International admissions offices, now more than ever, need to hone their strategic recruitment plans to meet their student (and parent) audiences where they spend their time. This pre-conference workshop session at OACAC helps outline those priorities for print, web, & social communications.
2. Where are we
going?
International communication strategic plan overview
Print/e-mail communications flow - what still works?
International-student friendly websites: Is Yours?
Building international student relationships & community
via social media
Counselor networking tips for OACAC & beyond
Q&A
4. How influential
are these
experiences in
the application
decision?
1-5 scale:
5 = most influential
FromCollegeWeekLive/Noel-Levitz2014
InternationalE-ExpectationsReport.
5. Student interest
in using these
resources to
communicate
with college
representatives
1-5 scale:
5 = most influential
FromCollegeWeekLive/Noel-Levitz2014
InternationalE-ExpectationsReport.
6. What do
students look
for on a college
website?
FromCollegeWeekLive/Noel-Levitz2014
InternationalE-ExpectationsReport.
7. Websites
Planning and Implementation:
Exclusive vs. Inclusive
Separate International Admission page
International-specific information included into the general page
Visibility – Is your page hidden within several other admission pages?
Accessibility
Easiness of navigation
Clear way in and out – being stuck in a page can create negative feelings towards your
institution
Hierarchy and bureaucracy within the university
Who is responsible for publishing the page, how quickly can that happen?
Marketing and branding guidelines
Website goals
Targeted population
Inquiries, applicants, admitted students
Region of the world, English proficiency
Will you need information in other languages?
Q&A pages
Consistency –appearance, message, institution culture
8. Print & e-mail
communications
Considerations for Publications/Communications:
One piece or more? Define functions for each piece.
Who to get involved with the development?
Who is your audience?
What questions need to be answered within each
piece?
What other information needs to be in each piece?
Who to mail/email to and when?
Do we mail at all?
If you use any domestic pieces in your mail flow, are
they international friendly?
9. Print & e-mail
communications
Considerations for Publications/Communications:
Use clear concise, most simplistic terms for text (P/W)
Distinguish private, public, religious, gender specific, etc.(P/W)
Provide Map with entire U.S., your location and distance to well known cities
in kilometers(P/W)
List accreditations and accolades that lend credibility i.e. ABET, AACSB,
etc.(P/W)
Climate in Fahrenheit and Celsius(P/W)
Faculty Stats (P)
Research (P)
Majors and degrees offered (P)
Enrollment: grad vs. undergrad, domestic and int’l, male vs. female(P)
Int’l stats: where your students come from(P/W)
Int’l organizations and support services(P/W)
10. Print & e-mail
communications
Designing your Communication Plan: Pre-App
My initial inquiry letter has links to:
Video, on-line brochures, fact sheets in languages
Academics: majors/minors/degrees
Campus Life
Achievements
Cost and financial aid
Application
I send this within a week of making contact with the student.
I have edited versions for int’ls, permanent residents and U.S
citizens living overseas and transfers.
11. Print & e-mail
communications
Designing your Communication Plan:
Post-App/Pre-Admit
Do your domestic follow-up letters make sense to bring
incomplete apps to completion?
How strongly do you push an app to complete that you may
ultimately deny?
Templates for incomplete int’l, incomplete transfers, incomplete
US citizens living overseas.
Marketing info in follow-up letters
12. Print & e-mail
communications
Designing your Communication Plan: Admit
Do you scan/email/mail admit packet?
Personal congrats from you?
Email to guidance counselor informing of admission?
What do you communicate once admitted?
Outcomes/accomplishments/internships/study abroad/campus
activities
Welcome email from current student?
How often do you send “how to pay deposit”?
Again, do domestic admit communications work for int’ls?
13. Print & e-mail
communications
Designing your Communication Plan: Confirmed
Again, do domestic confirmed communications work for int’ls?
“I’m so excited you’ll be part of the X Univ. community!!”
Do you send tracking info when an I-20 is sent?
Is I-20 sent after admission or deposit?
“X student is coming!!!” email to counselor
14. Branding and
Identity
Challenge or Opportunity?
