Enrollment Management
Vision, Ideas on Issues,
Approach and Outlook
Laura Stoll
Interim Vice Provost and Dean of Enrollment Management
Missouri University of Science and Technology
August 28, 2011
Historical Review of Enrollment
Management
• Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890 established land-grant
institutions making college education a more attainable goal.
• The “Registrar” was introduced to coordinate all nonacademic tasks.
• Other administrative areas developed as the post WWII
boom hit and subsided.
• Reauthorization of the Higher Education Act in 1972
distributed aid to the student rather than the institution.
• Competition for students and the need to coordinate the
efforts of various offices brought about “Enrollment
Management”. Schulz and Lucido – USC Center for
Enrollment Research, Policy, and Practice
Historical Review of Enrollment
Management
• The websites of the Missouri S&T peer
institutions show a diversity of organizational
structure of Enrollment Management.
• In general the offices include Admissions,
Registrar, and Financial Assistance. Less
frequently seen are Pre-College Programs,
International Affairs, Marketing, New Student
Programs, WLI, Communications, Technology
Services, and Testing.
Vision of Enrollment Management
The strategic management of recruitment,
enrollment, and retention activities that lead
to a successful outcome for students seeking a
higher education experience, while meeting
the established goals and objectives of the
University.
Vision of Enrollment Management
• Coordinate the functions of the various units
within Enrollment Management.
– Silo effect resulting in inefficiencies without
Enrollment Management structure
– Unit actions interrelated through an enterprise
data system
Major Issues to be Addressed in
Enrollment Management - Recruitment
• National decline among high school seniors
interested in Engineering (ACT, Inc.)
– Pre-college programs to increase interest in STEM
– Diversify student body – increase minority
enrollments, females students, and nonengineering
• Decrease in the number of Missouri high
school graduates (WICHE)
– Identify emerging markets and move quickly to
capture them – international and out-of-state
Major Issues to be Addressed in
Enrollment Management - Recruitment
• Competition for students - Limited financial
resources, scholarship cut-backs, and the
continuing rise in the cost to attend college
– Program awareness
– Financial Aid leveraging
– Private giving as source of scholarships
– Return on investment / Outcomes
– Continue to set the bar for process efficiency
Major Issues to be Addressed in
Enrollment Management - Retention
• Preparedness of entering students
– 74% of Missouri ACT-tested high school graduates
in 2011 did not meet one or more readiness
benchmark levels. (ACT College Readiness
Report).
– Identify students early and provide academic
support programs
– Coordination with other offices on campus –
teamwork
Major Issues to be Addressed in
Enrollment Management - Retention
• Impact of the economy – Retention rates at 2year increasing while they are decreasing at 4years schools. (ACT National Retention and
Persistence to degree rates report).
– Give the students value for their dollars –
academic and student life
– Emphasize return on investment
– Keep the caring approach of our midsize campus
Major Issues to be Addressed in
Enrollment Management
• Reliance on student fees to balance the
campus budget
– Stabilize enrollment, avoid large increases and
decreases
– Capacity issues – faculty, classrooms
– Quality control – curriculum management, degree
requirements, accreditation
Major Issues to be Addressed in
Enrollment Management
• Resource drain of Federal, State, and
University of Missouri System mandates
– Access to Success, Complete College America,
Financial Aid Regulations, Net Price Calculator,
e-learning, and the Portal
– Involvement in national professional organizations
to help understand, implement, and comply
Approach to Enrollment Management
• The chief enrollment officer leading the division
and assisting the campus in achieving the
strategic enrollment goals
• Networking with other universities and
professional organizations to capture best
practices
• Interacting with our students, listening to them,
assuring they are not impacted by barriers that
will prevent the successful completion of their
degree
Approach to Enrollment Management
• Investigate revenue sharing for the on-campus
programs
• Impacts on net revenue, beyond the discount
rate
• Making data driven decisions
• Looking outward with recruitment, but also
inward on campus for student retention and
graduation
Approach to Enrollment Management
• Leadership
– Assisting the units in the division with their
operational goals.
– Represent the interests of the division to the
administration and the campus.
– Emphasize teamwork and celebration of success.
– Mentor and grow leaders.
Outlook
While the issues in Enrollment Management
seem daunting, our campus has top ranked
programs, exceptional students, and quality
faculty and staff. Working together as a team,
we have limitless capabilities.
"It isn't the changes that do you in, it's the
transitions. Change is not the same as
transition. Change is situational: the new site,
the new boss, the new team roles, the new
policy. Transition is the psychological process
people go through to come to terms with the
new situation. Change is external, transition
is internal"
William Bridges from Managing Transitions