Recruiting Intelligence

The opening plenary at the 76th CIEE conference drew a crowd earlier this month in Paris. No wonder. With a jaw-dropping panel representing Elon, Arizona State, Northeastern, and Dean College, the discussion presented some rare gems. 

The goal: set the conference off on the right foot. Get everyone thinking deeply about how international experiences can reach more students. 

The crowd clearly held the belief that a global education holds the promise of a brighter future. The proof was simply in the stories told by leaders in academia, government, and pretty much every institution in attendance. Those with international experience as a student spoke of the indelible mark that it had on their life and career. The global experiences changed their views of the world and shaped their decisions about how they would participate in it. No doubt, many of you can relate. 

Opportunities to Meet In Person 

The Intead team is gearing up for some amazing presentations and we hope you can join us. 

• AIRC Annual Conference – we’ll be offering our full-day digital marketing workshop here In Phoenix, Dec 6-9, 2023 
• ICEF North America Workshop in Miami, Dec 11-13, 2023 

Let us know if you’ll come share a cup of coffee and a conversation about all things global and digital (info@intead.com) 

Why we work so hard at this and gather to define the path forward: we are looking to make international education more accessible for current and future students. And we want those experiences to be deeply rewarding. We need to be sure the programs have a solid curriculum, strong faculty leadership, and finely tuned logistics and support services.  

We can only take on so much at one time. What I heard as the specific foci at this CIEE gathering: 

• Clarify the steps to improving broad student access.  
• Increase our capacity to provide student mental health support services.  
• Focus efforts on environmental sustainability initiatives. 

The conference provided a foundation for robust, challenging discussions among study abroad leadership and all the many practitioners in the room. And these talks will continue. Fortunately, the resources to do the work, to make these ideas meaningful, not just esoteric, are in place.  

The discussions embraced big visionary approaches (can we foster greater employer engagement in internationalization?) and concrete touch points (can we provide each traveling student with a sustainability cookbook customized to each of 30+ destination cities?). The ideas shared and evaluated poured forth.  

Granted, there is never enough money to do all we want to do. But roughly 75 years ago, a poignant point in time following World War II, many smart and good people got together to launch global initiatives, including the United Nations, IIE, the Fulbright program, NATO, WHO, IMF, the World Bank, and CIEE to name just a few of the most prominent efforts to bridge cultures globally. 

I had the great privilege of moderating the opening plenary and speaking at length with: 

• Kenneth Elmore, J.D., president of Dean College 
• Jennifer Malerich, Ph.D., assistant vice provost of academic and global engagement for Arizona State University 

• Rebecca Kohn, Ph.D., provost and vice president of academic affairs for Elon University 
• Amy Stevens, Ph.D., vice chancellor of global experiential pathways for Northeastern University 

I wish all of you could have been there. That’s why today I’m sharing with you a few of my personal notes from talks with these industry leaders and other observations from the 3-day event. It’s a quick read, but one I know will spur ideas and get your wheels turning. Read on… 

Last week we helped dissect the TikTok ad platform. If you took anything away from that read, we bet you learned that:

• Its popularity among Gen Z is undeniable (76% use it!).  
• Branded and search-based advertising on TikTok is possible (hello Brand Takeover and Search Ads Toggle!).
• Surprisingly, TikTok targeting leaves something to be desired. Proceed with a partner who knows how to make an impact.
  

But for all of that, we didn’t even touch on content creation. And with this platform, that’s the crux of it all. 

Opportunities to Meet In Person 

The Intead team is gearing up for some amazing presentations and we hope you can join us. 

• AIRC Annual Conference – we’ll be offering our full day digital marketing workshop here in Phoenix, Dec 6-9, 2023 
• ICEF North America Workshop in Miami, Dec 11-13, 2023 

Let us know if you’ll come share a cup of coffee and a conversation about all things global and digital (info@intead.com) 

Back to the matter of Tik Tok content. On the one hand, institutions have professional brands to uphold, yet the audience engaging on TikTok demands a more organic, playful view of said brand. It’s a marketing balancing act to say the least. And then there’s the matter of targeting capabilities, which on TikTok are more or less hamstrung. (Wait a minute – what?! If this surprises you, then you may be behind on your reading. Important to catch up with last week’s post. Here's the link again. We promise it will be worth 5 minutes of your time. TikTok may be famous for its algorithm, not so much for its audience segmentation.)

