The latest results in the E-expectations series feature findings from a study of 3052 high school juniors and seniors.

1. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
1All material in this presentation, including text and images, is the property of Ruffalo Noel Levitz. Permission is required to reproduce information.
E-expectations 2015:
What 10 years of Research
Has Told Us About College
E-Recruitment
Stephanie Geyer, Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Lance Merker, OmniUpdate
Tweeting?
#eexpect
#eduweb15

2. What were we curious about in 2005?
 Were students online?
 Just 49% said they were using the internet
at least once every day.
 Did they use college websites?
 72% had used college websites
 Can we call them on their cell phones?
 58% said NO!
 Can we send them text messages?
 56% said NO! (Wait until you see what they
say now….)

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Methodology, Demographics and General Attitudes
Web
Social Media
E-mail
Interactive Resources
Celebrating 10 Years of Great Data to
Make the Right Decisions
1
2
3
4
5

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1
Methodology, Demographics
and General Attitudes
3052 High School Juniors and Seniors
 1526 from each class
 95% confidence interval; +/- 3% margin
 NRCCUA list source
 25% from each of four US regions
 50% female/50% male

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Demographic Details
Class of 2015 (Seniors)
 27% first generation
 GPA:
 A+ to A-: 45.4%
 B+ to B-: 52.1%
 C+ to C-: 2.01%
 Lower than C-: .4%
 Race/Ethnicity:
 Native American: 2.1%
 Asian: 6.9%
 African-American: 8.6%
 Hispanic: 13%
 Middle Eastern: .6%
 Caucasian: 42.8%
Class of 2016 (Juniors)
 24.8% first generation
 GPA:
 A+ to A-: 56.1%
 B+ to B-: 40.1%
 C+ to C-: 3.5%
 Lower than C-: .3%
 Race/Ethnicity:
 Native American: 3.7%
 Asian: 7.9%
 African-American: 10.7%
 Hispanic: 17.2%
 Middle Eastern: 1.3%
 Caucasian: 55.5%

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Demographic Details—2
Class of 2015 (Seniors)
 College type:
 Private: 33.5%
 State/Public: 94.2%
 Community/Junior: 8.2%
 Vo-Tech: 6.3%
 Will participate in sports: 50%
 Location of student:
 Rural: 21.5%
 Urban: 28.1%
 Town: 16.3%
 Suburban: 34.1%
Class of 2016 (Juniors)
 College type:
 Private: 51%
 State/Public: 90.5%
 Community/Junior: 12.3%
 Vo-Tech: 8.3%
 Will participate in sports: 66%
 Location of student:
 Rural: 18.9%
 Urban: 28.7%
 Town: 15.9%
 Suburban: 36.4%

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Enrollment Stage
Juniors
 Inactive: 3.8%
 Prospect: 48.8%
 Inquiry: 49.6%
 Applied: 1.1%
 Accepted: 1.7%
 Inactive: 1.3%
 Prospect: 3.5%
 Inquiry: 5.9%
 Applied: 3.7%
 Accepted: 85.5%
Seniors

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How do they find answers to their
questions?
57.60%
13%
7.40%
14.40%
70.50%
6.80%
3.50%
12.30%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Website Call admissions Call hs counselor E-mail admissions
Seniors Juniors

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College web sites influence interest the most
1-5 scale, top two box % shown
32.70%
80%
36.10% 33.40% 30.50%
38.20%
77.30%
36.30%
44.20%
29.70%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Print College
website
Magazine
rankings
College
planning site
entries
Other
Seniors Juniors

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2Web Sites

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Nearly all find reliable information on your websites
Similar results in 2014
98.20%
1.80%
97.30%
2.70%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Agree: I find reliable information on college websites Disagree: I find reliable information on college websites
Seniors Juniors

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Your website has an effect on their perception of your
school
11% increase from the 2014 study
78%
22%
77.10%
22.90%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
College or university websites make a difference in
my perceptions of the school
My perceptions of a school have no relation to its
website
Seniors Juniors

13. How did they find a school online? (2009)
 Google or other search engine using the
school’s name—41%
 College planning sites—38%
 Google/search, other keywords—35%
 URL from a print piece—13%
 NCAA or other athletic site—5%
 MySpace or Facebook—3%

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Search engines lead the way to your website
46.80%
86.30%
45.70%
22.50%
23.00%
16.70%
28.70%
88.60%
53.70%
25.30%
18.00%
31.60%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
I know the url
Search engine
Link from e-mail
URL in print
Bookmarked
College planning site
Juniors
Seniors

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Branded search is most common
86.3% of seniors and 88.6% of juniors use search to find school sites
90.10%
49.20%
32.90%
21.70%
34.20%
86.20%
58.60%
46.40%
32.60%
44.00%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Name of the school
School AND major
Program name
Program and location
Desired location
Juniors Seniors

