2012 National Research Report

Why Did They Enroll?
The Factors Influencing College Choice
An analysis of traditional-aged students
What matters to students when deciding where to enroll?
There are a variety of factors that influence a student’s decision to enroll. Factors such as cost and the availability of financial aid are universally important at all types of institutions. However, other factors can vary widely by institution type, demographics, class level, and whether the student enrolled at his or her top choice. Every year, hundreds of campuses administer the Noel-Levitz Student Satisfaction Inventory™ (SSI) to their students. In addition to more than 70 items rated for importance and satisfaction on the general student experience, the SSI includes nine items that address factors in a student’s decision to enroll. During the fall of 2011, more than 55,000 students from more than 100 public and private fouryear and two-year institutions completed the SSI. These students rated the factors to enroll items on a scale of one (meaning not important at all) to seven (very important). This report details the responses from the nationwide pool of data. In particular, this report has a special emphasis on the nearly 22,000 first-year students who responded in order to see which items scored higher with ratings of important or very important (a ranking of six or seven on the answer scale). Comparisons with upperclass students and between students at their first-choice institution versus those attending their second- or third-choice institution are also provided. In addition, the report highlights trend results in enrollment factors as originally reported in our recent 15-year satisfaction trend reports.

About the study
This study Inventory during the fall of 2011 at colleges and universities nationwide. includes a comparison Table 1: Participants between Number of first-year Institution type institutions students and Four-year private colleges and students who 63 universities have been Four-year public colleges and 9 enrolled universities two years Community, junior, and technical 14 colleges or more (upperclass Two-year career and private 32 schools students).
Total

The study is based on data gathered from students who completed the Student Satisfaction

Total number of student records
25,070 11,277 11,859 7,607 55,813
TM

118

The full list of contributing institutions can be found in the appendix.

These schools provide a cross section of the student experience. The focus of the data is from the fall semester because that is when enrollment factors are likely to be most current in the minds of students, especially first-year students. This year’s study provides comparisons between first-year students and students who have been enrolled two years or more (upperclass students). There is also a comparison between two groups of first-year students: those who perceive themselves to be at their first-choice institution and those who identify the institution as their second or third choice. This report focuses on traditional college students. A separate study is available on the factors to enroll for students in adult learner undergraduate or graduate programs and students enrolled in online learning programs.

2 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice

Demographic mix of respondents
Class level for all students at all institutions Institutional choice (first-year students only)

42% 58%

36%

64%

TM

TM

First-year students Upperclass students

First-year, first-choice students First-year, second- and third-choice students

Specific information regarding the demographic distribution by institution type is included in the appendix.

What factors are considered?
The following list describes each available factor that students rate on the Student Satisfaction Inventory. • Cost: Addresses how important tuition was in the student’s decision to enroll. • Financial aid: Takes into consideration the financial aid package that was offered to the student. • Academic reputation: Reflects what the student thinks he or she knows about the academic quality of the institution. • Size of the institution: Indicates how important the size of the institution, either large or small, was to the student. • Recommendations from family and friends: Reflects the importance of comments and encouragements from family members. • Geographic setting: Addresses campus location as a factor because of distance from home as well as the setting of the school (urban, rural, etc.). • Campus appearance: Considers how the campus looks to the student and may also reflect perceptions of campus maintenance. • Personalized attention prior to enrollment: Indicates the student’s perception of how he or she was treated through the admissions process.

These factors may also have influence for specific institutions:
• Opportunity to play sports: For four-year and community college campuses, examines how critical the opportunity to compete athletically was to the student. • Employment opportunities: Reveals a factor unique to the career and private school version of the Student Satisfaction Inventory and indicates the student’s perceptions regarding career options with a degree from the institution.

© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 3

Factors to enroll: First-year students
90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%
TM
83% 81% 81% 79% 84% 86% 79% 75% 71% 64% 63% 70% 72% 68% 63% 58% 50% 49%50% 45% 56% 62% 63% 54% 84% 75% 68% 61% 59% 80% 78% 82%

Four-year private first-year students Four-year public first-year students Community college first-year students Career school first-year students

Cost, financial aid, and academic reputation were the top factors across all institution types.

Cost

Financial aid

Academic reputation

Size of institution

Recommend from family

Geographic setting

Campus Personalized appearance attention prior to enrollment

This chart lists the eight enrollment factors that are consistent on the Student Satisfaction Inventory across all four institution types. The percentage reflects students indicating that the item is important or very important.

