Emote, darnit!

Got a comment from my boss today that these #urecruit events have gotten shorter over the last few years. While some of that might certainly be the attention span changes thanks to television and YouTube, I think it speaks to a larger understanding we have gained about the function of such events.

Back in the day, before the Internet, if a student wanted information they had to work harder to get it. Visit campus, call and get on the mailing list, and/or vist a #urecruiter when they visited the school/college fair. Recruitment events needed to be information heavy because that was THE way to get information. With the Internet age, these events have changed.

With #urecruit events now, what mmatters is the emotional connection that has yet to be duplicated in 1's and 0's on a website, an online video, or even social media. An emotional connection is best facilitated in person and through situations/encounters/interactions of the physical variety.

So, focus less on the information being shared and more on how it is being shared and what emotional take-aways you are giving your students. They should leave feeling wanted and connected with the people that have met as part of your program.

Football Saturday and online learning

In what is becoming a tradition, I am sitting in my living room watching college football and monitoring the tweets of all of #highered friends. Half are promoting/lamenting teams and the others are posting links.

To those who are reading this, don't interpret my disagreement with the Washington Post about dramatic changes in undergraduate education as me simply being a 'hater.' Here are my thoughts as a #urecruiter:

1. Online learning is important, valid, and growing.
2. There will always be a call for traditional learning environments (although likely to continue to be influenced by technology, specifically online learning). Acceptance of online learning as an institutional priority is leveling off according to 2008 study
   
3. #urecruit should embrace online learning and promote it within their institutional brand. Institutions that can effectively market both in tandem will be the most successful in the new #highered landscape.
   

What I don't agree with, however, is that we can equate higher education with the newspaper bust and that college life, as we know it, is about to change.

1. Serious differences exist including accreditation, a brand loyalty that newspapers never could achieve, and large amounts of government funding are perhaps the largest.
2. Craigslist didn't kill newspapers (per Craig himself) and Kaplan/Phoenix won't kill #highered.
3. Are newspapers going away or is the paper they are printing on going away? Reporting, just like research/instruction will always be needed and never replaced by the blogosphere.