AJ Jones
Vice-President of Enrollment Management
Loyola University New Orleans
What drew you to the world of college admission counseling?
Like some, perhaps many, my foray was through volunteering as a tour guide for the Office of Admissions at my undergraduate alma mater. Experiencing the attraction that would spark in the eyes of our guests allowed me to relive what was special about my school over and over again, which was extremely rewarding.
That led to accepting a recruiting position from the same office. I got to evoke a similar feeling in the hearts and minds of prospective students across the country and I was hooked. The capstone was observing how many of those who ultimately enrolled through my efforts would, themselves, experience the campus and its student life in life-changing ways — just as I had. The freedom and ability to transform that higher education offers still drives my work today.
What is your favorite part of the job?
Strategy. Shortly after becoming an administrator, it became clear that to be successful I would need to develop the means to navigate my teams through increasingly difficult waters as the higher education landscape, respective to admission and enrollment, became more fraught each year. Improving the tactics we employed was limited as a solution because it focused on the process alone. Such an approach would be fine if the process worked correctly, however, in many cases it did not. What was necessary was to learn how to lift my head out of the daily doldrums to look toward the horizon to find a better way to work entirely. In other words, we needed strategic thinking. Once I learned this, I embraced strategic principles and sought to incorporate them within the operations of each institution I’ve been fortunate to serve.
How has NACAC played a role in your career?
Associated with NACAC for many years, I have found it to be a bastion of ideas born out of the expertise of its body of members. Through the constant convenings NACAC affords, colleagues are able to bring both challenges and solutions to the forefront to debate and discuss, making us all smarter at what we seek to do. The ultimate beneficiaries, of course, are the students and their families who depend on our knowledge. The opportunity to network with peers — along with tool-sharing and the pure fun experienced at the conferences — are hallmarks of this important organization that I hope will never change.
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing our profession today?
I believe the business case for why someone would want to build a lasting career within the admissions counseling space needs refreshing. Unfortunately, many talented professionals choose to leave our field to pursue other interests constantly, not always for financial reasons or similar advantages. Instead, they are simply disillusioned with the experience that admissions counseling, in any form, has provided them. Gone are the days when staff would want to develop the skills necessary to rise up the ranks, bolstered solely by seeing lives changed. If there is no course correction and the attitude toward our profession does not have dramatic change, then the voices necessary to guide college decisions will be more quickly replaced by bots than what is already anticipated. And if this occurs, if the true gatekeepers disappear, then what will ultimately be authentic about the college experience? Will it become completely robotic too? God forbid.
When you aren’t working, what do you like to do?
My free time is spread across reading interesting books; watching equally interesting documentaries; and, in small part, dabbling in family genealogy. My world has become much quieter since my wife and I officially became empty nesters. Needless to say, it is taking some adjustment.
What five words would you use to describe yourself?
Conscientious
Curious
Compelling (when I choose to be)
Complete
Clear
Published March 23, 2026