2012 National Research Report The Factors Influencing College Choice Among Nontraditional Students An analysis of adult learners, graduate, and online learners What matters to nontraditional when deciding where to enroll? There are a variety of factors that influence a nontraditional student s decision to enroll. Factors such as cost and the availability of financial aid are universally important at all types of institutions and for all types of, but the availability of evening and weekend courses as well as the general convenience of programs become relevant factors for adult and online learners. Every year, hundreds of campuses administer the Noel-Levitz Student Priorities Survey (ASPS) to their adult and graduate and the Noel-Levitz Priorities Survey for Online Learners (PSOL) to enrolled in the online programs. In addition to the items rated for importance and satisfaction regarding the general student experience, both the ASPS and PSOL include items that address factors in a student s decision to enroll (nine items on the ASPS and ten items on the PSOL). During the fall of 2011, more than 5,500 from 17 public and private four-year institutions completed the ASPS. More than 17,000 online learners from 16 institutions completed the PSOL. These rated the factors to enroll items on a scale of one (meaning not important at all) to seven (very important). This report details the responses from the nationwide pool of data. There is a special emphasis in this report on the different perceptions of and graduate adult and online learners to see what factors played more critical roles in influencing enrollment. The report also compares adult who indicate they are at their first-choice institution versus those attending their second- or third-choice institution, since perceptions in these demographic subgroups can vary.
This report has a special emphasis on the different perceptions of and graduate adult and online learners. About the study The study is based on data gathered from who completed the Student Priorities Survey and the Priorities Survey for Online Learners during the fall of 2011 at colleges and universities nationwide. Participants Survey type Number of institutions Total number of student records ASPS institutions 17 5,548 PSOL institutions 16 17,639 The full list of contributing institutions can be found in the appendix. These schools provide a cross section of the student experience. The focus of the data is from the fall semester because that is when enrollment factors are likely to be most current in the minds of, especially those who are new to their programs. This year s study provides comparisons between adult and graduate, as well as a separate review of the perceptions of online learners. The online learners are also separated into and graduate populations. Please note that these data are not separated by institution type. Instead, the focus is on the commonalities of the adult student and the online learner. In addition, the report includes a comparison between two groups of adult graduate and : those who perceive themselves to be at their first-choice institution and those who are at their second- or third-choice institutions. (This data is not collected for the online learners.) This report focuses on nontraditional college. A separate study on the factors to enroll for traditional-aged at four-year and two-year public and private institutions is available at www.noellevitz.com/factors2012. 2 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. 2012 National Research Report: The Factors Influencing College Choice Among Nontraditional Students
Demographic mix of respondents Undergraduate and graduate student mix for adults Undergraduate and graduate student mix for online learners 46% 54% 52% 48% graduate Online Online graduate Institutional choice for adult graduate Institutional choice for adult 22% 78% 24% 76% graduate, first-choice graduate, second- and third-choice, first-choice, second- and third-choice Specific information regarding the number of in each category is included in the appendix. 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. www.noellevitz.com 3
What are the factors considered? The following describe each available enrollment factor can rate for importance on the Student Priorities Survey: Cost: Addresses how important tuition was in the student s decision to enroll. Financial aid/scholarship opportunities: Takes into consideration the financial aid package and scholarships that were offered to the student. Academic reputation: Reflects what the student thinks he or she knows about the academic quality of the institution. Size of the institution: Indicates the importance of the size of the institution, either large or small. Future employment opportunities: Indicates the student s perceptions regarding career options with a degree from the institution. Recommendations from family/friends/employer: Reflects the importance of comments and encouragements from individuals close to the student. Campus location (close to home/work): Addresses campus location as a factor, typically in terms of a convenient location to the student s home or office. Availability of evening/weekend courses: Reflects the importance of when classes are offered for. Personalized attention prior to enrollment: Indicates the student s perception of how he or she was treated through the admissions process. The list for the Priorities Survey for Online Learners uses a similar format, but with a list more unique to the circumstances of online learners: Cost: Addresses