This deck was originally presented at a Swissnex Higher Ed Webinar in January 2015. Majors, degrees, and programs ... these are the products that colleges and universities offer, and the act of earning a degree is a life-changing experience for most people. Why, then, are so many major, program, and degree pages on .edu sites so long, lackluster, or lifeless? This session focused on the content needed to create better user experiences for prospective students browsing major, degree, and program pages. We looked at the assessment, planning, collaboration, and governance needed to get it done.

1. How colleges and universities can provide better
major, minor, degree, and certificate information on the web
PROGRAM
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2. AGENDA:
I. WHY PROGRAM PAGES MATTER
II. HOW TO MAKE BETTER PROGRAM PAGES

3. @DougGapinski
#higheredCH

4. Defining programs:
In the context of this
presentation programs
means majors,
minors, degrees,
concentrations, and
certificates.

5. Defining program
pages:
The web page or
pages to represent
majors, minors,
degrees, and
certificates.

6. In Europe In the U.S.
faculty or school college or school
professors faculty or professors
programme, degree, or
sometimes course
degree or program
bachelor’s degree major or bachelor’s degree

7. #higheredCH
What are some of the best program pages
(degrees, minors, concentrations,
or certificates) you’ve seen?

8. WHY PROGRAM PAGES MATTER

9. Program listings are the top priority for
prospective students – according to them!

10. 0%
7.5%
15.0%
22.5%
30.0%
Academic program/ major listing Cost Academic program/ majors details Financial aid Scholarships Enrollment/ admissions information Housing details
Students Parents
First content targets on
college and university websites
Source: Noel-Levitz

11. How can you demonstrate value?
29%
22%
16%
18%
4%
33%
25%
32%
6% 5%
Academic program content Testimonials Statistics (job placement/grad schools) Videos Calculators
Seniors
Parents
How can colleges and universities
demonstrate value?
Source: Noel-Levitz

12. For higher education,
the programs are the core products!

13. But what about the experience?

14. What about the professors?
Has a Ph.D.

15. What about the campus?

16. All that stuff is important.
But the programs are the core product
of colleges and universities.

19. In the U.S., college is expensive.

20. The average cost (tuition and fees) of one year of
college as an undergraduate in 2013–2014:
$30,094 – private colleges & universities
$22,203 – public universities, out-of-state
$8,893 – public universities, in-state
Source: Collegeboard

21. Source: Collegeboard
For four years:
$120,376 – private colleges & universities
$88,812 – public universities, out-of-state
$35,572 – public universities, in-state
Note: financial aid, inflation, average time to complete (about 55 months and variable
based on type of institution) aren’t calculated into the numbers above.

22. m
Source
• Ranked #1 liberal arts college in the nation
• 17% acceptance rate
• $46,600 per year (tuition and fees)
• Economics is their most popular program
(major for 19% of undergraduate students)

23. m
Does the design
or content of
this page
demonstrate
the value of
a $186,400
product?

24. m
• Very little information for a
prospective student –
majority of page describes
functional requirements for
current students
• Contains references to
students in classes of 2007
and 2008
• No links to apply, request
information, or visit
• Event feed still shows up
when there are no events.

25. m
• Very little information for a
prospective student –
majority of page describes
functional requirements for
current students
• Contains references to
students in classes of 2007
and 2008
• No links to apply, request
information, or visit
• Event feed still shows up
when there are no events.

26. m

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41. Program pages matter because
matters.

42. Google is handing you targeted leads that don’t
come through your home page or your
admissions pages.
These targeted leads come from search terms.

43. This is the average number of monthly searches for “best college” in Seattle, Washington.

44. This is the average number of monthly searches for “computer science degree”
and related terms in Seattle, Washington – as reported by Google AdWords.

45. A single specific program search is generating almost 2x the number of leads as a
generic college search. What are they gonna see when they click your program?

46. Program pages have huge potential for
appealing to high-ability students, focused
leads, and/or stealth applicants.

47. The homepage
an all-purpose Swiss Army
Knife for millions of visitors per
year.
The program page
a state-of-the-art surgeon’s tool
designed for a few thousand
visitors per year who are
investigating a specific product.

