Recruitment, Admissions, Trends, and Tensions

Recruitment, Admissions, Trends, and Tensions

Graduate SchoolEM Task force Presentation

Admissions Staffing

• Director of Admissions, DSO, & OnBase Goddess

• International Admissions/Record Officer & DSO

• Domestic Admissions/Record Officer & recruitment

• Domestic Admissions/Records Representative

• Two “clerk typists”

Application Process

• Dynamic application• The Amazon Model

– Immediate message– Within 2 working days, electronic

acknowledgment and directions re:•using MYNIU to track progress and •submitting Statement of Purpose

– Email sent to referees with instructions on uploading letter of recommendation

Admissions Materials

• Electronic documents – Application (circa 9,000/year: peak

November-March)– Letters of recommendation– Statement of Purpose– GRE/GMAT

• Paper documents– Transcripts– Other test scores

• Program-specific materials– Portfolio, writing sample, interview

Admissions ProcessingAdmissions Processing

• Initial review of application materials

– Correct errors– Check authenticity and accreditation– Maintenance of PS checklists– Minimum standards for GPA and TOEFL/IELTS test scores

• Substantive review by program faculty• Programs make admission recommendations• Grad School accepts or rejects recommendations and formally admits or denies

Recruitment Office

• 100 domestic events/year (i.e. university visits, graduate fairs, corporations)

• Additional visits to Europe and Africa• Partner with ISFO• Partner with faculty

Recruitment Process

• Distribute contact info from fairs/ visits• GS follows-up with prospects• GS follows-up with applicants• GS follows-up with programs• GS communicates with admitted students

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010

Year

Enr

olle

d S

tude

nts Black

Hispanic

Asian

Am In

Non-Res

Racial/Ethnic Enrollment: Fall 95 – Fall 08

Total and White Enrollment: Fall 95 – Fall 08

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010

Year

Enr

olle

d S

tude

nts

White

Total

What Prospects Tell Us

• Programs are unresponsive to inquiries• Location of programs discourages

applications/ attendance • Cohort structure

• Program mix

Number of Graduate Programs by Type

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Masters

PhD

EdD

Why Do Admitted Students Not Attend?

• Life interferes• Visa issues• Costs • Safety school• No assistantship offer/uncompetitive

assistantship offer

A word about assistantships

• Fall 2009: 1,310 assistants• 22% of all graduate students; 27% of

degree-seekers• Stipend range: $195 - $23,260 (with tuition

waiver benefit: $2,661 - $30,478)• Average (actual): $8,312; Median $8,440. • Annualized (9 months) average : $8,757;

Median $9,000• 503 assistants receive a stipend < the

tuition waiver benefit

Median Assistantship Stipends

$0

$2,000

$4,000

$6,000

$8,000

$10,000

$12,000

$14,000

$16,000

$18,000

NIU Median National Median

Difference Between NIU Stipends and Tuition/Fee Charges Compared to Other Institutions

$0

$1,000

$2,000

$3,000

$4,000

$5,000

$6,000

ENGL HIST MATH PHYS GEOL POLS PSYC ANTH CHEM GEOG BIOS

R & D Expenditures: FY 2007

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Another Word about Graduate Students and Money

• Graduate students don’t pay– $10 million in waivers to assistants/year– $17 million in waivers to all GRADs– $10 million in salaries/year

• Graduate students do pay– Estimate of $20 million per Fall and

Spring in tuition and fees paid by graduate students

– Services rendered

National Enrollment Trends

• Fall 2008 – circa 2.3 million in graduate school nationwide– 85% of first-time graduate students in a master’s

or certificate program– education, business, and health sciences

accounted for 50% of first-time enrollment • 1998-2008: greatest growth in the broad fields of

physical sciences, engineering, and health sciences• 2003-2008: greatest growth – ACCY, health and

medicine, psychology, C&I, industrial engineering, higher education, special education, library science, philosophy

Undergraduate Enrollment:Fall 75 – Fall 08

15000

15500

16000

16500

17000

17500

18000

18500

19000

19500

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010

Year

Enr

olle

d S

tude

nts

Undergraduate

Graduate Enrollment:Fall 75 – Fall 09

5000

5500

6000

6500

7000

7500

8000

8500

9000

1974 1979 1984 1989 1994 1999 2004 2009

Year

Enr

olle

d S

tude

nts

Graduate

Graduate Enrollment

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

14000

Enrollment Trends at NIU 06-09

• CBUS: 818/777 down 41 or -5%• CEDU: 2,077/1,747 down 330 or -16%• CEET: 210/273 up 63 or 30%• CHHS: 423/435 up 12 or 3%• CLAS: 1,280/1,243 down 43 or -3%• CVPA: 241/218 down 23 or -9.3%• SAL: 1,202/1,200 down 2• TOTAL: 6,251/5,893 down 358 or -6%

Graduate Enrollments by College: Fall 2009

Percent Grad Students by College: Fall 2009

CBUS13%

CEDU30%

CEET5%

CHHS7%

CLAS21%

CVPA4%

SAL20%

Take-Aways

• Masters-level enrollment, to a lesser extent SALs, drive enrollment

• A relatively small number of programs, but comparatively large enrollment (i.e. juxtaposed to UG enrollment and to comparison group)

• Predominately part-time enrollment• Highly competitive local market, especially

in education and business• Highly competitive global market,

especially for doctoral students and in the STEM disciplines