What are the key factors and indicators that influence your enrollment demand and supply?

1 External Factors

External factors are the macro-level forces that shape the overall demand and supply of higher education. They include demographic trends, economic conditions, social and cultural shifts, political and regulatory changes, and competitive pressures. You need to monitor and analyze these factors regularly, as they can have significant impacts on your target segments, student preferences, pricing, financial aid, and enrollment outcomes. For example, how will the aging population, the COVID-19 pandemic, the rise of online education, or the changing immigration policies affect your enrollment demand and supply?

2 Internal Factors

Internal factors are the micro-level factors that influence your enrollment demand and supply within your institution. They include your mission, vision, values, goals, programs, faculty, facilities, resources, reputation, and culture. You need to align and optimize these factors with your enrollment objectives, as they can affect your value proposition, differentiation, branding, marketing, recruitment, retention, and graduation rates. For example, how will your program offerings, academic quality, student support, campus environment, or alumni network attract and retain your students?

3 Enrollment Demand

Enrollment demand is the measure of how many students want to enroll in your institution. It is influenced by both external and internal factors, as well as by your own enrollment activities. You need to estimate and track your enrollment demand using various indicators, such as inquiries, applications, admits, deposits, yield rates, conversion rates, and waitlist status. You also need to segment and profile your enrollment demand by different characteristics, such as academic, geographic, demographic, behavioral, and psychographic. This will help you understand and target your prospective and admitted students better.

4 Enrollment Supply

Enrollment supply is the measure of how many students you can enroll in your institution. It is determined by your capacity, budget, policies, and standards. You need to project and manage your enrollment supply using various indicators, such as enrollments, enrollments by program, enrollments by cohort, enrollments by modality, enrollments by level, enrollments by term, enrollments by status, and enrollments by source. You also need to balance and optimize your enrollment supply by different criteria, such as quality, diversity, revenue, cost, and fit. This will help you achieve and sustain your enrollment goals.

5 Enrollment Gap

Enrollment gap is the difference between your enrollment demand and supply. It can be positive or negative, depending on whether you have more or less students than you can or want to enroll. You need to monitor and minimize your enrollment gap using various strategies, such as adjusting your pricing, financial aid, marketing, recruitment, retention, or graduation policies and practices. You also need to anticipate and respond to any changes or uncertainties in your enrollment demand and supply that may affect your enrollment gap.

6 Enrollment Forecasting

Enrollment forecasting is the process of predicting your future enrollment demand and supply based on historical data, current trends, and future scenarios. It is a vital tool for your enrollment planning and decision making. You need to conduct and update your enrollment forecasting regularly, using various methods, such as trend analysis, regression analysis, cohort analysis, scenario analysis, or simulation modeling. You also need to validate and communicate your enrollment forecasting results and assumptions with your stakeholders and partners.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?