Recruiting Strategies That Colleges Use To Attract New Students

High school students are taught early on that the college admissions process is highly competitive. Applicants attempt to achieve the highest grades and accolades possible in order to edge out the competition. What is not always made clear during this time is that colleges are just as eager to attract new students to their programs. Schools all over the country go to great lengths to develop student recruitment strategies that showcase the academic, athletic and campus programs available at a particular university. There are many recruiting strategies that colleges are using to reach the next generation of graduates.

Social Media

College recruiting strategies are designed to attract the most promising students directly from high school. This has resulted in extensive use of social media for student recruitment. Universities all around the world have established a social media presence, where interested people are able to examine the online personality of the institution within a familiar and comfortable environment. Some colleges also send out regular updates so that potential applicants are able to remain engaged with the sports, academic achievements and changes that are taking place on campus before ever being accepted.

Online College Fairs

The Internet has allowed universities to extend the reach of student recruitment efforts. A popular recruiting strategy now involves online virtual college fairs that are accessible to anyone with a computer from the comfort of home. These cost-efficient fairs make everything from basic information and brochures to promotional videos available to interested students. There is also an option that will connect a person at home with a live recruiter who is able to answer questions about life at the school, athletics and academic programs. Online fairs have increased the popularity of schools that have not traditionally had national student recruitment programs.

Scholarships

One of the most effective recruiting strategies that most colleges and universities use after finding talented students is to offer scholarships to help with the cost of books, tuition or campus housing. These are normally reliant on maintaining good grades and participating in activities until graduation from high school. There are also some schools that offer scholarships based on specialized testing or essay questions.

Off-Campus Events

A very traditional, but still widely used recruiting strategy, is to hold off-campus events. There are many different types of events, including fun informal gatherings, serious presentations in a hotel or question-and-answer sessions in a local high school. Recruiters for universities that have a specific focus such as fine arts or engineering sometimes give personal recruitment presentations at magnet schools that are directed at classrooms full of students who have already started down a particular career path.

Author writes about a variety of topics. If you would like to learn more about recruiting strategies.