects of life, such as being true to her word and having integrity. She said that character is revealed in these little things.  Living faithfully, she said, would be a "life lived well."