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REVIEW OF INSTITUTIONAL PLANNING IN THE REGIONAL CONTEXT AANNDD NNAATTIIOONNAALL WWOORRKKSSHHOOPP OONN EENNRROOLLMMEENNTT

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CONTENTS:

1. BACKGROUND 2

2. TERMS OF REFERENCE 3

3. PROJECT DESIGN 3 3.1 The pre-planning phase 3.2 The structure and format of the workshop

4. PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION 7

4.1 Regional review workshops 4.2 Evaluation of the regional review workshops 4.3 The national skills workshop on student

enrolment management 4.4 Evaluation of the national skills workshop 4.5 The national institutional planners group

5. THE WAY FORWARD 36

5.1 National level 5.2 Regional level 5.3 Institutional level 5.4 The national institutional planners groups 5.5 Concluding Remarks

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1. BACKGROUND This is a report on a series of regional and national workshops on institutional and regional-level planning in higher education. The project was sponsored by the National College Fund and planned and implemented by the Centre for Higher Education Transformation (CHET). In 1999, arising out of a series of workshops organized by CHET and the Department of Education (DOE), two crucial areas for capacity and skills development were identified. The first concerned the need to strengthen institutional capacity for planning within a regional context; the second related to the need for skills development in enrolment management. With regard to the former, it was argued that such a workshop would encourage and promote inter-institutional co-ordination and cooperation at a regional level, provide a forum for the sharing of best practice, and enable institutional planners to interrogate the processes that culminated in the development of institutional and regional plans/reviews. Based on an analysis of the first planning phase, it was noted that institutional plans could have been improved had there been more dialogue and collaboration on the development of plans between institutions within a region. The emphasis on a more ‘regional’ approach to institutional planning is underscored by the fact that the DOE guidelines for institutional planning now incorporates regional reviews of institutional plans as an integral component of the planning process (Higher Education Institutional Plans: Guidelines for the Second Planning Phase – 2000/2002). With regard to the latter, it was stressed that the overview of the first planning phase clearly indicated the paucity of skills in enrolment management and planning. This was reflected in part by institutional plans being based on unrealistic assumptions and projections, and that despite recent evidence of a declining rate of enrolment growth, a number of institutions projected robust growth rates for the 1999-2001 planning period without any explanation of the underlying assumptions. Enrolment management continues to feature prominently in the Department of Education’s planning guidelines and its clear that the ability of institutions to plan properly is directly dependent on their enrolment management and planning capacity. Given the need for capacity development in both these areas, UNCF/TELP commissioned CHET to host a series of workshops to address the identified planning needs. In addition, recognizing the fact that planning is a continuous process requiring particular skills and expertise, CHET was tasked with the responsibility of constituting a working group of institutional planners who could serve as consultants to institutions in need of technical assistance in the broad arena of higher education planning.

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2. THE TERMS OF REFERENCE The terms of reference as outlined in the contractual agreement between CHET and UNCF/TELP was that CHET would undertake the following activities: 1. Plan and facilitate four two-day Regional Workshops for institutional

planning teams. 2. Plan and facilitate two planning meetings with institutional planners with

the intention of conducting an institutional audit analysis and developing an enrolment-planning model.

3. Plan and facilitate a two-day National Skills Development workshop on visioning and enrolment planning.

3. PROJECT DESIGN On the basis of these terms of reference, CHET embarked on a pre-planning phase with a view to ensuring that the project aims and objectives were closely aligned to the expressed needs of institutional planners and senior administrators associated with planning, at both institutional and regional levels. 3.1 The Pre-Planning Phase The workshops were planned through a series of consultative meetings that CHET staff held with institutional planners, Executive Directors of Regional Consortia, and the National Institutional Planners Group. The following is a report of the meetings and their outcomes. 3.1.1 Institutional Visits Three institutional visits were conducted. The first with institutional planners at M L Sultan; the second with planners at the University of the Orange Free State; and the third a combined meeting with institutional planners at the University of the Western Cape and Peninsula Technikon. The purpose of the meetings was: To inform key institutional planners of the purpose of the regional and

national planning workshops. To assess their readiness and support for the establishment of a national

institutional planners group. To discuss their expectations on what the regional and national workshops

should achieve, who should be involved, and when best to schedule the workshops.

To gain a better understanding of their concerns regarding the management of the process and based on their experience during the first round of planning in 1999 what needs to be done to enhance/strengthen the planning process.

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The recommendations that emerged out of these visits were as follows: Regional Review Workshops With respect to the regional review workshops, the following suggestions were made so as to ensure successful outcomes: Share information on the national policy debates and issues topical at the

moment (for example, the size and shape debate). The workshops should provide institutional planners with the opportunity to

share planning best practice. Link the UNCF/TELP outcomes with planned objectives of respective

regional consortia heads and plan these workshops with and not for them. The focus should be on developing strategies and mechanisms for

increasing inter-institutional cooperation. National Skills Workshop on Student Enrolment Management A summary of the recommendations for the national skills workshop on student enrolment management is as follows: Preparation for this event should involve a team of planners within

institutions who can jointly shape the content and format of the workshop. The workshop should ideally follow the regional workshops so as to allow

participants to focus their attention on the development of skills and not on issues of policy or context.

Input by way of formal presentations should form part of the agenda for the workshop. Such presentations should reflect a range of institutional practices with regard to student enrolment management.

National Institutional Planners Group There was general support for the idea that a national institutional planners group should be constituted under the auspices of CHET. Specific recommendations included: The planners group should consist of institutional planners as well as

independent consultants with demonstrated experience and knowledge in higher education planning.

The group should be tasked with developing strategies and mechanisms for strengthening institutional capacity for planning.

The group should attempt to document best practice emerging in the field of planning.

The group should develop a clear strategy for how best to work with institutional planners and senior administrators associated with planning so as to ensure real transfer of skills.

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3.1.2 Meetings with Executive Directors of Regional Consortia A series of pre-planning meetings were also held with the Executive Directors of Regional Consortia (viz. ECHEA, FOTIM, esATI, FSHETT, Adamastor Trust). The purpose of these meetings was to gain a better sense of the general and specific planning issues that needed to be workshopped within the respective regions, and to finalise logistical arrangements such as venue and date for the regional workshops as well as the list of participants to be invited. There was general agreement that the purpose of the regional workshops should be threefold: 1. To obtain general feedback from the Department of Education on its

assessment of regional plans and the 2nd submission of institutional three-year rolling plans.

2. For the consortia themselves to interrogate the process that culminated in

the development of institutional and regional plans/reviews. 3. To strengthen regional and institutional planning capacity and to support

existing regional collaboration nationally. Finally, there was a unanimous view that that the regional and national workshops should include participants from both historically disadvantaged and advantaged institutions, so as to ensure full regional participation, collaboration and sharing. 3.1.3 Setting up the National Institutional Planners Group A National Institutional Planners Group was constituted, consisting of 17 higher education institutional planners and independent consultants, identified jointly by CHET and The College Fund/UNCF and selected on the basis of their experience and expertise in planning. The aim of this group is to develop national planning expertise and to keep a group of consultants informed about the latest developments. This group served as an advisory body for the purposes of planning the scope, format and agenda for the regional review workshops and the national skills workshop on student enrolment management, based on the feedback received from the meetings with institutional planners and executive directors of regional consortia. In addition, the group provided a critical forum for evaluating the outcomes of the workshops and for mapping the way forward for future planning activities. 3.2 The Structure and Format of the Workshops On the basis of the inputs and feedback elicited during the various consultative meetings, the following structure and format was adopted for the regional review workshops and the national skills workshop on student enrolment management.

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3.2.1 Regional Review Workshops At a minimum, the participants comprised institutional planners and senior managers of all member institutions of regional consortia, the Executive Director of the regional consortia, representatives from CHET and the Department of Education. Each workshop commenced with a system wide discussion on two major themes: institutional challenges and the emerging national landscape, and the size and shape discussion document. Thereafter, the workshop proceeded with a discussion on specific regional planning issues, challenges and processes. The dates and venues for the workshops were determined in consultation with the Executive Directors of Regional Consortia. In sum, three regional review workshops were held, namely: 1. Eastern Cape Higher Education Association (ECHEA): 13-14 April 2000 2. Eastern Seaboard Association of Tertiary Institutions (esATI): 11-12 May

2000 3. Foundation of Tertiary Institutions of the Northern Metropolis (FOTIM): 22

May 2000 It should be noted that one regional consortium, namely, the ADAMASTOR TRUST, subsequently expressed difficulty in scheduling its regional review workshop due to time constraints, with the result that the workshop for the Western Cape region had to be postponed. It's expected that the workshop for this region is likely to be held later in the year. 3.2.2 National Skills Workshop on Student Enrolment Management In line with the recommendation to broaden participation, the decision was taken to invite one institutional planner and one senior administrator responsible for planning from all 36 institutions of higher education. The cost of travel and accommodation for participants from historically advantaged institutions was funded through the Regional Higher Education Consortia (RHEDS). Also included among the list of participants were representatives from CHET and TELP as well as invited speakers. The workshop was chaired by Professor A Parekh and facilitated by Mr. D Nadison and Dr. N Jooste. The workshop was held on 25-26 May 2000 at the Birchwood Executive Hotel in Boksburg, Gauteng. The first day of the workshop consisted mainly of formal presentations and inputs from a select group of invited speakers. The rationale for this was to expose delegates to the range of strategies and approaches to student enrolment management and planning and to so-called 'best practice'. The second day afforded delegates the opportunity to work in small groups, with the group discussions structured around three key thematic areas, namely, student enrolment planning, executing and reviewing. The workshop concluded with recommendations for taking the process forward at the institutional, regional and national levels.