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Top Content Targets for Your Website
If you were to look at a specific college site right now, what would you look for?
18.70%
38.30%
29.50%
9.70%
2.80%
21.12%
43.300%
24.200%
5.800% 4.600%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%
Enrollment (app
process, admissions
events, counselor
contacts, RFI)
Academics (program
listing, details, rankings)
Money (cost,
scholarships)
Life (residence, student,
athletics)
Wayfinding (location,
directions)
Seniors Juniors

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Top 10 Most Interesting Links:
10. Athletics
(S: 9.1%/J: 13.7%)
9. Students
(S: 11.3%/J12.0%)
8. Logo
(S: 11.8%/J: 13.0%
7. About
(S: 11.8%/J: 12.4%)
6. Program Requirements
(S: 15.3%/J: 20.5%)
5. Campus & Community
(S: 16.8%/J: 17.8%)
4. Application Requirements
(S: 20.9%/J: 25.7%)
3. Academics
(S: 24.0%/J: 33.0%)
2. Degree Details
(S: 28.1%/J: 29.1%)
1. Admissions & Aid
(S: 29.6%/J: 32.8%)

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What demonstrates value in your website content?
72.8% of seniors and 64% of juniors said they’ve found evidence
60.10%
28.10%
39.20%
73%
49.90%
29%
45.70%
57.50%
22%
38.80%
75.30%
45.20%
22.60%
44.80%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Testimonials/Quotes Faculty profiles Program videos Job placement stats Grad school
placement stats
Accreditation details Program rankings
Seniors Juniors

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Which images are most
interesting to prospective
students?

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Group 1 Photos
Aerial: (74.8% selected quad in
next set)
 66.9% seniors
 66.4% juniors
Classroom:
 10.4% seniors
 10.9% juniors
Under tree:
 22.8% seniors
 22.7% juniors

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Group 2 Photos
On the Quad: (74.4% selected
aerial shot in previous set)
65.2% seniors
67.3% juniors
Study Group:
25.6% seniors
23.1% juniors
Cafeteria Chat
9.2% seniors
9.6% juniors

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Consistent percentage viewing college sites on mobile
About 40% of students use mobile devices to view any website “all the time”
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
71% 69% 71% 69%
2015 Juniors 2015 Seniors 2014 Seniors 2013 Seniors

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69% of seniors and 65% of juniors viewed a college site
on a mobile device within a week of taking the survey
26%
43%
24%
6% 1%
2015 Seniors Any Mobile
Visit
Earlier
today
Within past
7 days
Within past
month
21%
44%
25%
8% 2%
2015 Juniors Any Mobile
Visit
Earlier today
Within past
7 days
Within past
month
Within past
three
months

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Mobile use of forms: increases in completing RFI and
visit forms; decrease in completing online applications
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Request
information
Campus visit
registration
Open house
registration
Application
for
admission
Class
registration
Cost
calculator
Scholarship
calculator
Online event
registration
2015 Seniors 2014 Seniors 2015 Juniors

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3Social Media

32. What were we curious about in 2006?
 Have you used MySpace or Facebook to
connect with current students?
 33% said yes
 Have they looked for a school-specific page
on MySpace or Facebook?
 20% had done so, just 35% of those who
had not said they would like to
 Do they have their own profile on MySpace
or LiveJournal?
 31% had done so, 33% said they would like
to

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Seniors find college social media more reliable
Small increase comparing 2014 and 2015 seniors (7%)
60.60%
39.40%
47.70%
52.30%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Agree: I find reliable info through college social media Disagree: I find reliable info through college social media
Seniors Juniors

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YouTube, Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram lead
Social Media Sites Used at Least Once/Week
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Seniors Juniors
Also: Srs. Jrs.
YikYak 4.60% 3.20%
Storify 4.30% 3.10%
LinkedIn 3.60% 3.40%
None 3.00% 3.70%
Other 3.00% 3.50%
St. Up. 1.70% 1.20%

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Facebook, Google+ and Vine use decreased
Comparing 2014 and 2015 Seniors
0.40%
-4.20%
15.60%
3.50% 6.20%
-4.60%
7.80%
-5.00%
3.70% 5.20% 4.60%
-10%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
YouTube Facebook Snapchat Instagram Twitter Google+ Pinterest Vine Tumblr iFunny Reddit
2015 Seniors 2014 Seniors Difference

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Social Media Best for Researching Colleges
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Facebook YouTube Twitter Google+ Instagram None
Seniors Juniors

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Comparing Use vs. Best for Learning About College
All responders
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Most Used Best for College Research

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Engagement with Facebook
65.4% of seniors (51.4% in 2014) and 44.2% of juniors have looked at a college
or university Facebook page
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Clicked like Joined a group Added a
comment
None
Seniors
Juniors
35.7%
2014

