Program Entry

Most programs participate in a wide range of outreach activities and distribute a variety of materials to inform potential students, parents, high school educators, and more, about their programs. But oftentimes this is done in opportunistic, rather than strategic, ways. Programs are often left not knowing if their efforts are actually having an impact on recruitment and enrollment. We want you to strategically consider program entry so you can get the most return on your investment by using the most effective recruiting methods for your program. Even if your program doesn’t have direct control over admissions, there are many other ways you can influence how students learn about and enter the program!

Continue on to learn more about specific, actionable strategies, by expanding each strategy for additional information.

Recruiting efforts should focus on students who have relevant interests (e.g., students considering STEM majors) and can be in your program within the next 1-3 years. Learn more about engaging potential students. Aspects of your institutional context, will further affect where you should focus your recruiting efforts. It is tempting to view recruiting as the responsibility of the institution’s marketing and admissions offices, but computing programs themselves often play an important role in attracting students. For example, programs may field their own recruiting and outreach or actively participate in institutional efforts, and the program’s website is an important source of information for prospective students. On campus, the program can market itself to students who are already enrolled at the institution.

Prospective students learn about your program, and computing generally, from sources such as the program’s website and marketing materials, social media, offices and people that officially or unofficially represent the program (e.g., admissions, advising, campus tours, outreach efforts, student or faculty “program ambassadors,” current students, alumni, etc.), experiences in introductory computing courses, and more. Messages may be explicitly communicated by text and verbal descriptions, or more subtly conveyed by images, videos, stories, activities and assignments, and role models. Keep in mind that positive, strategic messaging may be particularly important for students who have less prior experience with computing or who might question whether they should pursue a major in computing. Be sure to consider the many ways that messaging reaches prospective students to determine where and how to focus messaging efforts.

Working effectively with others from within and outside of your institution maximizes the impact of your recruitment efforts. Prospective students can obtain information from many sources, so it is important that anyone communicating on your behalf portrays your program accurately and uses positive messaging about computing. If existing recruiting initiatives are already successful, consider joining or improving upon those initiatives, rather than inventing new ones.

Outside of your institution, parents are important influencers of prospective students, and high school teachers and guidance counselors can share information about computing and your program with many more students than you can reach on your own.

At your institution, various people and offices may be able to provide skills, information, or resources that would be helpful to recruiting and messaging efforts. Learn more about campus and community collaborations. Again, it’s important to ensure these people have the knowledge and information to accurately and positively represent your program(s).

Look for opportunities to facilitate pathways into the program by students who do not have prior computing experience or who might not automatically view themselves as computing majors. Learn more about creating pathways into the program. (Note that facilitating pathways does not mean lowering standards.)

Introductory computing courses are an important gateway into your program and an opportunity to attract undeclared students and solidify current or intended majors.

Courses can be intentionally designed to show students what computing offers, and to retain those who lack prior computing experience or might not view themselves computing majors. In addition to emphasizing positive messaging about computing throughout introductory courses and implemented evidence-based practices to enhance classroom experience (as addressed in the Classroom Experience focus area, ensure that students who lack prior computing experience aren’t left behind or intimidated by more experienced students and explicitly encourage students who may be good candidates for the program to take the next course or consider becoming a computing major.

Clear, appealing degree paths can help prospective students understand how a computing degree connects to their interests and career goals. All programs can promote the real-world relevance and career opportunities offered by their existing degree or degrees, and can craft course names and descriptions that reinforce these connections. If feasible, interdisciplinary connections can be made more explicit by offering specialized majors, minors, or tracks through the program, such as by collaborating with other departments to create “CS plus X” degrees (e.g., “CS + Statistics,” “CS + Chemistry”), or by offering a BA degree that allows students to double major.

Learn more about evidence-based strategies for other focus areas of the NCWIT Undergraduate System Model or find relevant resources by selecting the appropriate focus area in the curated resources collection section.