Alumni are regularly solicited for time and money. Their alma maters are continuously finding more ways to engage them and keep them happy, but very few strategies involve engaging alumni in one of the most critical aspects of higher education: enrollment management.
Data shows that including alumni stories and outcomes in the recruitment process is effective. In a 2022 survey by RNL, 93% of private institutions and 88% of public institutions found it effective to showcase student/alumni stories and outcomes as part of their overall enrollment strategy.
Some institutions try to lean on this research and use alumni in their admissions and enrollment strategies by hosting in-person events that connect prospective or accepted students with alumni, conducting interviews, and providing testimonials. However, according to our surveys, many institutions also face barriers to successfully engaging alumni in the admissions process, such as time, staff resources, budget, and proprietary concerns from institutional advancement offices about alumni data.
So, how can institutions better integrate alumni stories into their enrollment strategies and meet their enrollment goals most effectively?
At Harpier, we approach this challenge by focusing on a couple of key points for prospective students and parents making enrollment decisions:
- Showcasing outcomes/ROI of enrollment: “Why should I enroll here vs. at another
institution?” - Individualising the enrollment experience: “How is what you are presenting relevant to ME?”
Our solution addresses these points by (1) inviting alumni to share their stories and (2) equipping admissions counsellors with a resource that helps them enhance their interactions with prospective students and parents.
Alumni are the perfect spokespeople for an institution in the enrollment context and can be a valuable resource for prospective students and parents. This only happens if they are given a voice and opportunity to contribute. That is why we have created a solution that empowers them to directly share their stories as well as their contribution preferences in an efficient and user-friendly way
Harpier’s platform allows alumni to determine their own level of involvement. Alumni can share their stories about their journey and experiences in text and/or video formats and even connect with prospective students if they are open to it, while advancement offices maintain control over their valuable alumni data.
We then provide admissions counsellors with a platform; a recommendation system that runs on a specifically designed algorithm connected to these gathered alumni stories and contribution preferences.
The platform enables the admissions counsellor to curate the right story at scale for every specific prospective student they are dealing with and even enables them to invite relevant alumni for direct interactions with prospective families.
This leads to more individualised enrollment experiences for all prospective students, boosting enrollment within the entire recruited class.
We have been interacting with alumni, and the results are clear: alumni want to give back if they are provided with a superior alumni experience. Over 85% of alumni going through our Story Onboarding Experience and completing sharing their story are also open to contributing at least 60 minutes of their time to enrollment activities.
Through Harpier, institutions now have a tool to engage alumni meaningfully, bringing together stories of outcomes at scale, leading to increased enrollment, engaged alumni, and a foundation for long-term institutional success.
This is a sponsored post by Robert Sovik – an EdTech entrepreneur empowering institutions to boost enrollment through innovative storytelling and technology.
