Recruitment in a Changing World Challenges and Opportunities

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Recruitment in a Changing World Challenges
and Opportunities

• Shona Perry-Maidment
• Memorial University of Newfoundland
• April 15, 2009

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Presentation Overview

• My Background Education Experience
• Memorial Recruitment Past
• Memorial Present Realities
• Recruitment Challenges (internal/external)
• Memorials Strengths
• Recruitment Opportunities Special Initiatives
• Recruitment An Interconnected Process

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Background Education Experience Highlights

• Memorial Graduate
• My Memorial/Student Experience
• Work experience
• T. A. Lench High School
• Student Affairs and Services
• Academic Unit
• Student Recruitment
• Canadian and International Exposure (via
  committees, presentations, travel, etc.)
• Presidents Award for Exemplary Service

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Recruitment The Past

• How do you know where youre going,
• if you dont know where youve been?

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Recruitment The Past

• The University (Pre/Early Recruitment)
• Limited recruitment /Few materials
• Advising focused
• Provincially centered
• The Student
• Generation X/Baby Boomers
• The Influencers
• Parents
• Guidance Counselors
• The Expectation
• We are here, they will come

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Recruitment Present Realities

• Technology
• The Millennial Student
• The Helicopter Parent and other Influencers
• Increased Competition
• Economic Downturn

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Recruitment Present Realities

• Technology / E-Recruitment
• Stealth Student (30 of applicants)
• Web 2.0 (Interactivity, personalized, authentic)
• Increased social networking role and immediate
  response mechanisms
• 55 of all teenagers who are online use social
  networks (e.g. Facebook, My Space, etc)
• Unis that put up sites on social networking sites
  to describe programs, campuses, and students
  Hot 67 Not 39
• Unis that advertise on social network sites
  Hot 53 Not 47
• Have you looked for a school on MySpace/
  Facebook
  Yes 33 No 67

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Recruitment Present Realities

• The Millennial Student (1982)
• Special (Wanted)
• Sheltered (Safety and well-being)
• Confident (Optimistic)
• Team Oriented (Everything in groups)
• Achieving (Goal focused)
• Pressured ( To succeed)
• Conventional (Identify with parental values)

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Recruitment Present Realities

• The Helicopter Parent Recruit me Recruit my
  family
• More than 50 of uni bound high school students
  describe their parents/guardians as very
  involved in their post-secondary plans (5 not
  involved)
• 82 final decision is joint decision between
  students and parents
• Characteristics
• Problem solving
• Protective
• Involved
• Intelligent
• Demanding

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Recruitment Present Realities

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Recruitment Present Realities

• The Helicopter Parent
• 90 parents rely on websites to do majority of
  research (Implication Parents Website)
• 27 parents have said they would consider filling
  out forms as a student or have already done so.
• Service expectations
• Who will take care of my son/daughter
• Want details on web
• Address Issues of Safety and High Quality of
  Programs and Services

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Recruitment Present Realities

• Economic Downturn
• Scholarship awards
• Increased institutional costs (e.g. provision of
  resources)
• Do more with less
• Increase post-secondary enrolments
• Positives
• Students looking for less expensive unis
• Memorials GSS 2003-2007 said 83 said financial
  affordability played big role in decision to
  enroll
• During Great Depression, enrolments increased by
  10

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Recruitment Present Realities

• Increased Competition Canada
• CNA growing support for the trades (20
  increase)
• Atlantic Universities
• UPEI dropped tuition rates
• NB govt frozen tuition, 20,000 tax rebate,
  4000 bursary
• EduNova Consortium
• Universities competitions and new/creative
  scholarships (e.g. Lakehead University free
  tuition 95)
• Ontario 25,000 extra spots required in next 15
  years
• BC
• 5 additional universities
• 33 of all international students within Canada

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Recruitment Present Realities

