Rankings & Recruitment.the truth behind the myth. Collette Lux, Director of Marketing at King's College London Greta Maiocchi, Head of Marketing & Recruitment at MIP Politecnico di Milano
Politecnico di Milano School of Management Politecnico di Milano was founded in 1863 Ranked no. 1 in Italy, 7 in Europe and 24 in the world by QS Ranking by subj. TOP technical school for Engineering, Design and Architecture 5 campuses in Italy, 1 in China and 1 in India
MIP Politecnico di Milano Graduate School of Business Founded in 1979 Companies on board since the foundation From Consortium to non for profit consortium limited company
Prestigious: 4 th oldest university in England Ranked 19 th in the world (QS) Multidisciplinary: Humanities, Law, Science, Social Science, Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing and Psychiatry Research intensive: 193M research earnings > 350 International partnerships Located at the heart of London: Four central campuses 27,600 students of which 10,500 are postgraduate Cosmopolitan: Student body is from >150 countries >40% of all academics are from overseas Total income: 684M
Rankings are part of the key consideration factors when making the decision where to study overseas Employability and differentiation for future career Reputation and course quality Create opportunities for prospective students to explore if your course is a good match for their academic and professional backgrounds as well as needs and goals Career Culture Course Costs Anticipated experience and lifestyle factors Affordability and the cost of living (inc fees) Source: London & Partners International Student Research 2014
Rankings are part of the key consideration factors when making the decision where to study overseas Employability and differentiation for future career Anticipated experience and lifestyle factors Career Culture Course Costs Reputation and course quality Affordability and the cost of living (inc fees) Trends in the last 5 years show a shift in the source of information: Candidates contact directly alumni on LinkedIn Online forums (no school engagement) Accreditations (EQUIS AMBA AACSB) GMAC survey 2015 reveals that when students listed their top five consideration criteria for selecting a program based on their preferred study destination, rankings didn't rank highly. Prospective students are more savvy and inquiring Source: London & Partners International Student Research 2014
Rankings are part of the key consideration factors when making the decision where to study overseas Employability and differentiation for future career Reputation and course quality Rankings are relative to the competitive set: National Undergraduate are more likely to compare at institution level Career Culture Course Costs National Postgraduate at departmental level International Postgraduates at Job Placement and Quality of program (Accreditations) Anticipated experience and lifestyle factors Affordability and the cost of living (inc fees) Source: London & Partners International Student Research 2014
Internationally rankings vary in importance
Dilemma 1: Which London? For international recruitment, the university often holds information evenings with sister London Universities. This is often more cost and time efficient than creating separate events It has the advantage of attracting students who are thinking seriously about studying in London already The university had the option of being part of World Class Study in London, or London University International Partnership
Partner with 18 other London universities? Goldsmiths, University of London London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine London South Bank University Middlesex University Queen Mary, University of London University of East London University of Roehampton University of Westminster etc etc + More universities = lower cost BUT less prestigious group Partner with 4 other London universities? Imperial College, LSE, SOAS UCL + Higher ranked institutions BUT the university is often lower ranked than UCL, Imperial and LSE
Dilemma 1: Which group would you recommend the university joining and why?
Dilemma 2: The future of the Full time MBA Global trends: The Full time MBA program is becoming less popular with an increase interest in other master programs (*) The ranking game and competition is becoming fierce, and getting and maintaining a ranked position is also very expensive. Increase of Asian schools in the MBA ranking tables Current MBA: Stable number of applications between 2011 and 2015 but no substantial growth Not in the Global ranking but recognized internationally for Innovation, Technology and Company network Increase number of services to attract students (1 2 1 approach, career services) Lower margins (increase of costs every year) (*) Source: GMAC, Application Trends Survey Report 2015
Dilemma 2: The future of the Full time MBA What to do? Options: 1. Exit the Full time MBA arena and concentrate on other programs, such as Specialized Masters 2. Invest more heavily in a highly visible MBA program that follow a specific ranking and its criteria ( Ranking engineering ), increasing the costs of delivery and modifying the MBA curriculum. Reasons and risks linked to the first or second option (+ and )
Dilemma 3: Reversing the negative rankings spiral The university is highly ranked for Pharmacy & Pharmacology In 2011, a lower ranked independent institution, the London School of Pharmacy, part of the University of London, was in discussion with the university about merger The merger fell through and the School of Pharmacy was taken over by UCL The results From the next recruitment cycle, applications to the university declined and UCL s School of Pharmacy increased Academics in denial and claiming it s a blip refused unswervingly to join recruitment activities QS World University Rankings 2016 UCL = 7 th University = 19 th QS by Subject 2016 UCL = 8 th University = 4 th
Dilemma 3: The negative rankings spiral Struggling to attract high calibre students Academics demotivated and unwilling to join recruitment activities Gain students through Clearing Accept failed medics Accepting lower entry tariffs Remove barriers to offers ie stop interviews
Dilemma 3: How can we attract higher calibre students? Struggling to attract high calibre students New enthusiastic head of department Academics demotivated and unwilling to join recruitment activities Gain students through Clearing Be prepared to take students through Clearing / lower entry tariffs/ no interviews/ accept failed medics Highly targeted out reach to schools and colleges Accept failed medics Accepting lower entry tariffs Remove barriers to offers ie stop interviews Update and improve all collateral and event format New marketing officer
Dilemma 4: The reputation bid A prominent American Business School has approached a European School to promote a joint degree aimed at TOP executives. The Marketing/Recruitment in the US would be carried out by the American school and in Europe by the European school (a min number of recruits of 10 executives) All costs of delivery will be covered by the American partner BUT if the target is not reached, the European school will exit the program after 2 years The American school is highly ranked in the US and the program priced at a very high level compared to the other school offering The recruit should be done at a Corporate level, and the European school does not feel confident to reach the target, given the very high price and the fact that the allowed fee discount is limited
Dilemma 4: The reputation bid. Will you recommend to join the program and why? The board is divided in two groups: one group is keen to join the program for better international reputation and ranking position and the other group is preoccupied of two potential risks: reputational risk in the market if the target is not reached The coherence with the overall program portfolio of the school What would you recommend?
Rankings & Recruitment.the truth behind the myth. Collette Lux, Director of Marketing at King's College London Greta Maiocchi, Head of Marketing & Recruitment at MIP Politecnico di Milano