This document provides strategies for improving class start rates by focusing on three core areas: selecting and interviewing applicants, maintaining applicant interest, and following up with applicants. It outlines best practices such as conducting well-designed phone interviews and in-person interviews to assess interests and ability to start. It also recommends maintaining contact with admitted students through social media and events and establishing a timeline to strategically follow up on applications and milestones. The goal is to streamline the admissions process through organization and monitoring of progress.

1. How to Ensure Stronger Class Start Rates

2. Improve Class Start Rates by Focusing
on Three Core Areas of Admissions
• Strategies for selecting and interviewing potential applicants
• Maintaining new applicant interest
• Best practices for following up with new applicants

3. 1. Strategies for Selecting and
Interviewing Potential Applicants

4. Selecting and Interviewing Potential Applicants
Everyone knows there are benefits to obtaining a
degree, but we also know not everyone has the
ability to do so given their personal or financial
status.
Therefore, it is crucial for your institution to have
a clearly defined interview process in place that
determines:
• Career interests
• Commitment
• Financial resources
4

5. Initial Phone Consultation
Begin with a well-designed phone script that
includes:
Discovery questions A complete overview
to determine: of your institution’s:
• Interests • Degrees and
• Potential career programs available
path • Features and
• Motivation benefits
• Support system
5

6. Interview
Create a well-defined interview that includes the
following six components:
1. A recommendation process
2. An interview questionnaire that probes for career
interest, commitment, red flags, and
personal/financial support
3. Program/degree information
4. Features and benefits of your institution
5. Explanation of tuition costs
6. Discussion of ability to pay
6

7. Tuition Costs and the Applicants Ability to Pay
Tuition and the applicants ability to pay needs to be
discussed after reviewing features and benefits.
• Present full costs of program
• Introduce options for covering tuition costs
• Consider a preliminary financial assessment
or a warm transfer to the Financial Aid
Department
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8. Summary of Best Practices
• Create a well-defined phone script
• Schedule an admissions interview
• Create a structured interview process that not
only determines an applicants interests but
probes ability to start
• Clearly define admission requirements
• Set timeline and review next steps
• Provide documentation that reflects timeline
and next steps
• Keep communication lines open and follow up
on due dates
8

9. 2. Maintaining New Applicant
Interest

10. Application Received! Now What?
Keep in mind, your competitors will continue to call your
applicants. The longer your enroll to start time is, the
more crucial it is for your institution to have an effective
communication plan in place.
• Organize online and campus-
based admitted students activities
(very important with high school
applicants)
• Send out reminder mailers and e-
mails
• Mail new applicants your campus
newsletter (if e-mail based, invite
them to subscribe)
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11. Using Social Media
Social media provides an outlet for interaction.
• Consider creating an environment for
prospective students to interact prior
to starting
• Create a Facebook page that allows
prospective students to communicate
with current students and staff
• Use Twitter to actively monitor
conversations regarding your
institution and, when appropriate,
engage in a conversation
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12. Other Resources
Provide resources and tools to help the student feel
like a part of the institution before their first class
even starts by:
• Creating a project to complete prior to starting
class
• Allowing communication with professors and
other applicants
• Providing opportunities to meet other
students and make friends
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13. 3. Best Practices for Following
Up with New Applicants

14. Strategic Admissions Enrollment Plan
In order to streamline your admissions process, you
need to develop a strategic admissions enrollment
plan which includes:
A breakdown of all Key deliverables and
departments involved in accountabilities for every
the student enrollment team member
lifecycle
Clearly defined workflow Measuring and evaluating
process and check list performance
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15. Focus on Applicant Follow-Up
• Establish a timeline
• Schedule reminders for important deadlines
• Acknowledge milestones completed
• Make it easy for students to ask advisors
questions over the phone and through email
during business hours
• Provide useful online resources, including
frequently asking questions
• Have the Director of Admissions call all
applicants
15

16. Best Practices for Measuring and Evaluating
Performance
• Hold weekly scrub meetings to go through the
applications one by one to determine status
• Be prepared, be organized
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17. Summary
Improve Class Start Rates by Focusing on Three
Core Areas of Admissions
• Strategies for selecting and interviewing
potential applicants
• Maintaining new applicant interest
• Best practices for following up with new
applicants
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18. CUnet School Operations
Consulting Services

19. School Operations Consulting
At CUnet, we work closely with our school partners to
drive results. Our team is comprised of seasoned higher
education management professionals with local
regional, and national experience—we understand the
unique challenges of higher education.
We help schools identify challenges, then we make
clear recommendations and help implement changes.
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20. Enrollment/Inquiry Process Consulting
This comprehensive review of inquiry processes
includes an audit of all departments involved in the
enrollment process, including:
• Marketing
• Admissions
• Registrar
• Financial Aid
• Student Services
• The NSC department
We conduct a competitive review before making
recommendations. Additionally, we provide staff and
management training and conduct follow-up monitoring.
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21. Quality Assurance and Compliance Consulting
We provide a comprehensive review of all departments
to ensure they are providing superior service to
students and are in compliance with national and
regional accrediting institutions and USDOE
regulations.
Through Inquiry Process Consulting, we help schools
address enrollment and admissions compliance.
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22. School Strategic Management Consulting
We draw on our broad experience in higher education
to provide a full range of Strategic Management
Consulting services, including:
• Management coaching
• Technology assessments
• Staffing services consulting
• Department of Education regulations and
compliance
• Vendor management consulting
• Mystery shopping
22

23. Questions?
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Contact:
Lauren Bauser
Marketing Manager
E-mail: lauren.bauser@cunet.com
Phone: 609.896.1800, ext. 53093
For more information, go to: www.CUnet.com or
check out CUnet’s blog: http://blog.cunet.com
Follow us on Twitter @CUnetCo