TikTok thrives on the art of brevity and entertainment. Your content must engage and convey your message within seconds, 9-15 is optimal. And to do that you must not only know what it is you want to say, you must know what it is your audience wants to receive. While that’s true of any marketing channel, it’s do or die here. Understanding the unique language and rhythm of this platform is paramount. More bluntly, if your ad isn’t a video that is short, sweet, and entertaining, don’t bother.

Today we offer pro tips for doing just that. Read on to learn how to make your content feel native to TikTok’s seemingly all-knowing algorithm so you can maximize the impact of your ad spend. This post is a short read, and one you won’t want to miss.

Is TikTok effective for student recruitment advertising? An increasingly common head scratching good question.

Without giving it too much thought, you might assume, “Of course it is.” After all, isn’t TikTok the one surefire spot to find every Gen Z-er and their Gen Alpha sibs? 

Opportunities to Meet In Person 

The Intead team is gearing up for some amazing presentations and we hope you can join us. 

• AIRC Annual Conference – we’ll be offering our full day digital marketing workshop here in Phoenix, Dec 6-9, 2023 
• ICEF North America Workshop in Miami, Dec 11-13, 2023 

Let us know if you’ll come share a cup of coffee and a conversation about all things global and digital (info@intead.com) 

Continuing with the Tao of Tik Tok, statistics like these are telling:

• 76% of Gen Z say they use TikTok, surpassing even YouTube with a 71% Gen Z saturation rate, and Instagram at 66%. (source: YPulse)
• As of July 2023, TikTok had 122 million users in the US alone, followed by 100 million in Indonesia, 83 million in Brazil, 63 million in Mexico, 45 million in Vietnam. (source: Statista)
• As of November 2022, Douyin (China’s TikTok) had over 700 million active users, more than one-third of whom are under the age of 26. (source: Value Planet, Diesel Smart Numbers) Note: Douyin’s interactive format is the same as Tik Tok (same company), but the advertising platform in China is entirely separate from the platform for the rest of the world.
• The number of TikTok users are projected to grow to 955+ million by 2025. (source: Statista)
• 25% of the TikTok audience is under 20 years old, as are many of your prospective students. (source: Exploding Topics)
• 68% of TikTok users find its advertising content unique and different from all other platforms – a good thing if you want your brand to stand out. (source: TikTok)

Yet, there’s more to consider. For instance, unlike its organic For You feed, TikTok’s ad capabilities are, for now, more rudimentary, meaning you have to target a much broader audience on TikTok than you do, say, on Meta’s platform (Facebook and Instagram). There are simply less ways to find specific audiences on TikTok forcing you to cast a very wide net with your media buy. As a result, you reach more but less targeted eyeballs, which of course costs you. Not ideal. And then there’s the challenge of producing content that blends in seamlessly with the authentic, user-generated content. More on that in part 2.

Side note: there is a reason Meta’s media platforms are producing so much ad revenue. Meta has built the most user-friendly advertising management system (better than Google as a very close second). Marketers love these tools for their ability to design, launch, track, and optimize campaigns.

Still, we know you’re curious about how marketers can use TikTok. And your instincts tell you to give it a try. We’re right there with you. In fact, we’re having a lot of fun creating and playing around on its ad platform for a few of our clients even as we write this post. Stay tuned for our campaign learnings and results in a future post.

So, let’s talk all things TikTok advertising. Read on to understand how TikTok ad targeting works and what pitfalls to be aware of to make the most of this social media platform. 

Forget Wordle. Here’s a real problem for you to solve: If India, which recently unseated China as the world’s most populous nation, has over 1.4 billion people and 17.5% are aged 15 – 24 (that's ~240M students), will its roughly 1,100 universities have enough seats for all its university-eligible students?

The short answer: no.

Clearly, India's education leaders have some planning to do.

Take a step back and consider: India is enjoying a big year. They just landed on the moon. Hosted the G20 summit. Are top-dog population-wise. And its fast-growing economy is as strong as ever. A Pew Research Center survey this year even shows a full 68% of Indians feel their country is growing in global influence. All really good news for India.

But the devil is always in the details with rising nations and the truth is, there are too many young Indians who can’t get the higher education they want. At least not now and not at home.

Opportunities to Meet In Person 

The Intead team is gearing up for some amazing presentations and we hope you can join us. 

