Three Tests for a Website That Makes Every Prospective Student Want to Matriculate
What makes a website stand out as superior? There are some key qualities we all subconsciously look for when we scout a new site, but they are too often forgotten when it comes time to build or revise our own.
Getting Ready
An important issue has yet to take center stage in the debate simmering over the impact that credentialing will have on the relevancy of a college degree. There is a difference between completing certification that leads a student/employee to present credentials and verification that credentials actually demonstrate proficiency. What happens if our commitment to increasing access effectively leads to a “dumbing down” of learned outcomes? In the end, who's in charge
Finding Students Where They Live
I had lunch in Boston last week with Rob Hutter and Michael Staton, partners at Learn Capital, based near San Francisco. Both are extremely creative, committed and entrepreneurial thinkers about the intersection of ed tech and higher education. The conversation ranged widely as time flew by. What struck me most during it, however, was a theme that has repeated itself in a number of conversations I've participated in over the past few months.
How to Find Top Student Writers Without Relying on the SAT - Barry Lenson of Today's Campus Interviews Dr. Les Perelman
Les Perelman, Ph.D., recently retired after spending years teaching writing at MIT. He is still affiliated with that institution, where he is now researching ways to improve students’ writing skills.
And the Wait Begins
At this time of year, college applicants struggle to find the right institution for them. In the early stage of the process, the first decision is to determine whether or not they would feel most comfortable at a large institution or in a smaller setting. I always encourage students to visit those campuses that meet their criteria, filter out the noise, and imagine themselves in the setting. At the same time, however, I warn them that the accumulated wisdom acquired during these campus visits will likely change their own criteria for selection.
Is This the Moment to Open Your Admissions to More Community College Students?
As an admissions professional, you already know that there is a crisis brewing in community colleges. In just the last few weeks, stories like these have been making the news:
The Baby/Bathwater Problem - Are You Rejecting Great Students Who Don't Perform Well on the ACT and SAT?
“We get so many applications that we instantly eliminate applications from students whose GPAs and SAT scores fall below a certain level,” an admissions officer at a large public university told me recently. That may be an efficient way to whittle down the number of applicants that a school has to read and consider. But because there are likely to be some very smart students with SAT and ACT scores that fall below the cutoff point, it will probably cause your admissions team to routinely overlook some excellent students who simply do not perform well on standardized tests. In effect, you are throwing out the baby with the bathwater. And in a time when all colleges need all the smart students they can recruit, that can be a big mistake.
How to Recruit More Applicants at High School College Fairs
You can recruit more of the right applicants at high school college fairs
if you can overcome three distinct marketing challenges.
Admissions Disasters -- Prevention Lessons From Hurricane Sandy
Hurricane Sandy caused monumental losses of property and life in New Jersey and New York. It wrought havoc in many college admissions offices too. Students called off campus visits, admissions representatives cancelled trips to visit high schools, and admissions office inboxes clogged up with unanswered emails. And if you happened to drop a big mailing just before the hurricane hit, you probably incurred a sizeable loss.
Subtle Psychological Reasons Students Choose Colleges -- An Interview with Mona Molarsky
College admissions offices usually do a fine job of answering questions that prospective students ask. But how can they address questions that students are thinking about, but don’t ask?
How to Use QR Codes to Recruit More Students
Chances
are that you have noticed more and more of those square, barcode-like graphics appearing
on print ads, direct-mail pieces, posters, and lots of other places. You might also
have seen people (often, people who look like the students you are trying to
attract) using their smartphones to snap images of those codes.
Materials From Key Vendors That Make Your EDU Inquiries More Valuable Parts 1 and 2
How to Take Your Admissions Tours from Good to Great -- An Interview with Sarah Coen, by Barry Lenson
How can you make your admissions tours informative, engaging, and exceptional? Barry Lenson from Today’s Campus asked Sarah Coen, Vice-President, Consulting Services, at Noel-Levitz Higher Education Consultants.
New Report From Noel-Levitz Offers a Roadmap to Cutting-Edge Recruiting Practices, by Barry Lenson
Are you doing a good job of recruiting students in today’s digital world? If you’re not sure, I’d encourage you to review the 2012 E-Recruiting Practices Report from Noel-Levitz. You’ll find 24 pages of critical statistics on how students are using the Internet and digital media to make their college selections.
College Marketing -- Use Website Analytics to Get More Value From Your Admissions Page, by Barry Lenson
You have a great-looking admissions page on your college website. But do you know how hard is it working for you? How many people visited your page in the last month, for example? Where did they come from? How long did they stay? Did they send you an email from the page or click to download a special report? All college admissions officers can benefit from knowledge like that. And the good news is, that information can be yours if you invest a little time to understand the basics of website analytics.
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