This week’s message is the third of four on the factors influencing enrollment; today is a look at competition.
As is always the case with competition, this factor is tied up with supply and demand; thus, the backstory to the relationship between competition and enrollment was already told in the entry on demographics. There are 19 Rochester area colleges, and this number does not even include the very-nearby colleges in the Southern Tier and Western New York. The majority of these institutions draw students from within the region and the state, so as the number of traditional-age students declines but the number of colleges does not, competition heats up. And, it has. The proliferation of ad campaigns in print, on television, online, and in movie theaters, some from colleges in Ohio and Florida, is one sure sign of the changing higher education market. On a recent flight, I even noticed that Arizona State University had purchased all the advertising in the bottom of TSA bins … in San Diego. Competition impacts enrollment management functions in three ways: expanded student outreach, tuition discounts, and admission standards.
Expanded Student Outreach
When the number of high school graduates declines, colleges—both two- and four-year—look to expand their outreach in both directions: younger and older.
Younger: High school dual enrollment (HSDE) is growing fast. The
US Department of Education reported an annual growth rate in HSDE of 7 percent across the US and 9 percent in the Northeast. Most HSDE students (71%) are enrolled in community colleges (
AACC ). Recent experience in New York suggests that community colleges have been aggressive in expanding their HSDE reach, sometimes far beyond their service districts. For example, our headcount HSDE enrollment fell from 4,496 in 2010 to 3,726 because of competition; we took steps to reverse this trend and enrollment is now at 4,606.
Older: While nontraditional students have long found a home in community colleges, four-year colleges have been doing more to attract this audience. According to the
Education Advisory Board, from 1980 to 2002, community colleges had over 40% of US higher education enrollment; it has now dropped to around 38%, a record low. Data from the
National Student Clearinghouse shows that while adult student enrollment is down in all public higher education, it is up in four-year nonprofit private colleges. Only about a third of MCC’s enrollment is 25 and older.
Tuition Discounts
Tuition discounting is the practice by which private and nonprofit colleges and universities reduce their tuition “sticker” price through a combination of federal and state financial aid and institutional grants and scholarships. This makes the institution more affordable and increases the possible enrollment pool. Data on tuition discounts from the
National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) show a continual increase in tuition discounting. This rate varied only slightly from 2004 to 2008, then it began a constant rise, moving from 39.9% to 48.6% by fall 2015. A recent story by the
Buffalo News, using data from 2012-13, showed tuition discounts in our region that ranged from 38% to 63%. Progressing that along the same scale that NACUBO has identified, in 2015, these rates would have climbed: 46% to 71%. The effect of tuition discounting is that it closes the cost gap between community colleges and four-year colleges and universities, making the four-year schools a much more viable option.
Admission Standards
When the number of traditional age college students begins to decline, some colleges may respond by adjusting admission standards to increase the number of students in the enrollment pipeline. Historically, MCC has admitted almost 100% of the students who have applied; this is our mission. We talk about four-year colleges and universities as being “selective,” but we might also ask, “how selective?” In our region, leaving out the University of Rochester, the acceptance rates at colleges and universities range from 49% to 80%, with the mean being 63%, median of 65%. In other words, they accept about two of every three applicants, which is the national average. Tracking the changes across the years is telling; the acceptance rate at one local college has shifted from about 50% in 2010 to closer to 70% today. We also know internally that the requirements for transfer students have also been adjusted as four-year colleges seek more transfers. All of these changes have led more students to consider starting at four-year colleges—and moving on from community colleges more quickly.
When we think about the intersection between enrollment and competition for MCC, then, we need to ask two questions: (1) should we be exploring non-traditional financial supports to encourage student enrollment?; and (2) should we be looking at our high school and university partnerships to assure they align with the post-recession higher education market? The answer to both is yes.
Answer 1: As a public institution, we have limited ability to defray tuition costs in the form of institutional scholarships, so we need to target these dollars where they will generate the greatest impact (e.g., HSDE, retention). We do, however, have a robust Foundation, and growing scholarships—in number and dollars—is one way to increase competitiveness for students receiving scholarships from other institutions. Given our student population, we should also consider other financial supports that could encourage their attendance, such as micro grants and benefits access programs. We are.
Answer 2: We have longstanding relationships with many school districts and transfer colleges, but over time these relationships may drift. We should renew them to assure we are still engaged in partnerships that meet the needs of the schools, colleges, and students. We should also look at newer models, such as early college high schools, structured dual enrollment, 1+3 transfer agreements, employer collaborations, and more. Finally, we should identify opportunities to serve students who may have started at institutions that were not good fits, offering them the chance to start fresh. We are.
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