48. HOW TO MAKE BETTER PROGRAM PAGES

49. PROLOGUE
Do you have a content strategy for your site yet?
If you don’t know what you need to say about your
institution, then you don’t know what you need to
say about your products.

50. Program pages need
to relate to institutional
strategy as much as
they can.
Examples:
• Engage and solve problems
globally
• Offer experiential learning
• Recruit and grow leaders
• Promote service and
community initiatives
• Support faith-based
learning via a specific
religious pedigogy

51. 1Assess your existing program pages

52. Pick 5 to 10 examples programs to show your
team why your program pages need to be better.

53. • choose examples from different schools, colleges, and
departments
• do an assessment of a very old program vs. a very new
program
• if you’re a college, do an assessment of a graduate degree
vs. an undergraduate degree
IDEAS

54. Are you gonna need a spreadsheet? OF COURSE!

55. What do your program pages do to help a
student understand why the degree is valuable?

57. What do they say about how getting the
degree at your institution is different?

59. What do your program pages do to explain
options for customizing (concentrations, dual
majors, co-op programs)?

61. What do your program pages do to explain
functional requirements for getting in?

63. Do a competitive analysis of the program
pages of your top three competitors and
top three aspirants.

64. Decide whether or not your model will be
centralized or decentralized
2

65. Decentralized (common) Find
“Computer
Science
Major”

66. Decentralized (common)

67. Decentralized programs
In this model, the deans and/or content editors
for each department are usually responsible for
maintaining the program pages.

68. Centralized (uncommon)
Find
“Computer
Science
Major”

69. Centralized programs
(uncommon)
Program pages live under a
single sections – academics
or admissions.
This model doesn’t require
someone to browse the
department to get to the
program.
Program pages link to
departments.
To departments
ACADEMICS OR
ADMISSIONS
UNDERGRADUATE GRADUATE OTHER
HOME
PROGRAM PROGRAM
PROGRAM PROGRAM
PROGRAM PROGRAM
PROGRAM PROGRAM
PROGRAM PROGRAM
PROGRAM PROGRAM
PROGRAM PROGRAM
PROGRAM PROGRAM
PROGRAM PROGRAM

70. Is it possible to have both models?
Yes – sometimes undergraduate majors and
minors are contained in one centralized location on
the main .edu site and all graduate programs are
contained on the department sites.

71. Why a mixed model?
Up to 50% undergraduates are undecided / undeclared
and up to 80% of undergraduates will change majors.
It doesn’t make sense to take them down into the
college and school level. They need to be able to
navigate all programs.

72. Why a mixed model?
More than 90% of graduate students of will only apply
to one program (though they will apply to multiple
universities). Information outside of the school,
department, or college, may not be relevant to them.

74. 3Assemble a core team to work on
program pages and decide...
... who needs to buy-in to the process.
... who will be writing / editing the pages.

75. Who owns program development?
You’re going to need to work with the deans or faculty.
Meet your new best friends!

76. 4Start planning the content models.

78. Anyone who needs to help write needs
to participate in making content models.

79. 5Make some prototypes and test them with
prospective or current students.
This could be your current pages or
concepts for new pages.

80. Prototype testing for
content needs:
Ask questions about
labels, about types of
information are most
valuable, about
what’s missing.

81. 6Set up easy, semantic URLs for redirection
to program pages – so you can promote or
link to programs in marketing materials.
miskatonic.edu/biology

82. 7Set up review cycles.
for program pages need to correspond to
actual curriculum changes.

83. The review cycles for program pages need
to correspond to curriculum changes.
The review cycle for program pages probably
shouldn’t be longer than one year.

84. 8Don’t forget about that listing page!

85. 0%
7.5%
15.0%
22.5%
30.0%
Academic program/ major listing Cost Academic program/ majors details Financial aid Scholarships Enrollment/ admissions information Housing details
Students Parents
First content targets on
college and university websites
Source: Noel-Levitz

87. Few but
meaningful
choices
Classification (tabs)
Type of degree (as legend)

89. Keyword search, only
returns programs
Multiple ways
to explore
degrees
Take action!
Multiple ways
to the degrees

90. 9Don’t forget about those undecided
or undeclared undergraduates!

91. 60-80% of incoming
freshman are
undecided
Full list of
undergraduate
programs

92. Questions?

93. Thanks!
@DougGapinski mstoner.com