|
|
Also
featured in the March 2002 Enrollment Management Report |
Next >> |
 |
Q:
What is the role of the student affairs professional in enrollment management?
|
A:
A better question would be, "What is the role of every faculty, staff, and administrator in enrollment management?" However, the response would be too extensive for this month's column! So we'll focus on the student affairs professional, remembering to get past the concept of a "student affairs role" in enrollment management. Student affairs professionals are enrollment managers, whether they define themselves that way or not -- enrollment management is not based on an organizational chart. For enrollment management to be successful, the enrollment management philosophy must extend throughout the organization, becoming a viable part of the institutional culture. In short, this means that the student affairs professional must know and understand the basic aspects of recruitment/marketing, retention, market research and the benefits of using data to drive decision-making.
Let's take a look at two typical yet very different student affairs positions and discuss how they should be involved in the enrollment management process:
Director of Residence Halls. This position requires a thorough knowledge of the theory and practice of recruiting students to live in a residence halls environment. To gain this knowledge, the director must use market research tools so that the most effective living/learning environments can be developed. This adds to a student's ability to integrate into the campus environment. Obviously, if the director doesn't do a good job, students will not have an enriching or fun experience and could choose to move off campus.
Retaining students from one year to the next is critical. Providing students with creative living opportunities focusing on areas of interest or themes, innovative social and educational programming activities and opportunities to interact with faculty can supplement classroom experiences and increase the perceived value of a residence hall experience.
Key ingredients in running a successful operation include:
-
The ability to develop a
sense of community.
-
The
quality of the facilities. Are the residence halls updated regularly? Are they equipped with appropriate levels of technology such as computer accessibility and electrical outlets that accommodate students' needs? Are problems resolved quickly? Are air conditioners and heaters fixed in a timely fashion and does the staff respond in a caring manner? All of these issues and more reflect on an enrollment management approach.
A good director of residence halls must be able to develop data-driven models to project occupancy from semester to semester and year to year. Not only is it important to routinely review the number of students applying to live in residence halls, but also to understand how those numbers compare to previous years and to understand the relationship between residence hall applications and admission applications. It is also important that the director understands there is a significant difference between the students who leave a residence hall environment but remain in school and those who drop out of school. Constantly surveying the residents on what is working well and what needs improvement also provides data necessary for improvement. Reviewing these types of data can help a director spot a potential problem in time to develop some strategies to deal with projected shortfalls.
Director of Wellness. Students routinely face stressful situations. Enrollment and retention issues usually relate to the student's ability or inability to adjust to social, emotional and/or academic challenges (Chickering). The ability to develop coping strategies, especially for first-year students, affects integration into the campus community. To this end, the Director of Wellness plays a critical role in providing the types of programming that address the development of coping strategies for students in addition to providing opportunities for them to bond to the university (i.e., intramurals).
In effect, the wellness process provides opportunities for students to explore issues relating to their physical, emotional, academic and spiritual development in the context of a campus environment. All of this plays a critical role in the retention of students and supports the enrollment management process. Information collected from students involved with wellness strategies adds great value and a different perspective when evaluating other data elements relating to retention.
The Director of Wellness also deals with many of the same quality indicators relevant to the Director of Residence Halls. These would include quality of the facility and services offered, and scope of the programs. Again, these all play a key role in the integration of students into the campus community.
Good enrollment managers understand their roles extend far beyond their titles. Campus environments are not composed of static and autonomous entities. The ability to look outside your department and understand how all activities on a campus play a role in the integration and retention of students is necessary for effective enrollment management to occur.
|
 |
|