What is most important to first-year students?
Cost, financial aid, and academic reputation were the top enrollment factors across all institution types. These three variables appear to play a critical role in influencing students’ enrollment decisions. The other factors included in the list of choices were all more important to students at career schools than they were to students at four-year private and public colleges or community colleges, especially personalized attention prior to enrollment. It should be noted that employment opportunities, which is a unique item on the career-school survey and is not included in the chart above, was the top enrollment factor for these institutions, with 89 percent of students indicating it was important or very important to their decision. Certainly the cost of attending a college—regardless of the type of institution attended—played a role in enrollment decisions. With students attending public four-year and two-year campuses, cost was the dominant factor. At four-year private colleges, it ranked third behind academic reputation. At two-year career schools, cost—while still important with an 81 percent score—was fifth behind employment opportunities, financial aid, academic reputation, and personalized attention. Financial aid joined cost at the top of the enrollment factors and was the top issue for students at four-year private campuses. At two-year private institutions, financial aid was a close second behind employment opportunities, with nearly 86 percent saying it was important. Clearly, economic issues— how much will their educations cost, how will they pay for it—weigh heavily on the minds of students. Even the top enrollment factor from students at career schools, future career opportunities, indicates a strong economic concern. Academic reputation was also a strong factor, ranking as one of the top three enrollment factors across all institution types, with at least 70 percent of students indicating it was important or very important.

4 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice

Factors to enroll: Comparison of first-year students and upperclass students
While enrollment factors may be top of mind to first-year students, it is also interesting to observe the perceptions of upperclass students (sophomores, juniors, and seniors at four-year institutions and secondand third-year students at two-year institutions). It should be noted that upperclass responses could reflect either students’ original decision to enroll or their current decision to continue their enrollment into the coming year—the survey does not specifically ask if they are ranking their original enrollment factors. Either way, the responses provide an indication of the relative importance of these factors to upperclass students. Four-year private institutions: First-year students vs. upperclass students
80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10%
TM 33.7% 29.0% 62.9% 56.4% 48.9% 48.7% 57.7% 51.6% 53.9% 62.4% 78.5% 76.2% 83.9% 83.8% 79.1% 77.8% 68.1% 62.7%

Four-year private first-year students Four-year private upperclass students

0%
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Personalized Opportunity Recommend Geographic Campus setting appearance attention prior from to play to enrollement family sports

At four-year privates, the factors of financial aid and family recommendation were relatively unchanged as enrollment factors when comparing class levels. All of the factors were as or more important to first-year students. Campus appearance had the biggest movement between first-year and upperclass students with an 8.5 percentage point shift down in importance, followed by a 6.5 percentage point shift down in importance for institution size for upperclass students. Four-year public institutions: First-year students vs. upperclass students
80% 70% 60% 50% 40%
33.2% 80.5% 79.2% 79.6% 77.5% 75.2% 74.9% 64.2% 60.5% 49.7% 45.5% 66.2% 63.1% 63.4% 55.6% 61.3% 56.3%

Four-year public first-year students Four-year public upperclass students

30% 20% 10% 0%
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Campus Personalized Opportunity Recommend Geographic setting appearance attention prior from to play to enrollement family sports
TM 23.0%

For students at four-year publics, the perception of academic reputation was unchanged based on class level. Geographic setting actually became more important to upperclass students by 3.1 percentage points. The opportunity to play sports had the biggest drop in importance between firstyear students and upperclass students with a 10.2 percentage point shift down, followed by campus appearance with a 7.8 percentage point decrease in importance to upperclass students.
© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 5

Community colleges: First-year students vs. second- and third-year students
80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10%
TM 23.7% 22.1% 49.9% 49.3% 45.3% 44.8% 83.0% 83.0% 78.1% 76.3%

Community college first-year students
71.2% 71.0% 60.2% 55.8% 59.1% 57.5%

Community college second- and thirdyear students

53.6% 53.6%

0%
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Personalized Opportunity Recommend Geographic Campus setting appearance attention prior from to play to enrollement family sports

