As students and parents evaluate their education and school options, many institutions still rely on generic messages that fail to answer the questions that matter most.
Enrollment challenges have been part of higher education for years. Demographic shifts, affordability concerns, and increased competition all play a role.
But in many cases, enrollment struggles are not the result of students or families disengaging from the idea of college. Instead, they reflect a disconnect between how institutions communicate and how students and parents actually make decisions.
During my most recent experience navigating the college search process with my oldest child, one thing became clear very quickly. Nearly every campus visit and information session sounded the same.
Schools highlighted internships, study abroad opportunities and career outcomes—all important elements of the college experience. But after the third or fourth school visit, my son stopped listening. Not because he did not care about college, but because no one was addressing the questions he was asking.
He wanted to know whether he would fit in. Whether the campus felt alive on weekends or emptied as students returned to commuter homes. Whether faculty were accessible and genuinely engaged with undergraduates. Whether experiential learning extended beyond a handful of headline programs.
These were not abstract concerns. They were central to how he was attempting to imagine his daily academic and social life. And he was far from alone.
This is where enrollment management increasingly becomes a communications challenge.
A realistic and sustainable fit
Students today are evaluating identity and belonging in ways that are both emotional and academic. They want to know if they will feel comfortable and supported, and whether their academic interests will be nurtured.
Recent shifts in how institutions approach and communicate about diversity, equity and inclusion have not reduced the importance of belonging. If anything, they have made it more complex. Students and families still care deeply about campus culture and inclusion, but they are now looking for evidence through experience rather than slogans.
Parents approach the process differently, but their questions are no less revealing. Cost is almost always top of mind, yet institutional pricing information is often presented in ways that are difficult to interpret or compare.
Some institutions are beginning to address this challenge directly, such as Whitworth University’s recent unveiling of a more transparent tuition model designed to reduce confusion and build trust.
These efforts reflect an important reality: when families understand costs more clearly, they are better positioned to assess whether an institution is a realistic and sustainable fit for their student and their household.
On nearly every campus tour, at least one parent asked about the cost of laundry. In the context of rising tuition and fees, worrying about such a minor expense might seem trivial.
But the question was never really about laundry. It was about certainty. When costs feel opaque, families look for any concrete detail they can grasp.
When institutions hear these questions, they sometimes dismiss them as distractions. In reality, they are signals. They reveal what students and parents are struggling to understand and where institutional messaging is falling short.
In communication, listening comes first
Too often, enrollment communication is built from the inside out. Messaging reflects institutional priorities, internal structures or what campuses are most proud of.
Marketing materials are polished and consistent, but they are not always grounded in the lived questions of prospective students and their families. As a result, institutions often talk before they listen.
This is not a criticism of intent. Colleges and universities care deeply about students and invest significant resources in recruitment and engagement.
The challenge is alignment. Enrollment messaging should be shaped by student and parent questions, not institutional talking points, even when that requires uncomfortable internal conversations.
Listening must come first. Not through surveys alone, but through sustained attention to how families describe their concerns, how students talk about their fears and aspirations, and where confusion consistently arises.
When institutions understand what prospective students are trying to figure out, communication becomes clearer, more relevant, and more trustworthy.
Saying what matters
For senior leaders, this has practical implications. Enrollment should not be viewed as the responsibility of a single office.
Academic leaders, student affairs professionals, marketing teams, faculty, and enrollment managers all influence the story students hear. When those stories are misaligned, students notice. When they are coherent and responsive, students feel understood.
Improving enrollment outcomes does not require saying more. It requires saying what matters.
That means helping students see themselves learning and belonging on campus, explaining academic opportunities in ways that connect to interests rather than abstractions, and addressing concerns like cost and value with clarity rather than complexity.
Enrollment will always be shaped by forces beyond an institution’s control. But communication is one area where leadership choices matter.
When colleges and universities listen more carefully, they communicate more effectively. And when students and parents feel heard, they are far more likely to take the next step.
