In this episode of View From The Forest, MSM Higher Ed President Donna Hooker talks about sustainable student recruitment, and how higher education institutions need to foster conditions that will support their achievement of their marketing and recruitment goals—especially during these challenging times.
“COVID has reinforced many options for reaching our target market that may not include the typical direct recruitment,” said Donna. She then proceeded to enumerate three alternative solutions to reaching recruitment goals.
Key Points at a Glance
- Technology is a great business enabler,” said MSM Higher Ed president Donna Hooker.
- The MSM Higher president believes that a technologically proficient institution can overcome the challenges brought about by the pandemic.
- Partnering with a service provider is an “attractive option.”
- Setting up an in-country office is also a solution for schools wanting to expand their presence globally. However, it is costly.
First, Donna shared about the advantages of getting tech-savvy. A technologically proficient institution can overcome the challenges brought about by the pandemic and resort to communication with potential students through social media, webinars, and information sessions.
“Technology is a great business enabler,” said Donna. However, institutions must be aligned to international social media trends. “What works at home may not work across the globe.”
The second solution Donna highlighted is the setting up of an in-country office. This allows your institution to establish and maintain its presence right in the middle of the market. The daily presence of staff not only brings the institution closer to potential students but also allows the brand to understand the market nuances.
However, there is also the question of cost with regard to setting up an in-country office. It also takes a lot of work from securing the license to operate to hiring good professional staff.
Last, an in-country office can help facilitate pre-departure briefings. These briefings are important in guiding students towards a successful transition to a new country and institution. However, following through these briefings may still be challenging and costly if done remotely.
With all these, Donna brings up the remedy of partnering with a service provider, which creates recruitment offices abroad and allows the outsourcing of in-country offices.
This can be an attractive option “for those institutions who do not have the financial or human resource to do it on their own; or who do not want to face the many challenges that emerge from managing an office abroad,” Donna concluded.
Watch Episode 10 here. For more “View from the Forest” episodes, check out the MSM Higher Ed YouTube channel and click subscribe for more videos.
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DONNA HOOKER
President, MSM Higher Ed
Donna Hooker has worked in the international education field for 30 years. She has a comprehensive knowledge of policy and practise in the public post-secondary education system in British Columbia, Canada and worldwide. She is a past board chair for the BC Centre for International Education and has held senior management roles at BC Institute for Technology, Vancouver Community College, and most recently at Capilano University.
VIEW FROM THE FOREST
Donna Hooker, MSM Higher Ed President
Donna Hooker, MSM Higher Ed President, takes you to her lush home in Upper Fraser Valley, British Columbia to talk about different trends and issues affecting the international education industry. Watch, learn and subscribe to the channel to get her invaluable vlog series, “View from the Forest.”
ABOUT MSM HIGHER ED
MSM Higher Ed offers education management solutions that create opportunities for students while building capacity for international student enrollment and new revenue streams for partner institutions. Through viable public-private partnerships (PPPs), licensing agreements, program pathways based on articulation arrangements and pan-national and transnational program delivery, we create opportunities for students to earn career-oriented credentials preparing their career or academic advancement. MSM Higher Ed manages private institutions Eton College Canada, Q College, Q Academy, Taylor Pro College, Extreme Pro Training, and College Multihexa.