Survey Confirms Internet Has Become Vital College Recruitment Tool

Posted on October 29, 1997

According to a recent survey of college and university admissions officers, 99% of colleges have or are in the process of building a Web site, while 60% of the admissions officers already consider the Internet to be a major recruitment tool for prospective students - a quantum leap considering a majority of the schools surveyed have had their Web sites for two years or less. The survey was conducted by Austin Knight Inc, a worldwide communications firm specializing in recruitment strategies for educational institutions and corporations.

The Admissions Marketing Internet Survey reveals that the majority of college admissions officers believe the Internet is an important conduit for increasing applications and inquiries. According to the survey, Internet inquiries accounted for 8% of the institutions' total inquiry pools in 1996. In one example, Internet inquiries at Johns Hopkins University have increased 2400% in just two years, according to Dr. Robert Massa, dean of admissions. In 1995-6, the University received 112 inquiries via the Web; to date the total numbers of inquiries exceeds 2,800.

The survey also revealed that 80% of the respondents believe Internet applications are equally or better qualified for admission than those who apply through traditional methods. For instance, in an internal study by Worcester Polytechnic Institute, net-surfing prospective students not only ranked higher in their high school class but also scored 30 points higher on the SAT on average than those in the traditional inquiry pool, according to Joseph Smith, associate director/dean of admissions of WPI.

Austin Knight, in conjunction with the Pathfinder Research Group, conducted the Admissions Marketing Internet Survey in the summer of 1997 and polled deans and associate deans of 500 educational institutions. Seventy three percent of respondents were from the Northeast; 67% were from four-year private schools; 17% from four-year public schools; 10% were from two-year schools; and 6% from trade and professional schools.