how important tuition was in the student s decision to enroll. Financial assistance: Takes into consideration the financial aid package that was offered to the student. Future employment opportunities: Indicates the student s perceptions regarding career options with a degree from the institution. Reputation of the institution: Reflects what the student thinks he or she knows about the general quality of the institution. Work schedule: Addresses how the student s employment schedule may impact expectations for an online program. Flexible pacing for completing a program: Reflects the priority the student places on the flexibility an online program offers. Convenience: Indicates the student s perception of convenience offered by an online program. Distance from campus: Addresses whether the distance from campus, which is more likely to be a greater distance than a convenient location, played a role in the decision to enroll online. Program requirements: Reflects whether the student s program required the student to take an online course. Recommendations from employer: Reflects the importance of comments and encouragements from the student s employer. 4 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. 2012 National Research Report: The Factors Influencing College Choice Among Nontraditional Students
Factors to enroll: Comparison of adult and graduate Campuses typically serve two types of adult (typically considered to be those nontraditional over the age of 25): those in degree programs and those completing graduate degree courses. How do the priorities of these two groups of compare when they consider enrolling in an institution? : Undergraduate vs. graduate 80% 70% 60% 75.3% 66.0% 73.8% 66.3% 80.0% 80.0% 69.7% 72.8% 61.7% 70.6% 66.2% 77.2% 77.1% 63.8% 64.1% graduate 50% 50.5% 47.4% 55.5% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Cost Financial aid/ scholarships Academic reputation Institution size Future employment Recommendations Campus location Evening/ weekend courses Personalized attention This chart lists the nine enrollment factors on the Student Priorities Survey. The percentages reflect who indicated that the item was important or very important. The additional charts in this report reflect similar measurements. For adult in and graduate programs, academic reputation had equal importance and topped the priority list for both groups. The availability of evening and weekend courses also had equal importance for both groups of and was the second most important enrollment factor. Cost and financial aid were more critical to than those in graduate programs. Undergraduates ranked cost 9.3 percentage points higher and financial aid/scholarship opportunities 7.5 percentage points higher than graduate. Undergraduate adults were also more likely to be influenced by their family, friends, and employers, as indicated by the 6.7 percentage points difference in importance scores for this item. Future employment was the one factor that was more important to graduate, with an importance score that was 3.1 percentage points higher. 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. www.noellevitz.com 5
Factors to enroll: Comparison for adult and graduate at their first-choice institution vs. second and third choice Students who enroll at their first-choice institutions are typically more satisfied with their overall experiences than who are at their second- or third-choice institution. While we don t know why the institution was a first, second, or third choice for the student, we can see which factors may have influenced enrollment when we slice the data for adult with the additional indicator of institutional choice. : First choice vs. second and third choice 80% 70% 60% 50% 73.2% 82.4% 72.6% 78.1% 81.7% 74.4% 50.2% 50.9% 69.2% 71.1% 62.8% 57.2% 79.0% 76.5% 70.4% 71.8% 64.3% 62.5% first-choice second- and thirdchoice 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Cost Financial aid/ scholarships Academic reputation Institution size Future employment Recommendations Campus location Evening/ weekend courses Personalized attention For adult at their first-choice institution, academic reputation ranked 7.3 percentage points higher than it did for those adult s at their second- or third-choice institution. However, cost was a much higher priority factor for the second- and third-choice by 9.2 percentage points over first-choice. Financial aid was also a more important factor for these by 5.5 percentage points, while recommendations from family, friends, and employers played a larger role for at their first-choice institution. graduate : First choice vs. second and third choice 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 65.1% 70.6% 66.2% 68.8% 80.6% 78.2% 47.3% 48.1% 71.9% 77.1% 55.9% 51.6% 65.7% 68.4% 76.6% 79.4% 63.6% 65.3% graduate first-choice graduate second- and thirdchoice 30% 20% 10% 0% Cost Financial aid/ scholarships Academic reputation Institution size Future employment Recommendations Campus location Evening/ weekend courses Personalized attention 6 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. 2012 National Research Report: The Factors Influencing College Choice Among Nontraditional Students
