According to new research published by UPCEA and Helix Education, most higher ed professionals have a limited data-driven mindset. For example, 83 percent of the professionals surveyed have no knowledge of the cost-per-inquiry of their most effective marketing channel for undergraduate inquiry.
More than half of those surveyed made the same indication for graduate inquiry. Additionally, less than half of higher education professionals go through a formalized process when determining which new programs to develop.
Leading by Gut or by Data: The Data-Driven State of Higher Ed Decision Making–which surveyed 480 higher ed professionals with the aim of identifying how a data-driven mindset is permeating the culture and being adopted into the practices of college and universities–reveals the extent to which institutions apply data across the student lifecycle, where gaps exist, and how institutions are mitigating barriers to the data-driven mindset.
The research concludes that for a majority of education providers, data science and analytics are being underutilized when making decisions about program development, marketing, enrollment and retention services—a reality leading to a waste of both financial resources and staff time.
(Next page: Why many institutions still lack a data-driven mindset)
Still Not a Priority
Because data hasn’t been made enough of a priority, there are a significant number of institutional respondents (including those on the front lines of enrollment marketing and operations, retention operations, online program management, program development and analytics) who are in the dark when it comes to key metrics.
A snapshot of additional findings reveals:
• 68 percent of respondents don’t know their estimated overall conversion rate from inquiry to enrollment
• Only 38 percent of respondents reported close integration between marketing, enrollment management, and advising teams
• Almost two-thirds (65 percent) of respondents stated that they either partner completely with outside vendors or blend their operations between in-house methods and outsourcing partnerships for their enrollment marketing
Also of note is the trend toward outsourcing in higher education. To help mitigate the challenges inherent in adopting a data-driven mindset, many higher education institutions are turning to outsourced partners to help them track key performance indicators and implement an integrated system for sharing information.
“While the calls to adopt a data-driven mindset have been gaining momentum, higher education institutions seem to still be falling behind in terms of implementing data analytics into their decision making processes, ” said Danielle Caldwell, Content Marketing Manager at Helix and co-author of the report. “The good news is that institutions surveyed have interest in tracking additional data and see the value in using that data to inform decisions. The field is moving in the right direction.”
Jim Fong, Founding Director of UPCEA’s Center for Research and Marketing Strategy and co-author of the report, added, “By working toward the practical implementation of data, colleges and universities will find themselves in a position to create better programs, plug revenue holes, reduce student attrition throughout the student lifecycle, and even increase capacity.”
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