• PIE News Live in Boston, Nov 13-15, 2023 
• AIRC Annual Conference – we’ll be offering our full day digital marketing workshop here in Phoenix, Dec 6-9, 2023 
• ICEF North America Workshop in Miami, Dec 11-13, 2023 

Let us know if you’ll come share a cup of coffee and a conversation about all things global and digital (info@intead.com) 

The Indian government is fully aware of this growth and for the first time its University Grants Commission has taken strides to welcome foreign universities into the country. (Note: only institutions in the top 500 global rankings need apply.) Deakin University and University of Wollongong, both of Australia, are the first to be granted approval. You can bet others (and we’ve had interesting conversations with a few) are doing the financial analysis and considering the blueprints for academic collaborations of their own.

One key caveat of the regulations, India is not recognizing online degrees from foreign institutions. India’s leadership wants in-person set-ups. As the former vice-chancellor of New Delhi’s National University of Educational Planning and Administration puts it, “Online education goes against the expected gains of internationalization.” Plus, the government would like to increase on-campus higher education access in-country while also attracting foreign students to India. Makes sense on multiple levels.

You know what else makes sense? US institutions vying for Indian students’ attention. And yes, of course you are already recruiting in this key region and have seen an uptick in actual enrollments. US visa approvals of Indian applications have hit record numbers since the pandemic.

Trust us, there’s so much more we think you should consider doing to tap this market effectively. Let us tell you why. Read on…

Students and digital media, right? TikTok rules! Oh, and Instagram. But, email is dead. Search is dead. Facebook is dead. (Pro tip: these all still have value to you). 

Now entering the social media platform arena: Threads. 

So, the questions on your team’s mind: Is now the right time to add Threads as a tactical element to our student recruiting strategy? How hard could it be? Is there any value here? Is our audience here? 

Opportunities to meet in person:

The Intead team is gearing up for some amazing presentations and we hope you can join us. 

• CIEE 76th Annual Conference in Paris, Nov 8-10, 2023 
• PIE News Live in Boston, Nov 13-15, 2023 
• AIRC Annual Conference – we’ll be offering our full day digital marketing workshop here in Phoenix, Dec 6-9, 2023 
• ICEF North America Workshop in Miami, Dec 10-13, 2023 

Let us know if you’ll come share a cup of coffee and a conversation about all things global and digital (info@intead.com) 

The short answer to the Threads question: As of now, fall 2023, the Intead team leans toward the more measured wait-and-see approach. It’s early yet.  

There’s plenty of time to integrate this new platform should it fully take off. And there are more than a few social media users who really hope it does, especially in the midst of the chaos of Twitter, err, we mean X.  

What we know about Threads so far: 

• It aims to take X head-on, and with the full weight of Meta behind it, we give it a fighting chance. 
• More than 100 million users joined Threads within the first 5 days of its launch, making it the fastest-growing app in history. Proof that people were waiting for it. And further proof that Meta is a powerful force. 
• Yet, some wonder if that was a false start. Its user base promptly plummeted by over 80% in less than a month post-launch. And this is something we can’t ignore. 

Still, we know some social media mavens on your team are debating if now is the right time to integrate Threads into your social media arsenal. Is this one of those first-mover advantage things? After all, effective lead generation and brand strategy require you to stay up-to-date and constantly try new approaches. We get it and encourage you to read on to better understand if Threads is something your student marketing strategy needs right now. 

We may have found your next best way to get you through your commute. And yes, it’s a podcast. You’re likely familiar with the EdUp Experience Podcast, and if not, then it’s time you check it out. Available via the usual lineup of streaming services, EdUp Experience ranks in the top 2% of all podcasts worldwide per Listen Notes. And now they’ve launched a new offshoot that we think is worth a listen.

Called EdUp—International, this new niche series is poised to offer interesting business perspectives on all things international education—a topic we know is as important to you as it is to us. Its host is the talented and always engaging James (Jim) Shafer, director of international student recruitment and enrollment at Touro University. The inaugural episode aired Oct. 22, 2023.

And, when you do tune in, you’ll hear another familiar voice (hint: it’s Ben!). We were thrilled when they asked us to be part of the inaugural episode. We were even more excited when we learned we’d get to spend 45 minutes talking with special guest Dr. LaNitra Berger, president and chair of the board of directors of NAFSA and associate professor at George Mason University. What an awesome honor.