Academic reputation was the number-one factor to enroll for graduate at their first-choice institution. They also rated this factor 2.4 percentage points higher than at their second- or thirdchoice institution. The top factor for who are not at their first-choice institution was the availability of evening and weekend programs, which was 2.8 percentage points more important to them than at their first-choice institution. Cost and employment opportunities were the two items with the greatest difference among graduate. Students at their second- or third-choice institution rated cost 5.5 percentage points higher and future employment opportunities 5.2 percentage points higher than at their first choice, while firstchoice rated recommendations from family, friends, and employers 4.3 percentage points higher. Factors to enroll: Comparison of and graduate online learners Online learners are a rapidly growing segment of nontraditional. They can also be separated into those enrolled in programs and those taking graduate coursework online. It is interesting to identify how factors in the decision to enroll for these different student populations vary. Online learners: Undergraduate vs. graduate 100% 90% 80% 83.7% 77.8% 88.3% 82.9% 83.8% 80.1% 87.1% 83.9% 94.4% 96.7%97.1% 93.3% 93.9% 92.2% 89.6% 90.0% Online Online graduate 70% 60% 50% 61.9% 55.3% 60.5% 49.4% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Cost Financial assistance Future employment Institution reputation Work schedule Flexible pacing for completion Convenience Distance from campus Program requirements Employer recommendations Convenience was the number-one factor cited by both online and graduate, with both groups giving it the same high level of priority. Flexible pacing and work schedule followed close behind for all online learners. While recommendations from employers carry the least amount of importance to in both categories, it is the item with the biggest difference: 11.1 percent more s flagged this factor as important than graduate did. Several other factors were also more important to enrolled in online programs than they were to their graduate student counterparts (percentage point difference in parentheses): distance from campus (6.6), cost (5.9), financial assistance (5.4), future employment opportunities (3.7), and reputation of the institution (3.2). 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. www.noellevitz.com 7
How these findings impact your work in student recruitment and retention What do these results signify for campus professionals? The results suggest four priority action items: 1. Prospective and current want to know how much their education will cost. This is true for both traditional and nontraditional populations. Your Web site and other campus communications should make this information accessible. If you are changing tuition, communicate this clearly to current, as well as why tuition is changing and how will benefit from the change. Be sure to make full use of federally mandated tuition calculators to provide complete, current information to prospective and current on your Web site. 2. Make financial aid information easy to obtain. While financial aid may not motivate a nontraditional student to select your institution as much as it may motivate a traditional student, adult and online learners are still very aware of how a financial aid package makes the educational experience possible. Information on all financial resources, including scholarships, are important to help nontraditional know they can afford to enroll at your institution. 3. Use your academic reputation to express the value of your educational offerings. As with traditional, adult and online learners need to know that an education from your institution is worth the investment. Making the strengths, features, benefits, and outcomes of your academic offerings clear will go a long way toward helping prospective decide to enroll with you, as well as convincing current to persist and graduate. Your faculty and staff should also express your institution s academic excellence in their interactions with. 4. Emphasize the convenience of your adult-serving programs. Nontraditional are often juggling multiple responsibilities, such as work and home, along with coursework. They place a premium on the convenience of your course offerings, whether through evening and weekend courses or with the 24/7 accessibility of online courses. Be sure to be mindful of these priorities as your institution develops and promotes the and graduate courses you offer. In addition, while adult often have higher expectations in other areas that influence enrollment, they still place a value on personalized attention prior to enrollment. Delivering personalized attention at every point of contact in the mail, online, over the phone, and on campus can make a big difference in persuading a student to enroll as well as persist. It s also an area where your campus has a unique opportunity to differentiate itself from other institutions. To address these top four elements, tell what their education will cost, what financial assistance is available, the value of your educational offerings, and highlight the convenience offered by your institution. 8 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. 2012 National Research Report: The Factors Influencing College Choice Among Nontraditional Students
