Running Head: TECHNOLOGY IN ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT 1

Technology in Enrollment Management: A Reflection

Donavon A. Barbarisi

Fort Hays State University

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Technology in Enrollment Management: A Reflection

On the Readings

With the Black (2001) article, what really stood out in the text and in our discussions,

was that many of the concepts that were applicable in 2001 are still useful today. Our students

have become even more ingrained in the “right here, right now” attitude of instant gratification

and the presence that a university has is still relevant. What this means is that the root concepts

will likely remain the same for at least the foreseeable future, but the application is what will

differ.

Looking at Black’s (2001) comments the search engines have changed, and where

advertising happens varies as well. While at one-point (even though it is after the article)

Facebook was a major presence for universities, there has been a major shift to other media like

Snapchat, which is important for meeting the students where they are. Another example of this

was talking about virtual tours which allow students without the ability to visit to see the

campus. For those students without those resources, this could definitely be a deciding factor.

Class Discussion and Questions

During the discussion, the activity really stood out when allowing us to put ourselves in

the role of a student. I feel this may become more difficult the longer a professional serves in

their role, as the disconnect may grow. For this, I wonder what departments do to maintain the

connection with students, particularly in maintaining the appeal of presence to students

(apologies if the presenters discussed this during the duty call). For me, I learned a bit of my bias

reflected in my perception of the university’s social media presence, so it became more apparent

that these biases must be accounted for in the media presence.

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References

Black, J. (2001). Students in the dot-com world: Implications for enrollment management. In J.

Black (Ed.). The strategic enrollment management revolution (253-280). Washington,

D.C.: American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers