Core Concepts of SEM:
University of Michigan - Flint
December 9, 2014
Tom Green, Ph.D.
Associate Executive Director, Consulting and SEM
Overview
1. Definitions of SEM
2. Building and sustaining enrollments over time
3. Organizational and process frameworks
4. The strategic use of data in SEM
Core Concepts of SEM, UM – Flint, 12/2014
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What is Strategic Enrolment Management
(SEM)?
Enrollment management is an
organizational concept and a
systematic set of activities designed to
enable educational institutions to exert
more influence over their student
enrollments.
Hossler, 1990
Core Concepts of SEM, UM – Flint, 12/2014
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What is Strategic enrollment Management
(SEM)?
Strategic enrollment management is a
concept and process that enables the
fulfillment of institutional mission and
students’ educational goals.
Bontrager
Core Concepts of SEM, UM – Flint, 12/2014
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The Purposes of SEM are Achieved by…
1. Establishing clear goals for the number and types of students
needed to fulfill the institutional mission
2. Promoting students’ academic success by improving access,
transition, persistence, and graduation
3. Promoting institutional success by enabling effective strategic
and financial planning
4. Creating a data-rich environment to inform decisions and
evaluate strategies
Bontrager
Core Concepts of SEM, UM – Flint, 12/2014
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The Purposes of SEM are Achieved by…
5. Improving process, organizational and financial efficiency and
outcomes
6. Strengthening communications and marketing with internal and
external stakeholders
7. Increasing collaboration among departments across the campus
to support the enrollment program
Bontrager
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What is Strategic Enrolment Management
(SEM)?
SEM is an organizational mindset that
is focused on internal student success
and experiences and the external
environment as a means to more
effectively relate its institutional
mission and values to its key
stakeholders and audiences.
Green, 2014
Core Concepts of SEM, UM – Flint, 12/2014
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SEM Planning Framework
Sustainable
Enrollment
Outcomes
Tactics
Strategies
Enrollment Infrastructure
Strategic Enrollment Goals
Data Collection and Analysis
Key Enrollment Indicators
Institutional Strategic Plan
Bontrager/Green
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SEM Planning Framework
Sustainable
Enrollment
Outcomes
Tactics
Strategies
Enrollment Infrastructure
Strategic Enrollment Goals
Data Collection and Analysis
Key Enrollment Indicators
 Clarity of institutional
mission, vision, goals
 Core competencies
 Strategic direction
 Aggregate enrollment goals
Institutional Strategic Plan
Core Concepts of SEM, UM – Flint, 12/2014
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SEM Planning Framework
Sustainable
Enrollment
Outcomes
Tactics
Strategies
Enrollment Infrastructure
Strategic Enrollment Goals
Data Collection and Analysis
Key Enrollment Indicators
 Student categories: first
year, transfer, dual
enrollment, voc/tech,
continuing ed, face-toface/online, certificate, etc.