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4. PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION This section provides a more detailed account of the presentations and discussions that occurred during each of the regional review workshops and the national skills workshop on student enrolment management. 4.1 Regional Review Workshops 4.1.1 System-Wide Presentations at All Regional Review Workshops Although the regional review workshops were planned to primarily discuss planning at institutional and regional levels, there were two formal presentations that were generic to all workshops. First, there was a presentation by Dr. Nico Cloete on the institutional challenges and the emerging national landscape. This was followed, thereafter, with presentations by Angina Parekh, based on information provided by Prof Ian Bunting on the DoE's summary of the 2nd round of institutional three-year rolling plans and stakeholder responses to the Council on Higher Education's size and shape discussion document. Dr Parekh is a consultant to the Department of Education. A summary of these presentations follows: 1. Institutional Challenges and Emerging National Landscape

Responses - Nico Cloete, CHET In his presentation, Dr. Cloete placed regional planning in the context of the new emerging higher education institutional landscape, outlining conditions from 1994 and the RDP and the framework set by the White Paper as critical markers for the shaping of the higher education sector and the challenges it faces. He noted that in South Africa the post 1994 ‘re-entry into the international community’ confronted Higher Education with a profound marketisation of the sector. Institutions have responded to this in many different ways, and as can be expected, those with the greatest resources that are the most strategically managed seem to have benefited most. The combination of a policy framework (the White Paper), a “policy-implementation vacuum” and the opening of higher education to market forces, has provided “pressures” and “spaces” for institutions to develop strategic responses whereby they aim to position themselves differently in the new South African higher education environment. He then presented a categorisation of the higher education institutional landscape, noting that a categorisation is an attempt to develop “ideal types” and it does not mean that the boundaries between categories are not porous nor that a number of institutions may not be on the boundary between categories, nor that some institutions may demonstrate features of a number of ‘types’. The categories presented are:

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1. Entrepreneurial/developmental institutions – these are institutions that have a strong centralised strategic planning management and with access to resources. They are responsive to non-traditional students through distance education, telematics and flexible programme offerings. They also attract funding from non-government sources, particularly from non-traditional fee paying students, research contracts and partnerships. There are numerous partnership agreements that enable the institutions to undertake collaborative contract research and training. The whole institutional culture is brought into line with an entrepreneurial approach. In this category a successful institution will have increased access, it will have changed the racial composition of the enrolled students, introduced more than one mode of course delivery, increased research and community partnerships and substantially increased and diversified income generation. In the South African context, unlike the European and US contexts, the term “entrepreneurial” is not un-problematically regarded as positive, and some institutions prefer to link their strategy to the South African development project.

2. General formative (liberal arts) institutions– these are institutions that

stress the broad development of the individual – producing informed citizens. They are consciously non-vocational and concentrate on the under-graduate experience. The main form of education delivery is through direct staff/student contact, preferably with staff-student ratio’s well below 1:20. The majority of students are undergraduates and it is expected that students will specialise or obtain vocational experience after graduation. The educational experience is not regarded as limited to the classroom; extra-curricular experiences are encouraged and the environment within which the institution is located is considered as part of the student’s education. A successful institution will have more applications than it has space to accommodate. It will have changed the racial and gender composition of the student body, will have a range of general education courses with a wide range of choices for students. It will provide programmes to increase success rates and quality, and will be financially sound.

3. Professional -technological institutions – these institutions are known

for the strength of their professional schools – with senior professors in medicine, engineering, architecture, law and commerce seen as the “high priests” of the institution. The other locus of high status is usually a few world class post- graduate research units in the sciences. Undergraduate work is either part of the professional training or part of a selection process for entry to the professions. The attraction of these institutions for students and staff is the professional training offered that will give them direct entry into high status (and high-earning) professions and international recognition. Successful institutions will have an excess of high quality applicants, increasingly from the new black middle class. The majority of programmes offered will be for professional training; it will be able to attract high quality staff, have a large number contract staff from the professions, attract research funds, have large networks of international contacts and be able to maintain financial stability.

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4. Vocational-technological institutions– the focus of these institutions is

‘career education’ which provides ‘preparation’ for direct entry into the job market, but at a lower level than the prestigious professions. A good example of this type of institution has a well-developed link to industry and students are exposed to extensive ‘experiential learning’ programmes in which all students participate. Good examples in this category are trying to increase the number of students majoring in science and technology and in commerce. Institutional priorities are: to increase enrolments in S&T courses; to keep abreast of developments in S&T; to become more responsive to the needs of industry and to include aspects of management, entrepreneurial skills, environmental and social consciousness, and communication skills in S&T programmes. This type of institution will also be trying to improve its research links with industry. Its priorities in this area will be to strengthen the research infrastructure, expand the number of research partners with which it engages and promote and publicise applied research. Making all students computer and information technology literate will be another aim of the successful vocational-technological institution.

5. Commercial–vocational institutions– these institutions are usually

called “private’ which is a misnomer because in the third world, they are not private in the sense of Harvard, where there is an emphasis on high level professional training and knowledge production. These institutions do not do research, they only “sell’ tuition en route to obtaining a qualification with vocational relevance. In South Africa the best of these institutions provide a wide range of access courses, have a range of flexible methods of course delivery and have in place a sophisticated employment service for students. The secrecy (confidentiality) around the finances of these institutions makes it difficult, at this stage, to determine exactly how profitable they are.

The presentation led to a robust discussion that focused on the impact of the economic status of regions on the development of higher education institutions. Without regional and local development plans and policies, how could higher education collaborate to develop the region? Government would need to increase funding to higher education, in line with worldwide increase in funding to higher education. Funding should be put into departments or institutes, which should be linked to international equivalents to improve the quality of cooperation and joint programmes. 2. External Regional Review: Reflections on the National Planning

Process - Ian Bunting / Angina Parekh, Consultants - Department of Education

The second of the system-wide presentations focussed primarily on issues relating to the national planning process. The presentations commenced with a brief overview of the 2nd submission of three-year rolling plans. One of the first points to be noted was that while both institutions and regions were requested to submit three-year rolling plans, at the time of the workshops the

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Department of Education had received all institutional plans but not all regional reviews. The quality of submissions varied considerably and it was apparent from this that planning as a core activity is not necessarily treated seriously by all institutions. Some submissions still reflected an inability to distinguish between strategic planning and strategic dreaming. For instance, several institutions showed a projected increase in the number of science and technology enrolments when in fact both present and historical trends suggest that there has been a severe decline in student enrolments in these areas. The lack of critical self-evaluation was also evident. Few institutions made reference to the first set of three-year rolling plans as a measure of comparison of what has or has not been achieved. The point was made that only one institution went as far back as 1998 to see how they had since fared. In general, however, relative to the first set of institutional submissions enrolment projections were on the whole found to be much more realistic. There were some inconsistencies with staffing data and at least 12 institutions' data required further interrogation. There was some discussion on the problems encountered by institutional and regional planners. Concerns noted related to the unrealistic time frame for the planning process, which resulted in delays in submissions; the difficulties encountered in undertaking regional reviews in the context of competition; the role of institutional planning in governance structures; the tendency to engage in ad-hoc planning; and the legitimacy and skills of planners. Reflections on the stakeholder' responses to the size and shape document revealed that although none of the respondents had accepted the proposal in its entirety, none had argued the concept of differentiation. The general sentiment expressed was that the conceptual framework was flawed, and contradictory to the White Paper. The issues of equality and redress were not addressed. Other concerns related to the lack of focus on regional solutions for the size and shape of the higher education system; the classification of institutions and the lack of clarity concerning criteria to be used in the classification; and dealing only with the shape of higher education while size remained one of the main reasons for the crisis at some institutions. Responses to further issues such as quality, flexibility, articulation, qualification structure, academic development and support, privatisation of institutions, were outlined. Questions and discussions covered many of the concerns noted. There was general agreement that the future reconfiguration of higher education as well as the successful implementation of any new dispensation would depend largely on the further development of institutional planning capacity as well as the establishment of sufficient support mechanisms and management capacity in the Department of Education. Moreover, that the implementation of a new system should be a gradual process governed by reasonable time frames. Similar presentations were made at all the regional workshops.

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4.1.2 The ECHEA Regional Review Workshop: Grahamstown, 13-14 April 2000

All ECHEA member institutions were represented at the workshop. The agenda covered the following planning issues: Reflections on Planning for a desired outcome Institutional Strategic planning Best practices Evaluation of the second cycle of three-year rolling plans.

