For decades, the term “traditional student” referred to an 18–22-year-old, full-time student living on campus and largely unencumbered by adult responsibilities. That definition may have been true in the past, but today, it’s holding institutions back.
Across the country, Gen Z students increasingly look like their older counterparts in how they approach higher education. They’re working while enrolled, choosing flexible learning formats, weighing cost against career ROI, and demanding that programs fit into — not disrupt — their lives. At the same time, adult learners remain a vital audience, and their motivations often mirror those of younger students.
For enrollment and marketing leaders, the takeaway is clear: Stop relying on outdated labels and start building strategies for the actual students you serve.
The blurred lines between traditional and adult learners
Recent Gallup-Lumina research shows that 57% of U.S. adults without a degree have considered enrolling in the past two years, and more than 8 in 10 say they’re likely to do so within the next five years. While adult learners have long valued affordability, flexibility, and career outcomes, these same factors now dominate Gen Z’s expectations.
Cost concerns are particularly telling, as highlighted by The CIRP Freshman Survey 2024. The study found that 56.4% of incoming first-year students reported some or major concern about paying for college, with even higher rates among Hispanic or Latino (81.4%) and Black or African American (69.6%) students.
Work and life responsibilities are also playing a growing role. Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce (CEW) reports that between 70-80% of undergraduate students are employed while enrolled, with about 40% working full-time.
For many, this isn’t a nice-to-have — it’s the only way they can afford school.
Why this matters for enrollment strategy
If your enrollment marketing still segments audiences primarily by age, you’re likely missing the mark. Here’s the reality:
An 18-year-old commuter working 30 hours a week and taking hybrid classes might have more in common with a 35-year-old career changer than with a residential peer.
Transfer and degree completer students (36.8 million Americans with some college but no credential) are often juggling similar priorities.
Both groups respond to messaging that clearly connects program design to life balance, affordability, and employment outcomes.
The “traditional vs. adult” distinction no longer works for understanding motivations, predicting behaviors, or designing student experiences.
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4 Priorities that span generations
Regardless of age, today’s students share a core set of expectations that shape their enrollment decisions. These priorities now cut across the full spectrum of higher education audiences.
1. Affordability
The Gallup-Lumina report states that finances are among the most influential factors in enrollment decisions for unenrolled adults. Cost is also the top reason adults have stopped out of higher education and a leading reason current students consider doing so.
Gen Z mirrors this cost-conscious mindset, with many forgoing the traditional four-year route and embracing community colleges or transfer pathways as a lower-cost way to begin their degree journey.
2. Flexible learning programs
Hybrid, online, and asynchronous options are no longer “adult learner perks” — they’re mainstream expectations. Traditional-aged students now seek flexible schedules to balance work, internships, and other commitments, mirroring adult learners. The pandemic accelerated digital comfort across age groups, making flexibility table stakes for recruitment.
3. Career outcomes
The Gallup-Lumina report shows that 60% of currently enrolled students cite expected future job opportunities as a “very important” factor in choosing to enroll. For stopped-out adult students, career prospects were also the top motivator.
Knowing this, institutions should ensure career outcomes are central to program design, marketing, and student advising. Those that clearly articulate skill alignment, employment pathways, and alumni success stories will attract and retain students.
4. Work-life balance
More students than ever are balancing jobs, caregiving, and other priorities with their academic responsibilities. For adult learners, this has always been true, but for traditional-aged students it’s increasingly the norm.
Institutions should respond by offering flexible schedules, targeted support, and streamlined services that help students balance academics with work and family demands.
Moving from segmentation to personalization
The solution isn’t to erase audience differences but to recognize that motivations and needs cut across age lines. Institutions should:
Use behavioral and attitudinal data (not just demographics) to inform personas.
Map programs to shared priorities, ensuring flexible formats and clear ROI messaging.
Equip enrollment teams to surface emerging trends from student conversations.
Invest in CRM and marketing automation to deliver personalized, timely outreach.
The opportunity for forward-thinking institutions
Institutions that adapt now can capture a larger share of a changing student market. Meeting the needs of today’s learners, who span generations, life stages, and responsibilities, requires more than minor adjustments. It calls for rethinking how programs are designed, marketed, and delivered to address shared priorities and remove persistent barriers.
Consider the following tactics:
Retooling marketing messages to emphasize affordability, flexibility, and career outcomes.
Rethinking program delivery models for a mixed audience.
Breaking down internal silos between “traditional” and “adult learner” recruitment.
From outdated labels to modern enrollment strategies
The traditional student still exists, but they’re no longer the majority. Today’s demand for higher education comes from learners of all ages and circumstances.
The lines are blurred, and the labels are outdated. It’s time to create enrollment strategies that reflect today’s student realities and anticipate tomorrow’s opportunities.
Innovation Starts Here
Higher ed is evolving — don’t get left behind. Explore how Collegis can help your institution thrive.
Amber Arnseth oversees program and market research as a skilled problem-solver with an ability to integrate and contextualize data for partners into actionable recommendations. The research she and her team conduct help inform and strengthen our partners’ strategic portfolio and program decisions.
Despite the summer heat, Toyia Diab came out to the Summer on the Block at Pulaski Elementary-Middle School to learn what it had to offer the four grandchildren she had in tow.
