How do you show students your program's impact? (original) (raw)
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If you want to attract and retain high-quality students for your program, you need to show them how your program can make a positive impact on their academic, professional, and personal goals. But how do you do that effectively and convincingly? In this article, we will share some tips and strategies on how to showcase your program's impact to prospective and current students, using examples, stories, testimonials, data, and feedback.
Key takeaways from this article
- Engage through real stories:
Share concrete examples of how past students have benefited from your program. Highlighting their achievements and challenges can make your program's impact relatable and memorable.### *Celebrate student successes:Use social media, websites, and local newspapers to publicize student accomplishments. This not only boosts student confidence but also shows prospective students the immediate benefits of your program.
This summary is powered by AI and these experts
Students need to see and hear how what we teach makes a difference in their real lives. I love when students in our part time MBA programs come back and share how they used class tools and concepts. That makes it more meaningful for everyone
Strengthen your program alumni community as it serves as a powerful tool for showcasing the tangible impact of the program to students. Organize networking events that allow students to interact with program alumni who can share their success stories and valuable advice. These events provide students with tangible evidence of the program's efficacy and impact.
The key to demonstrating value to any audience is to understand what they care about and tailor the message accordingly. As a music educator recruiting students for my program, that might be framed as the number of students who studied applied (private) voice with me and received scholarships upon transfer to a university; cast in live productions or operas; currently on the air in radio jingles, etc. My own performing credits are solid… but they don’t identify with me as much as a performer; rather, they want to know the results of my teaching.
As an example, students in a graduate degree program may be able to demonstrate capabilities and competencies from the program during experiential learning opportunities, internships, and post-graduate employment contexts. You can build profiles that feature your students and the unique elements that make up their professional, academic, and personal stories; include information on how they applied what they learned in class during a summer internship, or how they applied core/fundamental courses to a global or domestic experiential course.
I believe this is one of the most effective ways to impress upon prospective students the worth of our program. Invite fomer students or students at a hiher level to come talk to prospects. Face to face is best but online options are always a good second choice.
Use data and statistics
A third way to show students your program's impact is to use data and statistics that quantify and measure the outcomes and achievements of your program and its students. Data and statistics can provide objective and reliable evidence for your program's impact, and they can also help you compare and contrast your program with other programs or benchmarks. For example, you can use data and statistics to show how your program has improved the graduation rate, retention rate, or satisfaction rate of your students, or how your program has increased the employability, salary, or career advancement of your graduates. You can also use data and statistics to show how your program has contributed to the advancement of your field, the solution of societal problems, or the creation of innovation and impact.
- Statistics regarding pass rate (of the graduation rate and any tests required for entry into a profession) give a larger picture of how former students have performed. Just as these statistics can help, be wary of opening the whole box of worms with some of your poorer results. You may scare prospective students away from your program
Use feedback and surveys
A fourth way to show students your program's impact is to use feedback and surveys from your students, alumni, or stakeholders. Feedback and surveys can help you collect and analyze the opinions, experiences, and suggestions of your target audience, and they can also help you identify and address the strengths and weaknesses of your program. For example, you can use feedback and surveys to find out what students like or dislike about your program, what they value or expect from your program, or what they recommend or suggest for improving your program. You can also use feedback and surveys to show how you have responded to the needs and preferences of your students, how you have implemented changes or improvements based on their input, or how you have recognized and appreciated their contributions and achievements.
- I've found that offering feedback sessions and anonymous surveys at certain intervals throughout the program or experience to be most helpful. It also helps to monitor the progression of students who have completed the program. For example, automated outreach can be set up to follow students post-program completion at intervals of 1, 2, 5, and 10 years.
Use online and offline channels
A fifth way to show students your program's impact is to use online and offline channels to communicate and disseminate your impact stories, testimonials, data, and feedback. Online and offline channels can help you reach and engage a wider and more diverse audience, and they can also help you tailor and optimize your impact messages for different platforms and formats. For example, you can use online channels such as your website, social media, email, blog, podcast, or webinar to share your impact content with your prospective and current students, as well as with your alumni, partners, or influencers. You can also use offline channels such as brochures, flyers, posters, newsletters, magazines, or events to showcase your impact content to your campus community, local community, or industry network.
- We need to be advocates of, and cheerleaders for, our students and our programs. Too often, we keep our successes within the confines of our classrooms. Students need to see how our programs will impact them — not just in the future, but right now. We need to challenge our students to achieve and accomplish and, when they do, we should help make sure that everyone knows it. We should use social media, websites, school announcements, local newspapers. When students feel celebrated they feel confident. When they feel confident, they strive to achieve even more, helping them to envision what is possible.
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