Beyond the Basics: Creative Recruitment Approaches That Strengthen Enrollment Outcomes

Please provide a one-paragraph overview of the session.‎ (200 words or less): This session will highlight two innovative recruitment strategies recently implemented at Penn GSE to strengthen graduate enrollment outcomes. Beginning with the fall 2025 cycle, our team introduced approaches that emphasize both collaboration and personalization, each proving to positively impact enrollment.

The first strategy involved a joint effort with five other graduate schools of education, where we hosted multi-city information sessions designed to expand our reach and engage with prospective students collectively. The second strategy focused on one-on-one meetings with students in various countries and U.S. cities, often scheduled around graduate fairs or events we were already attending. This personalized approach allowed us to build stronger connections and provide tailored guidance to interested applicants.

In this session, we will share how these efforts combined recruitment, marketing, and strategic planning to connect with students on broader and more personal levels. We will also discuss the challenges encountered, lessons learned, and comparisons to previous recruitment cycles as we continue these approaches. Finally, attendees will be invited to share feedback and suggestions on how to make future recruitment efforts even more impactful.

Session Agenda/Outline (200 words or less): 1. Welcome & Session Goals (5 minutes)

Introduce presenter and Penn GSE

Share session objectives: collaboration, personalization, challenges, and lessons learned

2. Setting the Context (5 minutes)

Brief overview of Penn GSE recruitment landscape

Key challenges leading into Fall 2025 cycle

Why we explored new approaches

3. Strategy One: Collaborative Recruitment (10 minutes)

Overview of partnership with five graduate schools of education

Structure of multi-city information sessions

Benefits of shared resources, wider reach, and institutional collaboration

Outcomes and impact on student engagement and enrollment

4. Strategy Two: Personalized One-on-One Recruitment (10 minutes)

Approach to scheduling individual meetings in U.S. cities

Leveraging graduate fairs/events already attended

Building meaningful, personalized student connections

Measured impact compared to previous cycle

5. Lessons Learned & Challenges (10 minutes)

What worked well in both strategies

Key challenges faced (logistics, consistency, scaling, etc.)

Comparison to prior recruitment cycle outcomes

6. Looking Ahead: Strategic Planning for Future Cycles (5 minutes)

Current adjustments for this year

Opportunities for refinement and innovation

7. Interactive Discussion & Feedback (10–15 minutes)

Invite audience insights, suggestions, and shared experiences

Open Q&A