The family made their way to about a dozen tables snaking around the lawn on the side of the school. Diab listened to staff from the Detroit school district detail all of its resources over the pulsing base of loud music.
Diab’s family was one of many the Detroit Public Schools Community District courted this summer as part of its efforts to retain families and boost enrollment. With the loss of more than 92,000 students in the last 20 years, district officials devote some of the summer break each year to getting word out about what the city’s schools have to offer.
This year, the districtramped up efforts. It sent 40 people to canvas communities and held 19 events to create excitement about the start of school — nearly double that of previous years. It also started new initiatives, such as putting up billboards around the city. In all, the school system budgeted around $3.5 million for marketing this year. School starts Aug. 25.
Though the district has “done a fairly good job” of recruiting new students in previous years, Superintendent Nikolai Vitti told school board members at a meeting earlier this month that the main challenge is keeping them.
As a result, this year the school system also has focused on reenrollment rates. Those numbers have become a metric the district uses to “hold schools accountable,” Vitti said, though he didn’t share how many students the district typically loses during the school year.
“We have emphasized … the need to improve customer service and parent engagement, so that parents feel more welcome,” he said. “And we fight harder to keep students at the schools that they’re at, rather than having more of an attitude of, ‘Well, if you don’t like it here, then you can find another school.’”
Sharlonda Buckman, assistant superintendent of family and community engagement, told Chalkbeat the district has seen a lot of “good signs” for this school year because of the number of people her office reached in the summer.
“It’s noticeable for me, and I’ve been at this for a long time,” she said. “We’ll see what that boils down to, in terms of enrollment.”
This year, Buckman said nearly 5,000 people went to the Summer on the Block events, parties held at schools that both serve as a vehicle to sell families on sending their kids to the district and connect them with free resources.
“As a parent, you have to bring your kids to school every day in order to get the education that they need,” Diab said at the Pulaski back-to-school event. “But then you’ll find some schools, they just don’t have enough resources to keep them interested to come to school, to stay in school.”
All of the district’s summer efforts produced 532 leads on parents interested in enrolling their kids by mid-August. Around 80 of those students completed enrollment, according to the district.
Though initial enrollment numbers are up, officials say, the full impact of the district’s efforts won’t be known until the end of the 2025-26 school year.
Myriad factors have affected enrollment in DPSCD
Boosting student numbers has been among the district’s top priorities for years.
The numbers of students attending schools are crucial for districts in Michigan, where school funding is tied to enrollment.
High student mobility rates, or the rate at which kids move to different homes, contribute to the district’s difficulty in keeping children enrolled. Chronic absenteeism rates also have a direct impact on enrollment.
When DPSCD was created and the school system began being phased out of emergency management in the 2017-18 school year, enrollment shot up to more than 50,800 from 45,700 during the 2016-17 school year.
The district has struggled to move the needle much since, especially after drops during pandemic-era school closures and the years that followed.
At the beginning of this month, there were 50,890 students enrolled in the district, Vitti said at the board meeting.
“We have about 1,400 more students than we did at the end of the year enrolled in DPSCD as of today, and about 500 more as compared to the first day of school,” he said, adding that “ “enrollment is trending in a positive direction.”
Early enrollment numbers for the district are usually higher than official headcounts made in October. The number of students recorded on “Count Day” is used by the state to calculate funding for districts.
Making the case for DPSCD face-to-face
Three days before the Summer on the Block at Pulaski, more than 20 people squeezed into a sun-filled classroom at the Detroit School of Arts.
The group was contracted by the district to canvas homes in areas where attendance is low compared to the number of school-aged children living there.
This summer, the district sent canvassers to more than 78,000 homes to inform families about its schools and programs.
The group at the School of Arts was gathered to get their assignments for the day. They waited to pick up hand-out materials, including fliers listing Summer on the Block dates and pamphlets highlighting programs at application schools.
To get the energy up in the classroom before they headed out, the canvassers stood up to form a circle. Buckman, the assistant superintendent, asked them to share what they heard door-knocking.
“We’re getting a good response in terms of some of those students coming back to the district,” said one woman.
Others expressed residents’ hesitations to open their doors or to give their contact information for the district to follow up with them.
Laura Gomez, who has been canvassing for three years, said through a translator that this summer has been different in southwest Detroit, which is home to many immigrant and newcomer families.
“There are some people that are really happy we’re going out to the houses because that way they don’t have to leave their home because they don’t feel safe,” she said.
After the canvassers broke out into teams, they drove to the areas they were assigned to for the day.
Tanya Shelton and her son, David, arrived in the Crary St. Mary’s neighborhood in the northwest corner of the city.
“We’ll ask them what school district are they in, and if they are interested in DPSCD, we give some information on it,” she said as she made her way down a long block adjacent to the Southfield Freeway.
In her conversations with families, Shelton said the district’s free school lunches piqued their interest. Other canvassers said parents were interested in learning more about the academic interventionists available to students.
Most of the doors Shelton knocked on that day, though, went unanswered. She left the district’s literature at dozens of houses.
Families weigh programming, academics, and transportation in selecting schools
At Pulaski’s Summer on the Block Alexa Franco-Garcia saw more students signing up to attend the school than she has in past years.
“Right now, I have three enrollment packets in my hand, so that means they’ve completed enrollment,” she said during a break from talking with families.
