What You Should Do When Students Choose Another School

It’s inevitable. Even if you do everything to the best of your ability you’re still going to get some “no’s” from students each year.

Today we’re going to talk about how to handle that common situation.

To find opportunities for growth you need to determine if students are choosing another college because of things that you can control (i.e. your customer service, your campus visit experience, and the way you communicate), or for reasons out of your control like the location or size of your school.

I continue to find that counselors get the most honest answers from a student either in the moment, or in the first 7-14 days after a decision when everything is still fresh in their mind.

The key is using language that doesn’t feel judgmental or like you’re making them feel bad. They have to feel like there’s not going to be any penalty for being honest with you. It’s also imperative that you ask direct questions to gain feedback and context about their decision… just don't make it feel like you’re conducting a survey.

Step 1: Congratulate the student on their decision. It’s a big achievement and something they should be proud of.

Step 2: Ask “Can you walk me through the moment when you realized that <School name they chose> was the right choice for you.” Depending on what the student shares you might ask one or more follow-up questions like “Besides cost, what one or two other things really influenced your final decision?” Or, “When did know that our school wasn’t going to be the choice?” Or, “What did <School name they chose> do particularly well that made you feel confident choosing them?” Or, “What’s one thing we (or I) could have done better to make your college search less overwhelming?”

Step 3: Wish the student all the best and let them know that if anything changes, you’ll be here and would love the chance to talk with them again about their options.

Step 4: Write a short “congrats” email to the parent(s) or guardian(s) of the student. That kind of professionalism is key because word of mouth (i.e. a positive experience even though the student didn’t pick your school) can help lead to future interest from other prospective students. Also, you may gain additional context about the student’s decision from the parent/guardian.

Success is a process. There's rarely a quick fix that solves everything. It’s about developing a data driven plan, building and maintaining good habits, having the right mindset, having clear processes, and then taking inventory of things to figure out what worked and what needs tweaking or changing.

ALSO, DID YOU KNOW...

Leadership, student recruitment, personal growth, failure, self awareness, and managing stress are just some of the topics that I’ve covered on my Mission Admissions podcast. All 87 episodes are free and can be found on Apple and Spotify.

You can bring me to your campus this summer to lead an in-person recruiting workshop for your admissions, enrollment marketing, and operations teams. Spots are still open on my June, July, and August calendars.