In this premier episode, Dr. Berger offers valuable insights about the evolution of international education, including:

• How universities are responding to the significant crises hitting enrollment offices today
• Differing challenges of small-shop international recruitment teams vs the different yet similar challenges faced by larger, well-staffed operations
• Why giving international educators space to dream and ask “what if” is so important
• …And how playing with The (yes, THE!) Temptations helped build Dr. Berger’s interest in international education 

If any of that sounds interesting, even helpful, then read on for the link to this brand-new podcast…

Most inspiring feature of NACAC ‘23: Angel Perez, NACAC CEO, interviewing Maryland Governor Wes Moore and US Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona in the opening Plenary for 7,000+ attendees. Representation matters.  

This conversation, in the way it was introduced by a power team of NACAC leaders and the dialogue that followed, demonstrates so very much about what we can do to move forward in the face of strong opposition. Bring our unrelenting energy and talent, grounded in the forthright presentation of ideas and ideals. Meet the challenge, whatever it may be, with unwavering, appreciative inquiry. Communicate the vision in ways everyone can understand. 

The conference that followed with all the sessions, networking, and the many interactions showed that NACAC has still got it. And the Baltimore Convention Center people flow worked better than many other large venues we’ve been to. Below we offer additional 2023 Enrollment Trend Observations and the slides from our presentation on the current state of the international enrollment. The data we share offers you an outstanding opportunity to benchmark your own institution against nearly 200 others. 

Opportunities to meet in person:

The Intead team is gearing up for some amazing presentations and we hope you can join us. 

• CIEE 76th Annual Conference in Paris, Nov 8-10, 2023 
• PIE News Live in Boston, Nov 13-15, 2023 
• AIRC Annual Conference – we’ll be offering our full day digital marketing workshop here in Phoenix, Dec 6-9, 2023 
• ICEF North America Workshop in Miami, Dec 10-13, 2023 

Let us know if you’ll come share a cup of coffee and a conversation about all things global and digital (info@intead.com) 

Intead’s presentation at NACAC 2023 with Robert Summers from Middle Tennessee State University and Jennifer Wright from AIRC was, of course, in the furthest most possible session room, and the A/C in the Convention Center seemed to get stronger and stronger the further you got from the entrance. So, we cheered when we saw 70+ attendees actually show up on the distant shores of room 348 and suffer through our data display in near arctic conditions. We thank you all! 

I exaggerate, of course. But it was pretty darn cold. And the data we presented wasn’t exactly warm and fuzzy. It is here and available for download in the link at the end of this blog post. Read on… 

Bringing the real world into the classroom is so important to the future of your students. And last week we shared one way Suffolk University is taking action (find that post here). A sort of ​Career Readiness 101. This week, Career Readiness 201 as we talk about you and offer a helpful career-prep checklist, complete with on-campus practices and recruiter tips, too.  

Opportunities to connect in person and hear our latest market intel:

• Join us in Paris Nov 8-10 at CIEE's 76th Annual Conference.
• Join us in Boston Nov 13-15 at PIE News Live.

Let us know if you'll be joining us (info@intead.com).

Like you, the vast majority of students we talk to are playing the long game. Well before they even have a high school diploma, they’re thinking beyond university. They’re smart consumers and they need to know what their hard-earned degree, whatever the field, will mean for them in the market. Never mind that many of them are not sold on a major yet. They’ve been hearing for years about the rising costs of higher education. They understand ROI more than previous generations ever did. And their parents are all about that approach. 

According to the National Center for Education, in 1980, the annual cost of attending university (including tuition, fees, room, and board) was just over $10,000, adjusted for inflation. Fast forward to the 2019-20 academic year, and that that bottom line had ballooned 180 percent to nearly $29,000. This is the story your prospective students have grown up hearing. For decades, everyone, university administrators and families, have been wringing their hands about the rising costs and yet, not a thing has been done about it. 

For families, the reality is they’re looking at an average debt for a four-year Bachelor’s degree of $34,700 per the Education Data Initiative. And while the standard repayment term for federal loans is 10 years, it can take up to 30 or more years for more than a few students to pay off these loans. You can see their concern. 