 Desired student groups:
racial/ethnic diversity,
academic ability, 1st gen
 Geographic origin: local,
regional,
 Recruitment, retention,
completion
 Institutional capacity
Institutional Strategic Plan
Core Concepts of SEM, UM – Flint, 12/2014
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SEM Planning Framework
Sustainable
Enrollment
Outcomes
Tactics
Strategies
Enrollment Infrastructure
Strategic Enrollment Goals
Data Collection and Analysis
Key Enrollment Indicators
 Internal benchmarks: KEI
numbers over the past 3-5
years
 Environmental scan
− Demographics
− Economics
− Market opportunities
− Competition
 Institutional research plan:
designated reports and
production schedule
Institutional Strategic Plan
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SEM Planning Framework
Sustainable
Enrollment
Outcomes
Tactics
 5-10 year KEI targets
Strategies
 Focus: the institution’s
desired future
Enrollment Infrastructure
Strategic Enrollment Goals
 Based on: mission, data,
and environmental scanning
Data Collection and Analysis
Key Enrollment Indicators
Institutional Strategic Plan
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SEM Planning Framework
Sustainable
Enrollment
Outcomes
Tactics
Strategies
Enrollment Infrastructure
Strategic Enrollment Goals
 Staffing: skill sets, strategic
deployment
 Systems: policies,
procedures, technology
 Capacity for making
effective enrollment
decisions : positions,
reporting lines, committees
Data Collection and Analysis
Key Enrollment Indicators
Institutional Strategic Plan
Core Concepts of SEM, UM – Flint, 12/2014
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SEM Planning Framework
Sustainable
Enrollment
Outcomes
Tactics
Strategies
Enrollment Infrastructure
Strategic enrollment Goals
Data Collection and Analysis
 Increase new students of
specified types
 Increase retention rates,
specifically by student
types
 Utilize emerging
technologies
 Financial aid/scholarships
 Academic programs: mix
and delivery systems
Key Enrollment Indicators
Institutional Strategic Plan
Core Concepts of SEM, UM – Flint, 12/2014
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SEM Planning Framework
 Marketing/branding
initiatives
Sustainable
Enrollment
Outcomes
Tactics
Strategies
Enrollment Infrastructure
Strategic Enrollment Goals
Data Collection and Analysis
Key Enrollment Indicators
Institutional Strategic Plan
 Academic program review
 Multilingual recruitment
materials
 Targeted interventions for
students in high risk
courses
 Enhanced academic
advising
 Streamlined admission
procedures
 Purchase a new CRM
system
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SEM Planning Framework
Sustainable
Enrollment
Outcomes
 Consistently meeting
goals over the long term
− Enabling more effective
campus-wide planning
Tactics
− Revisions to the
institutional strategic plan
Strategies
− Academic planning:
curriculum, faculty needs
Enrollment Infrastructure
Strategic Enrollment Goals
Data Collection and Analysis
Key Enrollment Indicators
− Facility planning
− Financial planning
 Achieving the institution’s
desired future
Institutional Strategic Plan
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SEM Process Framework
Performed by
Process steps
Align institutional strategic plan with
broad enrollment targets and desired mix of students
Implement action steps
Monitor progress,
Report results to campus and executive leadership
Smaller group of staff and faculty
adept at economics and data use
Goals recommended by SEM Recruitment
and Retention Councils; models developed
by Data Team
Executive Team
SEM Steering Committee
SEM councils and sub-committees
Develop action steps, accountability, and metrics
Mid-course
adjustments
New or revised goals
Approve strategic goals and enrollment projection
models
Changes
to goals
Use data results to establish
focused goals each for recruitment, retention,
service, etc., and enrollment projection models
Additional
requests, clarifying
questions
Data gathering and assessment:
Internal culture/ environment, student enrollment
behaviors and scan of external environment
Executive Team
SEM Steering Committee
Appropriate staff and
faculty departments
SEM Steering Committee
Chief Enrollment Officer
Green/Bontrager
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SEM Organizational Framework
Executive Team
Institutional strategic plan, approval and champions of strategic enrollment goals and initiatives
SEM Steering Committee
Long-term enrollment goals, securing the approval of strategies through appropriate
institutional channels, communication with Executive Team
Recruitment Council
Retention Council
Develop 3-4 strategic goals for new student
recruitment; review and approve sub-committee action
plans; recommend to SEM Steering Committee
Develop 3-4 strategic goals for retention and
graduation; review and approve sub-committee action
plans; recommend to SEM Steering Committee
3-4 Sub-Committees
3-4 Sub-Committees
Action plans, time lines and metrics for
each strategic goal
Action plans, time lines and metrics for
each strategic goal
Data Team
Environment scanning, student enrollment behavior research,
enrollment models, provide data to councils as needed
Green/Bontrager
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SEM Organizational Framework
President’s Cabinet/SEM Committee
Long-term enrollment goals, securing the approval of strategies through appropriate
institutional channels, communication with Executive Team
Recruitment Council
Retention Council
Develop 3-4 strategic goals for new student
recruitment; review and approve sub-committee action
plans; recommend to SEM Steering Committee
Develop 3-4 strategic goals for retention and
graduation; review and approve sub-committee action
plans; recommend to SEM Steering Committee
3-4 Sub-Committees
3-4 Sub-Committees
Action plans, time lines and metrics for
each strategic goal
Action plans, time lines and metrics for
each strategic goal
Data Team
Environment scanning, student enrollment behavior research,
enrollment models, provide data to councils as needed
Green/Bontrager
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UM – Flint SEM Plan timeline
1. December 2014
– Start data collection
– Data team starts work
– Determine other SEM team structures and personnel
2. January 2015
– Invite other team participants
– Continue data collection, analysis and environmental scanning
– Outsource retention data study?
