Featured Project

Attracting & Converting Candidates for SFU’s Master of Publishing program

The Master of Publishing (MPub) at Simon Fraser University is the only program in Canada to offer a post-graduate degree in publishing. With an emphasis on hands-on, workplace learning, MPub graduates are prepared for employment in technology, media and entertainment, marketing, design, management, and public policy.

Challenge

How does a niche graduate program attract and convert high-quality students into candidates for the upcoming academic year?

Diagnostics

• Declining application rates signalled a need to increase program visibility and reach across a broader base of prospective students
• Lack of agreement on program positioning highlighted a need for stakeholder alignment on market targeting, positioning, and messaging
• Unclear audience segmentation revealed the opportunity for a needs assessment and better understanding of the factors and information influencing applicants’ intent to apply or qualify out of the process.

Highlights

• One-on-one interviews identified diverging opinions and where there was alignment on purpose
• Communicating early and often allowed faculty to share concerns upfront, and to proactively provide input throughout the process
• Small group meetings helped socialize a flexible, yet targeted approach to recruitment campaigns. The value being that a broader, diverse set of applicants would allow the faculty to truly design the ideal cohort mix and ensure a diversity of experience and skills.
• Introducing formal and informal feedback mechanisms allowed faculty to better understand from a student perspective the value of the program and its shortcomings in the existing application and onboarding process
• Regular reporting to the program director, and timed check-ins with faculty, have ensured that individuals across the department are excited about the transition, in favour of the plan, and proactively working to address real student and business challenges.

Profile Example

The Core MPub applicant is the Canadian (BC/ON) female grad student straight out of her BA in English, Comms, History, Art, or Journalism. She has a love of reading and wants to turn that into a profession, often editorial, marketing, or design, but she’s especially seeking transferrable business skills. She is unaware of the MPub prior to online searches and stumbles across the program via personal recommendations, directories of grad studies, and search results for graduate programs at reputable universities. These are early, career-driven individuals looking for an MA or equivalent, along with practical work experience and exposure to industry connections.

Outcomes

1. Audit of historical Applicant Data identified the core audience segment and 3 opportunities to increase recruitment reach and applicant diversity. Profiles were tested with faculty and alumni to solicit feedback and gain alignment on the ideal cohort mix.
2. Competitor Analysis resulted in a re-positioning of the MPub program based on a clearer understanding of the audience’s motivations, values, and digital habits in relation to researching and applying for a graduate program of this nature. Revised messaging is being tested through advertising and outreach campaigns in Summer 2019 and will be refined for recruitment campaigns beginning in September 2019.
3. Performance metrics from the website, social, and paid ads were used build a shared understanding of the student journey from program awareness through to application. Journey mapping revealed gaps and opportunities for educational content at the awareness stage. Content is in development for marketing automation processes designed to capture leads and nurture prospective students through the application process.
4. Qualitative research with newly accepted applicants and recent alumni supported the need for greater program visibility but also identified an educational opportunity to welcome and onboard incoming students. Modular, scalable content is in development, along with rapid prototyping of a Learning Launch site/app for new students.
5. Satisfaction surveys were designed and run with the current cohort to establish a net promoter score (NPS), which will be tracked in an on-going manner with each new cohort. Beyond the standard NPS questions, the survey asks for ranking and reflection on the most/least important educational components of the course, interest in connecting with alumni, and assessment of the knowledge, skills, and confidence gained through the program. Results will be shared regularly to create a learning loop for teaching faculty.
6. A self-serve learning library is being designed for faculty involved in student recruitment. This includes reporting dashboards, video tutorials, checklists and guidelines to ensure execution excellence

Skills & Capabilities

• Project management to coordinate internal stakeholders and activities
• Cross-functional work on strategy alignment and prioritization
• Audience research to identify key attributes and create personas
• Needs analysis to map key attributes to initiatives
• Student journey mapping for decision-point identification
• Content strategy mapped to journey to optimize for conversion
• Conversion optimization and key performance indicators; dashboard reporting
• Team training and education on strategy, tactics, measurement