Another three parents left their contact information and said they would return the paperwork the next day.
Considering it was about 30 minutes into the event, that was a strong number, said Franco-Garcia, who works in the Office of Family and Community Engagement.
In her time working in the district, Franco-Garcia has learned what kinds of questions families ask: They want to know about the curriculum, extracurricular activities, and class sizes. They wonder whether their children will be supported in special education and if they will get a bus ride to school.
Most of the sign-ups at the Pulaski event were for kindergartners who were new to the district, Franco-Garcia said.
There were 457 students enrolled in prekindergarten by the beginning of August, according to the district, up about 10 compared to the same time last year.
Diab, the grandmother, brought four kids ages 5 to 12 out to learn more about the school. They heard about the district’s community health hubs, parent academy, and mental health resources.
Teachers from the school gathered around a welcome table ready to answer questions as Principal Tyra R. Smith-Bell floated around talking with parents.
The fresh produce boxes, ice cream truck, free books, and kids’ activities also enticed more than 350 people to come – many more than in previous years, Buckman said.
Linn Flake was the first second-grader of the day to enroll at Pulaski, said Franco-Garcia. It would be his first experience at a neighborhood school, she added.
His mom, Roxanne Flake, chose DPSCD over the charter school Linn went to last year.
“I just wanted a different start,” she said.
The charter school didn’t provide transportation, said Flake, which was an inconvenience because she doesn’t currently have a car. But the Detroit school district offered bus service for Linn to Pulaski, the mother said.
Diab said she had more research to do before her family committed to Pulaski.
“We’re gonna come here and we’re gonna figure everything out – ask questions, all of that stuff, and then if it’s the right fit for them, then we’re gonna put them in,” she said.
Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools. This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at ckbe.at/newsletters.
Title: College Enrollment Patterns Are Changing. New Data Show Applicant and Admit Pools Are Too.
Authors: Jason Cohn, Bryan J. Cook, Victoria Nelson
Source: Urban Institute
Since 2020 the world of higher education has changed drastically. Higher education has seen the effects of COVID-19, the end of race-conscious admissions, significant delays in student awards from the new FAFSA, and changing federal and state policy towards DEI.
The Urban Institute, in collaboration with the Association of Undergraduate Education at Research Universities, University of Southern California’s Center for Enrollment Research, Policy, and Practice, and in partnership with 18 institutions of higher education aimed to fill data gaps seen in potential shifts in racial demographic profiles of students who applied for, were admitted to, and enrolled in four-year IHEs between 2018-2024.
The data analysis found that trends in applicant, admit, and enrollee profiles varied greatly by race and ethnicity. Despite differences in data trends, all IHEs found an increase in the number of students who chose not to disclose their race or ethnicity in 2024.
The analysis found substantial changes to Black applicant, admit, and enrollee data. Among Black students at selective institutions (defined by an acceptance rate of below 50 percent) there were differences between 2023 and 2024 of the share of applicants (8.3 percent to 8.7 percent) and admits (6.6 percent to 5.9 percent). This is contrasted further due to the differences between the share of Black applicants and admits between 2021 to 2023, which stayed relatively consistent.
The analysis took note of a change in trends for White students as well. White students represented the only student group that consistently made up a larger share of admits than applicants (six to nine percentage points larger); despite the fact that White students demonstrated a consistent decrease in applicant, admit, and enrollee groups since 2018.
The analysis concludes that ultimately more data is needed at every point in the college admissions process. Enrollment data gives limited insight into the very end of the process and if more data is gathered throughout a student’s journey to college, then we can better grasp how all different types of students are interacting with higher education.
How Saint Francis University partnered with Collegis to unify messaging, modernize strategy, and reverse a decline in brand awareness through smarter, student-centered marketing.
For Saint Francis University (SFU), brand visibility in its home region has always been a strategic priority. But when internal metrics revealed a sustained decline in branded keyword search volume, the institution faced a clear challenge: how to grow awareness and demand without expanding the marketing budget.
In response, Collegis helped SFU pivot to an omnichannel marketing strategy, anchored in student journey insights and a refreshed creative campaign. The results: a 54% lift in branded search volume and a 2.7x increase in conversion rate for revamped search campaigns.
The Challenge
SFU had long expressed the goal of “owning their backyard,” but their declining search volume suggested a loss of mindshare among key audiences. The following factors made matters even more complex:
No additional budget was available to launch new campaigns
Prior creative had been in market for some time and didn’t reflect institutional differentiators
Previous media mix was focused solely on conversion and capturing demand – not strategically aligned to the prospective student journey.
This wasn’t just a search engine issue — it was a signal that SFU needed a more coordinated, brand-forward approach to digital marketing.
The Solution
To drive growth without increasing spend, Collegis partnered with SFU on a data-informed, omnichannel marketing strategy. We aligned messaging to institutional strengths and audience needs, with a focus on key campaign components:
Marketing insights & program strategy: Identified value drivers from enrollment data, like adult learner appeal and career-aligned programs
Creative campaign development: Launched the flexible “SFU Is…” concept to unify storytelling
Media management & channel expansion: Optimized campaigns and introduced new channels to lower CPAs and boost performance
This holistic approach elevated SFU’s visibility at high-intent moments in the student journey.