Appendix I: List of institutions Institutions administering the Student Priorities Survey Antioch University-Midwest, OH Antioch University-New England, NH Antioch University-Santa Barbara, CA Antioch University-Seattle, WA Antioch-Los Angeles, CA Antioch-Online PhD Program Coker College, SC Dallas Theological Seminary, TX Fresno Pacific University, CA Inter American University of Puerto Rico, PR Lincoln Memorial University, TN Lipscomb University, TN Medaille College, NY Metropolitan State University, MN Northwest Christian University, OR Southern Nazarene University, OK University of Texas at Tyler, TX Institutions administering the Priorities Survey for Online Learners Anthem College-Online, AZ Capella University, MN Central Washington University, WA College of the Ouachitas, AR Colorado State University-Global, CO Dakota State University, SD Fort Hays State University, KS Georgia Northwestern Technical, GA Moberly Area CC, MO Nebraska Methodist College, NE New England College of Business, MA Northcentral University, AZ Patrick Henry College, VA Sullivan University, KY Virginia College-Birmingham, VA Wilmington University, DE Note: These lists reflect only the institutions which administered the Student Priorities Survey or the Priorities Survey for Online Learners between September 1 and December 31, 2011. Appendix II: Demographics Undergraduate and graduate student distribution Survey type Undergraduate student counts Graduate student counts Student Priorities Survey 2,758 2,316 Priorities Survey for Online Learners 8,070 8,847 Institutional choice for adult and graduate Survey type Student Priorities Survey for Student Priorities Survey for graduate First-year, first-choice student counts First-year, second- and thirdchoice student counts 2,068 651 1,781 497 Note: Overall student counts reflect all in the data set, but not all indicated a class level or an institutional choice. 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. www.noellevitz.com 9
Appendix III: Complete tables for each data set : Undergraduate vs. graduate Enrollment factors graduate Cost 75.3% 66.0% Financial aid/scholarship opportunities 73.8% 66.3% Academic reputation 80.0% 80.0% Size of institution 50.5% 47.4% Future employment opportunities 69.7% 72.8% Recommendations from family/friends/ employer 61.7% 55.0% Campus locations (close to home/work) 70.6% 66.2% Availability of evening/weekend courses 77.2% 77.1% Personalized attention prior to enrollment 63.8% 64.1% : First choice vs. second and third choice Enrollment factors first-choice second- and third-choice Cost 73.2% 82.4% Financial aid/scholarship opportunities 72.6% 78.1% Academic reputation 81.7% 74.4% Size of institution 50.2% 50.9% Future employment opportunities 69.2% 71.1% Recommendations from family/friends/ employer 62.8% 57.2% Campus locations (close to home/work) 70.4% 71.8% Availability of evening/weekend courses 76.5% 79.0% Personalized attention prior to enrollment 64.3% 62.5% 10 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. 2012 National Research Report: The Factors Influencing College Choice Among Nontraditional Students
graduate : First choice vs. second and third choice Enrollment factors graduate first-choice graduate second- and third-choice Cost 65.1% 70.6% Financial aid/scholarship opportunities 66.2% 68.8% Academic reputation 80.6% 78.2% Size of institution 47.3% 48.1% Future employment opportunities 71.9% 77.1% Recommendations from family/friends/ employer 55.9% 51.6% Campus locations (close to home/work) 65.7% 68.4% Availability of evening/weekend courses 76.6% 79.4% Personalized attention prior to enrollment 63.6% 65.3% Online learners: Undergraduate vs. graduate Enrollment factors Online Online graduate Cost 83.7% 77.8% Financial assistance 88.3% 82.9% Future employment opportunities 83.8% 80.1% Reputation of institution 87.1% 83.9% Work schedule 92.2% 93.3% Flexible pacing for completing a program 93.9% 94.4% Convenience 96.7% 97.1% Distance from campus 61.9% 55.3% Program requirements 89.6% 90.0% Recommendations from employer 60.5% 49.4% 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. www.noellevitz.com 11
Questions about this report? We hope you found this report to be helpful and informative. If you have questions or would like more information about these findings, please contact us. Call 1-800-876-1117 or e-mail ContactUs@noellevitz.com. About Noel-Levitz A trusted partner to higher education, Noel-Levitz helps systems and campuses reach and exceed their goals for enrollment, marketing, and student success. Over the past three decades, the higher education professionals at Noel-Levitz have consulted directly with more than 2,700 colleges and universities nationwide in the areas of: Student retention Staff and advisor development Student success Marketing and recruitment Financial aid services Research and communications Institutional effectiveness Noel-Levitz has developed an array of proven tools and software programs; diagnostic tools and instruments; Web-based training programs; and customized consultations, workshops, and national conferences. With the Satisfaction-Priorities Surveys, including the Student Priorities Survey and the Priorities Survey for Online Learners, the firm brings together its many years of research and campusbased experience to enable you to get to the heart of your campus agenda. Except where cited otherwise, all material in this paper is copyright by Noel-Levitz, Inc. Permission is required to redistribute information from Noel-Levitz, Inc., either in print or electronically. Please contact us at ContactUs@ noellevitz.com about reusing material from this report. How to cite this report Noel-Levitz (2012). The factors influencing college choice among nontraditional. Coralville, Iowa: Author. Retrieved from www.noellevitz.com/factors2012. P030 0812 12 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. 2012 National Research Report: The Factors Influencing College Choice Among Nontraditional Students 1-800-876-1117 ContactUs@noellevitz.com www.noellevitz.com