Branding – visual or tangible image
Guidelines set by Marketing or similar office on campus
Ex. University Communication Standards andWeb Editorial Style
Guide from Furman -
http://www2.furman.edu/sites/marketing/Pages/Home.aspx
Identity – perception of your institution by individuals in a specific
place
No name is better than a bad name
Careful approach in building your institution reputation
Rush approach based on immediate results can have long-lasting
effects
“Guilty by Association” phenomenon
15. New Markets
Outreach to New Markets
Market Sizing Exercise
Institutional historical data analysis
IIEOpen Doors data
http://www.iie.org/en/Research-and-Publications/Open-Doors/Data
EducationUSA
UNESCO Institute for Statisctics
http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/Pages/international-student-flow-
viz.aspx
Appraoch
Armchair vs. suitcase recruitment
Individual vs. group travel
Institution image and perception by association
Considerations
Take existing data into consideration according to your own institution.
Short vs. long-term goals
Are you prepared and able to commit the necessary resources
Keep in mind how many new markets can be developed at any given
time.
24. Global
EducationUSA
Social Media
Survey:
What the data
shows
Social media is key to student communications
Most have 2-3 accounts – 91% have Facebook
Students look primarily online for US college info
Over 70% use social media to find info about institutions
Greater majority interact directly with institutional social media
They want:
To see aid available
To ask questions/get answers
While PCs & laptops are still dominant way students access
social media, mobile phones (increasingly smart phones) are
used by nearly 50%
25. Social Media:
Take-Aways
Know Where Your Students “Live” Online
Focus Your Attention Accordingly
Provide Opportunities to Interact
Engage in Conversations
Start Thinking Mobile
Time / Target Messages
26. Social Media
articles worth
a read
Higher Education & the Social Media Bubble part 1
Higher Education & the Social Media Bubble part 2
IsYour Recruitment ConnectingAwareness & Commitment
Bring on the GoldenAge of Mobile (infographic)
Social, Digital & Mobile in China 2014
Digital Behavior of GlobalTeens
Admitted Student Communities
Social Media in 2014
What Lessons Can Colleges Learn from Big Brands on Social Media
27. Top 10
Counselor
NetworkingTips
fromJudi, Fred,
& Marty
1. Think about attending…OACAC, NACAC, EducationUSA, CIS Forum,CIS
Tri-Association Conference, CIS conference in association withASSA
2. Carry list of admitted and deposited lists to these events. For at least the
last year, if not two or three years. Photos of their students??
3. Consider counselor fly-ins; free hotel if they visit
4. Create quarterly counselor newsletter
5. Participate in the social aspects of OACAC whenever you can
6. Don’t try to “sell” your institution to counselors ; instead, focus on building
a trusting relationship with them. You will have a chance to showcase your
institution during the college fair and in the future
7. Have a “plan of attack” based on region and type of school, but don’t be
afraid of deviating from it. Counselors know other counselors and they
also move around quite a bit.
8. Connect on social media with FB groups & counselors/advisers on
LinkedIn/FB: OACAC,College Admissions Counselors, GlobeTrotters
United, College Admissions Recruiter Network
9. Have enough business cards, always!
10. Be ruthless in dodgeball tournaments with fellow higher ed colleagues, but
go easy on the counselors
28. Questions for
the Panel
Judi Marino, InternationalAdmissions Specialist, Flagler
University, jmarino@flagler.edu
Fred Silva,Assistant Director of Admissions, Furman University,
fred.silva@furman.edu
Marty Bennett, Manager of International Partnerships,
CollegeWeekLive, mbennett@platformq.com
29. Thank you!
Complete Power Point &
CollegeWeekLive/Noel-Levitz 2014
International E-Expectations Report
Will be emailed to those who leave
a business card !
Hinweis der Redaktion
Poll Title: Which of the following social media channels is most important to your international admissions efforts?
http://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/Yyg1fYLy85MLVVG
Poll Title: Do you involve current international students in your social media efforts?
http://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/NeOS4ZThpXNGbWt
Poll Title: What is your greatest challenge with using social media in international student recruitment?
http://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/H6PW8lgClhjhy4M