Higher Education Marketing: Your Part-Timers

Today, 18-22 year-old, full-time students living on campus equal only 16% of higher education enrollments. Non-traditional, part-time students are the new majority stakeholder in the higher education industry. Are you doing all you can to attract and retain this demographic?

Part-time students are a student-body demographic whose members tend to be older, more financially affluent and independent, which are often committed to supporting themselves and their dependents. They are currently the largest and fastest growing student demographic and they must factor into your marketing plans.

Imagine Beth—a single mother, age 35, working days in a service-based industry and spending her nights thinking about how she can better make ends meet. She’s always wanted to earn an MBA and start her own business, but she feels apprehensive about making such a commitment.

As she researches schools, she’ll be looking for options that support her lifestyle. Unfortunately, she may have trouble finding the perfect fit—many higher education institutions are ignoring Beth and others like her, the now largest group of students.

As reported in The Atlantic, if schools want to increase the number of college grads with in-demand skills, they must focus on better supporting the biggest and fastest growing group of students.

What have you done to cater to your non-traditional students? Let us know in the comments, below.