College Class of 2013 Students Beware... Is a Company Behind Your Facebook Group?
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Brad Ward, the Electronic Communication Coordinator at Butler University noticed something strange about Butler's Class of 2013 group on Facebook... the administrator for the group had not actually been accepted to Butler. Alerted to something fishy by a colleague at Winthrop, Brad began digging deeper and noticed that a few names were behind hundreds of Class of 2013 groups on Facebook.
Company Uses Student Interns to Set Up Facebook Groups
Now the Common Application may make it easy to apply to a dozen schools, but three students appeared as the administrators for more than 40 Class of 2013 groups each. Ward eventually traced the Facebook users back to College Prowler, which had recruited students as unpaid interns to spearhead its "social marketing strategy."
Colleges Concerned About Use of Facebook Groups for Marketing
Ward and many of his colleagues at universities across the country expressed concern that these groups could have been used to "spam" students and push affiliate links onto unsuspecting students.
The Role of Colleges on Facebook
This started a healthy debate about what roles colleges should be playing on Facebook. Should they be actively engaging students, starting "official" Facebook groups for incoming classes, or leveraging other Facebook opportunities? Or should they take a more hands-off role allowing students to drive interactions related to college admissions? This latest incident is likely to push many colleges and universities to be more pro-active. Ward already intends to set up the OFFICIAL Butler Class of 2013 group, not because he wants to moderate the discussion, but because he wants to make sure students have a safe place to discuss Butler without having to worry about being marketed to by for-profit companies.
Labels: admissions, college, Facebook, marketing
A College Interview... on a Webcam
Monday, December 8, 2008
Wake Forest University is experimenting with an interview technique that may become much more common... talking with students via webcam. This is a great idea. It offers an opportunity for students to interview with admission counselor when they may not be able to afford a visit to campus or they may not live in an area with alumni interviewers. It seems to be a win-win for students and colleges.
Will Other Colleges Be Trying Webcam Interviews?
This is the first year for Wake Forest's webcam interviews, but I would not be surprised if this practice were put into use by other colleges over the next few years. While face-to-face interactions are likely the preferred method for conducting interviews, the webcam option would seem to be an attractive alternative when a face-to-face interview is not possible.
Could This Help Colleges Stand Out?
Additionally, I think colleges embracing technology in a constructive manner such as this will win some bonus points with students. It demonstrates that they are willing to think creatively to interact with prospective students and to adapt to students' needs. If you can't make it to campus for an interview, we'll figure out a way to bring the interviewer to you virtually. I think it gives students the feeling that a school really is interested in getting to know them and will go to great lengths to do so.
Labels: admissions, college, interview
College Tuition Increases Far Outpace Income Growth over Last 25 Years
Friday, December 5, 2008
According to the Measuring Up 2008 report (PDF copy) by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, college tuition and fees have increased by 439 percent in the U.S. between 1982 and 2007. Over this same period, median family income rose only 147 percent.
College Bills Rising Faster than Medical Bills
WOW! That means college costs grew almost three times as fast as family income. College costs grew nearly twice as fast as medical care costs, according to the report. If that trend continues, parents may need to start playing the lottery in hopes they can win enough money to pay for their children's college education.
More Debt, Please
And financial aid has not been able to keep up. The poorest families (those in the bottom 20 percent) have seen the net cost of college increase from 39 percent of their income to 55 percent of their income. That is the net cost, so it takes into account financial aid they may have received. That doesn't leave much money for food, rent, and clothing... some other "nice-to-have" items. If this trend continues, college graduates will be leaving school with more and more debt. It may really start to affect the decision of whether college is worth the money or not, if it hasn't already.
No College or College Abroad?
If something does not change, are we headed for a time when college is not really accessible to everyone? Or maybe more and more people will look abroad instead of attending higher-priced private institutions in the U.S. – see the NY Times' article Going Off to College for Less (Passport Required).
Labels: college, debt, tuition, value