Who are you and how did you find us? That's what admissions officers at colleges and universities all over the country are asking this year as "stealth applications" proliferate.
We have written before about the importance of considering your institution's market position relative to competitors when planning future price increases. When sticker price position is higher than "prestige" position (based on publicly available measures like test scores, U.S. News rank, and selectivity) institutions often see declining demand.
The national spotlight that shone on community colleges all year got a little brighter in the last quarter as new programs were announced and a White House Summit on Community Colleges was held.
It wasn't long ago that the longstanding relationship between town and gown in both Pittsburgh and Providence absorbed a shock, as city officials rolled out plans to tax local colleges and universities.
We delved into the topic of admissions office budgets with a plan to feature the diminishing resources available to college admissions offices and how that situation has impacted enrollment efforts. But as it turns out, admissions counselors are also concentrating on the limited resources of their institutions as a whole, and, concurrently, the financial challenges faced by prospective and current students and parents.
e2Campus' uTip service from Omnilert enables campus constituents and community residents to report suspicious activity or crime incidents by sending a short message service (SMS) text message. Made to work in conjunction with e2Campus, uTip can deliver anonymous tips sent from a standard cell phone to public safety or campus police's mobile phones and e-mail accounts.
Steep budget cuts. Skyrocketing health care costs. Layoffs. Furlough programs. As if that wasn't enough to deal with, colleges and universities around the country are facing a new challenge: how to reduce the frustration, dissatisfaction, or even anger felt by employees who haven't received a pay raise in several years.
After the murder of their daughter in her residence hall room in 1986, Howard (now deceased) and Connie Clery pushed for a federal law to strengthen campus crime awareness and personal safety. November 8 marked the 20th year for the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act.
Bill Tyson has been advising colleges and universities on getting media attention for more than 30 years through his firm Morrison & Tyson Communications. Now he's taken some of that knowledge and put it into Pitch Perfect: Communicating with Traditional and Social Media for Scholars, Researchers, and Academic Leaders (Stylus Publishing, 2010), a how-to guide for thoughtful communications planning that can increase the likelihood of national media coverage.
Renewed efforts will be needed in the days ahead to prepare the next generation of campus leaders. The average age of college and university presidents is about 60; a wave of retirements over the next five to 10 years is inevitable. The ranks of chief academic officers -- the traditional proving ground of candidates for presidencies -- appear to be less promising as a source for the next cohort of presidents because the average age of CAOs is 57.
It took one determined program director, two tries, three years, and much collective brainpower—but at Chatham University in Pittsburgh, today's interior architecture program students can earn a bachelor degree in three years rather than four.
It's hard to believe that it's been 10 years since brand marketing first swept higher education. During that time we have seen countless colleges and universities launch and develop brand strategies. And based on the number of RFPs in play, it appears that the interest in brand marketing will likely not diminish any time soon.
As we look forward to that next decade of brand marketing, I thought it might be useful to look back to see what lessons we have learned.
Summer is typically a time for relaxing—for most people. In higher education, no one rests for long. Running an institution is often just as time-consuming and intense as at any time of the year, and this summer seems to be more turbulent than ever. As many institutions continue to face the dual problems of booming enrollments and deeper cuts, they must also contend with myriad other issues brought on by new federal regulations in student aid, institutional funding, and health care.
When Adam Wheeler was charged with 20 criminal offenses this spring, the world was shocked as the allegations against him came to light.
