“Efficiency is doing things right; effectiveness is doing the right things.” Peter Drucker
Most colleges and universities compete within many of the same geo-markets for a diverse pool of prospects. Within those markets, the institutions that have garnered much viability employed a variety of efforts such as effective branding tied to a potent communication strategy; a high-touch approach to engaging prospects and external influencers alike; and the ultimate competitive edge – the enhanced perception of quality of their degrees.
All these mitigating factors intersect to capitalize on achieving enrollment success through understanding the inherent values of prospects and determining the fit. Growth is becoming a foreign concept due to the instability within domestic regions nationally and the oversaturation of international markets.
As a result, institutions need to become more transactional. The transactional element has become a major factor due to the cost of attendance, known as the “sticker price.” For that reason, prospects are consumers who deliberate the “why,” which is the cost of attendance and the perceived quality of the degree to weigh the investment needed to attain the sought-after return on investment – an excellent career.
With that shift in mindset, institutions have to wrangle with balancing the projected rise in minority prospects with the overall decline in traditional high school graduates for the next decade and its ability to maintain viability. For example, Hispanics, who will need and demand more institutional support and intervention to complete, are the group of prospects projected to increase the most. Therefore, ensuring progression and completion of a degree for the impending rise of minority prospects with a high demand of support and need becomes even more costly to institutions to achieve student success.
So, how does an institution determine its enrollment strategy to effectively impact growth, meet net tuition revenue goals and increase graduation rate?
To properly grow and maintain enrollment in the future, enrollment managers must employ what I call the P2=Fit Factor: (Predictive)(Potential attrition root)=Fit Factor. This concept requires enrollment officers to become keenly predictive, acutely cognizant of potential attrition roots, and be able to accurately align prospects’ values, sensibilities and goals with the institution’s academic offerings, social environment and personal desires with the proper support: fit factor.
