Purdue University-West Lafayette
Freshman Recruitment,
Admissions, and Retention
President’s Forum
October 16, 2007
Topics
 The Pipeline
 Freshman Recruitment
 Purdue Trends in Freshman Admissions
 Retention and Graduation Rates
 Challenges, Strengths, Opportunities
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2
U.S. High School Graduates
3,000,000
2,500,000
2,000,000
1,500,000
1,000,000
500,000
0
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Students of Color
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2012
2013
2014
White
3
Midwest High School Graduates
800,000
700,000
600,000
500,000
400,000
300,000
200,000
100,000
0
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Students of Color
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2012
2013
2014
White
4
Indiana High School Graduates
70,000
60,000
50,000
40,000
30,000
20,000
10,000
0
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Students of Color
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2012
2013
2014
White
5
U.S. High School
Graduates of Color
1,200,000
1,000,000
800,000
600,000
400,000
200,000
0
2007
2008
2009
American Indian/Alaskan Native
6/28/2016
2010
2011
2012
Asian/Pacific Islander
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2013
Black
2014
Hispanic
6
Midwest High School
Graduates of Color
160,000
140,000
120,000
100,000
80,000
60,000
40,000
20,000
0
2007
2008
2009
American Indian/Alaskan Native
6/28/2016
2010
2011
Asian/Pacific Islander
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2012
2013
Black
2014
Hispanic
7
Indiana High School
Graduates of Color
14,000
12,000
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
2007
American Indian
6/28/2016
2008
2009
2010
2011
Asian/Pacific Islander
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2012
2013
Black
2014
Hispanic
8
All 2006 Indiana HS Grad SAT takers
All SAT Tested
Number
Tested
% of Total
SAT
CR+Math
Average
American Indian
216
0.52%
964
Asian
948
2.28%
1076
Black
2,459
5.92%
858
Latino
1,211
2.91%
932
White
33,575
80.77%
1020
Other
833
2.00%
1007
2,327
5.60%
1001
No Response
Total
6/28/2016
41,569
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
1007
9
2006 Indiana SAT takers with
HS GPA >= B- and SAT >= 1000
Self Reported GPA of B- A
and SAT of 1000-1600
Number
Tested
% of Total
SAT
CR+Math
Average
86
0.47%
1131
Asian
562
3.06%
1216
Black
375
2.04%
1111
Latino
354
1.93%
1135
White
15,987
87.12%
1156
Other
373
2.03%
1160
No Response
613
3.34%
1189
American Indian
Total
6/28/2016
18,350
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
1158
10
2006 Indiana SAT takers with
HS GPA >= B+ and SAT >= 1200
Self Reported GPA of B+- A
and SAT of 1200-1600
Number
Tested
% of Total
SAT
CR+Math
Average
22
0.39%
1256
Asian
265
4.66%
1350
Black
61
1.07%
1267
Latino
85
1.50%
1294
White
4,885
85.93%
1295
Other
119
2.09%
1307
No Response
248
4.36%
1319
American Indian
Total
6/28/2016
5,685
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
1299
11
2007 Recruitment by the Numbers
 242,712 Prospects
 87,692 Inquiries
 25,992 Applicants
 20,429 Admitted
 6,888 Enrolled
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
12
2007 Recruitment by the Numbers
 644 High School Visits
 696 College Fairs
 29 Out-of-State Receptions
 17,327 participants in Daily Campus Visits/Tours
 12,929 additional campus program visitors
 1,064,499 central admissions pieces mailed