Each institution presented an evaluation of its institutional three-year rolling plan in relation to the institutional registration statistics as on 31 March 2000. After a thorough discussion of the institutional forecasts for 2000 and the registration figures as at 31 March 2000, it was concluded that the decline in student numbers encountered in 1999 was an abnormal occurrence and that all institutions except UNITRA and Fort Hare showed a growth in student numbers for the 2000 academic year. Notwithstanding the decline in student numbers at the two above-mentioned institutions, the region showed a growth of approximately 4% for 2000. Each of the institutions also presented their Strategic Planning Methodologies and shared best practices with one another. It was agreed that these presentations would be made available to the ECHEA office for distribution to all the members. The Regional Executive Director presented a summary of the ECHEA Regional Review that was submitted to the Department of Education. The participants agreed that the submission of a regional three-year rolling plan would not serve any specific purpose at this point in time. The definition of a functional region need to be debated and agreed upon between higher education and the National Department before a useful regional plan can be prepared. It was, however, recognized that the process followed in discussing the institutional plans by planners while the institutional plans were still being drafted, led to the submission of more realistic plans in 1999 compared to those submitted during 1998. As part of the discussion, institutional planners reviewed and commented on the statistics prepared by Prof. I Bunting on behalf of the DoE, that is, the DoE’s summary of the region’s three-year rolling plans. The general consensus was that the interpretation and compilation of statistics needed to be clarified between the DoE and institutions before any policy or other decisions can be made on the strength of the statistics as presented. Some of the most glaring anomalies/ differences in interpretation between the Institutional and National set of statistics were: The growth predictions for the period 2000 - 2002 as presented in the DoE forecast based on the 1998 – 1999 enrolment pattern under-estimated the student numbers for the next planning cycle by at least 3 to 4 percent. As the

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2000 registration figures indicated, a more reliable growth prediction would most probably be between that of Prof. Bunting and the institutional forecasts. The participants agreed that a combined growth rate for the Region, of between 4% and 5% would be a realistic forecast for the period 2000 – 2002. The non-differentiation between contact and distance education institutions presented a totally skewed picture of those institutions with distance and contact students. Participants recommended that the DoE, as a matter of urgency, clarify the matter of what constitutes distance, contact or mixed-mode of programme delivery. Institutions requested the Executive Director of the consortium bring to the attention of the DoE and Prof. Bunting that they would prefer to discuss the manner in which the statistics were compiled and used with the DoE, before it was presented to a wider audience. It was proposed that the visits of the DoE to institutions should be the appropriate time to have such discussions. The workshop concluded with a team reflection on the priorities for the planners of the region for the next six months. It was agreed that the following matters already under discussion and approved by the ECHEA Board as projects be concluded: The development of a Regional Management Information System to be

used by all institutions for planning purposes. Finalization of proposals for the rationalization of programmes amongst the

ECHEA members as recommended in the regional review. 4.1.3 esATI Regional Review Workshop: Durban, 11-12 May 2000 In attendance were all institutional planners and senior staff associated with planning from all member institutions of the regional consortium. The focus of the workshop was as follows: Institutional perspectives. Department of Education perspectives. Best practice experiences. Planning the way forward for continued regional collaboration.

Each member institution presented a summary of their institutional enrolment results for the 2000 academic year as at the end of March 2000. The presentations revealed that the enrolment for Mangosuthu Technikon was down by 5,6% from 1999 and 8, 5% from the projected enrolment. Natal Technikon and ML Sultan Technikons’ student numbers showed no real growth against the 1999 figures. Natal University and the University of Durban-Westville both indicated that there were indications of considerable growth in student numbers compared to the projected figures. Natal University indicated that their growth in postgraduate students was mainly in their distance education programmes linked to teacher training. The University of Zululand did not show any growth for the 2000 academic year

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and indicated that the decline in student numbers continued from the previous year. Most institutions were of the opinion that the introduction of the Central Applications Office for the 2000 academic year did not have a negative influence on their registration patterns. They were of the opinion that the service rendered by this undertaking can only improve and be to great assistance for new students and institutions. It was noted that the information gathered from this undertaking, once available as Management Information, would be of great value for future enrolment planning. The institutions identified the following as possible constraints on future growth for the Higher Education institutions in the region: High dropout rate due to financial reasons. The University of Durban-

Westville reported that 159 final year students that passed with an A-aggregate at the end of 1999 did not return. A number of these indicated that the inability to pay their fees was the main reason for them not returning.

The devastating impact of HIV/AIDS. Poor matriculation results. Campus unrest - institutions that encountered unrest on the campus find it

difficult to attract students and are mostly those institutions that showed a decline in student numbers.

The impact of the private higher education institutions. The workshop further identified the following as priorities for the region that should be addressed jointly to enhance the already existing best practices in enrolment planning: The use of information gathered through the Central Applications Office for

enrolment planning. The development of retention strategies. The capping of growth for some institutions. Joint marketing strategies to promote public, as opposed to private, higher

education. 4.1.4 FOTIM Regional Review: Gauteng, 22 May 2000 The FOTIM agenda differed from the previous two regional review workshops in that the focus of the workshop was only on the FOTIM Regional Review Project and not on institutional evaluations of the three-year rolling plans. Prof. P van Eldik presented the Regional Review document prepared by FOTIM. It was recognized that this document was developed primarily for the consortium and for its members. The data gathered in the regional review report could be used to make comparisons and identify trends. The challenge for FOTIM would be to take a pro-active role in non-competitive collaboration, which could include collaboration in research, administrative matters and academic fields.

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The document and the presentation highlighted the challenges facing regional consortia to make the higher education system more effective. It was recognized that networking amongst the consortium members should be encouraged, as should collaboration at departmental level. It was recognized that the Regional Review as prepared by FOTIM could become a vehicle for change. The information gathered in the regional review should inform the next round of planning. It was further recognised that the database prepared for the Regional Review could be used in future for institutional and regional planning purposes. The workshop agreed that the format in which the data was prepared should be identified as one of the best practices that can be identified through the series of workshops that could be used by other regions in the planning process. During the breakaway session the participants identified the following issues as key to the enhancement of regional cooperation amongst FOTIM members: Building mutual trusts and respect by improving the dynamics amongst

members and getting to know one another better. Redress within the region by identifying strong and weak points within the

region, with a view to sharing strengths. To address national needs through a regional perspective; in the process

focusing on specifics within regions and recognising that there may be sub-regional issues.

Cooperation and connectivity in the development of new academic programmes in the region.

It was further recognized that the above would be part of a process that would evolve through joint projects and activities. Participants also identified the following areas as common ground for cooperation in the short term: ICT action items (Sharing technology, MIS, connectivity etc). Enhancement of access to higher education through the FOTIM Colleges

access program. The sharing of institutional infrastructure. The submission of new joint courses.

Delegates were requested to take the following three issues back to their institutions to be dealt with at an institutional level: Links to the regional economy. This was felt to be relevant to the

environment in which institutions operate, rather than being a broad FOTIM issue.

HIV/AIDS. This it was argued should also be dealt with at an institutional level.

Establishment of IT connections within institutions.

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4.2 Evaluation of the Regional Review Workshops This section of the report reviews the outcomes of the regional workshops. The information provided is derived from an analysis of the evaluation questionnaires completed by participants. Participants rated the overall performance of the workshops as having successfully met the stated aims and objectives. None of the participants reported that the workshop design and content failed to match actual regional needs. When asked to comment on the two major system-wide presentations, the majority of participants rated the inputs as extremely positive and informative. In fact many participants reported that it was the first time that they were afforded the opportunity to engage with national planning issues in a context characterised by a lack of defensiveness and constraints. With regard to the sharing of best practices, the majority reported this exercise to be highly beneficial and positive. Other positive remarks and observations included: The feeling that everyone could participate because all participants

appeared to be well-informed. The discussions and debates were characterised by a high level of

openness and honesty. The workshop seemed to have galvanised cooperation between

institutions. Allowed participants to focus on some of the really pressing and

challenging institutions confronting the regions. Provided a forum for people to hear a range of viewpoints and positions.

The following comments and observations were noted with regard to institutional planners: The relationship between planners in most of the regions seem to be

positive and collegial. Planners' relationship with their respective managerial seniors seems to

vary. Some enjoy a close working relationship, and are kept well informed, while others appear to be somewhat insulated from senior-decision making processes and interactions.

Most planners reported that the three-year rolling plan exercise has proved to be extremely valuable in that it is beginning to entrench and strengthen a culture of planning institutionally.

It was acknowledged that regions planning needs vary and hence different kinds and levels of support is required from the Department of Education and Capacity Development agencies such as TELP and CHET.

Most regional representatives were concerned that they were excluded from the Size and Shape policy phase, given that success in the implementation of any new higher education plan is ultimately dependent on widespread involvement, participation and cooperation between all stakeholders.

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Finally, when asked to suggest areas for future engagements, the majority of participants noted that they would welcome further opportunities for collaborative discussions and informal engagements/interactions. This was deemed to be particularly crucial in the light of the increasing pressure being brought upon institutions to collaborate inter-institutionally and regionally. Moreover, with the soon-to-be released new higher education plan, all institutions are likely to face enormous upheavals, which makes the need for dialogue and collaboration among institutional planners within a region even more imperative. 4.3 The National Skills Workshop on Student Enrolment Management:

Boksburg, Gauteng, 25-26 May 2000 4.3.1 Aims and objectives of the workshop The overall aim of the two-day workshop was to enhance strategic planning capacity at institutional level and to strengthen student enrolment planning and management at institutional level. More specifically the objectives were: To enhance participants understanding of the relationship between

enrolment management and strategic planning. To expose participants to a range of 'best practice' institutional enrolment

planning and management strategies. To focus attention on some dimensions of student enrolment management

at both institutional and regional levels. To provide participants an opportunity to interrogate more thoroughly

issues pertaining to student enrolment planning, execution and review with a view to identifying areas for further development at national and regional levels.

