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Adult Learners: Researched-based Strategies for Recruitment and Retention
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Our mission is to increase the number of people who attend and finish college
More than 350,000 students coached:10-15% impact on enrollment15% impact on retention and graduation rates
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Secret Shopper Research
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Our inquiry analysis (secret shopper) program assesses the “prospective student” experience
ResponsivenessAssess inquiries by web, email, and phone based on:• Time to respond• Method of response• Adequacy of response
ComprehensivenessAssess whether information was sufficient to:• Evaluate the program• Determine if qualified• Understand application
process• Understand personal /
financial commitment
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Inquiry analysis methodology and scoring standards produce valuable information
Methodology• Outreach process: 3 contact
attempts at 4-day intervals• Personas: “Typical” adult
students• Inter-rater reliability:
Benchmarking sessions, reviews of past analyses
Our Research Team has conducted 221 Inquiry Analyses
Quality Score Benchmarks• Quality measures: adequacy
of information and customer service
• Low range (1-4): poor quality or unsatisfactory customer service
• Mid-range (5-7): problem areas (information, response time, or customer service)
• High-range (8-10): typically “above and beyond,” only minor issues (e.g., slow response time)
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All sectors struggle to provide adequate information regarding the level of commitment
Adequate information on personal / financial commitmentsInquiry analysis of 221 private sector and non-profit programs
All Non-Profit Private ProgramsAll Private Sector Programs
All Non-Profit Public Programs74%
26%
Yes No
24%
76%
Yes No
31%
69%
Yes No
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Online programs rated highest by“prospective students”
Comparative ratings of comprehensiveness and responsiveness
Inquiry analysis of 221 for-profit and non-profit programs
N=480N=2044N=790N=560 N=485Ground Online0
2
4
6
8
10
6.77.5
5.4
7.0
Comprehensiveness Responsiveness
(Out
of a
Pos
sibl
e 10
)
N = 92 N = 92 N = 129 N = 129
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Private sector rated highest overall by “prospective students”
Overall ratings of comprehensiveness and responsiveness
Inquiry analysis of 221 for-profit and non-profit programs
For-Profit Non-Profit Private Non-Profit Public0
2
4
6
8
10
7.6
6.7
5.3
Ove
rall
Inqu
iry A
naly
sis
Scor
e(O
ut o
f a P
ossi
ble
10)
N = 53 N = 105 N = 63
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Response time by institution type for Secret Shopper Study
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Challenges with non-response
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Discussion Questions: Reflect on the Prospective Student Experience
• How long does it take your institution to respond to prospective students?
• What goals do you have in place regarding response time for phone calls, e-mails and replies via web forms?
• What do you do to help students understand the personal and financial commitment required when making a decision to go back to school?
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Adult Student Research
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• Full-time professional seeking promotion
• Parent returning to workforce
• Adult returning for B.A. after 10 years
• Recent college graduate striving for M.A.
Their situation
• Career achievement
• Financial security• Better quality of life
Their goals
• Full-time work• Family /
parenting obligations
• Financial constraints
Their obstacles Their needs
• Clarity on long-term goals
• Connection betweengoals and short-term actions
• Assistance organizing commitments
• Motivation & support• Connection to the
university community
Our research generates unique insights
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Inquiry Drop Dataset / Gender Total
Undergraduate Graduate20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%58.6%
42.9%
57.7% 57.2%61.3%
41.4%
57.1%
42.3% 42.8%38.7%
Gender
FemaleMale
Other Hispanic or Latino
Black or African American
White0%
10%20%30%40%50%60%
Race & Ethnicity
Drop Reasons
Inquiry Reasons
Total
Undergraduate (IPEDS)
Graduate (IPEDS)
About the sample for the Adult Student Research Study
• 57K prospective students; 45K enrolled students
• Similar to nationaldistributions ingender and ethnicityfor age 25+
• Institutions (or divisions)that focus on adults
Comparisons are to 2007-2008 IPEDS data (2008 Spring and Fall Enrollment Components)
Age Drop Reasons
Inquiry Reasons Full-Time Part-Time
40 and over 16.8% 29.2% 4.5% 22.2%
25-39 54.9% 51.4% 19.8% 47.2%
Under 25 28.3% 19.4% 75.6% 29.4%
Age unknown 0.0% 0.0% 0.3% 0.9%
Data Set
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Non-starts committed to their education often choose a competitor
Differences between bands are significant at 99% leveln=18,088
Non-start Reason Rank PctCompetitor 1 18.2%
Suitability 2 17.9%
External 3 17.8%
Finances 4 13.9%
Delayed Start Term 5 13.4%
Program not offered 6 11.6%
Administrative 7 3.0%
Commitment to degree 8 1.9%
Not Interested 9 1.1%
Managing Commitments 10 0.9%
• Top reason = a competitor
• Below the median– Finances– Delay to
subsequent terms
What drives an inquiry to a competitor over your institution?
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Academics is not a leading cause of early exit
• The top 2 reasons– Nearly 30%,
managing life outside of school
– Finances a close second
Drop Reason Rank Pct
Managing Commitments 1 29.7%
Finances 2 25.9%
Effectiveness 3 13.2%
Commitment to Graduation 4 9.3%
Health and Support 5 8.6%
School Community 6 6.8%
Academics 7 6.5%
n=30,41399% confidence level between bands
How do you help students overcome these barriers?
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Inquiry Reason Rank Percent
Referral 1 18.8%
Convenience 2 18.0%
Availability of Program 3 16.9%
Location 4 11.9%
Class Format 5 9.1%
Reputation 6 8.7%
Flexible Scheduling 7 5.5%
Admissions Requirements 8 4.1%
Ease of Process 9 1.8%
Finances 10 1.6%
Referrals are the top reason driving inquiries
Differences between bands are significant at 99% level
The value of referrals • Low cost
• High conversion
• Realistic expectations
n=12,478
How do increase referrals?
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Net Promoter® is a way to measure and grow customer loyalty by asking one simple question
Net Promoter® rating—how likely are you to recommend to a friend or colleague?
*Developed by Fred Reichheld, director emeritus at Bain & Company, and Satmetrix.
Net Promoter® Score
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Creating an action plan
Objective: develop a plan for implementing one actionable insight• Review change planning worksheet• Identify one insight or idea to develop • Break into groups and collaborate to design your change plan• Share plans and anticipated benefits as a group