The good folks of Noel-Levitz have just released their E-Expectations 2010 Report presenting the results of their latest survey of 1,005 college-bound high school students.
This 12-page report is full of really great findings that should help you fine tune your student recruitment strategy. So, make sure you download the PDF file who is made available to the public for free.
Here are a few things of interest (there are more, so make sure you read the report):
- While many (including yours truly) have been announcing the death of print marketing, this report seems to indicate that paper isn’t dead for high school students: 89% indicate that the information received in the mail is one of the ways they learn about schools.
- Email is more alive than ever and used by 79% to learn more about schools. 91% say they will give their email address (70% will even give their primary email address) to colleges to receive more relevant information.
- 75% look for the school’s website and 65% enroll search engines to help them.
- However, only 35% learn about schools via TV or Radio advertising. Time to say bye, bye to the costly traditional media advertising campaigns?
- Facebook is used by 76% of high school students and 80% of them welcome both official and unofficial information about colleges on social media websites.
- Twitter – used by only 8% of students – is definitely not the tool to reach the masses. I think it should only be used as a “customer relations” tool by admissions offices (news and institutional Twitter accounts have different goals and target audiences).
Karine,
Thanks for posting this – great info! Do you know of a similar study that focuses on college-bound adult learners, career changers, and non-traditional students?
Thanks,
Marty
Marty, you should have a look at Noel-Levitz website or maybe Education Dynamics as they do a lot of research related to the “adult learners” market.
It’s not surprising that TV or Radio advertising rated so low because TiVo, DVR, i-Pods etc. have taken the place of traditional media. More students are choosing how they want to be marketed to (i.e. Facebook) as opposed to more ‘interruption-based’ marketing (i.e. commercials) that our generation was used to when we were growing up.
From a bullet on page 1 of the PDF:
“76 percent of students supported schools creating their own private social networks for prospective students”
I find that number intriguing. I wonder if the timing of the survey coincided with high-profile coverage of Facebook privacy concerns.
The farther down the funnel a student is, or the more committed they are, the more likely they might be to actively use a private social network. But if the goal is to use a social network group to get prospective students to build connections with each other and with the institution, i.e. to use it as a conversion and/or yield tool, a private social network seems like a high bar in terms of encouraging and sustaining use. Using the tool of the day (for the past few years that has meant Facebook) seems much more efficient. From my personal experience, Facebook is the most effective tool right now.
It is the old set up a shop at the mall or build a gleaming store across town analogy. Location matters for foot traffic, including prospective student social networks.
Robin, I believe it was about the same percentage last year. Maybe Facebook is too big, and already engaged students want the small community feeling.
I enjoy the E-Expecations survey each year and find the information valuable.
I often wonder, though, what sort of disconnect there is between answering a question on a survey and what kids will really do in practice.
To me the private social network answer reveals that disconnect, though it depends on where the prospect is at in the admissions funnel (level of commitment) and what goal the college has in using a social network in the Admissions process (conversion to apps? yielding undecideds to deposit? preventing summer melt?).
The survey works as a great basis of discussion re: recruiting and marketing, but isn’t a clear cut answer in terms of making decisions, imo.