4.3.2 Participants The workshop consisted of 59 participants, comprising in the main one institutional planner and one senior administrator associated with planning. Also in attendance were Professor Mike Phala, Programme Manager, TELP and Dr. N Cloete, Executive Director, CHET. The workshop was chaired by Prof. A Parekh and facilitated by Mr. D Nadison and Dr. N Jooste. As an aside, it should be noted that only one (Stellenbosch) out of the 36 institutions was not represented at the workshop, and in some cases an institution sent only one representative as opposed to two. 4.3.3. Presentations On the first day, the workshop commenced with the chairperson providing a brief overview of the aims and objectives of the workshop and an outline of the agenda for the two days. This was followed by a series of formal presentations. The first two set out the contextual framework for student enrolment and planning, and its relation to strategic planning. Thereafter, there were a series of institutional presentations, which taken collectively

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reflected the wide-ranging strategies and approaches to student enrolment management and planning, including best practice, within the South African higher education institutional context. The next section provides a summary of these presentations. 1. South African Higher Education Context – Nico Cloete, CHET According to Cloete, during the period of policy formulation, the passing the White Paper and the Act through a consultative process and the constitution of a new department (from 1994 to late 1997), the system diversified in unplanned directions due to a number of developments: the different responses of individual institutions to particular signals that

they read from the participatory policy formulation process. the entrance of international institutions into the South African higher

education market. the growth of a commercial (private) higher education system. the increase in competition amongst institutions – particularly for students.

A number of consequences flowed from this: Overall there are fewer students in the public higher education system

than in 1994 and in 1999 the student enrolments at some historically black institutions dropped by as much as 50%.

Innovative new curriculum programmes developed at particular institutions make mobility more, and not less, difficult.

Differences in the pace of implementing the NQF is widening the articulation gap between universities and technikons.

Universities and technikons are increasingly competing for the same ‘lucrative’ career orientated programmes.

The traditional gap between the historically advantaged and disadvantaged is changing in a newly developing landscape into wide disparities.

It could be argued that these circumstances are leading to the South African higher education system becoming more market-driven than at any other time in its history. In a market situation, those with stable leadership with an ability to do environmental scanning and who have the skills and resources to move in new directions will be, and are already, at an advantage. Taking this into consideration, it is not surprising that in such an environment the South African institutional landscape is differentiating in an unprecedented manner, and can be categorised as follows: 1. Entrepreneurial/developmental institutions – these institutions have a

strong centralised strategic planning management and with access to resources. They are responsive to non-traditional students through distance education, telematics and flexible programme offerings. They also attract funding from non-government sources, particularly from non-traditional fee paying students, research contracts and partnerships. There are numerous partnership agreements that enable the institutions to

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undertake collaborative contract research and training. The whole institutional culture is brought into line with an entrepreneurial approach.

2. General formative (liberal arts) institutions– these institutions stress the

broad development of the individual – producing informed citizens. They are consciously non-vocational and concentrate on the under-graduate experience. The main form of education delivery is through direct staff/student contact, preferably with staff-student ratio’s well below 1:20. The majority of students are undergraduates and it is expected that students will specialise or obtain vocational experience after graduation. The educational experience is not regarded as limited to the classroom; extra-curricular experiences are encouraged and the environment within which the institution is located is considered as part of the student’s education.

3. Professional -technological institutions – these institutions are known

for the strength of their professional schools – with senior professors in medicine, engineering, architecture, law and commerce seen as the “high priests” of the institution. The other locus of high status is usually a few world class post- graduate research units in the sciences. Undergraduate work is either part of the professional training or part of a selection process for entry to the professions. The attraction of these institutions for students and staff is the professional training offered that will give them direct entry into high status (and high-earning) professions and international recognition.

4. Vocational-technological institutions– the focus of these institutions is

‘career education’ which provides ‘preparation’ for direct entry into the job market, but at a lower level than the prestigious professions. A good example of this type of institution has a well-developed link to industry and students are exposed to extensive ‘experiential learning’ programmes in which all students participate. Good examples in this category are trying to increase the number of students majoring in science and technology and in commerce. Institutional priorities are: to increase enrolments in S&T courses; to keep abreast of developments in S&T; to become more responsive to the needs of industry and to include aspects of management, entrepreneurial skills, environmental and social consciousness, and communication skills in S&T programmes.

5. Commercial–vocational institutions– these institutions are usually

called “private’, which is a misnomer because in the third world, they are not private in the sense of Harvard, where there is an emphasis on high level professional training and knowledge production. These institutions do not do research, they only “sell’ tuition en route to obtaining a qualification with vocational relevance. In South Africa the best of these institutions provide a wide range of access courses, have a range of flexible methods of course delivery and have in place a sophisticated employment service for students.

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2. Understanding Enrolment Management and its Relation to Strategic Planning - S. Stevenson, Rhodes University

After a decade of planning in South African Higher Education, the system remains in turmoil. This is largely because strategic planning has, more often than not, been based on ‘strategic dreaming’. It was noted that there is a dire need to relate planning to what is realistic and achievable in the current environment. This translates to a practical rather than purely academic approach, particularly in the area of enrolment planning. Various models are being used and it is clear that there is no generic model, which would apply equally to all institutions. Although public higher education institutions are not businesses, there is a growing need for them to be more business-like, and to develop relevant key performance indicators. Enrolment management must be closely linked to all other strategic planning issues. Crucial factors in effective enrolment planning include developing and monitoring performance indicators in the areas of marketing, recruitment, admissions, distribution, student profiles, retention and graduation rates, student services, placement and employability. The model used at Rhodes University is based on controlled growth per faculty, and is closely linked to the fact that the main campus in Grahamstown is largely residential, which places physical restrictions on the total number of students the University is able to accept. The University debates the total number of students it is able to accommodate, and then Deans decide the appropriate ratios per faculty. The ratios between faculties are continually refined during the registration process, but ultimately aim to reflect the overall size and shape of the institution based on the University’s mission statement. A triennial academic review is conducted in order to monitor and evaluate how University resources are being used, and to decide how these resources should be allocated over the subsequent three years. Annual statistics are provided to departments on their costs per student, departmental income, gender and ethnic distribution, retention and graduation rates, staff resources and on the extent of cross-subsidisation within in the University. A strategic decision was taken to limit numbers on the Grahamstown Campus in order to continue to provide what Rhodes University has agreed is its niche - a high quality, residential, broad educational experience. The University’s East London Campus has more potential for growth but is restricted by limited space and the absence of government subsidy for major capital expansion. Enrolments are predicted on the trends over the previous 2-3 years, particularly the historical no-show rate (students accepting a place, paying the initial deposit, and not arriving at the University) of 16%. However, this proved to be an unreliable indicator in 2000 as the no-show rate dropped to 8% resulting in an accommodation crisis on the Grahamstown Campus. Because Rhodes draws its students nationally and internationally, external factors have a profound impact. For instance, the recent crisis in Zimbabwe has forced the University to delay construction of two new residences as a

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significant proportion of students are Zimbabwean and may not be able to return in 2001 due to financial constraints. The presentation concluded with the note that it is imperative that institutions relate their enrolment planning to their overall mission and goals, taking into account the reality of the social, economic and political environment in which they operate. 3. Approaches to Student Enrolment Planning: Peninsula Technikon

- D. Blezard, Peninsula Technikon The introductory remarks attested to the importance of viewing enrolment as covering a wider field than simply a plan for the enrolment of students. Such an enrolment plan falls within a continuum of activities for the Higher Educational institution, including the institutional strategic plan, the enrolment plan itself, student recruitment (including marketing and financial aid), the registration of students (including application, selection, and enrolment), student retention (including the academic programme, academic support, and student satisfaction surveys), and the post-qualification work experience of students (including in-service training, work placement, and follow-up surveys). Enrolment management must also take account of the financial implications of these various aspects on the financial wellbeing of the institution. The focus of the presentation, however, was more limited than the full range of enrolment management. It focussed on the enrolment plan of Peninsula Technikon – essentially its enrolment projections for the Three-Year Rolling plans requested by the Department of Education – within the context of the Technikon’s strategic plan. A brief background to the institution was provided. It was reported that in a wide-ranging process beginning in 1996, the Peninsula Technikon redefined its strategic objectives. As captured in its 1997 Strategic Plan, the Technikon decided upon a fundamental shift of emphasis in the direction of Science, Engineering, and Technology (SET). And it defined five focus areas for development: Student Success and Development; Research; Quality; Science and Engineering; and Staff Development. When the Department of Education sent out its first request for Three-Year Rolling Plans, it set focus areas relating to the size and shape of the Higher Education system, equity, efficiency, and inter-institutional co-operation. But the key requirement, from the point of view of enrolment planning, was its request that detailed enrolment projections should be submitted. It was reported that the efforts of Peninsula Technikon to develop effective enrolment projections couldn't be said to constitute an enrolment projection model. Rather, they represent an evolutionary process, which is still continuing.

