Missouri ACT Identified Keys to Enrollment Success

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Identified Keys to Enrollment Success: A Review of Best Practices in Attracting and Retaining

Students

Presented by Stephanie GeyerVice President for Web Strategy and Interactive Marketing Services

March 27, 2013

Nearly 40 years; 60+ consultants; 500 years experience; 2,700 campuses served

Noel-Levitz Partnership Funnel

Then

• Name purchase—The College Board, ACT, NRCCUA, CBSS

• High school visits• College fairs• Group and individual campus visits—

open house events• Mass mailings of printed pieces• Off-campus interviews• Telemarketing/Counseling• Qualifying and grading of inquiries• High school counselor liaison• Tele-qualifying

The ever-changing world of enrollment management

Life was simpler then.

“”

Now

• Use of statistical multi-variant analysis in: (predictive modeling)− Prospecting (student search)− Inquiry pool qualification− Applicant/Admit stage− Student persistence/retention

• Recruitment – data-based management− Tracking effectiveness of all

strategies and tactics


Market segmentation by:• Populations• Academic programs• Academic ability• Talent areas• Geographic areas• Potential new sources of

revenue− Online− Continuing education


Landing pages are easily duplicated and customized to meet specific market segment needs and interests

• Advent of Web sites as primary source of information, including micro-sites

• Growing number of social media outlets− Facebook− Twitter− LinkedIn− Google+− YouTube− Vine− Instagram


How many students cite the following resources as influential?

• More students using mobile devices not just to explore your Web site but to complete forms and engage with your faculty and staff

• Skype, Google Hangouts and Webinars provide new “remote” face-to-face connections.


How many students are interested in using the following resources?

• Greater orientation to ongoing market research− Demographic trends− Student satisfaction− Brand/Image research− Price sensitivity− Program demand− Lost inquiries and

applicants− Delivery format

preferences− Perception− Non-matriculant studies− Competitor analysis


Measuring Advertising Performance

37%


37% 42%


37% 42% 21%


Testing CustomerConversion Behaviors


?

• A more cohesive, integrated approach to enrollment management – removing silos (admissions, marketing, recruiting, retention, financial aid, orientation)


• Introduction of net price calculator to help students and families qualify affordability and to help influence college interest and choice

• Greater orientation to longer-term strategic enrollment planning – “No room for error”


• Greater attention to continuity, stability, and professional development in the enrollment office

• Aggressive efforts to mobilize the campus community in recruitment and retention

• Recognition of importance and value of comprehensive goal-driven retention plans and programs


Institutions are facing never-ending

expectations

• Most colleges are as interested in“shaping” the student body as meeting FTE or headcount goals (academically, geographically, by major, diversity)

• Enrollment goals are not well understood campuswide

• Resources available to accomplish goals are limited

• Staff turnover in enrollment services is prevalent

• Adequate research and data to make informed decisions is lacking

The enrollment expectation bar continues to be raised each year

• Is there a consensus on enrollment goals?

• Are enrollment goals and challenges well-understood campuswide?

• Are resources available to accomplish goals?

• Are staff professionally trained and stable to respond to the increased challenges?

• Is institutional data and research available to make informed enrollment decisions?

Organizing for the “new normal”

1. Not doing the right things (fundamentals)

2. Not doing things right (implementation)3. Not having the necessary resources4. Product is inadequate5. Product is adequate—not positioned

properly or negative image6. Environmental factors—demographics,

economy, price sensitivity, etc.

Six reasons for not maximizing enrollment potential

Demographic and economic change

Institutions need to analyze the demographic and economic changes projected to take place in their marketplace.• High school grads• Non-traditional students• Ethnicity• Program demand• Price sensitivity• Competition

Key question

What are the enrollment management challenges and opportunities at your institution?

Increasing enrollment?

Under-enrolled programs?

Retention?

Diversity?

Staff development?

Geographical representation?

Attracting better-qualified students?

Improving operations efficiency/effectiveness?

Program demand?

Awareness, image, and perception?

Reconsidering college plans

47 percent of students reported that the economic crisis has caused them to reconsider their college plans

• Avoiding private school options—26%• Commuting instead of living on

campus—25%• Working while going to school—25%• Attending a community or technical

college—19%• Vo-tech instead of traditional—4%• Part-time attendance instead of

full-time—1%• Not attending college at all—1%

• Students will likely apply to more schools as they “shop” for the best deal.

