Paving the Way for Greater Access –Effectively Communicating with Parents and Students

Madeleine Rhyneer Vice President for Enrollment ManagementAlbion College

Engaging parents creates greater opportunity for recruitment and enrollment, as well as improved student retention

Key findings:Communication and influence

Overview of studies on college costs, parental influence, and communication preferences

Online surveys of students and parents of prospective studentsStudents

- 6,372 participants- 2012 enrollment cycle

Parents - 4,878 participants from two surveys- Survey 1: Focused on parental influence and communication preferences – 2,832 participants during 2012 enrollment cycle- Survey 2: Focused on college options, cost, and decision criteria – 2,046 participants during 2013 enrollment cycle

A few key findingsfrom students

43.1% of studentshave a smartphone

56.2% of parents have a smartphone

90.8% of students have a cell phoneor smartphone

Among the students who own smartphones:

94.0% also own a laptop or desktop computer.

42.1% have a smartphone, desktop computer, and laptop.

Devices used

Devices used – longitudinal data

18.1%

22.3%

43.1%

Growing Smartphone Ownership Among Students

2012

2011

2010

Emails Letters Printed brochures

Institutional websites

Virtual video tours

Social networks

Viewbooks Mobile-friendly websites

0.0

20.0

40.0

60.0

80.0

100.0

Necessary for Students Necessary for Parents

Channels students view as necessary for colleges to use

Texting to mobile phones

Online discussion

forums

Blogs Instant messaging

Streaming videos

Video chats Wikis Audio/video casts

RSS feeds0.0

20.0

40.0

Necessary for Students Necessary for Parents

Channels students view as less necessary

A few key findingsfrom Parents

The primary areas of parental influence

Mean scores are based on a 5-point scale, where 1 = no influence and 5 = significant influence.

Top Four Answers Mean Score

How much is spent on your child’s college education 4.38

The amount of debt the family will incur for your child’s education 4.37

The amount of personal debt your child will incur 4.10

Whether your child contributes personal funds to pay for college 3.91

Bottom Four Answers Mean Score

The distance from home to the school your child attends 2.85

The environment (urban, rural, suburban) of the school your child attends 2.77

The size of the school your child attends 2.61

What academic major your child pursues 2.56

How parents engage in college choice

• Talked with child about schools being considered

• Searched for information on a college’s website

• Read printed materials colleges sent to child

• Read email messages sent directly to parent

• Helped child compare options by weighing the pros and cons of different schools

• Talked with child about different college majors

• Talked with child about financing college

Reported by 75% or more of parents responding

How parents get the information they need

• 85.4% by searching on college websites

• 84.3% by reading materials mailed to them and/or their child from colleges

• 81.0% by reading email sent to them and/or their child

• 75.0% by searching for information online using popular search engines

When parents want specific information

FreshmanYear

SophomoreYear

Junior Year

SeniorYear

Costs (e.g., tuition, housing, fees) 76.9% 49.8% 73.3% 52.4%

Financing college 75.0% 40.6% 58.7% 34.8%

Financial aid 73.5% 43.1% 62.1% 47.1%

Scholarships 70.4% 46.0% 65.3% 46.2%

General information about the college 64.9% 44.1% 48.8% 15.0%

Application dates/deadline reminders 59.1% 21.4% 49.6% 60.6%

Room and board options 56.5% 26.9% 44.2% 50.3%

Housing options 54.4% 25.7% 43.8% 49.4%

Location of the school and area around it 47.3% 27.8% 39.4% 14.3%

Degree programs 41.6% 27.3% 37.9% 12.3%

Majors/minors 38.6% 24.4% 34.1% 11.4%

Career opportunities related to specific majors 26.5% 21.7% 29.5% 17.2%

Parents want to receive information directly from colleges as well as view materials sent to their child

73.4%

13.7%

12.9%

Parent communication preference Sent to Parent Sent to Student Sent to Parent and Student