3. February 2015
– Finalize SEM data.
– Plan SEM launch event.
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UM – Flint SEM Plan timeline
4. March 2015
– SEM plan launch
– Review retention data with faculty
– Charge SEM teams
– Create SEM goals
5. April 2015
– Validate SEM goals
– SEM strategies and tactics workshop
6. May 2015
– Continue/finish SEM strategies and tactics.
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UM – Flint SEM Plan timeline
7. June 2015
– Review and finalize SEM plan
– Plan SEM Plan reveal event for UM – Flint community
8. July 2015
– Reveal SEM plan to UM – Flint community
– Plan implementation and next steps.
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Using Data Strategically:
Some Key Topics and Questions
Benchmarking
1. What are appropriate retention/graduation rates for my
institution?
– College Results Online
– IPEDS/similar national data sources in Canada and other countries
2. Who are our enrollment peers and why?
– Do we have enrollment aspirational institutions and how do these
relate to our enrollment peers?
– What institutions will probably always be in our peer set?
– What is our application/ACT overlap?
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College Results Online sample results for UMF
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Environmental scanning
1. How are demographic trends impacting my institution today and
for the next five to ten years?
– The “Echo Boom” has passed traditional learning ages and will cycle
toward adult learning and graduate, then exit the prime HE years.
– Draining of the Great Plains; declines in the Northeast.
– Aging of the population, generally, in Canada and many US States.
– If our region is declining and we all plan to grow, who will “win and
lose” in this competition for students?
2. Can my institution compete in today’s adult learning market?
3. What is our long-range plan for online education?
– How does that fit into our institutional mission and vision?
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Actual and projected high school graduates
Source: WICHE, Knocking at the College Door: Projections of High School Graduates, 2012.
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Changes in racial/ethnic mix of high school
graduates
Source: WICHE, Knocking at the College Door: Projections of High School Graduates, 2012.
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Measuring and assessing enrollment at your
institution
1. Are you tracking KEI beyond one-year retention of freshmen,
entering student numbers or gross graduation rate?
2. How do you know if your enrollment/student success initiatives
are working?
– Do they have clear and measurable goals?
3. Have you identified the barriers to student success at your
institution?
– Multi-year, multivariate data analysis
– Why do students leave after earning 90+ credits but without a
degree?
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Student Mix:
Discussion
Guiding questions
1. What is the optimal overall size of UM – Flint?
2. What are metrics and goals for students from Flint schools?
3. What proportion of total enrollment should be made up of
graduate students?
4. What is the balance of new freshmen and new transfers in the
composition of the undergraduate student body?
5. What percentage of students should be out-of-state,
international?
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Guiding questions
6. Should the percent of enrollment by college change? How?
7. What percent of undergraduates should be Pell eligible?
8. What are your retention rate goals:
– For FTIAC?
– For transfers?
9. What reports or data do you need to make better decisions on the
mix of students in the next five years?
10.Other mix issues/goals?
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Thank you,
Tom Green, Ph.D.
Associate Executive Director,
Consulting and SEM
Tom.Green@aacrao.org
consulting.aacrao.org
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