Maximizing Reach Without Raising Spend
After launching the new omnichannel strategy in September 2024, Saint Francis University saw immediate gains:
+54% increase in average monthly impressions for branded search keywords
2.7x improvement in conversion rate for revamped search campaigns
Enhanced lead quality and funnel progression
Anecdotal feedback from university leadership highlighting strong excitement about both visibility and performance
By aligning creative, strategy, and media under a single narrative, SFU reclaimed share of voice — and did it without asking for more budget.
The Collegis Impact: By the Numbers
0 %
Lift in branded search volume
0 x
Increase in conversion rate
0 %
Increase in new users
Erin McCloskey
VP of University Communications + Marketing, Saint Francis University
The Takeaway: Coordinated Campaigns Drive Measurable Growth
This case underscores the power of a strategic omnichannel approach, especially for smaller institutions navigating constrained budgets. With thoughtful execution and messaging that resonates across audiences, schools like SFU can still grow awareness, drive conversions, and own their space—online and off.
Let’s Make Your Marketing Work Smarter
The Saint Francis University case is a powerful example of what’s possible when strategy, creativity, and execution are aligned under one unified vision. By partnering with Collegis, SFU didn’t just stop the decline in search visibility — they reversed it, strengthened their regional presence, and achieved significantly better conversion performance, all without needing any additional budget.
If your institution is facing similar challenges — declining awareness, fragmented messaging, or flatlining campaign performance — an omnichannel strategy may be the path forward. Contact Collegis to learn how we can help you unlock growth, boost brand recognition, and better support students throughout their decision-making journey.
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Facing challenges in enrollment, retention, or tech integration? Seeking growth in new markets? Our strategic insights pave a clear path for overcoming obstacles and driving success in higher education.
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Austin Independent School District in Texas is weighing school consolidations that could go into effect as soon as the 2026-27 school year, amid challenges with prolonged declining enrollment, Superintendent Matias Segura told families in a letter this week.
The district also released a data rubric scoring each of its schools based on size, condition, student enrollment and operational costs. The scores will help inform any changes that might be necessary, including boundary adjustments, transfer policies, or school closures and consolidations, according to the district.
Austin ISD lost over 10,000 students within the past decade — resulting in about 21,000 empty seats districtwide. And it’s likely that enrollment will continue to decrease, the district said.
Dive Insight:
“Right now, we’re serving fewer students than we did nearly 30 years ago, but we’re operating more schools than ever. That spreads us too thin and limits what we can offer each campus,” Segura said in the Aug. 11 letter to families.
“Consolidation is one piece of a bigger plan to reinvest in what matters most — strong academic programs, outstanding teachers, modern facilities and the wraparound supports that help every student succeed,” the superintendent said.
District officials said they would make a draft plan available to the community before presenting proposed changes to the board of trustees on Oct. 9. The board is then to vote on a final consolidation plan on Nov. 20.
The rubric released Monday measures how aligned a school building is in serving students’ needs. It is not, however, a list of schools that are closing, Segura told families.
The district said on its consolidation planning website that it will aim to minimize impact on students and families, balance enrollment among the remaining schools, create clear feeder patterns as students move from elementary to middle to high school, and focus on long-term stability for the district.
During the 2024-25 school year, Austin ISD enrolled 72,700 students across 113 schools, according to district data.
Austin ISD’s planning reflects a broader national trend as many districts reckon with declining enrollment, straining already uncertain school budgets.
The Austin announcement follows similar news from other large urban districts.
Last week, Atlanta Public Schools said it was in the early stages of looking at school consolidation and merger plans in the face of significant enrollment drops. Additionally, St. Louis Public Schools in July proposed shuttering over half, or 37 of its 68 schools, within the next two school years due to declining enrollment and buildings running under capacity.
Researchers foresee districts having to close and consolidate more schools in the coming months and years, with student enrollment unlikely to rebound. A recent analysis from Bellwether, an education nonprofit, estimates declining enrollment may have cost the nation’s 100 largest districts $5.2 billion in total lost revenue based on 2023-24 enrollment.
Public school enrollment changes nationally seemed to have persisted after the COVID-19 pandemic when parents increasingly explored alternatives to the traditional public school model and pivoted to private schools and homeschooling, according to a July study by Education Next.
Moving forward, public schools will need to continue navigating not only those shifts, but also declining birth rates and expanding school choice policies at both the state and federal levels.
Arizona State University ranks fourth among four-year colleges and universities in terms of total international students enrolled.
yongyuan/iStock/Getty Images Plus
Arizona State University typically welcomes over 17,900 international students to its four campuses each year, but this fall, due to a variety of complications, the university expects only 14,600 international students will attend this fall—an 18 percent drop.
If the projection holds, international students will account for 7.5 percent of ASU’s 194,000 students this fall, according to an Aug. 11 news release. In comparison, during the 2023–24 academic year, ASU hosted 18,400 international students, with a total enrollment of 183,000, or more than 10 percent.
The change is in part due a drop in master’s applications from international students, but primarily driven by challenges to visa appointments, according to a university spokesperson.
ASU’s president, Michael Crow, told Bloombergthat as of early August, 1,000 of the university’s incoming international students (a third of the new cohort of 3,313 students) were still waiting on their visas. The university is providing several pathways for students unable to make it to campus, including online programs, study abroad, starting later in the semester or enrolling in a partner institution overseas, the spokesperson said.
