PS&L Blog

In an article I read recently, ABC News reported that 70% of all high school students choose to attend college after high school graduation.  Unfortunately, the graduation rate of students who begin college and complete in 6 years is just over 40% – not an impressive national graduation rate.  According to the College Board, the highest college graduation rate in the country is 68%, a title Massachusetts holds.  The lowest state graduation rate is 22%, a distinction held by Alaska.

These stats beg the question of what is happening that so many students enroll, but do not persist?

My attention turns to a recent article in the Chronicle of Higher Education by Forest Hinton, “Prospective Students Need More Information To Weigh True Value of Degrees.”  The article is tied to a chart of a number of organizations that rate and rank colleges on a variety of criteria to determine lists of the best colleges across the country.

As an enrollment consultant at Paskill Stapleton & Lord, it is obvious to me that what is missing from all of these ratings and rankings are what the family and the student value.  As consultants, we work with colleges to recruit and enroll students who will value the experience, persist and graduate.  While a ranking or rating of a college can illuminate some tangible qualities, it is impossible to know that those particular qualities are meaningful to the students and families we are working with at our own institutions.

Colleges spend a great deal of time, money and energy enrolling freshmen; ideally the ROI is to enroll future graduates.

In higher education marketing we know:

• The importance of asking a student what they value
• Segmentation works – so we don’t espouse the wonders our residential communities and the experience you will have that make lifetime memories to a 25 year-old commuting student
• Opportunity cost is sometimes more important than financial cost
• Value can be equated to tangible offerings such as latest and greatest facilities, academic programs, post-graduation statistics
• Value can be equated to intangible offerings such as prestige, name recognition, and popularity
• Retention of students is cost-effective

Essentially, there is a difficult cost/benefit analysis that goes on in the minds of students and their families, as they make this very important decision.  As a higher education administrator in enrollment management, you have to ask yourself, “how well do we know what our prospective students and families value, and how well are we meeting those needs?”

Retention is the best ROI.  It’s not just why a student chooses a college that is important, but why they stay.  What the student values in the experience will keep them, as much as what they valued as a family caused them to enroll.

In the end, even a 68% graduation rate is not ideal, and leaves plenty of room for improvement.  There are always situations that arise that are beyond the control of the college, and even the most dedicated student, so 100% is not realistic.  What is realistic is students making better choices, not based on rankings, but on what they value in their life and their college experience.