SEMQ Volume 12, Issue 3 (October 2024)

As we put the COVID-19 pandemic in our rear-view mirror, we are reminded that
the enrollment management landscape is always changing. Looking forward, we
can see the much-talked-about ‘enrollment cliff,’ the geo-political realities
impacting the enrollment of international students, the presence of an
increasing number of adult learners on our campuses, the continuing enrollment
and retention issues faced by all of us, and the pressing need to develop an
effective SEM organization. This issue of SEM Quarterly speaks to how
current SEM practitioners are increasing our understanding of these topics and
what we can do to enhance our practice.

The impending ‘enrollment cliff’ has created increasing urgency among smaller
colleges and universities to respond to the anticipated decline in student
enrollment created by demographic changes and access to and use of online
teaching modalities. Jas Singh and Leonard Samborowski investigate the impact
of digital maturity on enrollment in small colleges, finding a positive impact
of digital maturity on college enrollment. They also propose a framework of
digital maturity assessment that college administrators can use to assess and
create their enrollment strategy.

The COVID-19 pandemic created many enrollment and retention challenges for
higher educational institutions. Jennifer Passenti, using a qualitative case
study, outlines how one small nonprofit institution in Pennsylvania navigated
these challenges within the context of Kotter’s (1996) organizational change
management theory, and successfully maintained their enrollment through the
use of collaboration, technological advancements, external support,
investments, and community partnerships.

While we have considerable research on domestic student retention and
persistence, less is known about the factors that influence international
student success. Amine Oudghiri conducted a non-experimental, descriptive
study to identify relationships between common persistence variables and
selected demographic attributes among international students attending public
regional universities in West Virginia. While results suggest that
international students do not struggle academically, socially, or
institutionally at West Virginian public universities, it was noted that
academic integration showed a positive association with class standing and
there is a need for further research related to student persistence, students’
perceptions of campus climate, and institutional retention practices.

While most institutions of higher learning focus their attention each fall on
the entering traditional-student class, adult or non-traditional students are
often neglected. Richard Gonzalez, using a single case study qualitative
design, examines how enrollment managers’ views and perceptions about adult
learning influences the student-profile prioritization and the development of
SEM goals, and how this process is intersected and or influenced by the
undergraduate college and experience leadership styles of enrollment managers.
A set of recommendations are offered to help enrollment leaders enhance SEM
practices at four-year universities focused on adult learners.

Leading and developing a SEM unit and plan can be daunting for even the most
seasoned enrollment manager. John Haller identifies a four-step process for
developing a successful SEM unit in a higher educational institution that
includes: lead and assess your team, foster a data-informed culture, develop a
SEM plan, and manage and lead change.

Diane Treis provides us with a look into the book,
Key Practices for Fostering Engaged Learning: A Guide for Faculty and Staff (2023), which synthesizes High Impact Educational Practices (HIPs) with the
Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) knowledgebase, and outlines ways
this can be applied to SEM planning.

The higher education landscape is changing all around us. While we can learn
much from what we have accomplished, it is important to look ahead to the new
challenges the SEM community faces. Hopefully, this SEMQ edition will
help you find your way to student and institutional success.

Happy reading.