“We anticipate that our enrollment of international students will continue to grow throughout the year,” said Matt López, deputy vice president of academic enterprise enrollment, said in the university news release. “When students have their visa in hand, we will welcome them with open arms and the classes they need to continue their degree without delay.”
ASU has the largest share of international students in Arizona, providing $545.1 million in revenue to the state and supporting 5,279 jobs, according to data from NAFSA, the association of international educators.
ASU also ranks fourth among four-year colleges and universities in terms of total international students enrolled, according to 2023–24 OpenDoors data, behind New York University, Northeastern University and Columbia University.
Arizona State University ranks fourth among four-year colleges and universities in terms of total international students enrolled.
yongyuan/iStock/Getty Images Plus
This article has been revised to reflect more enrollment data provided by Arizona State University after publication to correct Inside Higher Ed’s previous analysis.
Arizona State University welcomed over 15,100 international students to its four campuses in fall 2024, but this fall, due to a variety of complications, the university expects only 14,600 international students will attend.
If the projection holds, international students will account for 7.5 percent of ASU’s 194,000 students this fall, according to an Aug. 11 news release. In comparison, during the 2023–24 academic year, ASU hosted 18,400 international students, with a total enrollment of 183,000, or more than 10 percent.
The change is in part due a drop in master’s applications from international students, but primarily driven by challenges to visa appointments, according to a university spokesperson.
“We anticipate that our enrollment of international students will continue to grow throughout the year,” said Matt López, deputy vice president of academic enterprise enrollment, said in the university news release. “When students have their visa in hand, we will welcome them with open arms and the classes they need to continue their degree without delay.”
ASU’s president, Michael Crow, told Bloombergthat as of early August, 1,000 of the university’s incoming international students (a third of the new cohort of 3,313 students) were still waiting on their visas. The university is providing several pathways for students unable to make it to campus, including online programs, study abroad, starting later in the semester or enrolling in a partner institution overseas, the spokesperson said.
ASU has the largest share of international students in Arizona, providing $545.1 million in revenue to the state and supporting 5,279 jobs, according to data from NAFSA, the association of international educators.
ASU also ranks fourth among four-year colleges and universities in terms of total international students enrolled, according to 2023–24 OpenDoors data, behind New York University, Northeastern University and Columbia University.
How SEO for Universities Powers Sustainable Enrollment Growth
There’s a good chance you landed on this article after typing a question or a set of keywords into a search engine. That’s because we optimized this article for said search using search engine optimization (SEO) strategies. As a university marketer, you should be doing the same thing to reach prospective students.
Today’s recruitment landscape is digital, and a search engine query is often the first and most critical step a prospective student takes toward enrolling. SEO for universities is a central driver of discoverability, engagement, and application starts.
By employing higher education SEO tactics and investing in strategic, search-focused marketing, institutions can build sustainable enrollment pipelines. But how do you build an SEO strategy that goes beyond plugging keywords into program pages?
In this article, we’ll cover:
Why search is the cornerstone of student decision-making.
How SEO aligns with every stage of the enrollment funnel.
How universities can improve their rankings, engagement, and lead quality.
Why higher education SEO efforts deserve long-term strategic investment.
Why Universities Use SEO Strategies for Enrollment Growth
In an increasingly competitive enrollment landscape, SEO offers higher education institutions a sustainable, cost-effective foundation for long-term growth. Unlike time-limited paid campaigns, SEO builds momentum and equity over time, positioning your institution in front of prospective students at the exact moment they’re looking for options.
Today’s Students Start With Search
Before a prospective student ever talks to an admissions counselor or clicks on an ad, they almost always begin with a Google search. In fact, a majority of students report using search engines as their first step in looking for college and university options, according to recent research from EAB and Modern Campus.
If your institution doesn’t show up organically on the first page of results, you’re not in the conversation.
What makes organic search results particularly powerful is the trust factor. While ads can drive visibility, organic rankings signal authority, relevance, and credibility, especially in the eyes of Gen Z prospects, who are increasingly ad-skeptical and research-savvy.
Additionally, mobile-first behavior and voice-assisted searches for terms such as “best online MBA program in Texas” or “affordable RN to BSN degree near me” raise the stakes for technical SEO. A university’s site must not only be optimized for keywords but also be fast, intuitive, and responsive to be able to meet students where they are: on their phones, on the go, and expecting answers immediately.
Long-Term ROI of Organic vs. Paid Media
SEO is an investment, not a line item. While a paid search ad can generate quick visibility, it’s fleeting, as your ad disappears the moment the budget runs dry. But SEO creates a compounding return. Each blog post, landing page, and FAQ that’s optimized for student search behavior becomes an evergreen asset that continues working long after it’s published.
Over time, this strategy leads to a lower cost per inquiry compared to paid media. And, more importantly, SEO brings in better-qualified leads from students who find your programs through specific, intent-driven queries. They are more likely to be engaged, aligned with your offerings, and prepared to convert.
Mapping SEO to the Student Enrollment Journey
To maximize the impact of SEO for your university, you need to guide prospective students through a decision-making journey that’s often long, nonlinear, and filled with questions. The most effective SEO strategies map content to each stage of the enrollment funnel, from first touch to final application.
