7 Steps to Grow Your Online Enrollment
October 9th 2011 Posted at Scholarships
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When I moved from four years as Director of Residential Recruiting to Executive Director of Distance Learning, I realized I was comparing apples and oranges in the recruiting cycle. Here was the challenge I was faced with when I first came into the online industry: Adult distance learners are a difficult demographic for colleges to attract. It?s not like targeting high school students within a certain radius and knowing that many of them will be interested in you simply because of your location. I faced this dilemma when I became Executive Director of Distance Learning and Graduate Studies at Liberty University, about 2 1/2 years ago. I was charged with increasing the university?s online, adult learner enrollment, which was about 12,000 students when I stepped into the roll. At Liberty University, adult and distance learners Scholarships for high school seniors are one and the same ? 60% to 70% are 30 to 45 years old. The recruiting cycle for adult distance learners is so short and quick, that you have to be able to make changes and decisions on the fly. Adult distance learners also can enroll at almost any time, unlike traditional college students who typically start in the fall. And there?s plenty of competition from for-profit colleges and universities, like The University of Phoenix, which offers courses to working adults online and in local learning centers nationwide. It is a very competitive field out there going after the adult learner and your admissions team has to be prepared for the aggressive nature of the enrollment cycle. I think a core strength for me, is that I have recruited and marketed to resident students, blended students and the adult learner very successfully.