This document summarizes key findings from the 2008 TeensTALK survey of 800 college-bound high school students conducted by Stamats, a higher education marketing firm. The survey examined students' perspectives on factors influencing their college selection process such as academic quality, fit, success after college, and preferred communication methods. Key findings include that students prioritize career outcomes, hands-on learning, and faculty passion when evaluating academic quality. Campus visits, meeting students, and classrooms are most important for determining fit. Graduation rates and job placement are top predictors of success after college. Email and mail are preferred forms of contact early in the process, while phone and email are preferred later on.

1. 2008 TeensTALK® Stamats, Inc. (800) 553-8878

3. Tuition price elasticity studies

4. Alumni and donor studies

5. Marketing communication audits

6. Recruiting audits

7. Campus visit audits

8. Integrated marketing plans

9. Brand clarification and communication plans

10. Recruiting plans

11. Strategy development and strategic plans

12. Board presentations

13. Project-specific consulting

14. Professional development programming

16. Web site development

17. Virtual tours

18. Direct marketing strategies (search, annual fund)

19. Targeted e-mail marketing systems

20. Advertising

21. Creative concepting

22. Content management systems

23. Dynamic news and events calendars

24. Message boards/chats © 2008 Stamats – 2

26. 50% of respondents were high school juniors (Class of ‘09), 50% high school seniors (Class of ‘08)

27. All respondents completed core TeensTALK® questions and then were randomly assigned into one of 4 college-search specialty subjects:

28. Defining Academic Quality

29. Determining College “Fit”

30. Predicting Success After College

31. Preferred Methods of Communication© 2008 Stamats – 3

32. TeensTALK® Respondent Demographics Gender– 60% female; 40% male Ethnicity – 57% White or Caucasian; 17% Black or African American; 14% Hispanic or Latino/a; 7% Asian or Pacific Islander; 3% no dominant race; <1% Native American; 2% don’t wish to reveal Parent’s highest level of education – 33% high school diploma or GED; 24% some college or two-year degree; 23% four-year degree; 16% graduate degree; 5% not sure Class rank – 13% top 5% of class; 14% top 10%; 14% top 15%; 16% top 25%; 11% top 50%; 5% below top 50%; 27% not sure SAT score – 17% 1300 or lower; 21% 1310 to 1600; 14% 1610 to 1800; 9% 1810 to 2000; 11% 2010 or higher; 18% don’t remember ACT score – 15% 18 or lower; 27% 19 to 22; 25% 23 to 26; 18% 27 to 30; 5% 30 or higher; 11% don’t remember © 2008 Stamats – 4

33. Geographic Distribution of Respondents © 2008 Stamats – 5

34. The Big Picture

35. Trending: Private vs. Public Attendance Source: Chronicle of Education Almanac

39. However, these findings suggest that a smaller percentage of students are admitting interest in two-year schools (29%) than the nearly 40% who will ultimately enroll in one

41. Intended Major(General Categories)

42. Most-Important College Attributes

43. Secondary Importance Attributes Note that while only 14% of respondents identified “beauty and appearance of the campus” as very important, nearly 60% cited “quality of academic facilities” (previous slide) as very important

44. Individuals Involved in College Decision

45. Most Helpful Information Sources

46. Defining Academic Quality

47. Five Vectors of Academic Quality

48. Five Vectors on a 5-Point Scale

50. Career placement rate

51. Average starting salaries

52. Prestige of grad schools attended

53. Grad school acceptance rate

55. Faculty passionate about teaching

56. Internship opportunities

57. Expertise of faculty

58. Undergrads conduct research

59. Students work closely with faculty

62. Wireless campus

63. Honors program

65. Ranked highly

66. Nationally & regionally known

67. Highly selective

69. Indicators of Weak Academic Programs(Verbatim Responses) “An institution’s graduation rate is a good indicator of the quality of its programs. Also, how well people find jobs following graduation—if they can’t find a job, they didn’t have the right education.” “I think a college where the students don’t get good jobs after graduation is an indicator it’s not a good school.” “If they can’t answer my questions, they don’t have strong academic programs.” “If the institution doesn’t have a lot of variety in its majors and it’s brand new, just starting off as a new college.”

70. Quality of “Better” Schools

71. Quality of “Better” Schools (Verbatim Responses) “What makes them better to me is the majors they offer and what clubs they have—basically, its just the stuff that appeals to me.” “They are hard to get into. They are established and get back to you with an answer very soon.” “The time they put into students makes them a higher quality school.”

72. Defining College “Fit”

81. Predicting Success After College

82. Success After CollegeMost Important Predictors

83. Success After CollegeLess Important Predictors

84. Resources Needed to Help Students Succeed

85. Resources Needed to Help Students Succeed “A really good administration and faculty that help students succeed after graduation” “I think the college needs to back you up when you are getting a job and the degree they give you has to look good to employees” “The name of the college” “Availability of good mentors, advisors, and job opportunities for graduating students”

86. Preferred Methods of Communication

88. Sending publications through the mail

89. Sending a personal e-mail, written specifically for you

90. Sending mass, non-personalized emails

91. Contact through Facebook or MySpace

92. Contact via instant messaging

93. Text messages to cell phone

94. Phone calls

95. Phone calls to parent(s)

96. Personal home visitsMethods Tested

97. Funnel Stages Examined

98. “The first stage is early in your college decision-making process. This is the time period before you have decided which colleges and universities you may be interested in, and several schools are attempting to attract your attention.” Search Stage

101. Clearly, the standard search has become a multi-faceted exercise

104. More specific info, more details (15%)

105. Contact me via mail (13%)

106. Contact me via phone (10%)

107. More personalized (10%)

113. Contact me via phone (16%)

114. Contact me via e-mail (11%)

115. More contact, contact on a regular basis (10%)

116. More personalized (10%)

117. Provided more/better information (10%)

120. Note the increasing appreciation for phone calls

124. Contact via e-mail (15%)

125. More specific information,more details (12%)

126. Good customer service,be responsive (8%)

132. Contact me via mail (8%)

133. Provide status updates (8%)

134. More specific information, more details (7%)

135. Contact me via e-mail (7%)

138. Even personal home visits were scored as less intrusive!No Trespassing: Off-Limits Methods

139. What surprised you most?

140. What begs further study?

141. Thank you!