Overview

The Office of the Campus Registrar, through its Offices of Graduate Studies and Research (OGSR), and Marketing, Recruitment and Communication (MaRCom), is committed to assisting departments to develop and implement an effective recruitment and marketing strategy for their respective graduate programmes. In formulating best practice strategies for recruiting graduate students and the marketing of graduate programmes, one call to action published in AACRAO Newsletter 2012 is that ". institutions must be more collaborative in their graduate student recruitment practices, both with one another and with national organizations that have an interest in graduate education". (Andrew Kim, AACRAO Newsletter- January 2012 - American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers).

The Office of the Campus Registrar recognizes that prospective students are increasingly sophisticated in their graduate school and programme selection, and so not only is there need to assess the status quo, but there needs to be a deliberate effort to focus on the effective use of technology as a game-changing tool. The Discussion Forum held in April 2015 was an attempt to address the issue of a 'declining enrollment graph'; to encourage collaborative thinking; and to attune us to the multiplicity of perspectives on the recruiting and marketing thrust for graduate studies. Despite the need to recruit increasing numbers of graduate students, The UWI must maintain the quality of its intake and enhance the quality of the students' experience.

This initiative was a ground-breaking opportunity to uncover both the strategies and practical elements of implementing a successful and innovative graduate recruitment /marketing programme. The days of organic growth in enrollment or what is called "Post and Pray" are over. Therefore, we can no longer simply post an advertisement in the newspapers or online and wait for candidates to apply. So this Toolkit of Best Practice Strategies is expected to encourage the development of sustainable and deliberate strategies to effectively recruit the brightest and the best graduate students. Efforts must also be focused on recruiting a diverse cohort of students. In formulating the strategies, it was important to consider the following support solutions:

Information Technology Support Solutions

The Office of Graduate Studies and Research in collaboration with the Mona Information Technology Services provides support in the following areas:

  • Access privileges to the Application Portal
  • Monitor and maintain content on main website and prospective students landing pages
  • Flexible opening and closing dates for applications for upcoming academic year
  • Dispatch of final decisions to candidates

Marketing and Communications Solutions

The Marketing, Recruitment and Communications Office provide support in the following areas:

  • Training in the promotion of programmes
  • Facilitate participation in Fairs, Open House, Conference Exhibits, etc
  • Scheduling of upcoming events
  • Institutional image and branding guidelines
  • Vetting of adverts and brochure content
  • Graphic design
  • Media promotions