ENROLLMENT IS SHRINKING IN

AMERICAN COLLEGES
• Number of High School Graduates are increasing reaching 82.3% in
2016.

• Research shows that when they graduate they are most likely to go straight
into the workplace.

• There by creating a shift in demographics from the typical college students

18-24 to a new shift in Adult learners 25-35
 WHAT SHOULD INSTITUTION DO TO
PREPARE FOR THIS DECLINE

• Get competitive about pricing

• Create hybrid programs
• Cut down on programs with low enrollment rates
• Diversify Students Option .
• Improve on the institutions products and services. Focus on what sets the
institutions apart.
 WHAT MUST AN INSTITUTIONS DO
• 1: The Decline of Traditional Age Prospects for Universities & College
• a. Projections – Higher education experts suggests that:
i. Those who graduate from good high schools and have parents able to pay
a significant share or all of their tuition and other college expenses -- are
shrinking in number. And the situation is more severe in the Northeast and
Midwest, where populations are shrinking, than in other parts of the
country.
ii. Financial Consideration
iii. Many students who come from single parent homes with low-income are
not motivated to go to college because they think it to be too expensive.
THIS LED COLLEGES TO ADJUST THEIR STRATEGIES:

• Offered new programs to attract adult students.

• Online education.

• More outreach to parts of the country where the population is growing.

Attracting full-pay international students. Some combination of those and
other ideas will work for most institutions, enrollment professionals have
said.
• The Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education has issued a
series of reports that suggest a drop in the number of American high school
graduates, as well as changes in the makeup of that population. These
reports have led many colleges to vow to increase recruitment of the first-
generation, minority students (especially Latinos) whose share of the
population is growing, and of adult students.

• DOE indicate that 28.5% of occupations now requires a Bachelor degree

and 48.5% of degree holders’ work in industries that do not require a degree.
 IMPENDING DEMOGRAPHIC SHIFT
IN COLLEGE ENROLLMENT
a. More adults are enrolling into colleges and university between the ages of
25 – 35
b. More professionals are enrolling in bachelors and master’s degree
programs

c. STEM is programs are becoming the direction of most technically focused

institution – in both the proprietary and traditional centers of higher
education.
 HISTORY OF DISTANCE EDUCATION
1800S
• Distance education is not a new concept now. In the late 1800s, at the
University of Chicago, the first major correspondence program in the United
States was established in which the teacher and learner were at different
locations.

• The most effective form of instruction in those days was to bring students
together in one place and one time to learn from one of the masters. That form
of traditional educational remains the dominant model of learning today.
• In 1728, in the Boston Gazette, where "Caleb Philipps" offered to teach
shorthand to students anywhere in the country by exchanging letters.
• Letter writing was the most widely accessible technology in the early days
of distance education.
• The process was very simple in this process. Students received instruction
via mail and responded with assignments or questions to the instructor. The
process was very slow and could take several weeks for a response from the
instructor.
• In 1858, the University of London became the first college to offer distance
learning degrees.[1]
RADIO, TELEVISION, AND DEVELOPMENT
• The introduction of the RADIO allowed universities to broadcast
information and courses to students. According to this infographic, in
1922, “Pennsylvania State College became the first college to
broadcast courses across radio networks.”

What is • But there was problem with these

methods that they are one-way forms of

the communication. Pupils were not able to

ask the professors questions or interact

problem?
with other students, because everything
was broadcasted directly to them.
 LEARNING FROM HOME
• In 1962 the New York Times runs an article congratulating a housewife for getting
her bachelor’s degree from these TV courses” .

• It might be hard to believe, but credible degrees were attainable through these
televised courses.

• Even the traditional housewife was able to find time in her day to begin learning
university-level concepts and ideas without leaving home.
 1980S
• Technology continued to allow advances during the 1980s. According to
Foundations of Distance Education, “The possibility of teaching face to face
at a distance was achieved by an electronics revolution in the 1980s.

• The introduction of Broadband Technologies brought about this veritable

revolution.

• This allowed students to communicate with one another and their

professors, so that they learned interactively, rather than just being
taught passively.
• In 1984, “National Technological University established the first
accredited ‘virtual’ university with financial support from companies
like IBM, Motorola and HP.
• So, big brands started to get involved with distance learning, allowing
their employees to participate in virtual classes.

