For decades, higher education has treated enrollment like an arms race. More applications. More admits. More students in the door.
But what happens after they arrive?
In this episode of The VineDown, Emily Smith sits down with Costas Solomou, Vice President for Enrollment Management at SUNY Geneseo, for a candid, deeply human conversation about why growth-at-all-costs is quietly breaking student success (and what enrollment leaders need to do instead).
Costas argues for right-sizing enrollment: aligning incoming class size with institutional resources, student support systems, and the actual lived experience of students. In a moment when high school graduates are declining, international student mobility is shifting, and staff burnout is real, he makes the case that enrolling fewer students can lead to better outcomes.
This conversation goes far beyond admissions tactics.
We talk about:
Costas also shares how his own journey as a first-generation immigrant shapes his philosophy and why enrollment, at its best, is about dignity, belonging, and long-term success, not short-term wins.
If you work in enrollment, student success, institutional leadership, or higher ed strategym this episode will challenge your assumptions and give you a clearer framework for what actually matters next.
.svg)
.png)
