Situation: The challenges Drew faced with undergraduate recruitment would be familiar to any small private liberal arts institution. Declining demographic trends. Crowded and elite regional marketplace. Low awareness and waning academic reputation, all of which was troubling not only for Drew’s hardworking enrollment team, but also for alums from earlier decades who knew just how special a Drew education was. And to further complicate matters? The New Jersey College Promise program, which offers a price-competitive pathway to a four-year degree through community college and four-year-public grants.
Solution: We knew that, for Drew, the recruitment message needed to go big. It needed to make some noise. Stir up excitement. Revive the pride that so many members of the community felt for the University. And after doing a deep dive into qualitative research, it became clear that Drew was delivering major value to its students. For one, there was Drew’s best-of-both-worlds location (a charming small town less than an hour from NYC). Add to that an inclusive, student-centric environment and specialized career development platform – all against a backdrop of robust liberal arts – and the mix created an unforgettable undergraduate experience. All Drew needed? The message that connected those dots.
Results: The Epic recruitment concept framed Drew’s unique set of strengths in a way that felt fresh, friendly, and exciting. Prospects were drawn to the idea of maximizing what college could be. And the entire Drew community felt newly equipped to tell their story – to shout from the rooftops all the ways they worked to ensure the best possible outcome for every student. Following the Epic launch in Fall of 2022, web traffic on key admissions pages went up significantly, and visits and applications increased dramatically. Applications went up nearly 20% and Drew welcomed its largest cohort of incoming first year undergraduate students in five years. This was followed by another year of nearly 20% growth in applications, the most in the last decade, and transfer students entering the University at record levels.
What we did: qualitative research, undergraduate recruitment strategy and positioning, recruitment platform creative presentation, recruitment platform toolkit and training, photo shoot, web content, video package, enrollment solutions (search, inquiry, travel, and signature print)