With a potentially shorter span of time for first-year students at community colleges to students in their second or possibly third year, there were fewer shifts in perceptions for factors in the decision to enroll, with many items maintaining the same percentage. The one exception is geographic setting, which was slightly more important by 4.4 percentage points for second- and third-year students as compared with first-year students. Career and private schools: First-year students vs. second- and third-year students
90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Recommend Geographic Future setting from employment family opportunities Campus Personalized appearance attention prior to enrollement
TM
81.0% 76.5% 85.7% 83.5% 83.5% 80.7% 69.6% 66.8% 89.2% 86.1% 81.7% 77.7% 68.0% 63.7% 72.0% 69.8% 74.6% 71.5%

Career school first-year students Career school second- and thirdyear students

First-year students at two-year career and private schools indicated slightly higher importance scores on all items, with the recommendations from family and friends as well as personalized attention prior to enrollment reflecting the greatest difference by 4 percentage points compared with second- and third-year students. Again, the percentages stayed relatively consistent across the class level designations.

6 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice

Factors to enroll: Comparison for first-year students at their firstchoice institution vs. second and third choice
Students who perceived themselves to be at their first-choice institutions were typically more satisfied with their overall experience than students who perceived themselves to be at their second- or thirdchoice institution. While we don’t know why an institution was a first or second choice for a student, we can see which factors may have influenced enrollment when we slice the data for just first-year students with the additional indicator of institutional choice. Four-year private institutions: First-year students, first choice vs. first-year students, second and third choice
80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10%
TM 39.4% 30.6% 80.6% 77.4% 84.1% 83.7% 81.4% 74.5% 70.1% 64.4% 60.1% 50.5% 45.6% 62.5% 62.2% 64.3%

Four-year private first-year, firstchoice students Four-year private first-year, secondand third-choice students

57.9% 57.5%

0%
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Campus Personalized Opportunity Recommend Geographic setting appearance attention prior from to play to enrollement family sports

Interestingly, the perception of financial aid as a factor in the decision to enroll was basically the same for students at their first choice and those at their second or third choice. The opportunity to play sports was 8.8 percentage points more important to students at their second- or third-choice school, followed by cost with a higher importance of 3.2 percentage points. Academic reputation was 6.9 percentage points more important to students at their first-choice institution followed by the personalized attention prior to enrollment, which was more important by 5.8 percentage points. Four-year public institutions: First-year students, first choice vs. first-year students, second and third choice
83.8% 83.8% 76.8% 75.5% 73.7% 65.5% 61.8% 51.1% 47.6% 38.7% 29.6% 67.5% 65.4% 60.3% 56.2% 61.4% 61.1%

80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10%

78.3%

Four-year public first-year, firstchoice students Four-year public first-year, secondand third-choice students

TM

0%
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Personalized Opportunity Recommend Geographic Campus setting appearance attention prior from to play to enrollement family sports

For students at four-year public institutions, the perceptions of academic reputation and personalized attention prior to enrollment were the same across institutional choice, but geographic setting was
© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 7

more important to students at their first choice by 11.3 percentage points, with campus appearance having the next biggest difference of 5.1 percentage points. For students at their second or third choice, the opportunity to play sports was more important by 9.1 percentage points, financial aid more important by 7 percentage points, and the perception of cost more important by 5.5 percentage points. Community colleges: First-year students, first choice vs. first-year students, second and third choice
80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Personalized Opportunity Recommend Geographic Campus setting appearance attention prior from to play to enrollement family sports
TM 27.1% 21.9% 51.3% 47.0% 48.4% 39.2% 83.0% 82.9% 79.4% 75.7%

73.7% 66.3% 58.5% 50.7% 55.0% 50.8% 61.0% 55.3%

Community College first-year, firstchoice students Community College first-year, secondand third-choice students

First-choice students at community colleges placed a higher importance on the recommendations from their family and friends by 9.2 percentage points, followed by geographic setting (7.8 percentage points) and academic reputation (7.4 percentage points). The one area that was more important to students at their second or third choice is the opportunity to play sports by 5.2 percentage points. Career and private schools: First-year students, first choice vs. first-year students, second and third choice
90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Personalized Recommend Geographic Campus Size of Future setting appearance attention prior from institution employment to enrollement family opportunities
TM 82.5% 78.5% 87.3% 83.1% 85.7% 79.9% 71.7% 65.8% 74.4% 70.2% 64.3% 67.7% 76.7% 71.1% 90.6% 87.1% 83.5% 78.7%

Career school first-year, firstchoice students Career school first-year, secondand third-choice students

At career and private schools, first-choice students all had higher importance scores than students who indicated that they were at their second- or third-choice institution. Geographic setting had the highest importance difference between the two groups with 6.7 percentage points.

