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Recommendations for Strategic Enrollment Management & MarketingCreating Strategic OrganizationsMany
of the problems associated with the recruitment and retention of students in
post-secondary institutions can be attributed to traditional organizational
structures where individual departments operate as separate units.
The emphasis on increasing enrollment and retention, in traditional
post-secondary institutional structures, often falls on recruitment and
admissions departments. Staff and
faculty working in the classroom or advising office often do not consider
themselves as part of “retention” efforts.
This is changing as retention research demonstrates that strategic
enrollment management, a coordination of practices across all areas of student
activity, is necessary for increased retention and graduation rates (Hossler,
Bean & Assoc., 1990).
Likewise, increasing adult education enrollment and retention should be
seen as a holistic project, including advertising, recruitment, assessment,
instruction, student to student interactions, and coordination with other social
service and educational programs. Changing promotional materials or designing a
new retention program in the classroom will only be successful if all other
aspects of the program are also considered. In addition, the public sees adult education services as part of a continuum of educational and vocational choices, both formal and informal. Management of adult education enrollments should consider that continuum. Most importantly, adult education programs must reconsider their public image and make efforts to update that image to reflect local priorities above and beyond GED preparation. For example, in areas of ample employment opportunities this might mean emphasizing basic skills upgrades for older workers seeking advancement, working with employers and employment services to satisfy their certification needs. In an area of low employment, however, an emphasis on family or community education might be more appropriate. The goal is to recognize innovative and flexible ways of running and organizing your program.
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