Additional Tips To Devise A Plan To Attract International Students
With the upcoming Fall recruitment season, most admissions counselors would be strategizing their recruiting plans to attract students to their respective institutions. This includes travel to high schools and education fairs within their territory. However, hurdles like lack of finances often limit the amount of travel to recruit overseas. The past decade has seen a rise in international student enrollment and colleges have found it important to capitalize on the increasing number of foreign students interested in attending US-based institutions. Hence, international admissions counselors must close the distance by replacing in-person interactions with tools that make students feel more connected to their institution. Following are a few effective measures to enhance your outreach efforts to recruit international students.
Attract students with scholarships specific for international students
For an institution with a big name, you have the luxury of attracting international students simply because of your brand. This has probably enabled you to raise tuition or charge additional fees to international students as a means to increase revenue. And international students are ready to pay that because they are primarily motivated to study abroad at particular institutions. The challenge for other colleges with lesser credibility in the global education arena is to attract the attention of students looking for options. By offering scholarships you can engage those students whose top concern for studying abroad revolves around financial costs. Plan to offer scholarships specific to international students while implementing international recruitment strategies or initiating increases in international enrollment. Scholarships offset tuition costs, encourage international students to apply and enroll at your institution.
Promote a caring environment
After funding, international students express concerns with cultural and social issues including language barriers and lack of support systems. Pathways programs help improve English language skills and American classroom competency before stepping foot on campus. Continue that support once international students arrive on campus. Stress a caring environment that focuses on both academics and health. Publicize student service resources such as academic advisors, tutors and writing centers to demonstrate your institution’s devotion to academic achievement. Promote accessibility to the health center, counseling services, and recreational facilities to show support for international students’
Make use of the mobile technology
Most of the international students view your admissions website on their mobile phone. The convenience of a mobile phone makes it easy for international students to shop for colleges overseas, gathering information posted on institutions’ websites, apps and social media. Implementing a mobile recruitment strategy is beneficial for outreach to prospective students so they can receive your communications anytime, anywhere on the device that is always in their pocket. However, use of communication technologies may vary depending on geographic location. Design a mobile strategy that corresponds with the usage patterns of students from different geographic areas.
And last but not the least try to tap into emerging countries instead of concentrating solely on the tried and tested regions. Find pockets of international recruitment areas that are not saturated by all the tours and fairs already in those cities. Find some less traveled cities and schools to recruit in and get your message out there.