8 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice

Fifteen-year trends on enrollment factors
In 2011, Noel-Levitz published a series of reports focusing on the importance and satisfaction trends on institutions over the past 15 years. These reports included a review on the shifts in enrollment factor perceptions over the course of that period. The relevant findings include: Four-year private institutions: Students in 2009-2010 indicated much higher importance scores on cost (6.8 percentage points), campus appearance (5.6 percentage points), and financial aid (5.1 percentage points) than students in 1994-1995. Four-year public institutions: All factors increased in importance between 1994-1995 and 2009-2010, with the biggest jumps coming for financial aid (15.1 percentage points), personalized attention prior to enrollment (10.9 percentage points), and recommendations from family and friends (10.3 percentage points). Community colleges: All of the factors increased in importance for students between 1994-1995 and 20092010, with financial aid reflecting the largest jump at 8.7 percentage points, followed by the opportunity to play sports (8.1 percentage points) and recommendations from family and friends (7.8 percentage points). Career and private schools: Several factors had double-digit increases in importance between 1996-1997 and 2010-2011: Recommendations from family and friends (16.0 percentage points), school appearance (15.7 percentage points), geographic setting (13.5 percentage points), and size of institution (12.2 percentage points). For more information on how the priorities of students have changed over time, please see the 15-year reports, available at: www.noellevitz.com/benchmark15years

How these findings impact your work in student recruitment and retention
What do these results signify for campus professionals? The results suggest three priority action items: 1. Prospective and current students want to know how much their education will cost. Your Web site and other campus communications should make this information accessible. If you are changing tuition, communicate this clearly to current students, as well as why tuition is changing and how students will benefit from the change. Be sure to make full use of federally mandated tuition calculators to provide complete, current information to prospective and current students on your Web site. 2. Make financial aid information easy to obtain. This goes beyond the first year of enrollment—students likely want to know how much financial assistance will be available during their entire campus careers. Information on other financial resources, such as scholarships, is also important. 3. Use your academic reputation to express the value of your educational offerings. Students need to know that an education from your institution is worth the investment. Making the strengths, features, benefits, and outcomes of your academic offerings clear will go a long way toward helping prospective students decide to enroll with you, as well as convincing current students to persist and graduate. Your faculty and staff should also express your institution’s academic excellence in their interactions with students. In addition, keep in mind that personalized attention prior to enrollment also plays an important role, especially at private institutions. Delivering personalized attention at every point of contact—in the mail, online, over the phone, and on campus—can make a big difference in persuading a student to enroll and to persist. It’s also an area where your campus has a unique opportunity to differentiate itself from other institutions. Location, size and setting, while not unimportant, do not rank nearly as high as these other factors. Tell students what it will cost, what financial assistance will be available, and the value of your educational offerings, and you address these top three elements that impact enrollment decisions.

© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 9

Appendix I: List of institutions
Four-year private institutions Abilene Christian University, TX Azusa Pacific University, CA Bethel College, IN Bethel University, MN Bethune-Cookman University, FL Biola University, CA Bryan College, TN California Baptist University, CA Cedarville University, OH Coker College, SC Concordia University Texas, TX Corban University, OR Cornerstone University, MI Covenant College, GA Cox College, MO Crown College, MN Eastern University, PA Evangel University, MO Fresno Pacific University, CA Geneva College, PA Gordon College, MA Goshen College, IN Grace College and Seminary, IN Graceland University, IA Greenville College, IL Hope International University, CA Houston Baptist University, TX Huntington University, IN Indiana Wesleyan University, IN John Brown University, AR LeTourneau University, TX Lincoln College, IL Lipscomb University, TN Manhattan Christian College, KS McPherson College, KS Mid-America Christian University, OK Milligan College, TN Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design, WI Mississippi College, MS Montreat College, NC Northwest Christian University, OR Northwest Nazarene University, ID Northwest University, WA Northwestern College, MN Ohio Dominican University, OH Pacific Northwest College of Art, OR Palm Beach Atlantic University, FL Rockhurst University, MO Siena College, NY Simpson University, CA Southern Nazarene University, OK Southern Virginia University, VA Southwestern Adventist University, TX Spring Arbor University, MI St. Edward’s University, TX Tabor College, KS Taylor University, IN Trinity Christian College, IL University of Tampa, FL Valley Forge Christian College, PA Warner University, FL Waynesburg University, PA Williams Baptist College, AR Four-year public institutions Dakota State University, SD Mississippi State University, MS Montana Tech - North, MT Salem State University, MA South Carolina State University, SC South Dakota State University, SD University of MichiganDearborn, MI University of Minnesota Duluth, MN University of Nebraska, NE Community colleges Augusta Technical College, GA Bucks County Community College, PA Coffeyville Community College, KS Cypress College, CA Eastern Idaho Tech College, ID Fox Valley Technical College, WI Heartland Community College, IL Highland Community College, IL Kilian Community College, SD Lanier Technical College, GA Montana Tech - South, MT Piedmont Technical College, SC Spokane Falls Community College, WA Tri-County Technical College, SC Career and private schools Anthem Career CollegeMemphis, TN Anthem Career CollegeNashville, TN Anthem College-Atlanta, GA Anthem College-Dallas, TX Anthem College-Denver, CO Anthem College-Fenton, MO Anthem CollegeKansas City, MO Anthem College-Maryland Heights, MO Anthem College-Milwaukee, WI Anthem College-Minnesota, MN Anthem College-Orlando, FL Anthem College-Phoenix, AZ Anthem College-Portland, OR Anthem CollegeSacramento, CA Anthem InstituteCherry Hill, NJ Anthem InstituteJersey City, NJ Anthem Institute-Las Vegas, NV Anthem InstituteManhattan, NJ Anthem InstituteNorth Brunswick, NJ Anthem InstituteParsippany, NJ Anthem Institute-Springfield, PA The Bryman School of Arizona, AZ City College of Altamonte, FL City College of Ft. Lauderdale, FL City College of Gainesville, FL City College of Hollywood, CA City College of Miami, FL Laurel Business Institute, PA Morrison University, NV Pima Medical InstituteMesa, AZ Salter College, MA Taylor Business Institute, IL

Note: This list reflects only the institutions which administered the Student Satisfaction Inventory between September 1 and December 31, 2011.

10 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice

Appendix II: Demographics
Table 2: Class level by institution type Institution type
Four-year private colleges and universities Four-year public colleges and universities Community, junior, and technical colleges Two-year career and private schools Total

First-year student counts
8,023 2,709 5,600 5,519 21,851

Upperclass student counts
16,145 7,608 5,147 1,784 30,684
TM

Table 3: Institutional choice by institutional type (first-year students only) Institution type
Four-year private colleges and universities Four-year public colleges and universities Community, junior, and technical colleges Two-year career and private schools Total

First-year, first-choice student counts
5,166 1,652 3,588 3,495 13,901

First-year, second- and thirdchoice student counts
2,798 1,045 1,947 1,970 7,760
TM

Note: Overall student counts reflect all students in the data set, but not all students indicated a class level or an institutional choice.

© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 11

Appendix III: Complete tables for each data set
Table 4: Comparison across institution type for first-year students only Four-year private first-year students
78.5% 83.9% 79.1% 62.9% 48.9% 57.7% 62.4% 68.1%

Enrollment factors
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Recommendations from family Geographic setting Campus appearance Personalized attention prior to enrollment

Four-year public first-year students
80.5% 79.6% 74.9% 64.2% 49.7% 63.1% 63.4% 61.3%

Community college first-year students
83.0% 78.1% 71.2% 49.9% 45.3% 55.8% 53.6% 59.1%

Career school first-year students
81.0% 85.7% 83.5% 69.6% 68.0% 72.0% 74.6% 81.7%
TM

Table 5: Four-year private institutions: First-year students vs. upperclass students Enrollment factors
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Opportunity to play sports Recommendations from family Geographic setting Campus appearance Personalized attention prior to enrollment

First-year students
78.5% 83.9% 79.1% 62.9% 33.7% 48.9% 57.7% 62.4% 68.1%

Upperclass students
76.2% 83.8% 77.8% 56.4% 29.0% 48.7% 51.6% 53.9% 62.7%
TM

Table 6: Four-year public Institutions: First-year students vs. upperclass students Enrollment factors
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Opportunity to play sports Recommendations from family Geographic setting Campus appearance Personalized attention prior to enrollment