How most parents prefer to receive information

Primary Channel Secondary Channel

Costs Mail Web

Financing college Mail Email

Financial aid Mail Email

Scholarships Mail Email

General information about the college Mail Web

Application deadline reminders Email Mail

Campus safety Web Email

Room and board options Web Mail

Housing options Web Mail

Another view

Email Mail Web Phone

Costs (e.g., tuition, housing, fees) 62.4% 73.2% 67.7% 11.6%

Financing college 56.3% 66.6% 52.9% 23.1%

Financial aid 61.6% 70.8% 51.3% 34.7%

Scholarships 65.2% 67.9% 50.7% 38.2%

General information about the college 46.0% 62.0% 56.6% 12.1%

Application deadline reminders 80.3% 44.3% 39.8% 45.1%

Campus safety 43.1% 40.9% 63.4% 15.0%

Room and board options 45.0% 55.2% 60.3% 6.9%

Housing options 44.4% 53.7% 61.1% 7.5%

Some popular digital channels … not so popular

• Just 1.7% have followed a school on Twitter

• Just 2.6% have used online chat with a school representative

• Just 4.9% have used RSS to subscribe to school updates

Overall, parents are unlikely to rely upon blogs, podcasts,chats, wikis, and other social digital channels

• Parents believe they have the most influence over the financial aspects of college choice

• Parents desire information, and they also want their children to have information

• With each entering class, parents are more likely to be Internet savvy and increasingly mobile in their use of technology

Key insights

Desired content will vary throughout the college search• Financial planning and feasibility > freshman year• General college information > sophomore year• Specific schools, majors, careers, scholarships and financial aid >

junior year• Applications (tips and deadlines), enrollment, housing > senior year

Key insights

Key findings:College cost and considerations

College cost is a concern, but it is not the only thing parents are worried about when considering their child’s college choice.

What makes you most concerned or anxious about your child’s college choice? Mean

The cost of attending first-choice school 1.57

Whether he/she will be admitted to first-choice school 1.77

The cost of attending any college 1.87

If the college where he/she enrolls will be a good fit 1.88

How much financial support will be provided 2.06

Whether he/she will be successful in college 2.07

His/her personal safety on campus 2.20

His/her exposure to drugs and alcohol on campus 2.30

Whether he/she will be able to get a job after graduation 2.40

Whether the cost of attendance will increase after enrollment 2.60

Means are based on rankings from 1 to 3, where 1 indicates greatest concern.

Key finding #1

Other expressed concerns include:• Debt their child would have upon graduation

• Their child’s ability to complete college in four years

• Whether their child will be admitted to graduate school after college

Additional concerns

More than one in four parents are unsure about how much they will invest annually in their child’s education.

What is the maximum amount you would pay from income and savings and/or with borrowed funds per year?

Total Amount

Income and Savings

Borrowed/ Loan Amount

Percent Percent Percent

Unsure/don’t know 28.0 22.2 30.2

$5,000 or less 9.8 15.3 18.7

$5,001-$10,000 8.3 15.0 18.7

$10,001-$15,000 9.3 11.7 11.2

$15,001-$20,000 9.1 6.9 7.0

$20,001-$25,000 8.6 8.1 4.0

$25,001-$30,000 7.1 6.3 3.6

$30,001-$35,000 3.3 2.6 0.6

$35,001-$40,000 3.6 2.7 1.2

$40,001-$45,000 2.3 2.0 1.4

$45,001-$50,000 3.6 2.2 1.2

More than $50,000 7.0 5.2 2.0

Key finding #2

 

Income and Savings Amount Borrowed/Loan Amount

Without 4-Year Degree With 4-Year Degree Without 4-Year Degree With 4-Year Degree

Percent Percent Percent Percent

Unsure/don’t know 33.7 18.3 39.8 26.3

$5,000 or less 23.8 14.1 10.8 20.6

$5,001-$10,000 13.9 15.2 10.8 21.0

$10,001-$15,000 11.9 12.4 17.2 10.4

$15,001-$20,000 6.9 6.9 9.7 6.7

$20,001-$25,000 5.0 9.2 2.2 4.2

$25,001-$30,000 3.0 6.9 2.2 3.8

$30,001-$35,000 1.0 2.7 1.1 0.6

$35,001-$40,000 0.0 3.4 1.1 1.5

$40,001-$45,000 0.0 2.2 0.0 1.9

$45,001-$50,000 1.0 2.7 2.2 1.3

More than $50,000 0.0 6.1 3.2 1.9

More than one in four parents are unsure about how much they will invest annually in their child’s education.