 Estimated 300,000 + program specific pieces mailed
 296,764 recruitment emails
 59,836 incoming calls
 34,811 inbound emails
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
13
Freshman Application Volume
28,000
26,000
24,000
22,000
20,000
18,000
16,000
14,000
12,000
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
1998
Resident
6/28/2016
1999
2000
2001
2002
Domestic Nonresident
2003
2004
2005
International
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2006
2007
Total
14
Selectivity Rate
(% of Applicants Admitted)
88%
86%
84%
82%
80%
78%
76%
74%
72%
70%
68%
1998
6/28/2016
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2005
2006
2007
15
Yield Rate
(% of Admits Enrolled)
70%
65%
60%
55%
50%
45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
1998
1999
Resident
6/28/2016
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
Domestic Nonresident
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2005
2006
2007
International
16
New Freshman Enrollment
8,000
7,500
7,000
6,500
6,000
5,500
5,000
4,500
4,000
3,500
3,000
2,500
2,000
1,500
1,000
500
0
1998
1999
Resident
6/28/2016
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
Do mestic No nresident
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2005
Internatio nal
2006
2007
To tal
17
New Freshman Enrollment
of Students of Color
500
475
450
425
400
375
350
325
300
275
250
225
200
175
150
125
100
75
50
25
0
1998
1999
African American
6/28/2016
2000
2001
2002
Hispanic American
2003
2004
2005
Native American
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2006
2007
Asian American
18
SAT Average (Critical Reading + Math)
1160
1150
1140
1130
1120
1110
1100
1090
1080
1070
1060
1050
1040
1030
1020
1010
1000
990
980
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
Purdue SAT Critical Reading + Math
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
2005
2006
2007
IN Critical Reading + Math
19
Geographic Diversity of 2007
Freshmen
 Top feeder Indiana counties:
 Marion, Hamilton, Tippecanoe, Lake, and Allen
 Top feeder Indiana high schools:
 Carmel, Harrison, Hamilton, Southeastern, Lake
Central, West Lafayette, and Jefferson
 Top feeder states outside of Indiana:
 Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Texas, California, Wisconsin,
Missouri, Minnesota, New Jersey, and New York
 Top feeder countries outside the United States:
 South Korea, India, China, Indonesia, Taiwan, and
Malaysia
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
20
Big Ten Comparisons
Freshman 2006
Applications
Admissions
Enrolled
Selectivity
Yield
SAT
ACT
Illinois
22,367
14,438
7,172
65%
49.7%
1160-1410
25-30
Indiana
24,169
19,252
7,259
80%
37.7%
1000-1240
22-27
Iowa
14,350
11,880
4,289
83%
36.1%
1060-1320
23-27
Michigan
25,806
12,246
5,399
47%
44.1%
1210-1420
27-31
Michigan State
23,247
17,046
7,440
73%
43.6%
1030-1290
22-27
Minnesota
24,660
14,165
5,439
57%
38.4%
1120-1360
23-28
Northwestern
18,385
5,434
2,062
30%
37.9%
1320-1500
29-33
Ohio State
18,286
12,417
6,280
68%
50.6%
1090-1310
24-29
Penn State
34,813
20,181
8,039
58%
39.8%
1080-1280
NA
Purdue
24,883
21,042
7,518
85%
35.7%
1020-1250
22-28
Wisconsin
22,816
13,322
5,643
58%
42.4%
1170-1380
26-30
Source: US News and World Report America’s Best Colleges 2008
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
21
2007 Admitted Student Survey
 Reasons for selecting another institution
rather than Purdue (closed-ended responses)