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The first attempt: In first approaching the question of projections, the Technikon had the guidance of its 1997 Strategic Plan. This included the focus on SET, specific SET-Humanities enrolment targets (where Humanities in the Peninsula Technikon context were largely Business Faculty enrolments), and an equity focus, which included access for students from historically disadvantaged groups, and the promotion of women in engineering. It was assumed that academic department would be better at estimating projections than some central office, and thus Heads of Department were asked to submit projections for the years 1999 - 2001. To assist them, the Technikon’s Department of Strategic Planning & Management Information extracted the actual enrolments for the 1998-year from the database, and created an Excel spreadsheet providing this one-year of history and provision for the three-year projections. The 1998 data were provided by Faculty, Department, and Qualification; by Offering Type (full-time and part-time); by Level (or period of study); by Academic Block (Year, Semester 1, Semester 2). The spreadsheet allowed for some comment on the status of a qualification, for example, if it were being phased out. It also provided for calculation of the percentage change from year to year. The enrolment targets proved to be close, for the institution as a whole, to the actual enrolments in 1999. The 1999 target for Year and Semester 1 enrolments was 8606; the actual enrolments were about 2 percent lower at 8426. This constituted a small increase on the 1998 enrolments, which was considered satisfactory given the steep dip in enrolments experienced by some institutions in 1999. However, the variation between projections and actual enrolments at the Faculty level was more marked and disappointing in the light of the explicit strategic planning focus on SET. The Engineering Faculty was 9.6% below target; the Science Faculty was 12.8% below; but the Business Faculty was 9.1% over target. It was apparent that the limitation on growth in the Business Faculty had largely been ignored in the enrolment process. The second attempt: Before the enrolment projection process began for the second Three-Year Plan, the Technikon’s Strategic Planning Committee reviewed the 1999 enrolments in the light of the projections and the strategic plan. A high-level sub-committee set specific parameters within which the Faculties were to do their projections for the next three years. Although the general procedure for setting the projections was otherwise similar to the first attempt, more history and more detailed information was provided by the Department of Strategic Planning & Management Information. Three years of enrolment history was provided, for Year and Semester 1 enrolments only, and the information was taken down to the level of Entry

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Status (Entering, First-Time Entering, Non-Entering, Transfer) for each Period of Study. The justification for this was, first, that the Technikon had very few new enrolments in Semester 2 (most of the Semester 2 enrolments have already been enrolled in Semester 1); and secondly, the Entry Status was reflected as the Head of Department would have more control over some categories of student than others, with regard to admission. Again, the actual 2000 enrolments were very close to the targets, at 1.8% below target (at 31 March). While there was still variation at the Faculty level, the extent of the variation had declined. Engineering was now 4.6% below target [1999: -9.6%]; Science was 7.5% below [-12.8%]; and Business was only 2.8% over target [+9.1%]. There had clearly been more serious attention in the Business Faculty to the ceiling on enrolments that had been set; although there had been a late request from the faculty for a slight relaxation in the original limit. There had also been a late correction to Science Faculty projections. The enrolment trends in the three Faculties show clearly that the policy of curbing growth in the Business Faculty is begin to take effect; but the projections in the SET faculties are more optimistic than the trend indicates is likely. Next Projections: With regard to the Three-Year Plan for 2001-2003, the Strategic Planning Committee again reviewed the enrolments in March; and a revised limit was set for the Business Faculty. An attempt was made to provide the Departments with data on applications (as opposed to enrolment data only). Detailed projections would again be requested from the Department Heads after June. Some general observations noted: The Peninsula Technikon has tried to base its enrolment projections on its Strategic Plan. The projections have been in the hands of the Head of Department, rather than a central office or a computer program. Gradually more detailed information has been made available to support the projections. Heads of Department have responded variously to the targets. The fact that a Strategic Plan is in place does not necessarily mean that everyone will act according to the plan. Those who don’t like the plan sometimes have difficulty seeing it. Although there has been little change as yet in the ratio of SET to Humanities students, there are indications that the Strategic Plan is beginning to be taken more seriously. If the overall SET:Humanities ratio remains a little elusive, there has at least been a significant increase in the number of women students in Engineering.

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4. Approaches to Student Enrolment Planning: University of Cape Town

- J. Hendry, University of Cape Town The presentation commenced with a brief definition of enrolment management as subscribed to by The University of Cape Town (UCT). According to the presenter, the University subscribes to the Hossler (1997) definition of enrolment management as any “process or activity that influences the size, shape, and characteristics of a student body by directing institutional efforts in marketing, recruitment, and admissions as well as pricing and financial aid”. Student enrolment planning for a particular planning period at UCT begins within the strategic planning phase of the institution’s strategic planning: operational planning: budgeting continuum. The presenter then proceeded to outline the tools and data used within the high level enrolment planning that takes place within the strategic planning phase, in accordance with institutional strategic goals and priorities. Similarly, the processes and supporting data employed in setting enrolment targets within the more detailed faculty-based enrolment planning (that take place during the operational planning phase) were defined. The central importance of an undergraduate enrolment projection capability, as well as the functional significance of UCT’s Recruitment and Enrolment Management Office in the central coordination of the recruitment and admissions process and in the balancing of targets of excellence and equity within UCT’s student body, were also discussed. This was followed by a reference to the conceptual framework and assumptions underlying UCT’s undergraduate enrolment projection model, and a description and demonstration of the flowchart employed within this model. Difficulties encountered in attempting to develop a spreadsheet model for the projection of postgraduate enrolments were listed, and a planning approach to the projection of postgraduate enrolments outlined. The tools and tactics currently employed within UCT towards the realisation of enrolment targets were outlined, highlighting the fundamental importance of underlying admissions research (carried out centrally within the University’s Planning Department) in support of recruitment and enrolment management. The presentation concluded with a summary of UCT’s recent successes in the management of its enrolments, shown in parallel with a listing of those areas that require further attention. The next two presentations, by P Vermeulen and L Popkas, from the Universities of Pretoria and the Western Cape respectively, are essentially responses to the institutional approaches reported above as well as illustrations of other institutional approaches to student enrolment management and planning

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5. Other Institutional Approaches - P. Vermeulen, University of Pretoria The respondents were asked to reflect on the approaches to student enrolment management presented by the previous speakers, and of enrolment management in general. In his response, Prof. Vermeulen noted the following: Student enrolment management is and should be an integral part of the strategic planning process of each higher education institution. Therefore, it was shown that managing student enrolment should not only be seen as recruitment, admissions, registration and retention of first-time entering students at an institution but that other internal and external factors may influence the path and direction that an institution wish to follow. The higher education system is one of the most complex dynamical systems in any society. It was shown, diagrammatically, how complex socio-economic systems could be understood by using a flow diagram, depicting a dynamic socio-economic model. The many positive and negative feedback loops and uncertainty in various parameters that exists in such a complex system give rise to unexpected outcomes. It was indicated that the same kind of dynamic behavior exists in a higher education institutional environment. A flow diagram of a system dynamics model that was developed for the University of Pretoria in the early nineties was shown to indicate the complexities of a tertiary system where the external environment plays a major role in the strategic management of an institution. Factors like the changing demography, economic development and growth, government policy to higher education, market related job opportunities, government allocation of funds to education in general and for higher education specifically, the number of potential students from the secondary school system, etc., may have a huge and sometimes unpredictable impact on the enrolment of students in specific fields and levels of study at Universities and Technikons. Sensitivity analyses on such variables, that is built into any enrolment strategy model, should be performed to try to identify the variables and parameters that have the most influence on student enrolment at an institution, and use the most sensitive ones as steering mechanisms. Statistical information, over time, is one way of validating a theoretical model. Statistics, however, may also used to develop performance indicators, which will indicate the effectiveness of the educational system. An example was presented to show how the approximately 12 million students in the school system flow to the University of Pretoria, through the process of application, admission, registration and eventually graduation. Statistics on dropout rates and graduation rates at the University were also presented. Eventually, it was shown that of the 12 million scholars at school only about 120 students graduate yearly from the University of Pretoria with a doctorate degree. It was suggested that fundamental research, through the use of dynamic models, should be undertaken to investigate the intricacies of the higher education system.

