This digest summarizes in a question and answer format a full length report of the same title. It addresses trends in college student enrollment patterns with an emphasis on behavior underlying student choice of college. Demographic changes and cuts in important sources of student financial aid brought significant enrollment declines to higher…

The Marshall University Search Committee on Recruitment of Excellent Students (SCORES) program, is intended to encourage good students in West Virginia to attend college and to encourage them to choose Marshall University. SCORES is an annual recognition of academic excellence among high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors. High school…

Presented are several of the techniques that have been used as part of a comprehensive market research program at Carleton College (Northfield, Minnesota). The basic focus is on regional segments in Carleton's applicant pool. Carleton's position in the market is examined in relation to selected types of schools with which it competes for…

A survey of one college's freshman and transfer students was used to test a five-component model of college choice behavior. It looked at the relationships between students' perceived decision influences (recruitment strategies) and student gender, residency status, and religious affiliation. (MSE)

Describes Augustana College's program of structured library orientation for high school students and its role in recruitment of prospective students. Library staff are seen as a credible and capable force in the college-wide effort to attract good students. (KS)

Due to desegregation of formerly White schools, traditionally Black colleges must compete for enrollments with better financed institutions. The caste structure of American society prevents integrated schools from meeting Black students' psychic needs; therefore, active, honest recruitment can attract students by informing them of the advantages…

Research on college choice as it relates to students' characteristics is reviewed, and the choice process is shown to be a complex series of activities, with individuals participating in it differently. Parent education is a stronger influence than race or gender. Groups are likely to respond to different marketing strategies. (MSE)

Student admission criteria and a college's advising and recruitment efforts are viewed from the perspective of a growing higher education establishment trying to attract students. A student selection model is proposed, derived from an "innovation-decision process" (Rogers and Shoemaker), which focuses on applicant behavior and decision-making…

A survey of 2,500 applicants accepted at Boston College in 1977 is used to develop two statistical models of student decision making for college choice. One model focuses on the decision-making process and the other on institutional image, and the two are compared. The results of the two models guide institutional policy in different directions.…

The IDP (Immediate Decision plan) seeks to eliminate the artificial delay between application and acceptance to or rejection from college. It was designed to help the student make a more informed choice about college attendance. This study is an evaluation of the Bard program two years after its inception. (Author)

Admissions offices of colleges trying to increase undergraduate student diversity are being criticized for failing to explain their affirmative action policies to prospective students and their parents, resulting in a backlash against affirmative action as white students fear reverse discrimination. (DB)

A study of 740 first-year university students found a strong positive correlation between students' college choice, subsequent expectations of the institution, and intent to stay at or leave the university. It is suggested that processes occurring before matriculation are as significant as the college social and academic environment or external…

Examines two studies (n=18, n=103) of high school students' approaches to college choice, using a "brand elimination" approach to consumer decision making and analyzing each stage of the student decision process. A salient finding was that different sources of information are important to the student at different stages of college selection. (MSE)

Discusses a (British) longitudinal study that examined the reasons and motives of 16-year-olds choosing among colleges and school sixth forms in one local area. Although students initially base choices on "predispositions" and work within social/cultural frames of reference, they also rely on marketing information to justify choices. (38…

This pamphlet provides an overview of the historic role, accomplishments, and challenges which face historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) as they carry out their unique mission. It summarizes the efforts of the Department of Education aimed at strengthening HBCUs, while assuring that higher education programs do not discriminate on…