If you lower tuition, they will come?
ENROLLED
Our Monthly Thoughts on Enrollment Management and Student Recruitment Strategies
STUDENT RECRUITMENT STRATEGY
Happy Wednesday and welcome back to Enrolled.
This week, we saw another university testing ‘the tuition reset strategy.‘ This time, the test came from a Canadian University. One of the largest research universities in Canada, the University of Toronto, decided to lower their tuition for international PhD students beginning in the fall of 2018. Given that all most schools experienced this enrollment trend in the US in 2017, it’s an interesting move and we can’t wait to see the fall enrollments numbers.
University of Toronto Lowers Tuition for International Ph.D. Students INSIDE HIGHER ED (1/22/18)
In fact, the National Science Foundation recently found a 6% drop in international STEM graduate students in 2017. While this is occurring, the NSF also reported that more domestic STEM candidates are relying less on federal aid and student loans.
And while we’re at it, let’s throw you another curveball – this is all occurring while states are reporting the slowest growth in higher education funding over the past 5 years.
According to a Grapevine survey, which provides a preview of higher education funding by state, fiscal support for higher education grew by just 1.6 percent. The report comes a few months before the State Higher Education Finance report issued by the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association. (we’ll get back to you on that report)
Nationally, state support for higher education increased 1.6 percent from 2017 to 2018, its slowest growth in five years. INSIDE HIGHER ED (1/22/18)
What else can graduate programs provide besides the ‘tuition reset strategy’ to attract and engage STEM candidates who are sharing the financial crush? Let us know how you’re innovating your student recruitment strategy.
DIVERSITY RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION FOR STEM GRADUATES
US News and World Report had an interesting story about the first-hand experiences of enrolled STEM candidates. As enrollment managers and admission offers, we often focus and strategize on how to recruit diverse candidates for our programs, but retention of diverse STEM candidates is just as important.
We found a few tips this week that might help inform your STEM diversity recruitment strategy.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is trying to increase the number of black and Hispanic students on campus. Jonathan Wexler, Rensselaer’s vice president for enrollment management, says the school began setting money and resources aside four years ago for scholarships and for outreach to high schools with underrepresented populations. It also began flying minority students who had been accepted – and their families – to campus in an effort to win them over. US NEWS AND WORLD REPORT (1/23/18)
Scientific American also covered one biology professor who had a unique view on increasing inclusiveness for STEM students on campus – by changing the ‘paradigm on teaching approaches.’
Inclusive teaching is defined as a facilitative approach to instruction, where the instructor uses differentiated techniques to promote the success of all the students in the classroom. SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN (1/23/18)
We’ll be back next Wednesday with more insight on STEM graduate recruitment and what you need to know this week.