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6. Other Institutional Approaches - L. Pokpas, University of the Western

Cape The first part of Pokpas’s response examined the necessary conditions for enrolment success, and proffered the argument that an institutional plan without clear implementation strategies cannot yield the expected outcomes. Moreover, that successful enrolment management can even occur in the worst resource constraint environment precisely because it is permeable with every aspect of campus-life, can intertwine with all strands of the strategic plan and only requires consistent, reliable and pertinent data. He further argued that most resource-constraint institutions fail to unlock and translate the appropriate data timeoulsy, rendering them data-rich, information poor. He proceeded to examine the clarity with which issues are defined and used the University of Western Cape as a case study to illustrate the importance of enrolment management in any planning process. He reflected on some models in use and drew on these successes to unpack the planning process and the inherent dangers in an over-reliance on models. In this regard, it was noted that whereas the University’s broader goals seek to manage the overall size, shape and participation strategy, consistent with the mission and strategic goals, the specific objectives tend to focus on issues of attraction, retention, throughput, time-to-degree, and the employability of students. Statistical examples were cited to demonstrate that 'little is accomplished when scarce resources are expended to attract such individuals only to have them leave soon after arriving because the institution's culture is unfamiliar and welcoming to them' The UCT and Peninsula Technikon models were then taken as a point of departure. Drawing from these experiences the presenter argues that ‘models do not come in a one-size-fits-all format’ and cautions against the normative and recency bias of models that renders the failed outcomes of iterative planning a potential mockery. Finally, the presenter remarked on the scope and dangers of fragmented approaches and argued in favour of enrolment management as a collective strategy to implement systemic change in the higher education sector. He called on public institutions to forge closer cooperation and to share best practices in enrolment management. Drawing on the complexity of business ethics in a highly competitive environment, he argued that Darwinian strategies to outmaneuver sister institutions may lead to systemic erosion and does not augur well for public confidence in public higher education. Recognising that enrolment management is closely tied with communication, marketing and competing strategies, he cites examples such as system-wide marketing and generic research to promote public higher education. In conclusion, it was argued that dynamic leadership, also at an institutional level, is required to optimise the capacity in the system, embrace emerging opportunities and to sustain confidence and practices towards the attainment of national goals.

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The next two presentations focus on select dimensions of student enrolment management and planning. The first was by Ms. Nko Tengimfene, Director: Enrolment Planning and Admissions, University of Durban-Westville; and the second by Ms. Ann Knock, Chief Executive Officer of the Central Applications Office in KwaZulu Natal. 7. Student marketing within enrolment planning and management - N.

Tengimfene, University of Durban-Westville The presentation commenced with a brief overview of some of the challenges facing the higher education sector in general and the University of Durban-Westville in particular. One of these is the general decline in student enrolments within the public higher education sector. The dramatic drop in student enrolments in 1999 was a rude awakening for the University of Durban-Westville. Although the institution had witnessed a steady decline in enrolments since 1995, the sharp drop in 1999 was totally unexpected. Upon closer examination, it was found that in spite of the continuing downward trend, certain broad disciplinary areas had experienced significant growth in student numbers, such as the Health Sciences, Science and Engineering. About the same time, the university had embarked on an extensive academic restructuring process, which sought to transform the university into an academically and financially competitive institution. It was, however, clear that without students to partake in the new academic offerings of the university, the exercise in restructuring would have been futile. In the light of the national and institutional challenges, it therefore became imperative that in order to exist - the university needed to develop a comprehensive marketing and recruitment strategy. In this regard, the location of the function of recruitment within Enrolment Planning was the first step that re-shaped the university's thinking about recruitment. It meant that the university saw recruitment as the first step in a process that moves from supplying the institution with a steady flow of students to ensure its vitality, to the smooth exit of a competent, well-rounded graduate at the end of study. The next logical step for the university was to create mindfulness within the system of the challenges of recruitment, and the need for the entire system to partake in the process. This was not an easy task. Thoughts and practices that had become fixed over time in the mind of the system as 'truths' were the primary source of inertia - the seeming inability and unwillingness of people in the system to act in the face of change. It was obvious that as long as the mind of the system failed to hold profound change of strategies as both possible and desirable, any effort to effect a new and changed strategy would be futile. The challenge, therefore, was to how best to implement a process whereby institutional mindset could be changed. Among the first steps was an acknowledgment of the following fundamental principles:

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Recruitment was necessary for the continued and viable existence of the university.

The organisation had to accept and adopt recruitment as the responsibility of all its members.

The power necessary to effect and effective recruitment strategy would be found in the intricate field of relationships within the institution, and with the external world, and not in positions or individuals, no matter how much authority they may wield. The real actions would happen at the level of connection.

Successful recruitment depended on the institution maintaining a good public image.

Informed by these key principles, and through an extensive consultative process, the university developed a comprehensive recruitment strategy. The university continues to battle with the problem of a bad public image, and is continuously attempting to salvage its image for the benefit of both its fundraising and recruitment efforts. Notwithstanding this, like most institutions, the university continues to learn and appreciate the nuances of the recruitment and marketing sector, and is eager to continuously strive to be one of the leading HE institutions in this field. Finally, based on the university's experience, the presenter offered the following suggestions for successful recruitment: Identify key players within the institutions and draw them into planning and

implementation (e.g. enrolment planning office, public relations, schools' liaison office, academic faculties, service departments such as student housing and so forth).

Know your historical market. Get reliable data through your Information

Systems on where your students usually come from (i.e. feeder provinces, feeder schools etc.).

Identify your target market and get to it. In so doing think of which

programmes you are recruiting for. Are these new or under-subscribed programmes? Identify the areas that require a greater intake of women and black students. In other words be focused in how you expand your efforts.

Target the best schools. Entice and Sell. Use academic staff to identify

these schools, and to recruit from them. Ensure that your institution is visible and recognisable (i.e. through the

media, by hosting prospective students on campus, on billboards etc.). Encourage creativity from the team. Work smarter, not necessarily harder.

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8. Central Applications Office: Managing the process between

recruitment and admissions - A. Knock, Eastern Seaboard Association of Tertiary Associations

The Central Applications Office (CAO) set up by esATI (the Eastern Seaboard Association of Tertiary Institutions) to service the universities and technikons of KwaZulu Natal has now been operational for one year, and is beginning to provide real information against which theories which led to its establishment can be tested. The prime focus of attention for the CAO is on those aspects of the enrolment process normally referred to as ‘Enquiries’ and ‘Applications’. The CAO has provided some valuable lessons, which would be of value to any other organisation planning to establish or join a similar venture. For instance, it is essential for the participating institutions to agree at the outset on the desired objectives. Centralised processing of applications does not remove the competition within the system, and that competitiveness may well be one of the biggest threats to the successful establishment of a CAO. At the same time, some stakeholders will hope to use the CAO to achieve objectives of equity, affirmative action and transformation. It was reported that experience has shown that some institutions expected that the CAO would take away the need for marketing and would simply deliver plenty of well-qualified applicants to them. Clearly such expectations are unrealistic - the existence of a CAO doesn’t change the basic conditions in which the institutions are operating. If there are insufficient suitably qualified applicants it is unlikely to change that. CAO advertising will not be effective if applicants do not want to study at the institution. If, on the other hand, the problem is that applicants tend not to contact the institution until registration, with consequent problems for enrolment planning, then a change of system may, over time, bring about a change in behavior. The combined database provides an immense amount of information not previously available. For both applicants and institutions it introduces a new dimension of transparency into the process. For planners, it reveals a bigger picture than was previously available. For instance, it’s learned that most applicants are more interested in pursuing a particular field of study than in studying at a particular institution, although there are exceptions. It’s known which programmes are in greatest demand, new information about the demography of potential students within the province has been ascertained. There is still work to be done on the CAO ‘Clearing House’ module, the means by which unplaced applicants can be identified and headhunted, but a large number of applicants took advantage of the option of making additional choices after being turned down by their initial selection. Many of these opted for technikon programmes starting in the second semester. It was noted that applicants responded favourably to the ‘one form, one fee, one office’ approach, the reduced cost, and the wider range of options presented in the CAO handbook on the website. Some specialised

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programmes in particular have reported greatly improved quality of recruitment and a reduced ‘no show’ rate. In determining the appropriate model or CAO to adopt, the context and existing patterns of behaviour must be taken into account. For instance, if 60% of applicants move outside their home province to study, a regional model wouldn’t work - but a centralised national model faces many challenges, particularly in respect of postal deliveries. If 90% of students first make contact with the institution in registration week, a system depending on rigid deadlines wouldn’t work. In deciding how a new CAO is to be funded, consideration should be given to the link between financial responsibility and ownership, and the level of commitment, which any CAO requires from participating institutions. In particular, it may be problematic if financial decisions (such as the level of application fees) are made by those who have no financial responsibility. It is, however, essential for the success of a CAO that it avoids the perception of being ‘run’ by the largest participating institution? General Discussion and Comments Noted The above discussions underlined the principle that enrolment planning is an integral part of strategic planning and could not be separated from institutional strategic planning processes. It was further recognized that enrolment planning includes the following institutional processes: Recruitment/marketing Admissions/placement Registration Retention Strategies Management Information Institutional specific student information First time entry identification Drop out rates of returning students Financial status of students Accommodation Recreation Facilities Student satisfaction surveys Placement after completion

During the discussion sessions participants agreed that the current models in use for enrolment planning are at best models used to predict student numbers. The reason why some of the models that were used in the past to predict student numbers were abandoned in the recent past was that the environment for the stable flow of students is not in place. To date the majority of institutions are involved in producing contingency plans for enrolment and not comprehensive enrolment plans. Finally, based on the different institutional presentations and the discussions that followed, three institutional enrolment-planning practices were identified:

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1. An institutional Planning Office with an elaborate institutional research

team and a formal planning office. 2. An Institutional Planner responsible for the coordination of the planning

function that is institutionalized. This office does not always have the necessary functional support to be able to produce data for effective planning.