6/28/2016
Stronger academic program for their interests
(54%)
More attractive location (39%)
Affordability (38%)
Better overall academic reputation (36%)
Would better serve career development (36%)
Closer to home (36%)
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
22
2007 Admitted Student Survey
 Open-ended responses from non-enrolling
admitted students



6/28/2016
57% of out-of-state students mentioned high
cost of out-of-state tuition/lack of scholarships
In-state students were looking for a smaller,
more personalized educational experience
Physical characteristics of Purdue’s campus
and surrounding community were negatives
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
23
2007 Admitted Student Survey
 Peer Comparisons




6/28/2016
Universities of Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin,
Ohio State, and IU account for 24% of nonenrolling Purdue-admitted students
An additional 7% enrolled at 8 other peers
Two-thirds enrolled elsewhere – outside of the
Big Ten, Purdue’s competition is diffuse
Higher-ability students more likely to enroll at
institution of higher academic standing (in
student’s estimation)
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
24
Retention and Graduation Rates
West Lafayette Full-Time Freshmen
Cohort Year
of Entry
Number in
Cohort
Retention Rate
1-Year
6/28/2016
2-Year
Cumulative Graduation Rate
4-Year
5-Year
6-Year
1996
6,529
82.9%
73.9%
33.4%
60.4%
65.9%
1997
6,603
84.6%
74.6%
35.5%
61.7%
67.3%
1998
6,844
82.6%
72.6%
34.9%
60.2%
65.6%
1999
7,119
84.8%
74.9%
36.1%
62.2%
68.0%
2000
6,588
86.4%
77.8%
40.2%
66.6%
71.9%
2001
6,720
85.9%
77.3%
39.2%
65.0%
70.7%
2002
6,383
86.4%
78.4%
39.9%
66.4%
2003
6,507
85.5%
77.0%
39.4%
2004
6,852
85.1%
76.4%
2005
7,270
84.0%
75.5%
2006
7,523
84.8%
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
25
Average Six-Year Graduation Rates
at Big Ten Public Universities
1998-2000 Cohorts
Big Ten Publics
Overall
Actual vs.
Predicted
African
American
American
Indian
Asian/
Pacific
Islander
Hispanic
American
Illinois
80.8%
7.3%
63.1%
70.7%
84.2%
66.8%
Indiana
71.5%
12.7%
51.0%
60.5%
72.5%
66.8%
Iowa
65.9%
5.0%
46.5%
48.4%
61.1%
57.5%
Michigan
86.7%
7.0%
70.3%
62.9%
89.4%
78.9%
Michigan State
74.9%
13.7%
58.9%
49.8%
71.1%
58.8%
Minnesota
59.3%
-5.0%
42.2%
28.6%
48.6%
45.6%
Ohio State
67.0%
5.0%
52.2%
53.8%
72.3%
57.3%
Penn State
86.7%
16.7%
70.1%
66.7%
83.0%
71.8%
Purdue
67.8%
6.7%
54.6%
37.6%
64.5%
55.4%
Wisconsin
79.0%
4.3%
56.0%
47.5%
70.1%
59.8%
Mean (excluding
Purdue)
74.6%
7.4%
56.7%
54.3%
72.5%
62.6%
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
26
Challenges
 Prospective students, especially high-ability and/or
financially secure, have many choices
 78% of Purdue’s 2006 freshman class said that
Purdue was 1st choice
 Students are applying to more schools – of Purdue
2006 freshmen 28% applied only to Purdue, 42.3%
applied to four or more


National average of applications is four, and for higherability students up to 10 or more
Yield much more difficult to predict than in past
 Increased competition EVERY year in recruitment
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
27
Challenges
 Increased competition with both merit and need
based financial aid



Indiana University is now guaranteeing “no loan”
program for admitted 21st Century Scholars
IU also offering automatic academic scholarships for all
students with 1150 SAT plus 3.7 GPA
Other examples include Michigan State, Ohio State,
Minnesota offering similar programs to non-residents
 Retention and graduation rates
 Increased competition for international
undergraduates and uncertain global situation
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
28
Examples of Purdue’s Strengths in
Recruitment and Retention
 Purdue’s visit programs and customer service highly





regarded
Campus-wide involvement in recruitment, particularly
by schools and colleges
Direct mail (historically among the best and most
frequent among peers; but competition increases
every year)
Overall academic reputation and well-known
reputation of some specific programs
Excellent reputation for employer relations and
placement
Highly regarded first-year programs recognized by
peers in U.S. News
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
29
Examples of Opportunities
 Increase out-of-state recruitment efforts; particularly





in “exporting” states, e.g. NJ, NY, CA, TX, FL
New recruitment activities
Integrated communication messages to focus on
outcomes and strength of Purdue programs across
the disciplines
New and improved web sites
Modify rolling admissions process and application for
admission (speed and ease not hallmarks of quality)
Alignment of merit and need-based financial aid with
enrollment goals
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
30
Additional Opportunities
 Create clear pathways and partnerships for transfer
students
 Retention studies to inform strategic assessment of
first and second year experiences and needed
changes to existing programs and/or addition of new
 Expand opportunities for personalized experience
through honors programs, additional faculty-student
research opportunities, and learning communities
 Expand partnerships to widen pipeline of wellprepared high school graduates, particularly lowincome, first-generation, and students of color
6/28/2016
Purdue University
Office of Enrollment Management
31