Across colleges and universities, elements of normalcy are returning to the campus experience. Yet today’s prospective students — most of whom attended high school at the height of the pandemic — have new expectations and needs that higher education institutions must be ready to meet. To better understand how to support and attract prospective students, Hanover Research conducted a survey in July 2022 of more than 1,000 U.S. high school sophomores and juniors who are considering undergraduate programs in the next two years.
While half of these potential college students still want to earn four-year degrees on campus, greater numbers of students are seeking remote and hybrid learning, alternative credentials, and flexible scheduling. They’re also more concerned about their ability to pay for school and their readiness for the academic demands of college and the personal demands of independent living.
Understanding prospective students’ evolving needs and expectations is a critical component of any institution’s plans to increase new student enrollment.