1990s
• Distance learninghad greatly developed by the 1990s through use of
satellite virtual classrooms, mobile telephones, videoconferencing,
and the Internet.
• Keegan goes on to write, “In the late 1990s distance education [was]
a valued component of many education systems and has proved its
worth in areas where traditional schools, colleges and universities
have difficulties in meeting demand. [2]
 TODAY AND BEYOND
• The journey of distance learning continues into the 21st century.
• By 2006, “89% of 4-year public colleges in the U.S. offer classes online, along
with 60% of private institutions” (Gensler).
• Forbes article notes that, “Online learning is moving beyond this primitive, one-
to-many broadcast model to become a social, collaborative, personalized and
interactive experience that generates two powerful, mutually reinforcing success
accelerants:
• Thankfully, distance learning has moved beyond one-sided communication. Today,
distance learning is referred to as online education.
• Most students today have taken or are currently enrolled in at least one online
class.
• The evolution of distance learning continues thanks to technology. [3]
 MORE REASONS WHY ENROLLMENT IS
SHRINKING IN AMERICAN COLLEGES
• At colleges and universities across the country, students and faculty are
preparing for the new fall term. But behind the scenes, administrators are
dealing with a Harsh Reality.

• Many of them have failed to meet their enrollment targets for the entering
class and many years like this are on the horizon.

• More than two thirds of private colleges and over 50% of public colleges
failed to meet their enrollment or net tuition revenue targets for 2016.
• Enrollment shrinking is serious existential crisis facing colleges in the
U.S.
• Over the next ten years, according to recent report from The Chronicle of
Higher Education 2017 The Future of College Enrollment, U.S. colleges
are expected to see a steady decline in their enrollments and this could
threaten their continued existence.
• The nationwide number of high school graduates is declining and will
continue to decline in both public and private schools through the 2029-
2030 school year.
• We are already seeing a steady decline in overall college enrollment.
Between 2011 and 2016, nationwide, the total number of enrolled college
students fell every fall from 2011 to 2016, dropping to 19 million from
20.6 million. [4]
• Only 4-year public institutions have seen an increase but that has been by
less than 1%.

• Among 4-year non-profit colleges, small colleges, those with a student

body of 3,000 or less students, are likely to be affected most by the
enrollment decline.

• Colleges and universities without large endowments rely on enrollment

numbers and tuition to stay afloat, and the amount they pay out in student
aid determines their bottom line. For many, the numbers do not look good.
FOUR-YEAR PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS, HOWEVER, HAD SEEN
SLIGHT ENROLLMENT INCREASES IN RECENT YEARS. BUT
THAT SHIFTED THIS FALL WITH A SMALL DECLINE OF 0.2
PERCENT.
 REASONS OF ENROLLMENT
DECLINING
• Fewer students are graduating from high school, As the huge Millennial
generation graduates and grows up, they’re leaving behind a gap that the
next generation can’t fill. Birth rates have gone down, so there simply
aren’t as many students in high school.

• The average price tag for a college education has risen by nearly 400%
since 1990, far surpassing the rate of inflation over that same period.
College costs are rising faster than even health care costs. At the same time,
household incomes have remained relatively flat.
• Students and their families are forced to take out massive loans, almost
more than $1 trillion nationally - to pay for college.

• A lot of students end up deep in debt financing their education. These

students are expecting their degree to make up for the cost, but that’s not
always the case.

• Though it’s still true that college graduates earn more than their peers
without postsecondary degrees, the income gap between the two groups is
no longer growing.
• Ineffective Leadership - is also reason of enrollment decline. I believe
that enrollment can rise or fall based on the universities’ leadership. I have
seen situations in universities where the head of university lacks the ability
to provide visionary and inspirational leadership. Ineffective leadership
will almost always result in enrollment decline.

• Staffing Issues - I’ve seen situations where the personnel in the

enrollment and marketing positions aren’t the best fit. I’ve also seen school
leaders that haven’t committed resources to these critical positions. [5]
• Quality and Satisfaction Issues - This is probably the most significant
reason for decline. People usually admissions by begin process of conducting
focus groups and a parent survey to assess the quality of the school and the
satisfaction level of the parents, faculty and staff.

• If the university has sacrificed quality in any area (e.g. programs, teachers,
etc.), then this will lead to dissatisfaction. This combination is lethal and will
lead to decline. A university that lacks quality will decline. A university with
dissatisfied parents will decline. Then No marketing and enrollment plan
can solve this issue.
• Environmental Issues - Issues that are outside of the universities can
affect the enrollment. These environmental issues can be related to the
economy or significant events in the world (e.g. war, 9/11, natural disaster,
etc.).