3. Ad Hoc Planning. This practice is normally crisis driven and produces at best contingency plans.

4.3.4 Group Discussions The second day of the workshop commenced with a brief overview of the first day’s proceedings. This was followed by the participants breaking up into three groups, with each group facilitated by a chairperson appointed from among the delegates. The purpose of these breakaway sessions was to provide participants an opportunity to interrogate more thoroughly issues pertaining to student enrolment planning, execution and review with a view to identifying areas for further capacity development at institutional and regional levels. The next section presents the key issues and concerns that emerged during the breakaway sessions. Information pertaining to each thematic area is presented in terms of best practice, pitfalls and location. Thereafter, the recommendations of the group for further development at national and regional levels are outlined. 1. Student Enrolment: Planning Best Practice Enrolment planning should be premised on reliable data, which have been

analysed to provide pertinent information. This presupposes that the data have been captured accurately and analysed centrally.

Analysis of the external environment, as well as the internal, is required. Market research should identify niche areas. The Enrolment Plan should be linked to the Strategic Plan. The aim is an attainable targeted Enrolment Plan. The people who come

up with faculty projections should be confronted with their past actual enrolments to ensure realistic figures.

The parameters should be fixed in some way, so that comparisons with various sets of projections are possible.

Key Performance Indicators should be incorporated. They should be factors which the institution can control or influence, e.g. retention rates.

Enrolment projections should be benchmarked. Strategies for achieving the targets should be included. Business principles should be employed.

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Pitfalls

An inefficient Management Information infrastructure. Inaccurate data capture. Inaccurate data gathered by means of questionnaire surveys. An unrealistic Enrolment Plan. Business principles not applied. Enrolment planning regarded as a once-off event, not linked to Execution

and Review.

Location

If fragmentation is to be avoided and information properly linked to planning, there should be a centralised coordinating office with full-time staff dedicated to planning.

Issues of leadership, governance and management need to be clear to the organisation. This sets the parameters for faculties and divisions to plan.

In a model where authority and responsibility for planning is devolved to faculties, a flexible central body, such as a representative Advisory Committee, is needed to co-ordinate and synthesise plans.

The responsibility and authority of the central coordinating office or body needs to be clearly understood and recognised.

2. Student Enrolment: Execution

Best Practice

Enrolment projections should be linked to resource allocation and budgeting. The implementation of the enrolment plan itself should be resourced.

Recruitment and marketing, admissions, retention, student services and placement should be linked into a continuum.

The key role-players should be involved in implementing the plan, to ensure ownership.

Responsibility for various aspects of the process should be devolved so that implementation is spread across the institution.

It should be clear who is responsible for what. Actual enrolments should be continually monitored. Tracking mechanisms

with early warning signals should be in place to ensure timely intervention where necessary.

Location

A central coordinating structure like an Advisory Committee, with representatives from among those responsible for the various aspects of the process, is needed to oversee implementation.

A Central Applications Office can assist in ensuring a best fit for students seeking admission.

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Pitfalls

No communication and implementation of the plan. No central co-ordination and oversight. Responsibility for implementation not spread across the institution; Weak leadership. A tendency to blame scapegoats for failures because responsibility for

implementation is not clearly assigned. 3. Student Enrolment: Review

Best Practice

The review of enrolment performance should feed back to and inform the Strategic Plan and the Academic Plan.

Faculty enrolments should be reviewed against projections. It is not grounds for complacency if the total enrolment is on target, but individual faculty quotas are not met or are over-reached.

The review should include an assessment of how well the institution is keeping students in, and passing them through the system. Strategies for improvement should be devised, where necessary.

The review should take into account external factors such as the effect of AIDS, the available pool of matriculants with exemption, the available pool of candidates with mathematics and science etc.

Rigidity should be avoided.

Location

Both planning and implementation structures should be involved in the review process.

Pitfalls

No regular review process. No consideration of external factors in the review process.

4. Areas for Development National Level The Department of Education could consider: Developing the capacity of staff in Management Information and IT areas. Conducting a national audit of best practice in enrolment management. Facilitating the sharing of information on Recognition of Prior Learning and

how to make it work. Conducting workshops on the role of planners within institutions. Establishing a Planners’ Forum. Engaging in National Higher Education scenario planning.

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Regional Level

Consortia could collaborate in: Developing tracking models. Placement testing. Ensuring early academic advice in schools. Planning for Distance Education.

The participants further agreed that the institutional planners group established by CHET should actively pursue the identification of other planners whose expertise could be used to assist at institutional level when institutional needs require external assistance. It was further agreed that the planners group should prepare a list of enrolment planning guidelines to be made available system wide, and that this should include a guide for the development of three- year rolling plans. The guidelines should be developed with the input of the DoE and should be used as a benchmark for the National Department for the submission of institutional three-year rolling plans. Included in this, preferably a single publication, should also be a clarification/standardization of the planning terminology in use in South African Higher Education. Finally, it was strongly recommended that a similar workshop should be planned as soon as the Minister of Education makes an announcement on the national plan for the reconfiguration of Higher Education. 4.4 Evaluation of the National Skills Development Workshop This section of the report reviews the outcomes of the national skills development workshop. The information provided is based on an analysis of the evaluation questionnaires completed by participants. The majority of participants rated the overall performance of the workshops as having successfully met the stated aims and objectives. The ratings for the formal presentations ranged from good to excellent, with speakers from historically disadvantaged institutions generally receiving a much higher rating than their counterparts from historically advantaged institutions. When asked to comment specifically on the presentation that provided a contextual framework to student enrolment management, the participants were in general agreement that this was highly informative and relevant. In general the feedback received was that the workshop provided useful insights to the range of institutional approaches, and allowed for a more comprehensive understanding of what student enrolment means and its relation to strategic planning. The chairing and facilitation of the workshop were also rated positively. The following quotations are illustrative of general impressions as well as some suggestions for areas that probably require more coverage possibly in the form of follow-up workshops: Well thought through and eye opening. It was great. Very informative.

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It was enlightening and focussed, especially the practical experience that was shared.

Well organised - successful collaboration without tension. Distance education and life long learning paradigms should be added an

another item on the agenda for future workshops. We need to take into account the intervention of socio-economic failures in

the country, infrastructure development, geographic dispersion of resources, health etc.

Further discussion on entry/throughput/exit/database structures and software reports.

Some general remarks:

The workshop facilitators found it valuable to have established a design team (the planners group) to identify speakers and plan the agenda for this engagement. It has emerged as a South African best practice.

Participants welcomed the mix of speakers invited to the workshop. Future workshops must as a best practice include participants and

presenters from within and outside of the higher education institutional sector.

The value of having participants from both historically disadvantaged and advantaged institutions definitely helps to narrow the divide between the sectors and deepens learning.

4.5 National Institutional Planners Group This group was established for the purposes of guiding the content and format of the regional and national workshops and the selection of speakers. In addition this group met to identify future activities at the following levels of planning: national, regional and institutional. The above activities were executed in three nationally planned meetings held in Cape Town and Pretoria over a three-month period. The table below illustrates for each national institutional planners group meeting when and where the meeting was held, the number of participants and the specific outcomes achieved:

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DATE, VENUE & NO. OF PARTICIPANTS

INSTITUTIONS REPRESENTED

OUTCOMES ACHIEVED

First Planners Meeting Second Planners Meeting Third Planners Meeting

Venue: Peninsula Technikon Date: 03 May 2000 No. of participants: 6 Venue: CHET Date: 10 May 2000 No. of participants: 15 Venue: CHET Date: 17 July 2000 No. of participants: 17

Universities: Port Elizabeth Western Cape Cape Town Pretoria Rand

Afrikaans Technikons Peninsula M L Sultan

Consultants Other Bodies TELP CHET Dept. of Educ.

Understanding of

institutional and regional planning challenges;

Identification of current planning models.

Input from Prof.

Bunting on DoE planning expectations for 2000 –2002;

Design principles for a regional and national planning workshop;

Confirmed agenda for National skills workshop;

Implementation issues for regional and national engagements;

Content items for a planning guide book

Critical review of

regional and national planning workshops;

Comprehensive list of future planning activities;

Possible implications of the size and shape report for institutional planners;

Content, format and team for the planning guide

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5. THE WAY FORWARD It has become clear that the next period of developing a new higher educational landscape will see a stronger link between planning and budgets. This integrated budget-planning system will be key in managing the current system. In this regard the Department of Education is preparing a new funding framework which will be published by September 2000. The Department of Education is also working on developing a National Plan for Higher Education, which is to be completed by December 2000. It can then be assumed that by Jan-Feb 2001 the National Department of Education will be in a position to link planning and funding which will require considerable planning and financial skills from institutions and regions. Planning has by all accounts improved over the last two years and has been undertaken separately from institutional budgets. The new skills and abilities require planners and managers to link planning to budgeting within respective institutional visions. To this end the following are suggested as the possible planning needs for the future. These proposals are delineated in terms of national, regional and institutional needs. Within each level, the area/s of need is identified and the proposed activity to address the need/s suggested. Finally, a way forward is proposed with respect to the national institutional planners group. 5.1 National Level The purpose of future national workshop should be geared towards raising awareness on why planning and budgeting is linked and what competencies are needed to deliver planning in this regard. The following engagements are proposed for this purpose: Improving Data Management: This awareness workshop should be

geared towards increasing institutions' understanding on why they need to collect hard quantitative data and what benefits accrue in managing renewed institutional missions.

