Refine your institution’s recruitment strategy by understanding today’s prospective students’ needs, preferences, and perceptions of higher education.
At a time of rising public distrust of higher ed, U.S. high school juniors and seniors are more concerned than ever about the return on investment of a college degree. To keep a competitive edge, colleges and universities must keep pace with prospective students’ evolving needs and preferences.
Hanover Research surveyed nearly 1,000 students ages 16 to 19 from all 50 states to learn what matters most when they’re considering where to apply and enroll in college, as well as if they plan to attend at all in the coming years.
Download Hanover’s report on the 2024 National Prospective Student Survey to understand what factors are affecting students’ enrollment decisions, including:
- Top barriers to enrollment
- Degree and program interests
- Location, learning format, and scheduling preferences
- College communications and ideal outreach timing
- First-year support needs
“To address opportunity gaps and remain competitive, institutions must convey their value, capture more prospective student interest, and support them throughout the enrollment process. The institutions that follow research and data best practices are the ones that will build winning strategies that lead to enrollment growth and opportunity.”
Prospective Student Experiences and Attitudes Are in Flux
As enrollment challenges persist at higher education institutions, college and university leaders know that some recruitment strategies that worked in the past may no longer guarantee results. Gone are the days of considering prospective students a monolithic unit. Even within a traditional college-age cohort, members of Generation Z have many different experiences, barriers, needs, and expectations.
Instead, higher education leaders must pay close attention to prospective students’ shifting demographics, behaviors, and attitudes, and develop differentiated and targeted ways to connect with them.
While dynamic lived experiences and external factors (including economic and political) can make it more difficult to predict students’ college enrollment decisions, institutions also have an opportunity to leverage this information to their advantage — if they pay close attention to data and trends.
Hanover’s 2024 report on prospective students’ national survey data provides a comprehensive view of what tomorrow’s students will need from higher education institutions.