• Because of the increase in applications, plan on declines in completion rates and yield.

• Campuses may need to prepare (and budget) for decreases in fall 2014 enrollments

• Students may seek lower cost options like community colleges and regional public institutions

• Campuses will need to step up marketing efforts to sell value

• Families will seek more aid like never before

• More adults seeking college courses and/or degrees

What assumptions should we make

• Operating in an increasingly competitive environment

• Located in a highly competitive state and area– many other college options

• Far more aggressive marketing and recruiting by both public and private institutions – two year and four year

• More sophisticated market place…plans, systems, and advanced tools being developed

• The addition in recent years of multiple “for profit” institutions as well as online and distance education options

Among the challenges facing colleges and universities

• Fewer students with the ability to pay for the ever rising costs of higher education

• Strong scholarship programs to “woo” students are even more prevalent

• Students and parents are far more results-oriented in their selection of a college–want to know outcomes and benefits

• Changing demographic

Among the challenges facing colleges and universities

Projected change in numbers of new high school graduates 2011-12 to 2021-22

© Copyright 2011, The Chronicle of Higher Education.Reprinted with permission. This material may not be posted,

published, or distributed without permission from The Chronicle.

Number of colleges and universities, 2012-13

© Copyright 2012, The Chronicle of Higher Education.Reprinted with permission. This material may not be posted,

published, or distributed without permission from The Chronicle.

† In-state institutions receiving the largest number of in-state freshmen.†† Competition factor equals college continuation rate less number of students migrating and the three in-state institutions receiving the largest number of in-state freshmen.

Missouri: The competition factor

64,456 high school seniors / 2013-14*

154 institutions of higher education**

61.4% college continuation rate (39,576)***(ranks 31st among states)

17.3% leave the state to go to college (6,830)****(ranks 27th among

Three Largest Institutions†***** Number of In-state Freshmen*****

University of Missouri – Columbia 4,063

Saint Louis Community College 3,023

Metropolitan Community College – Kansas City 2,445

Sources: *Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education, Knocking at the College Door, 2012**The Chronicle of Higher Education, 2013***Postsecondary Education Opportunity, Chance for College by Age 19 by State 1986-2010, 2013****Postsecondary Education Opportunity, Interstate Migration of College Freshmen 1986-2010, 2012*****National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS Fall Enrollment Survey (2012)

23,215 students ÷ 151 institutions = 154 students per institution††

• Are they defined and understood by the board, staff, faculty, alumni, and friends?

• Are they categorized by short-term (1-3 years)?

• Are they categorized by long-term(3-5 years)?

• Is there a plan of action to address each challenge?

• Is there an understanding and appreciation of the net revenue implications of any demographic and, therefore, enrollment changes?

What are your enrollment challenges?

Larger/Smaller institutions

Public/Private institutions

Four-year/Two-year institutions

Higher-cost/Lower-cost institutions

Know with whom you compete in order to position your institution

A non-matriculant survey on an annual basis is one of the most important things you can do.

• Students and parents know it is a “buyer’s market”– college shopping is pervasive

• The search for the right college or university is starting earlier – junior year of high school, or even sophomore year (market research shows for some institutions that 70% are in a database by the end of the sophomore year)

• Students expect to be courted – and not just high ability, but those who are average academically

• Dealing with “snowplow parents” (formerly “helicopters”)

Dealing with a more sophisticated and demanding consumer

• How satisfied are your students with the quality of their educational experience?

• What is your graduation rate?• What are my chances of getting a

degree, diploma, or certificate in a timely way?• How qualified and student centered

are your faculty?• Does your financial aid keep pace

with price increases?• How supportive is the learning

environment?

What are the tough questions you are receiving?Have you thought through your responses as a team?

Top 10 most effective practices – 2011

student recruitment practices and strategiesRank Four-year Public Four-year Private Two-year Public

1. Campus visit days for high school students Hosting open house events Admissions decisions “on the spot” in high schools or during campus visits/open houses

2. Hosting open house events Campus visit days for high school students High school visits by admissions representatives to primary markets

3. Using enrolled students in recruitment/marketing

Encouraging prospective students to apply on the admissions Web site

Campus visit days for high school students

4. Encouraging prospective students to apply on the admissions Web site

Using enrolled students in recruitment/marketing

Using enrolled students in recruitment/marketing

5. Community college articulation agreements Using a statistical, analytical approach to determine financial awards

Campus visit days designed for school counselors

6. Weekend visits for high school students Routine contacts by admissions office professional staff to assess student reactions to financial aid awards