First-year students
80.5% 79.6% 74.9% 64.2% 33.2% 49.7% 63.1% 63.4% 61.3%

Upperclass students
79.2% 77.5% 75.2% 60.5% 23.0% 45.5% 66.2% 55.6% 56.3%
TM

12 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice

Table 7: Community colleges: First-year students vs. second- and third-year students Enrollment factors
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Opportunity to play sports Recommendations from family Geographic setting Campus appearance Personalized attention prior to enrollment

First-year students
83.0% 78.1% 71.2% 49.9% 23.7% 45.3% 55.8% 53.6% 59.1%

Second- and third-year students
83.0% 76.3% 71.0% 49.3% 22.1% 44.8% 60.2% 53.6% 57.5%
TM

Table 8: Career and private schools: First-year students vs. second- and third-year students Enrollment factors
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Future employment opportunities Recommendations from family Geographic setting Campus appearance Personalized attention prior to enrollment

First-year students
81.0% 85.7% 83.5% 69.6% 89.2% 68.0% 72.0% 74.6% 81.7%

Second- and third-year students
76.5% 83.5% 80.7% 66.8% 86.1% 63.7% 69.8% 71.5% 77.7%
TM

© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 13

Table 9: Four-year private institutions: First-year students, first-choice campus vs. first-year students, second- and third-choice campus Enrollment factors
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Opportunity to play sports Recommendations from family Geographic setting Campus appearance Personalized attention prior to enrollment

First choice
77.4% 84.1% 81.4% 64.4% 30.6% 50.5% 57.5% 62.5% 70.1%

Second or third choice
80.6% 83.7% 74.5% 60.1% 39.4% 45.6% 57.9% 62.2% 64.3%
TM

Table 10: Four-year public institutions: First-year students, first-choice campus vs. first-year students, second- and third-choice campus Enrollment factors
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Opportunity to play sports Recommendations from family Geographic setting Campus appearance Personalized attention prior to enrollment

First choice
78.3% 76.8% 75.5% 65.5% 29.6% 51.1% 67.5% 65.4% 61.4%

Second or third choice
83.8% 83.8% 73.7% 61.8% 38.7% 47.6% 56.2% 60.3% 61.1%
TM

14 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice

Table 11: Community colleges: First-year students, first-choice campus vs. first-year students, second- and third-choice campus Enrollment factors
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Opportunity to play sports Recommendations from family Geographic setting Campus appearance Personalized attention prior to enrollment

First choice
83.0% 79.4% 73.7% 51.3% 21.9% 48.4% 58.5% 55.0% 61.0%

Second or third choice
82.9% 75.7% 66.3% 47.0% 27.1% 39.2% 50.7% 50.8% 55.3%
TM

Table 12: Career and private schools: First-year students, first-choice campus vs. first-year students, second- and third-choice campus Enrollment factors
Cost Financial aid Academic reputation Size of institution Future employment opportunities Recommendations from family Geographic setting Campus appearance Personalized attention prior to enrollment

First choice
82.5% 87.3% 85.7% 71.7% 90.6% 70.2% 74.4% 76.7% 83.5%

Second or third choice
78.5% 83.1% 79.9% 65.8% 87.1% 64.3% 67.7% 71.1% 78.7%
TM

© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 15

Questions about this report?
We hope you found this report to be helpful and informative. If you have questions or would like more information about these findings, please contact Noel-Levitz at 1-800-876-1117 or e-mail ContactUs@noellevitz.com.

About Noel-Levitz
A trusted partner to higher education, Noel-Levitz helps systems and campuses reach and exceed their goals for enrollment, marketing, and student success. Over the past three decades, the higher education professionals at Noel-Levitz have consulted directly with more than 2,700 colleges and universities nationwide in the areas of: • Student retention • Staff and advisor development • Student success • Marketing and recruitment • Financial aid services • Research and communications • Institutional effectiveness Noel-Levitz has developed an array of proven tools and software programs; diagnostic tools and instruments; Web-based training programs; and customized consultations, workshops, and national conferences. With the Satisfaction-Priorities Surveys, including the Student Satisfaction Inventory, the firm brings together its many years of research and campus-based experience to enable you to get to the heart of your campus agenda.

How to cite this report Noel-Levitz (2012). Why did they enroll? The factors influencing college choice. Coralville, Iowa: Author. Retrieved from www.noellevitz.com/Factors2012.

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