Key finding #2 – by educational attainment

Key finding #2 – by type of schools under consideration

51%

17%

8%

24%

Considering Public Only

40%

11%6%

43%

Considering Private Only

Unsure/don’t know

$15,000 or less

$15,001-$30,000

$30,001 or more

Parents will rely on a number of different resources to cover college costs. • Parents indicated the portion of total education costs they

expect to be covered by different sources– Grants and scholarships– Income and savings– Borrowed funds/loans

Key finding #3

Key finding #3 – expected funding by sources – some or all

0.0%

20.0%

40.0%

60.0%

55.7% 53.9%

37.9%

0.0%

2.0%

4.0%

6.0%

8.0%

10.0%

9.4%

5.4%

2.4%

Parents who expect a portion of child’s education to be funded

from each source

Parents who expect 100% of child’s education to be funded

from each source

Income/savings

LoansGrants/scholarships

Income/savings

Grants/scholarships

Loans

Without4-Year Degree

With4-Year Degree

Percent Percent

Academic grants and scholarships (funds that will NOT need to be repaid) 40.9 36.7

Funds from your income 22.1 27.1

Funds your child will borrow (including student loans provided by the school) 29.5 23.1

Funds from your savings other than college savings plans 10.9 23.1

Other grants and scholarships (funds that will NOT need to be repaid) 21.0 20.8

Funds from a 529 or other college savings plan 8.5 22.5

Funds you will borrow (bank loans, home mortgage, credit cards, PLUS loans) 23.0 19.6

Athletic grants and scholarships (funds that will NOT need to be repaid) 19.6 12.9

Funds provided by relatives and friends 4.1 9.2

Your child’s income and/or savings 7.2 8.1Percentages represent the portion of the total education costs parents expect to be covered by each source.

Key finding #3 – expected funding by educational attainment

Parents may be waiting too late in the college search process to enable optimal decisions that balance cost and quality.

When parents are most likely to focus on college costs Percent

Costs will come into play only after the admission decision and financial awards are received. 50.6

I am considering cost of attending throughout the college search process. 33.4

Cost of attending will be/was considered during the application phase. 11.4

Unsure/don’t know 2.6

Key finding #4

The school characteristics parents value most are ones that will set their child up for success – in school and upon graduation.

When you think about college costs and what your child gets for the price you pay, what would you say is most valuable to you? Mean

Excellence in teaching 1.66

Successful job placement after college 1.90

Strong support services for students’ academic success 1.95

Successful graduate school placement after college 2.00

National/international reputation 2.01

Strong institutional traditions 2.02

Small class sizes 2.12

Safe and secure campus environment 2.19

Modern, state-of-the-art classrooms, laboratories, and other academic resources 2.19

Means are based on rankings from 1 to 3, where 1 is most valuable.

Key finding #5

Parents want information about costs throughout their child’s high school career, but more seem to expect it in the student’s junior year.

Student’sFreshman

Year

Student’sSophomore

Year

Student’sJunior

Year

Student’sSenior

Year

Percent Percent Percent Percent

Sources of funds to pay for college 34.8 25.4 43.7 35.0

Costs (e.g., tuition, fees, housing) 32.1 33.7 68.8 45.9

Financial aid 29.3 22.1 47.1 46.1

Scholarships 29.3 27.2 60.0 54.3

Key finding #6

Parent engagementstrategies in practice

Global strategies for parent communications

• Building communication campaigns specifically for parents

• Providing financial information to support discussions within households

• Designing on-campus events for parents

• Strengthening your website with a parent “portal”

• Maximizing online search outcomes (SEO efforts)

The case at Albion College

A few examples:

• Email campaign throughout admission process

• On-campus and online events for parents

• Structured faculty/parent interaction during campus visit programs

• Web and print promotion of “The Albion Advantage” and alumni success stories

• Mail piece to parents debunking the myth that college is too expensive and not worth the investment

• Flyer included in each visit packet for students/parents on campus describing paying for college as a partnership where the parents, the college/university, the student, and perhaps the state/federal government all play a role.

Albion has 4,531 parent email addresses from last year’s Search. These will be used to communicate with parents in the future.

Parent Email SubmissionsSearch 2013

ProvidedParent Email

4,53146%

NoParent Email

5,27154%

Albion is focusing efforts on trying to collect parent email addressesto make a more holistic experience

The case at Albion College

ProvidedParent Email

4,53146%

NoParent Email

5,27154%

Can parental involvement improve application submission rates?

• Test goal– Can we increase the application submission rate by sending

email deadline reminders to the parents?

• Test setup

– Control group – emails sent to only the prospective students

– Test group – additional emails sent to the parents

The case at Albion College

Questions?