Every year, educations.com helps to inspire over 2.5 million prospective students to follow their dreams and change their lives by studying abroad. As the world continues to get smaller and travel becomes more accessible, the number of students longing to study abroad will only continue to grow.
Last year we released our International Higher Education Report of Student Trends to gain a better understanding of what prospective students are looking for when it comes to studying abroad. And this year we have done it again!
To get you started off on the right foot when it comes to student recruitment in 2019, we are going to give you a sneak peek at our findings from our International Higher Education Report: Student Trends 2019. Based on the findings from our survey, here are 3 tips to help you better understand, communicate and recruit more potential students in the new year!
1. Target students at a young age
Every year college admissions get more and more competitive. Due to this, not only are students forced to start thinking about where they want to attend earlier, they are also starting to expand their range and apply for full degrees at colleges abroad.
According to our 2019 survey, a majority of the students interviewed said that they either studied or wanted to study a full program at a bachelor or masters level, rather than just a semester. In addition, most students claimed that they knew they wanted to study abroad in high school.
If you want to get a competitive advantage in student recruitment in 2019, focus on attracting high school students early! Convince them that studying abroad at your college is the right choice before they even start thinking about applications.
2. Know what motivates students
In order to attract students to your university, know what motivates them to study abroad! Of the students interviewed, the top 2 reasons that students choose to study abroad is to experience a new culture or lifestyle or develop themselves personally. In addition, our study revealed that, the main reason that students choose to study abroad, second after family recommendations, is student stories from studying abroad.
If you want to attract students in 2019, then make student stories one of your top marketing priorities. Real in new candidates by showing first-hand accounts of how past students have embraced a new culture and developed personally at your university.
3. Crush students’ biggest fear
According to our survey, the biggest fear that students have about studying abroad is finances. The question of affordability is one of the main reasons students don’t pursue an education abroad.
Crush student fears and give them hope that studying abroad is a possibility in 2019, by marketing scholarship opportunities whenever you can. Show students that studying in another country is accessible by using stories from students who have successfully studied abroad due to earned scholarships.
Implement these three tips in your marketing strategy in 2019 but make sure to avoiding common student recruitment mistakes and you will start drawing students in right away.
Keep an eye out for the release of our full International Higher Education Report: Student Trends 2019 and take advantage of targeted regional breakdowns of prospective student trends, insight into marketing strategies and more!
Want to know more about student trends? Click below to download out 2019 Student Trends Report!
