Few public sector institutions have experienced the pandemic and its pass-along effects as acutely as Higher Education. Beyond the budget and operational challenges, Covid-19 laid bare sweeping, undeniable disparities in educational outcomes and aspirations. According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center's latest enrollment numbers, fall 2021 undergraduate enrollment was down 3.1% from the fall of 2020 and 6.6% since the fall of 2019— a change of 1,205,600 students. 

With such shifts come new trends. Below are a few The Moran Group has identified in 2022 and what we anticipate going into the 2023 enrollment season.

1. Hybrid Learning Is A Necessity

If not already done so, higher education institutions will need to embrace the learn and work from anywhere state-of-mind. Searches on Google for "online learning" and "online courses" continue to soar not only with high school graduates but also with career shifters and adult learners.    

2. Rethink Your Paid Social Marketing Strategy

‍New, emerging social channels such as TikTok are disrupting how prospective students consume media. If your marketing strategy is targeted at reaching high school students on Facebook – think again! This audience is likely to be on all other social media channels but Facebook. However, adult learners and household influencers (i.e., parents) are still heavy Facebook users. With that said, be sure to customize your creative messaging accordingly.  

3. The Political Season Will Impact Traditional Strategies – Plan Ahead

Kantar Media says midterm election season is shaping up to be like no other before it, with political ad dollars already far ahead of 2018's $5.4 billion and now expected to challenge the $9 billion spent during 2020's Presidential race. As a result, higher education marketing teams should plan to shift dollars accordingly as pre-empts are highly anticipated across television buys.  

Learn how The Moran Group is helping higher education clients in other ways today.