• Increased International Competition (e.g.
  Singapore to attract 150,000 university students
  by 2015)
• Other factors
• National support for recruitment (e.g.
  Australia 3.5 million campaign in spring 2009)
• Visa processing
• Brand recognition

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Recruitment Challenges Internal

• Limited Resources
• Office and Classroom Space
• Housing Concerns
• Scholarship/Awards
• Admissions Processing Resources
• Services for Students
• Support for Staff and Faculty

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Recruitment Challenges External

• Misconception about the cost (and value) of
  university degree
• Location ( ?)
• Out-migrationdropping numbers esp. in Atlantic
  Canada
• 4 decline in HS graduates in NL and an
  additional 4 decline of those eligible
• 5.5 decline in uni enrolments in Maritimes since
  2004-2005 (2008 Maritime Higher Education
  University Enrolment Statistics )
• 10 decline in Maritime university enrolments
  between 2008-2018 (Trends in Maritime Higher
  Education, Surveying the Enrolment Landscape)

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Recruitment Challenges

• Insanity is doing things the same way you have
  always done and expecting the same results.
• Roger Milliken

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Recruitment Our Strengths

• Memorial a focal point for research and academia
  
• Strong academic programs and student services
• Quality life style
• Favorable tuition rates
• Growing interest in recruitment and retention by
  all
• Resilience and resourcefulness within Memorial/
  province
• Unique geographic/academic position
• University of choice

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Recruitment Opportunities

• Collaborative efforts with CNA and other colleges
• Tapping into younger grades (e.g. Grade 9
  Project)
• Use of faculty, staff, current students, alumni,
  etc.
• Partnerships with others within and outside
  province (Schools/Universities/Colleges, Dept of
  Ed and others, agencies, embassies, etc)
• Expertise/successes in distance learning
  applications (e.g. rural students, mature
  learners, etc.)
• Continue to identify key markets with potential
  (e.g. Ontario, special cohort groups, etc.)

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Recruitment Opportunities Key Groups

• Aboriginal students
• Community based education
• Community relevance
• Balance expectations from 2 cultures
• Adult Learners
• Career focused
• Late 30s early 40s
• Highly credentialed
• Flexibility key

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Recruitment Opportunities Key Groups

• International
• Growing market
• Greatest potential
• Requires extensive effort, resources, training
  and student services
• Difficult to reach but can bring diversity,
  economic spinoffs and overall added value to
  educational experience

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Recruitment Opportunities

• International
• Collaborative efforts with CNA
• Memorials strong international connections
• Research, MOUs, articulation agreements, etc.
• Connections with international organizations e.g.
  Council of International Schools, University of
  the Arctic, etc.
• Memorials seen as affordable, safe, and good
  quality

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Recruitment Opportunities Special Initiatives

• Noel Levitz Work
• Recruitment Planning Process university wide
• Enrolment planning review
• Comprehensive campus wide approach with campus
  focus
• Data Driven Strategy for planning and measuring
  success
• Comprehensive review of Recruitment Module,
  BANNER
• Focus on key constituents
• Parents
• Guidance Counselors
• Other influencers

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Recruitment Opportunities Special Initiatives

• Articulated and streamlined communications
  processes (e.g. Conversion project)
• Interactive and responsive media (e.g. MUNLive,
  videos, social networking, etc.)
• Enhanced campus tour program (e.g. New Welcome
  Centre)
• Relationship building with
• counselors (e.g. GC advisory council, tours,
  etc.)
• agents (e.g. handbooks, tours, etc)
• parents (e.g. website)

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Recruitment An Interconnected Process
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Numbers Can Help Tell The Tale
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Recruitment Future

• Forecasting is difficult, especially about the
  future.
• Niels Bohr

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Recruitment A Necessity
If you want one year of prosperity, grow
grain. If you want 10 years of prosperity, grow
trees. If you want 100 years of prosperity, grow
people. Chinese Proverb
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Recruitment in a Changing World
Questions? Shona Perry-Maidment shona_at_mun.ca 73
7-7535