• It can also be related to changes in your local community. With changes in

the community surrounding a university, the local environment can change
and negatively impact the universities' enrollment. Obviously, these
environmental issues are outside of universities' control but are nonetheless
a key factor that can lead to enrollment decline.

• Enrollment and Marketing Plan - one of the issues that I often see in a
university experiencing declining enrollment is the lack of a plan. [6]
 SOLUTIONS OF ENROLLMENT
DECLINING
Solution #1 Solution #2 Solution #3

To boost enrollment, Communicating with Universities need to

Universities need to dual credit high do a better job of
connect with school students via communicating
students early and text messages builds financial aid
often. Partnerships strong student-staff opportunities so
among universities, relationships and students can feasibly
high schools, and ultimately increases pay for studies. [7]
college access enrollment at the
organizations are key college.
to creating strong
enrollment pipelines.
 Solution #4 Solution #5 Solution #6

Colleges and One of the more Admissions offices

universities need to effective ways to help must more efficiently
persuade students that students understand target students who
a degree is worth the their career options are likely to enroll if
cost. To do so, and build skills is accepted. To that end,
institutions must invest through advising. curricula should be
more in career reviewed and adjusted
development services toward the institution’s
for students. strengths and mission
as well as with an eye
towards evolving
student interests.
 Solution #7 Solution #8 Solution #9

leads must be Admissions offices In addition, the

generated and should focus efforts on school’s leadership
nurtured. The story of recruiting students and must intentionally focus
the school must be told engaging faculty and on leading the
in a compelling and counselors in high enrollment effort. It
effective way. This schools within 50-100 starts from the top and
takes intentional and miles from the campus. should permeate every
proactive work and it The importance of a area of the university.
must include the right welcoming and [8]
staff. supportive environment
is crucial.
 KEYS TO PREPAREDNESS

Strategic Enrollment Management for Internal Planning

• Professional Admissions Reps
• Properly prepared to meet demand
• Continuous training on core competencies for success
• Continuous training on response to higher
 EXTERNAL PLANNING OF STRATEGIC
ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT
• Knowing and Living-out who we are to the public. Who are we as an
institution?
• The role of the admissions counselor must evolve from front-line recruiter
and application decision maker to SEM ambassador: an individual who
intentionally positions herself to inform multiple constituencies about the
academic context of the institution.
• Strategically engage local and national College events at HS, Adult-HS.
• Conduct Summer Informational Workshops for high school Counselors to
train them on who we are, what we are looking for, what benefits we provide
and what assistance we offer. Also, we ask them about what they need from
us to help make the transition from HS to College better for seniors and
juniors.
 FINANCIAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR
STUDENT RECRUITER
• Student Recruiters – Financial Assistance for Student Recruiters.
• Identifying potential Student Recruiters (SR).
• Create criteria for becoming (SR)
• The institution will give set amount of money to help students with
educational needs in exchange for them being representatives for the
institution every Summer
• Scholarship Testing
• Partnering with local HS to provide FA to those who meet certain criteria
established by the institution.
• Institutional Community Cross-Departmental Recruitment Training at least
three times annually
• Current trends valuation to improve pre-admission requirements for set
departments within the institution. How we communicate across
departments will keep recruiters informed and engaged

• Outreach focus and target

• Conduct Analysis to understand where we have the best success

recruiting and have our admissions Representative focus on working the
leads from these markets that offer higher rate of return.
 WORKS CITED
• 1 https://www.worldwidelearn.com/education-articles/history-of-distance-learning.html

• 2 https://blogs.ubc.ca/etec540sept09/2009/10/28/on-the-air-educational-radio-its-history-and-effect-on-
literacy-and-educational-technology-by-michael-haworth-stephanie-hopkins/

• 3 https://www.seniornet.org/edu/art/history.html

• 4 https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/12/20/national-enrollments-decline-sixth-straight-year-slower-
rate

• 5 https://hechingerreport.org/college-students-predicted-to-fall-by-more-than-15-after-the-year-2025/

• 6 https://thebestschools.org/magazine/us-college-enrollment-slump/

• 7 https://www.schoolmint.com/moving-forward-when-enrollment-is-declining/

• 8 https://www.huffpost.com/entry/what-are-colleges-to-do-in-face-of-declining-
enrollment_b_595ce5d8e4b0c85b96c6654f