International Students: Best Practices for
Recruitment, Admission, and Retention
ACCU Annual Meeting
Washington, D.C.
February 2013
An Overview
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Start with mission & strategic goals
Set realistic goals
Let data drive your decisions
Engage the campus (not just an admissions
effort)
• Identify sustainable strategies
• Understand the infrastructure needed
An extension of our Missions
• Mission statements, core values & vision;
strategic plans/initiatives; student outcomes
• Mission/Vision make the case for why and can
help develop plans for the “how”
• Recruiting international students only for the
extra revenue they generate can lead to an
unfocused and ineffective set of activities
Setting Realistic & Data Driven Goals
• Key element of any enrollment conversation is
“how many”
• External data and competitor data will help
inform the goal setting process
• Identifying current international enrollment,
tracking institutional “footprint”, inventorying
faculty connections, coordinating with alumni,
as well as using external data is critical
Engage the Campus
• Having an effective international strategy is
not just the responsibility of the admissions
office
– Study abroad and exchange programs
– Global partnerships
– Faculty connections
• Goal setting should be realistic, spread across
at least three years and can include much
more than simply new freshman
Identify Sustainable Strategies
• Take advantage of group tours: NCCAA’s Latin
America tour, Wren & Fida, Linden Group , etc
• Develop recruiting material with international
specifics
• Coordinate travel across the campus
• Reach out to educational centers, government
agencies (Washington, DC and abroad)
• Have a policy for working with agents
Identify Sustainable Strategies
• Partner with other schools
• Electronic communication and social media
• Personal follow up outside of traditional
communication flow
• Relationships with schools, counselors,
government agencies take time
• Connect with international organizations such
as NAFSA
International Infrastructure
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Dedicated admissions staff member
International recruitment material
Credential evaluation (application processing)
Designated School Official (DSO)
Coordination of “acceptable programs”
Collection of payments electronically
Academic placement tools
International Enrollment Success
• Our missions & strategic plans provide the
framework
• Campus collaboration & data help form the
goals and expectations
• Sustainable and consistent strategies help
execute the plan
• Building the proper infrastructure ensures
success