Awareness Stage Content
At the top of the funnel, students are exploring their options. They’re not searching for your university by name. They’re asking broad, future-focused questions such as “What degree do I need to become a UX designer?” or “What are the best jobs in environmental science?” This is where search-driven blog content plays a critical role.
By creating optimized articles with titles such as “Top Degrees for a Career in UX Design” or “10 Top Environmental Science Jobs in the Next Decade,” an institution can capture early interest from prospective students who haven’t yet narrowed their choices. These types of pieces not only build organic traffic to your site but also establish your institution as a thought leader in career-aligned education.
SEO-optimized pages that provide detailed degree overviews and career outcome lists can further reinforce your institution’s relevance while helping students begin to connect their goals to your academic offerings. Remember: This stage is about visibility and value, not a hard sell.
Consideration Stage Content
Once students have a clearer sense of their path, they shift into the consideration phase, digging deeper into specific programs and comparing schools. They want evidence of factors such as faculty expertise, curriculum relevance, and positive student experiences.
This is where midfunnel content shines.
Detailed faculty bios, curriculum guides, and sample course descriptions — each optimized for key search phrases — can improve your search rankings while offering meaningful substance to prospective students. For example, a student researching “online master’s in public health with epidemiology focus” should land on a program page that mirrors those terms and provides them with real answers.
Video content, especially when paired with keyword-rich titles and descriptions, helps tell the story of your institution in a more human, engaging way. Students’ testimonials, day-in-the-life videos, and faculty spotlights can also help move students from interest to intent, especially if that content is discoverable via search.
Conversion Stage Content
As prospective students near a decision, they seek clarity and confidence. They’re looking for reassurance that they can take the next step, and that it’s the right one. Conversion-stage SEO content should answer students’ practical, high-intent queries about your institution, such as “how to apply to [University Name],” “[University Name] financial aid for graduate students,” or “[University Name] application deadlines for fall 2026.”
For institutions with campus-based programs, locally oriented SEO becomes critical at this stage. Optimizing for geographic search terms, such as “colleges in Chicago with data science programs,” ensures you show up in local map packs (the local business listings that appear with a map in location-based Google searches), directory listings, and mobile searches.
It’s about being visible and accessible right when students are ready to act.
Optimized admissions FAQs, application checklists, and explainers on cost, scholarships, and financial aid reduce friction and address students’ common concerns. These pages nudge students across the finish line.
Proven SEO Strategies for Universities
To truly move the needle on enrollments resulting from organic search results, universities need to go beyond the basics of content creation. SEO success in higher education relies on a layered approach that blends technical excellence, strategic content development, and an optimized student experience.
Technical SEO as a Foundation
No matter how compelling your content is, it won’t perform if search engines can’t access and interpret it. That’s why technical SEO is the critical first step in building your search visibility.
To help your site show up in search results, you need to fix problems such as broken links, too many redirects, slow-loading code, or pages that are hard for search engines to reach. Tools like Google Search Console and Screaming Frog can help you identify these hidden roadblocks.
One particularly valuable tactic for universities is adding schema markup — structured data tags — to your content, especially on pages with information designed to respond to high-intent queries, such as those containing academic program descriptions, faculty bios, and FAQs. With schema, search engines can better understand the structure and purpose of your content, making it eligible for rich results, such as showing up in featured snippets and accordions. That visibility boost often translates into higher click-through rates from searches.
Content That Matches Searchers’ Intent
Great university SEO content is as student-centric as it is keyword rich. The most effective universities use keyword research to inform their content strategy, ensuring that it aligns with the questions, concerns, and goals of prospective students.
This includes building program clusters, or content hubs, around key degree areas. For example, a hub for your Master of Science in Data Science program might include pages on career paths, curriculum breakdowns, faculty Q&As, students’ success stories, and downloadable guides — all linked together to establish topical authority.
Modern search results also reward content that demonstrates experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (EEAT). Universities are naturally well positioned to feature real instructors, cite data, and include named authors with academic credentials to increase their credibility with both students and algorithms.
Student Experience + SEO
The student experience is not separate from SEO. Google’s algorithm increasingly favors sites that provide clear, intuitive pathways to information, particularly on mobile devices.
For universities, that means streamlined site navigation and a logical content hierarchy that surfaces pages with key data such as program offerings, admissions steps, and tuition details within two or three clicks from the homepage. Critical content shouldn’t be buried beneath layers of institutional jargon or outdated menus.
Internal linking is another underrated but powerful tactic. By connecting related content — such as linking from a faculty bio to a program page, or from a blog post to an application checklist — you improve the crawlability of your site, increase the depth of information you provide on a topic, and keep students engaged longer.
The result? Higher page authority, better rankings, and more informed prospective students.
Treating SEO as a Strategic Enrollment Asset
In many universities, SEO is still siloed within the marketing team and treated as a narrow tactic for improving search engine rankings. But SEO should be reframed as a long-term, strategic asset that drives enrollment growth and informs data-driven decision-making.
Holistic Attribution Models
One of the biggest missed opportunities in SEO for universities is how it’s measured. Traditional models often rely on last-click attribution, a model that gives 100% of the credit for a conversion to the final touchpoint a student interacted with before taking action. This underrepresents SEO’s influence, particularly in a student journey that spans weeks or months and touches multiple channels.
