Personalizing admissions in distance education equals increased yield

Some administrators of distance education programs have confused the mode of instruction with the means of communication - specifically in the recruitment process. Through targeted marketing, restructuring of the admissions office and extensive training in personal selling, the University of Sarasota (UOS) realized significant increases in enrollment. This paper outlines the reengineering that enabled this institution to achieve extraordinary success from fiscal year 1996-1997 through 1998-1999. As the pool of inquiries decreased by 38.8 percent, applications grew by 32 percent. During this same period, the conversion of inquiries to applications nearly doubled. The end result: an increase in enrolled credit hours of 21 percent (2,307 credit hours) with an even brighter 2000 on the horizon!