Some of us optimistically thought the rise of online education would bring costs down and become a reliable source of revenue for universities and a powerful educational avenue for students. The reality: yes, a growing source of revenue, but the cost to produce truly effective online education that carries students forward with all the tools and supports, is fairly pricey to produce. And the low quality stuff really does not achieve the educational outcomes, so students pay for an ineffective degree - a credential that does not meet real-world employer needs. (See our blog post here about the perceived value of online degrees) 

Of course, these are tuition numbers you’ve thought about many times. And they’re all over the news right now as student loan repayments will soon be back on after a long pandemic pause. Smart students want to know the kind of return they’re going to get on their investment, and they’re looking to you to provide an attractive answer. 

So, what is your answer?

Read on for a checklist of essential ways to help ensure your campus helps prep students for the careers they’re hoping higher ed will lead them to. And yes, we’ve included pro-tips for you recruiters. Read on...

Let’s talk about the messaging your institution uses to convince students and families that what you offer has value. Pretty simple stuff, right? Maybe not. You’ll appreciate the helpful checklist that follows in part 2 of this series. Think marketing differentiators in a competitive marketplace. You won’t want to miss it. 

Opportunities to connect in person and hear our latest market intel:

• Join us in Paris Nov 8-10 at CIEE's 76th Annual Conference.
• Join us in Boston Nov 13-15 at PIE News Live.

Let us know if you'll be joining us (info@intead.com).

But first a story. 

Ok, so you are up in front of your board of directors presenting your business growth and marketing plan. You and your team have been figuring this out for a while and last night was a late one as you worked together to put the finishing touches on your slides. There were still disagreements among your team, but you settled the issues and felt nervously ready. 

Everyone has a speaking role but some on your team are stronger than others. Some don’t have appropriate clothes to wear for the presentation so they borrow something professional looking from friends. Some sway nervously back and forth and read their slides rather than engage with the very important board members. You realize early on in the presentation that the data presented on slide 7 is wrong. It doesn’t support your final recommendation. Maybe no one will notice. 

It is your Marketing Business class final presentation to a mock board of directors and as first year undergrads, your team is anything but seasoned. Your final grade is riding on how your team performs. 

Every semester for years now, I have had the honor of judging the final marketing analysis presentations of undergraduate students in a marketing business class at Suffolk University. A good friend of mine there teaches the class and gathers a set of judges from the biz to help the students get some real world feedback. Each judging session is as different as the teams presenting. It’s a blast for us, the judges. Nerve racking for the students. 

Recently, the department asked a few of the real-world judges for additional input and it truly impressed me. They wanted to hear from us as employers to understand what we look for in candidates as we hire. What tools should their students know how to use? What business concepts and approaches are critical to us as employers so their graduates will crush the interview?  

That line of questioning is SO important for business programs that often focus so much on esoteric business theory and simplistic case studies while purporting to be all about the real world. As our Intead Advisory Board Member Hillary Dostal, global marketing advisor at Pegasystems, says: There is best practice and then there is actual practice.  

This goes for your team, too. Read on…

For an industry that takes a lot of heat for being slow-moving, it sure feels like change is happening fast. You feel it, too, right? The pains of adjustment and growth. We’re learning to get comfortable getting uncomfortable. And we’re all here for it.

This blog, as you know, is one way you can keep up with important topics and industry trends that are propelling higher ed forward. This past quarter, for instance, we weighed in on pivotal topics like the current drivers of Chinese student mobility (hint: keep recruiting!), the integration of predictive modeling (new inescapable buzzword: AI), non-traditional student’s non-traditional needs, the use of agent aggregators, and more.

Of course, you were busy juggling all this progress with bottom line issues like student yield. So, if you didn’t get to all of our posts, we understand. Read on for a summary of the top news from Intead’s “Recruiting Intelligence” blog and click through on those topics that are meaningful to you now.

As we publish this week, NACAC 2023 just wrapped up in Baltimore. Some great opportunities to connect and learn, as always. And some growing and adjustment pains for NACAC as well as they figure out how to serve their members and regional leaders. Some natural frustration there, to be sure. We’ll share the slides from our presentation and more reflections on the gathering in a couple weeks.

Next Up: Join us in Paris Nov 8-10 at CIEE's 76th Annual Conference. Let us know if you'll be there (info@intead.com).

But here, and now, for many of you, we share some great reading while you are traveling the world in search of students while others are setting the recruitment plans in motion back in the office. Read on…