Universities should adopt holistic attribution models that track assisted conversions, or interactions a student has with your marketing channels that contribute to their conversion, not just their final clicks. A search may not be the student’s last touchpoint, but it often plays a vital role in their early awareness or during their midfunnel research. Ignoring that role means underinvesting in a channel that silently drives consideration.
To see the full picture, it’s essential to align tools like Google Search Console and Google Analytics with your customer relationship management (CRM) system. Mapping behaviors based on organic search results, like blog visits, program page views, or FAQ engagement, to downstream enrollment actions helps quantify SEO’s true impact and justify investment at the leadership level.
Collaboration Across Teams
Your SEO team shouldn’t live in a vacuum. They intersect with admissions, content strategy, web development, student experience, and even academic department teams. When these teams operate separately, SEO efforts stall. But when collaboration is intentional, the entire enrollment ecosystem benefits.
For example, admissions teams can surface real students’ questions to inform keyword targeting. Student experience teams can help optimize navigation for both search bots and prospective students. Academic departments can contribute subject-matter expertise to improve your pages’ EEAT and topical depth.
SEO-informed content planning — whether for a blog calendar, landing page update, or digital ad campaign — ensures every piece of your content is geared toward a discoverability goal. This strengthens your SEO’s performance and boosts the efficiency of your other marketing channels, from paid search ads to email nurture campaigns.
Preparing for What’s Next
The SEO landscape is evolving rapidly, and universities need to anticipate what’s coming, including search tactics driven by artificial intelligence (AI). With Google’s AI Overviews (also known as Search Generative Experience, or SGE), zero-click searches, and the growing prominence of featured snippets, institutions must rethink how visibility is defined.
Ranking No. 1 doesn’t guarantee clicks if the answer is shown directly in the search result. That’s why future-ready SEO strategies focus on content depth and authority. Winning in AI-driven search engine results pages requires comprehensive, well-structured content that answers layered queries, not just surface-level questions.
Institutions should also monitor how AI tools interpret their content and brand. Structured data, semantic markup, and content clarity all influence how your pages are represented in machine-generated summaries and voice search results.
Ready to Make SEO a Strategic Pillar for Your School?
SEO for universities isn’t a mere marketing tactic. It’s a foundational strategy for long-term enrollment growth, helping to future-proof your institution’s enrollment efforts in a volatile higher education market.
While SEO is critical, it’s also complicated, which is why Archer Education provides colleges and universities with the expert insights required to create a truly strategic SEO plan that integrates with other elements of your marketing strategy.
Contact us to learn more about how SEO can ignite your institution’s growth over the long haul.
International student enrollment is projected to decline this fall, based on projections from NAFSA using publicly available federal data.
Photo illustration by Justin Morrison/Inside Higher Ed | Getty Images
New international enrollments in the U.S. could drop by as many as 150,000 students in the next year, according to scenario modeling by NAFSA, the association of international educators, and JB International.
Based on a 30 to 40 percent decline in new students, the research projects that colleges and universities could see a 15 percent drop in overall international student enrollments in the next academic year, resulting in $7 billion in lost revenue and 60,000 fewer jobs.
“This analysis … should serve as a clarion call to the State Department that it must act to ensure international students and scholars are able to arrive on U.S. campuses this fall,” said Fanta Aw, executive director and CEO of NAFSA, in a press release. “For the United States to succeed in the global economy, we must keep our doors open to students from around the world.”
The modeling is based on data from the Department of Homeland Security’s SEVIS By the Numbers and State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs Annual J-1 Exchange Visitor Report, as well as State’s Monthly Nonimmigrant Visa Issuance Statistics, available through May 2025.
NAFSA attributes the projected decline to recent changes to international student visa processing under the Trump administration.
NAFSA member institutions have also reported there are limited or no appointments available for their international students in China, India, Japan and Nigeria, which are among the top countries of origin for international students studying in the U.S.
On June 4, President Trump signed an executive order restricting visitors from 19 countries, but visa issuances for students from those countries had already begun to drop. F-1 visa issuances declined 150 percent and J-1 issuances declined 105 percent in May compared to last year, according to an Inside Higher Ed analysis of State Department data.
Over all, F-1 and J-1 visa issuance dropped 12 percent from January to April 2025 and an additional 22 percent year over year in May. NASFA’s report estimates that June 2025 F-1 visa issuances will decline as much as 90 percent under the new policies.
NAFSA is urging Congress to direct the State Department to provide expedited visa appointments for F-1, M-1 and J-1 visa applicants as well as exempt international students from travel restrictions.
The projection does not reflect increasing anxieties among international students interested in studying in the U.S.; a May survey by Study Portals reported student interest in studying in the U.S. has dropped to its lowest point since COVID-19, with students considering other English-speaking nations like the U.K. or Australia instead.
Current visa projections only account for fall 2025 enrollment. In a July interview with Inside Higher Ed, Rachel Banks, senior director of public policy and legislative strategy at NAFSA, noted some colleges and universities are anticipating international students will be unable to make the start of classes in the fall but may be able to come to campus later in the term or in the winter.
The last time we caught up with Shankar Prasad, he was telling us about his new role as chief strategy officer at Carnegie. Shankar reached out, saying that he is recruiting for the key role of Carnegie’s VP of online enrollment and integrated marketing solutions. As I’m on the lookout to share information with our community about roles at the intersection of learning, technology and higher education change, this job seemed perfect. Shankar graciously agreed to answer my questions about the role.