Mission Re-Engineering: This awareness workshop should be geared towards increasing institutional planners and senior management's understanding as to why institutional visions need re-work and how it fits with the proposals in the CHE Size and Shape report.

Integrated Planning And Budgeting: Increased understanding on how this new approach to planning and budgeting supports the new funding and report framework is needed before operational skills are developed. It becomes important to identify critical senior managers, academics and other stakeholders for this awareness engagement.

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5.2 Regional Level: The following workshops are recommended at a regional level to improve future planning capacity. These workshops should be seen as a follow-up to the national awareness workshop discussed above. A key lesson that was learnt from the last round of planning capacity engagements is the importance of all participants being thoroughly familiar with the context that gives rise to the need for skills development in specified areas. The above national engagements for data management, mission re-engineering and integrated planning and budgeting will focus participants on what particular skills will be required and why. The regional workshops, by contrast, are geared to be more practical in nature and focus mainly on skills development, that is on the how and what dimensions of planning. The following list of skill engagement workshops is proposed: How to plan, execute and review: institutional and regional information

and data management; institutional mission redesign; and integrated institutional 3-year rolling planning and budgeting.

An extensive educational system audit: to identify best practice planning approaches, systems, practices and policies in the areas of information management within planning, institutional vision, mission re-design and financial management systems. In addition the audit should indicate which institutions and professional have distinctive competencies in these areas.

How to increase public education market share: in the recruitment, retention and final employability of students. This workshop should be geared in the main towards the development of capacity of planners and managers, and should focus on how to execute competitive and co-operative institutional strategies amongst public institutions so as to manage better the growing presence of private sector institutions.

5.3 Institutional Level The primary objective at this level is to ensure that the outcomes of the national awareness workshops and the regionally planned skill engagements reach their intended audience, namely, the institutions, and that their benefits are realised institutionally. In essence there are two reasons that underscore the need to build capacity at an institutional level. First, the last cycle of planning has demonstrated the importance and absolute value of supporting institutions in implementing the ideas and recommendations that emerge from national and regional workshops within their own institutional context and settings. This support is best rendered by a combination of planning experts (that is, from both within and outside the institution) and should in the main be directed at the level of senior executives, Senates, Councils and other relevant decision-making bodies.

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Secondly, institutions will continue to receive a range of donor support over the next few years given the changing national higher education landscape. Currently, however, no one is coordinating the range of donor activity within this sector. Thus while some institutions may have a better sense of funding, very few institutions are managing the flow of external capacity, which is directed at strengthening internal institutional capacity. A key challenge would be for donors, consultants and capacity building agencies like CHET to collaborate and develop innovative strategies of working together so as to deliver more visible results at particular institutions where multi-funding exists. This in essence may require the identification of new planning competencies and the development of strategies to strengthen new approaches and mechanism within institutions. Thus an innovative approach to meeting future challenge is needed. A three-pronged approach to capacity development involving an educational alliance between donors, consultants and institutions is proposed, and the activity recommended is as follows. Identifying one/two institutions for capacity support: It is recommended that one or two institutions constitute the focus of multi-donor funding and external consulting support. It is further proposed that CHET and TELP facilitate a process where various donors can collaborate in co-funding a number of planning initiatives in a limited number of institutions. These project, would have a focus beyond generalities of planning and would deal with more fundamental planning imperatives such as: Developing or refining institutional specific enrolment planning models. Development of grounded strategies for dealing with anticipated and

unanticipated institutional crisis. HEMIS training, as part of a specific strategy at improving how data are

collected and managed. Engaging and supporting academic involvement in the planning process.

In sum, the primary purpose of this proposed intervention is to build institutional planning success stories, which is truly lacking within our system of higher education as a whole. Figure 1 provides a schematic representation of the recommended planning activities at the national, regional and institutional levels.

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FIGURE 1: SCHEMATIC REPRESENTATION OF THE RECOMMENDED PLANNING ACTIVITIES AT NATIONAL, REGIONAL AND INSTITUTIONAL LEVELS.

POSSIBLE PLANNINGACTIVITIES FOR THE FUTURE

PLANNEDPLANNEDOUTCOMEOUTCOME

SUGGESTEDSUGGESTEDACTIVITIESACTIVITIES

NATIONALNATIONAL

1. In depth Sharing of1. In depth Sharing ofCross cutting IssuesCross cutting Issues

2. Developing responses2. Developing responses to New Policy to New PolicyDevelopmentsDevelopments

SIZE AND SHAPESIZE AND SHAPEDOCUMENT:DOCUMENT:

PLANNING IMPLICATIONSPLANNING IMPLICATIONS

Data andData andinformationinformationmanagementmanagement

REGIONALREGIONAL

1. Improved institutional1. Improved institutionalco-operationco-operation

2. Increased2. Increasedexpertiseexpertise

and experience sharingand experience sharing

RESPONDING TO PRIVATEEDUCATIONAL STRATEGIES

CO-OPERATIONAROUND

RECRUITMENT &RETENTION

INSTITUTIONALINSTITUTIONAL

1. Building Successful1. Building SuccessfulInstitutionsInstitutions

2. Co-2. Co-ordinatingordinatingconsultant and donorconsultant and donor

capacity effortscapacity efforts

COLLABORATING WITHCOLLABORATING WITHHIGHER ED - DONORSHIGHER ED - DONORS

AND EXTERNALAND EXTERNALCONSULTANTS SO AS TO:CONSULTANTS SO AS TO:•Refine enrolment models

•Better manage crises•Hemis training

•Involve academicsin planning

AUDIT OF PLANNINGBEST PRACTICE

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5.4 The National Institutional Planners Group For the way forward, the following activities are recommended for the National Institutional Planners Group: The team undertakes to continue its role to guide the design of future

planning workshops at national and regional levels. The team should develop a cohesive strategy to work in one or two

focussed institutions where a number of donors have agreed to collaborate in strengthening institutional capacity.

CHET and TELP compile a list of consultants from both within and outside

higher education institutions and indicate their respective capacities and preferences of consulting engagements for the purposes of selection for future engagements. To this end, one could begin with the planners group already constituted.

It is further recommended that UNCF/TELP explore with CHET how this

information should be used in future and how this list of competencies is to be maintained and updated.

CHET, UNCF and the planners group collaborate in recording best

practice planning experiences, institutional approaches and develop a check-list on the “what to do and how to do” aspects of planning.

The group prioritises the writing of the manual/guide-book on planning for

current and future planners in the system. It is recommended that UNCF-TELP collaborate with other donors in

funding specific aspects of this book. This publication will document past UNCF-TELP planning best practices and signal to future planners how UNCF-TELP can support future planning endeavors.

Since this group's formation has been financed by the UNCF-TELP, it is

recommended that UNCF-TELP continue using this group to implement future planning engagements.

5.5 Concluding Remarks: The overall feedback, in terms of questionnaires and verbal comments, were very positive about the process and content of the workshops. As a project, for CHET and UNCF, there are a number of lessons to be learnt from this exercise. The following can be regard as Good Practices that we developed: 1. The extensive consultative phase that started with selected institutions and

then cascaded up to include regional directors, the Planning Group and the National Department of Education. Not only did the workshops have political legitimacy but also people felt that it had relevance. With each

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regional workshop being tailored to the particular region, it gave an impression of “customised” delivery.

2. Including the historically white institutions in the regional and national

workshops was welcomed by both historically advantaged and disadvantaged institutions. The latter accepted their ‘privileged’ status and not a single one objected to paying for their participants, even if their participants were black. The historically disadvantaged institutions accepted that regional and national planning cannot be conducted in isolation.

3. Commissioning a range of South African practitioners and assisting them

with their presentations received general acclaim. The exposure to a range of institutional practices, both from advantaged institutions, which have systems that are quite comparable to some of the best in the US, and disadvantaged institutions, where institutions are muddling through with limited resources, enabled everybody to engage – and to see benchmarks that all could relate to. It was also gratifying that in a number of cases the presenters from the disadvantaged institutions received higher ratings than their counterparts who come from institutions with much greater capacity. A number of participants commented that this was much more empowering than trying to engage with one more foreign expert telling us about a system of which we have no experience and we don’t even know if it can be applied in South Africa. And as stated by one participant: “at least we understand the accents and the problems”.

4. Using facilitators who have both facilitation skills and who are familiar with

the issues. Numerous positive remarks were made about our facilitators who could keep the meeting on track and contribute to the discussions.

5. The use of consultants who are engaged with, but not directly employed

by, national structures such as the Department of Education and the Council on Higher Education enabled ‘open’ discussion without anybody feeling defensive or constrained in what they said. Many participants said that ‘it was the first time that they were afforded the opportunity to engage with national planning issues in a context characterised by a lack of defensiveness and constraints”.

6. The establishment of the Planning Group provided a diverse range of

perspectives and expertise, which proved invaluable in determining the content and process of the workshops. In addition, this group is now identified as a crucial reference group for the compilation of a South African text of best practice in planning.

Numerous participants commented that UNCF, under new leadership, seems much more flexible and responsive to South African higher education issues. This is in contrast to the previous leadership who were obsessed with milestones formulated a number of years earlier. Overall, this has been s series of workshops that has received high praise.