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Twitter Use: (45.70% of seniors and 42.10% of juniors
use Twitter at least once per week)
Do you follow any Twitter feeds from a college or university?
 29.9% Seniors
 Down from 37% in 2014
 22.1% Juniors

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YouTube Use Detail
73.5% of seniors and 74.6% of juniors use YouTube at least once/week
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
Viewed a
college
channel page
Subscribed to
a channel
Viewed
videos linked
from a college
site
Viewed
videos
embedded in
social media
Nothing
Seniors Juniors

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4E-Mail

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Seniors slightly more confident than juniors in reliability
of e-mails from colleges and universities
Similar results for 2014 seniors
86.70%
13.30%
80.60%
19.40%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Agree: I find reliable information in emails from colleges Disagree: I find reliable information in emails from colleges
Seniors Juniors

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They are still using e-mail and they will open your
messages…eventually!
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Uses e-mail
at least
once/week
Gives email
when
requested
Opens a
message
from school
of interest
Opens a
message
from
unknown
school
2015 Seniors
2014 Seniors
Juniors

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They will hang onto your e-mail!
Look at long term open rates on your campaigns
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Save in
inbox
Put in a
folder
Forward to
another
account
Forward to
family
Print it Delete it Nothing
2015 Seniors 2014 Seniors Juniors

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Checking e-mail on their smartphones?
Nearly two-thirds of seniors and juniors are checking daily, many multiple times
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
Never Less than
once/month
A few
times/month
Once/week Few times/week At least
once/day
More than
once/day
2015 Seniors 2014 Seniors Juniors
62% are
checking email
on their mobile
device at least
once a day!

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5Interactive Resources

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Text Messages
Seniors receiving more texts than juniors
 Willing to allow text messages?
 Seniors: 73.4%, up from 52.7% in 2014
 Juniors: 69.6% up from 44% in 2005
 Have received text messages?
 Seniors: 28.5%, about the same as last year.
 Individual—32.9%
 General—36.2%
 Both—30.9%
 Juniors: 10.2%
 Individual—24.7%
 General—45.2%
 Both—30.1%

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Paid interactive marketing presents new
opportunities to reach prospects and engage
inquiries, especially juniors!
 Have clicked on a paid ad:
 Seniors—34.3%, compared to 31% in 2014
 Juniors—43.4%
 10% more likely to have visited a college
Facebook page
 10% more likely to have viewed a college site
on a mobile device
 10% more likely to use online chat
 10% more likely to be open to text messages
 10% more likely to give an e-mail address
 17% more likely to open an e-mail from an
unknown school

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Google the most likely venue for their ad clicks
Facebook is the next most likely resource
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
Google
search
Bing search Yahoo
search
A different
search
engine
Facebook Other
2015 Seniors
2014 Seniors
2013 Seniors
Juniors

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Paid ads are attracting newcomers and possibly students
already in your inquiry and application pools
48.20%
61.90%
29.60%
54%
67.50%
15%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
I had never heard
of the school
before
Already
considering
Planning to
attend
2015 Seniors
Juniors

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Reflections and
Recommendations

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1
The questions stay the
same, the channels have
expanded
Use the right resources to convey the right
messages to the right students, whenever they
want to receive them.

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2Your website is the hub
Are you connecting all of the spokes?
Have you made the site an efficient self-
service resource?
(Hint: focus on information architecture, content
and search engine optimization)

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3Are you measuring?
How might your students be different? What
is happening with your population in terms of
mobile adoption? How are your social media
channels supporting engagement goals?

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4
Go beyond “click, read,
leave”
How do your digital resources encourage
engagement?
Do you have effective calls-to-action in place
that match market and stage?

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5
SEO is a way of life, not a
luxury
They are using Google to find you. Are you
helping them get to your preferred landing
pages?

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6
Content Strategy should
take up most of your time
How can you keep your site content fresh and
engaging? How can you advance relevance
and support SEO? How can you integrate,
syndicate and renew your content through all
appropriate channels?

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7
Deliver a comprehensive
visual depiction of your
campus and people
Deliver images that provide a sense of place,
location context AND three under tree!

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8
Mobile Users Cannot Be
Ignored
Get your website, e-mail messages and landing
pages into responsive templates. Now.
And check those forms on mobile!

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9
Focus on the most
relevant and expected
channels
Be sure your website content strategy is
connected with your social media resources.
Measure! Experiment! Measure!

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10Try new stuff
Text messaging. It’s time.
Landing pages to support e-mail.
Are you using them?
.

62. What should we be asking next?

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Stephanie Geyer, Noel-Levitz
Voice: (303) 594-0370
Email: stephanie-geyer@noellevitz.com
@StephGeyer
Lance Merker, OmniUpdate
Voice: (805) 484-9400
Email: lance@omniupdate.com
@LanceMerker
Please use #eexpect when tweeting about
E-expectations or to share question ideas