Q: What is the mandate behind this role? How does it help align with and advance the company’s strategic priorities?
A: Carnegie’s Online Program Experience (OPX) business line is an important growth area. The company aims to be the premier provider of integrated marketing and enrollment solutions for online programs. The mandate of the VP of online enrollment and integrated marketing solutions is to build and own the sales plan for this OPX business, drive revenue growth, and ensure that Carnegie’s full suite of services (research, strategy, digital marketing, lead generation, creative and website development) are successfully cross‑sold to new and existing clients.
The job description states that the VP will “lead our sales strategy and execution to achieve our revenue targets,” shape the OPX growth strategy, and establish Carnegie as the premier provider of online program solutions in higher education. To do this, the VP must create the OPX sales plan, drive sales, meet goals and targets, and deliver growth through new clients and client‑expansion opportunities across Carnegie’s entire suite of services.
This work aligns closely with Carnegie’s strategic priorities. The company positions itself as a leader in higher education marketing and enrollment strategy and emphasizes human‑centered, data‑driven solutions. By spearheading integrated marketing and enrollment solutions for online programs, the VP advances this mission—ensuring that Carnegie’s OPX offerings evolve with market trends, deliver measurable results and reinforce the organization’s leadership position. The role also requires thought leadership, cross‑team collaboration and partnerships, which support Carnegie’s focus on innovation and authentic human connections
Q: Where does the role sit within the company’s structure? How will the person in this role engage with other units and leaders across the company?
A: The VP of online enrollment and integrated marketing solutions is Carnegie’s leader of integrated sales for OPX. The position sits within the company’s growth and revenue organization and is accountable for the sales plan, revenue forecasting and team performance. The description notes that the VP “owns the development of all sales pursuits related to OPX” and partners closely with the SVP of marketing and the chief growth officer to develop messaging, positioning and proposals. This indicates that the role reports into or collaborates with senior leadership on growth strategy and marketing alignment.
The role is highly cross‑functional. It requires partnering with marketing and business development to support inbound and new business pursuits and providing training and support to sales representatives in those divisions. The VP must collaborate with leaders of all business units to share feedback and optimize the OPX solution for clients.
Day to day, the person will work with colleagues in sales, account management, production, senior strategists, client success, executive sales and enrollment strategy. They will also work with growth team members to craft proposals and coordinate with the marketing leader on business development materials and events. Additionally, the VP manages OPX revenue forecasting and ensures visibility across all accountable parties. This matrixed engagement means the VP acts as a connector between sales, marketing, product and leadership, ensuring that OPX solutions are delivered seamlessly and that market feedback informs strategic decisions.
Q: What would success look like in one year? Three years? Beyond?
A: In the first 12 months, success would involve laying the groundwork for a high-performing OPX sales organization. The VP should build and execute a sales plan, recruit or train a team, and cultivate strong relationships with marketing, business development and other unit leaders. Key milestones would include securing new OPX clients and expanding revenue from existing accounts, delivering on initial sales goals, instituting accurate revenue forecasting and establishing Carnegie as a respected thought leader at conferences and webinars.
Three years: By year three, the VP should have turned OPX into a mature, scalable business line. The sales plan would be continuously optimized based on market feedback and the team would be driving sustained revenue growth across Carnegie’s services. Market penetration should be evident through a diversified client base, with high renewal and upsell rates. The VP should have built a strong network of external relationships and should be contributing to product evolution by monitoring industry trends and competitor activity. Measurable outcomes might include year‑over‑year revenue growth outpacing the market, higher average contract values and expanded partnerships or acquisitions that enhance the OPX offering.
Beyond (five-plus years): Over a longer horizon, success would mean that the OPX division is a significant growth engine for Carnegie and a well‑recognized market leader. The VP will have built a resilient, data‑driven sales organization capable of adapting to changes in the higher education landscape. They may spearhead new offerings or strategic acquisitions and could play a central role in broader company leadership. The division’s revenue contribution might warrant further expansion into related services or international markets, ensuring Carnegie remains at the forefront of online program marketing and enrollment strategy.
Q: What kinds of future roles would someone who took this position be prepared for?
A: The VP of online enrollment and integrated marketing solutions oversees sales strategy, team leadership, revenue forecasting and cross‑functional collaboration. With 10-plus years of experience required in higher education enrollment and marketing for online programs, the role prepares someone for broader executive positions. Potential future roles could include:
Chief growth officer or chief revenue officer, because the VP manages revenue planning, sales execution and cross‑unit coordination.
General manager or president of a business unit, given the experience in developing a business line, building teams and driving profitability.
Chief marketing officer or chief commercial officer: The position demands collaboration with marketing leadership and deep knowledge of enrollment strategy.
Consulting or strategic advisory roles in higher education marketing and enrollment strategy, leveraging expertise in market trends, client relationships and integrated solutions.
Entrepreneurial leadership roles within the higher ed technology and services space, capitalizing on the growth mindset, executive presence and strategic thinking emphasized in the qualifications.
By leading a high‑growth, cross‑disciplinary sales organization, the VP will develop a skill set that translates to senior leadership roles not only within Carnegie but across the broader higher education services sector.
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