Jennifer Mathews, Director of International Admissions
Whyisthe international schools market important to the university?
is a private research university, located in upstate New York. We havea total of20,000 students.15,000 are undergraduate bachelor–seeking students,andoverall20%areinternational,including about2,000internationalundergraduatesso we have a very global community.We are in the top 50 institutions in the UnitedStateshosting international studentsin terms of the number.
The international schools market isanimportantpart ofour recruitmentbecauseit drives a large percentage of our population. When we are looking for students who have theacademicbackgroundnecessaryto be successful,andthe resources to be able toafford to come toa place likeSU,the international schools market is a really critical part of our recruitment strategy. In addition,manyinternational schoolsaround the worldhave either a fully English mediumofinstruction,or are bilingualand still do part of their curriculum inEnglish,which isgreatpreparationto be successful at a US institution.
In what ways does 鶹ý support you?
There areseveral reasons whywe like working with 鶹ý andthe鶹ý Outreach portal.We love that 鶹ý Outreach gives us access toa lot of information that helpsus dorecruitmentplanning;providingus withinformation about school fee structures, ages of students,the curriculumsthat schools offer, and on top of that,access to the contacts we need in order to get into thatschool. All this information helpsus toformawell-researchedrecruitment plan.
I am always impressed by theresponsiveness of the鶹ý team.They reach outto us as a clienton a regular basisto make sure we are aware of new reports that arepublished andaware ofany updatesto the platform. They are always willing to do training with my team ifweneed it.
We use a lot of the support servicesfrom 鶹ý too,such as the webinarsand reports. Theseare important tools for us;informing ofchangesto student mobility trendsand what is happening within international schools. Having access tosuchinformation is really criticalfor usto moveforward; they help usunderstand what shifts are taking place, where there may be opportunitiesthatweren’ttherebefore,and vice versa. We pride ourselves in having a very data-driven recruitment plan and this is all part of that.
What is it about 鶹ý that you most value?
It’s a combination of the people,the dataandthe intelligence.The database is very thorough and very helpful to us for planning.In addition,access to contact informationin the database itself is super helpful for us because we cantargetcommunications,not only to college counsellors or career counsellors, but also to department Heads. Thismeansthat we can promote some of ourperformingartsor STEM or techmajors. Thisis exciting for us; being able to say to a Head of Departmentthatwe haveareally strong design programme and we can offer special sessions for studentsfromone of ourfaculty members, such as atalkonprofessional pathwaysfor certain optionswithin a particular department. Itcreates valuable opportunities for the school, its students and for SU.
