Attracting and selecting the best students through digital technology

Attracting and recruiting the best students is a crucial challenge for higher education institutions. In the digital age, traditional methods are no longer sufficient. Schools and universities must adopt innovative strategies to capture the attention of the new generation of hyper-connected students. Discover in this article how to leverage the potential of digital technology to optimize your online presence, personalize the applicant experience, and digitize your selection process.

Summary :

1. Optimize your online presence to attract talent.
2. Personalize the candidate journey through digital tools.
3. Digitize and optimize the selection process.

Optimizing your online presence to attract talent

Website redesign and SEO strategy

A high-performing, well-ranked website is essential for attracting top students. A website redesign should focus on user experience, with smooth navigation, an attractive design, and high-quality content. Pages must load quickly and adapt to all screen sizes, from smartphones to computers.

However, a beautiful website isn't enough if it's not visible. That's where search engine optimization (SEO) comes in. It's essential to work with relevant keywords, optimize title and meta tags, and generate quality backlinks. A well-optimized website will gain visibility in search engine results.

The combination of a high-quality website and a solid SEO strategy is therefore key to attracting qualified students. This requires long-term effort, but it's an essential investment to stand out in a competitive environment and appear at the top of search results. Schools that understand this are reaping the rewards with easier recruitment of top talent.

Social media content strategy

To effectively reach students on social media, you must first identify the platforms they use most. Today, Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat are essential for this target audience.

Once you've chosen the right social media platforms, the challenge is to create engaging and authentic content. Focus on short, impactful formats like stories and reels. Share student testimonials, behind-the-scenes glimpses of campus life, and career advice. The goal is to build a sense of connection and trust.

To maximize your reach, collaborate with influencers and student associations who will share your content. Also, organize contests and surveys to encourage interaction and the creation of user-generated content.

Finally, use ad targeting features to promote your content to students based on their location, interests, and browsing history on your website. A well-crafted social media strategy will help you attract and recruit top talent.

Influencer marketing with student ambassadors

Attracting the attention of prospective students is becoming increasingly complex in a digital environment saturated with messages. Young people are less receptive to traditional institutional communication from educational institutions.

Engaging influential student ambassadors is an effective way to reach this target audience. These passionate and committed students are seen as credible sources of information by their peers. They can share their authentic experiences at the school, recommend programs, and promote the institution's values ​​on social media.

This approach generates positive word-of-mouth, strengthens the school's brand image, and ultimately attracts more high-quality candidates. It's a powerful way to stand out and build close relationships with prospective students.

Personalizing the candidate journey through digital technology

Chatbots and virtual assistants

Artificial intelligence now makes it possible to create chatbots and virtual assistants capable of instantly answering candidates' questions. These conversational agents are available 24/7 on the school's website or via messaging applications such as Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp.

The result: applicants get immediate answers to their questions about programs, the admissions process, scholarships, student life, and more. No more frustrating waits for a response by email or phone. With AI, the school offers high-quality, responsive, and personalized customer service.

This constant availability reassures and engages prospective students. It shows them that the school is listening to them and doing everything possible to support them in their application process. This is a key advantage for convincing top talent to apply and for standing out from the competition.

Furthermore, intelligent chatbots learn from conversations. They continuously improve to provide increasingly relevant answers. The school can also analyze the data from these exchanges to better understand applicants' expectations and optimize its programs and admissions process accordingly.

Personalized tracking via a student CRM

Maintaining a personalized relationship with each candidate can quickly become complex as the number of prospective students increases. Without a suitable tool, it is difficult to ensure individualized and responsive follow-up, risking the loss of promising students to other institutions.

The solution lies in implementing a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system dedicated to admissions. This software centralizes all interactions with applicants and automates certain time-consuming tasks. Thanks to the CRM, each student benefits from personalized support at every stage of their journey: initial contact, information request, application submission, interview, and registration. This allows teams to build a close and trusting relationship with each prospective student, a key advantage in converting interest into enrollment.

Digitize and optimize the selection process

Online application platform

The starting point for a successful application platform is the creation of a personal account. The candidate enters their basic information, such as their first and last name, email address, and creates a secure password. This step should be simple and intuitive.

Once logged in, the candidate can complete their profile with their academic information, CV, and cover letter. The platform guides the user step by step through the data entry process, with clear forms and contextual help available when needed. The clean design and smooth navigation make for a pleasant experience.

After completing their application, candidates submit it online in just a few clicks. The system generates an acknowledgement of receipt and keeps them informed in real time about the status of their application. The admissions teams, for their part, use advanced application sorting and pre-selection features to improve efficiency.

A good example is Emundus, an innovative platform that simplifies and optimizes application and admissions management for universities and graduate schools. With its fully web-based interface ideal for international applicants, customizable forms, and automated reminder system, Emundus positions itself as a powerful tool for streamlining the entire process.

Online tests and automated assessments

Digital tests allow for the effective assessment of candidates' skills remotely. Multiple-choice questionnaires, interactive exercises, simulations, serious games... Numerous formats are possible to gauge knowledge, logical reasoning, and soft skills.

These automated assessments offer numerous advantages. They can be taken anywhere, anytime, providing candidates with great flexibility. Scoring is instant and unbiased. And the experience is more engaging than a traditional paper-based test.

However, some skills remain difficult to assess remotely, such as interpersonal skills or the ability to work in a team. It is also important to vary the question formats to limit opportunities for cheating.

In short, online tests are valuable complementary tools for effectively pre-selecting candidates, provided they are well-designed. However, an interview will often still be necessary to confirm the identified potential and assess soft skills.

AI and machine learning for pre-selection

AI and machine learning offer powerful applications for optimizing the pre-selection of application files:

• Automated analysis of CVs and cover letters to quickly identify profiles matching the desired criteria.

• Predictive scoring of candidates based on their suitability with academic prerequisites and the history of previous cohorts.

• Detection of high-potential applications using algorithms trained on alumni career paths.

• Intelligent categorization of applications by specialty, level, geographical origin to facilitate the work of admissions teams.

These tools save valuable time in processing large volumes of files, while ensuring an objective and relevant pre-selection.

In conclusion, digital technology has become an essential tool for educational institutions looking to attract new students. A strong online and social media presence, engaging content, and a personalized relationship with each applicant can significantly enhance your school's visibility and appeal. Solutions like Emundus help simplify application and admissions management by allowing you to personalize learning environments, facilitate communication, and conduct online candidate assessments. Expert support will enable you to fully leverage digital tools to boost your student recruitment.