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It is an election year in America, and we know what that brings: robocalls, commercials ad nauseum, unwanted mail and lots of lawn signs with candidates’ names and slogans.
Election years exacerbate our division. Seemingly, every article, interview, and social media post attempts to delineate between groups based on age, geography, race, or socio-economic status. Neighbors, colleagues, family members, and certainly the political parties and leaders themselves will spend the next few months judging, chiding, overtly attacking, proactively avoiding, or silently cursing one another about their positions on issues such as military spending, border security, and climate change.
But almost everyone can agree on one issue: higher education. And the collective take is… college sucks right now. Everyone has an opinion – and it’s not necessarily positive.
We see and hear: “College costs too much.“”There is no longer value in a four-year degree.” “Students are being brainwashed.” “Higher education is too (insert expletive + adjective here).”
The truth is that those of us who work in higher education basically agree. It does suck right now. We’ve seen a continual erosion in public trust at the macro level, significant threats to tenure and academic freedom for faculty, unprecedented turnover and staff shortages, and countless examples of leadership failures and messy transitions either on our campus, at our alma mater, or at a prior or peer institutions.
These conversations and criticisms impact all of us, regardless of the type of institution where you work. And, as we head squarely into the demographic cliff – when the number of students graduating from high schools in the U.S. will suddenly drop – they must be addressed intentionally and transparently, not just by our administrations, but collectively.
Admission and enrollment are your school’s front porch, so it’s important to begin with those offices. After all, between in-person and virtual programming, electronic and direct mail campaigns, they interact with thousands – collectively millions – of students, families, voters, and other community members each year.
If higher education is going to re-establish itself as a public good, and if individual institutions are going to not only merely survive but also thrive in the future, there are three ways your campus must stop working in silos and create synergy around the work of admission and enrollment.
Statistics – In an election year, numbers matter. We see a lot of fancy infographics and hear percentages or dollar figures quoted regularly. It takes digging and collaboration to procure these stats. People from various departments must work together to obtain, organize, and publish this data. Again, because it matters. People want to know – and they have a right to as well.
On campuses in the years ahead, access to data and the transparent, digestible presentation of it will be critical. People want to easily find and understand starting salaries of graduates, mid-career successes of alumni from all majors and the university’s economic and community impact on your city or state. They want to know how much it is really going to cost to attend your institution. And they want to see that amount transparently presented in a financial aid letter that is simple and clear.
Questions to Ask as You Gather Data
- What is the current dynamic between your institutional research, central communications, enrollment management, alumni association, career services, and academic units? Do they meet regularly? How do they exchange information? What stats does one department have that the others need and could combine and build on that could be compelling?
- Where and how is statistical information about return on investment (ROI), economic impact, cost of a degree, value of a degree, career and grad school outcomes presented?
- Who among peers, aspirational schools, or local higher education partners is leading the way in providing valuable, accessible, and timely information to prospective students and families?
Stories – As we head toward the national political conventions this summer, campaign managers are scouring the country for Americans who will give voice and face to the party’s primary platforms and messages. Yes, numbers matter. But the power of living examples can be more compelling.
After all, nobody (ok, some odd few) frames their infographics in the way that they should. On campuses in the years ahead, sharing student, faculty, and alumni stories to demonstrate the transformational power of your college’s educational experience is essential. “Hearts and minds” will come around if there is a consistent and streamlined method and medium by which you elevate, share, and amplify real-life stories.
Questions to Ask
- How does my campus unit tell the success stories of our research, influence, reach, and impact?
- Do we intentionally and consistently share our stories with enrollment and admission in a medium that is easy to amplify, share, and tailor for prospective students and families?
- How do we proactively seek stories from our faculty, students, and alumni that address criticism we have received as a campus or an industry?
- Are we aware of and creatively combatting inaccuracies, stereotypes, or perceived weaknesses in a compelling, personalized, relatable fashion?
Support – Political campaigns require strategy and synergy. They rely on a huge fiscal investment, countless hours of staff and volunteer time, and ineffable energy and experience. Successful candidates on election night are incapable of naming all the people, initiatives, and events that it took to help them win.
On campuses in the years ahead, collective investment and support – fiscal and human – will be imperative to fulfill our institutional missions. If we continue to operate in silos, our university risks financial, enrollment, and perception fragility. Ultimately, while there is an organizational chart and a specific number of full-time employees in admission and financial aid, the responsibility for enrollment is one borne by the entire campus community.
Questions to Ask
- How is our admission office funded?
- Are we investing adequately and appropriately in marketing, programming, and staff for the results we need to be healthy in enrollment and market position?
- What resources can be shared between my unit/department and enrollment for recruitment or yield?
- How competitive are our financial aid offers relative to our peers or overlap colleges? What is necessary to move the needle to achieve our headcount or profile goals?
Politically, America is divided. But on college campuses, and in higher education writ large, we can no longer afford to separate and hibernate, operate in silos, or withhold compelling and critical information and resources. In the future, any college’s success, health, and impact, as well as our collective ability to serve as a public good and create an educated, innovative, and thriving citizenry will be directly correlated with the extent of our commitment to relentless collaboration and synergy. There is no panacea, but the path forward is paved with statistics, stories, and support.