Offering loans directly from the college or university

7. Encouraging prospective students to schedule campus visits on the admissions Web site

Weekend visits for high school students Hosting open house events

8. Using a statistical, analytical approach to determine financial awards

Routine contacts by financial aid office professional staff to assess student reactions to financial aid awards

Academic programs within high schools for students to earn college credits to your institution

9. Campus visit days designed for school counselors

Telecounseling Encouraging prospective students to apply on the admissions Web site

10. Admissions decisions “on the spot” in high schools or during campus visits/open houses

High school visits by admissions representatives to primary markets

College-sponsored trips to campus for prospective students

Top 10 most effective practices – 2011 student retention practices and strategies

Rank Four-year Public Four-year Private Two-year Public

1. Honors programs for academically advanced students

Programs designed specifically for first-year students

Institutionwide emphasis on the teaching of undergraduates and undergraduate learning

2. Academic support program or services Giving students practical work experiences in their intended major to apply their learning

Academic support program or services

3. Programs designed specifically for first-year students

Academic support program or services Programs designed specifically for first-year students

4. Programs designed specifically for conditionally admitted students

Institutionwide emphasis on the teaching of undergraduates and undergraduate learning

Providing each continuing student a written academic plan/roadmap of remaining courses needed

5. Programs designed specifically for at-risk students

Mandatory advising, one-on-one and face-to-face, between faculty and students

Title III or Title V funding

6. Using a CRM (custom relationship management system) software application to help track and manage student retention

Early-alert intervention system Using Web-based course engagement tools such as Blackboard, WebCT, etc.

7. Giving students practical work experiences in their intended major to apply their learning

Programs designed specifically for at-risk students

Honors programs for academically advanced students

8. Mandatory advising, one-on-one and face-to-face, between faculty and students

Honors programs for academically advanced students

Academic advising program

9. Title III or Title V funding Collaboration between academic affairs and student affairs to minimize attrition

Mandatory advising, one-on-one and face-to-face, between faculty and students

10. Learning communities Using on-campus student employment as a strategy to engage/retain students

Using student life evaluations to make changes to student life programs and services

Top-ranked practices in student retention across sectors

• Academic support programs and services

• Programs targeted to first-year students

• Mandatory advising, one-on-one and face-to-face

• Honors programs for advanced students

Best Practices in Retention

© 2011 Noel-Levitz, Inc.2011 Retention Practices at Four-Year and Two-Year Institutions

Making retention a campuswide responsibility – faculty and staff are the key

The evolution of enrollment management

• Admissions stage (“order taking”)

• Recruiting stage (proactively seeking students)

• Marketing stage (increase promotion)

• Enrollment management (an integrated and comprehensive process)

• Strategic enrollment and revenue planning

A student body by design rather than chance

A simple definition of enrollment management

Institutionwide

Systematic

Comprehensive

Research-driven

Enrollment management systems

•Market research•Marketing•Advertising•Direct mail•Recruitment•Admissions•Financial aid

•Billing•Orientation•Registration•Advising•Academic support services•Atmospherics•Residence life•Student life•Instruction•Placement•Alumni relations

By understanding and addressing:

• The marketplace in which the college operates

• The institutional position within that marketplace

• Student demand for programs and services and being responsive to those needs and interests

• Developing a cohesive and well-coordinated approach to enrollment management within the framework of a comprehensive annual and strategic enrollment plan

How can your institution meet immediate and long-term enrollment objectives?

• Your position and perception in the marketplace• Pricing issues and the price sensitivity of students

and families• Appropriate and effective student financial aid

policies and procedures• The real cost of student populations; putting a price

tag on the wish list:− Multicultural students− Selected majors− Geographical diversity in-district and

out-of-district− Student retention issues and

opportunities

Strategic thinking and planning is key

• Developing longer-term plans• Identifying and eliminating barriers to

enrollment• Knowing the profile of the persister• Cultivating current students• Reminding current students and parents that

they made a good decision• Identifying and responding to the

marketplace• Conducting meaningful market research• Mobilizing the campus to assist with

recruitment and retention

Colleges and universities are finding ways to become more strategic, efficient, and effective

For additional information on these and other topics, go to noellevitz.com

Missouri ACT Identified Keys to Enrollment Success

Education

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