Christine Kerlin (2008) wrote that “Enrolment management is a comprehensive and coordinated process that enables a college or university to identify enrolment goals that are allied with its mission, its strategic plan, its environment, and its resources, and to reach those goals through effective integration of administrative processes, student services, curriculum planning and market analysis” (p.11). It is a holistic process that plays out across the student learning journey from inquiry to graduation. And its fundamental premise is that we must look at our enrolment health and sustainability throughout the entire student experience as we link, integrate, and extend enrolment management across our campuses.

Each of us has a role in developing and sustaining the SEM ecosystem on campus. We need to engage in shared responsibility. If SEM reflects institutional identity and culture, it becomes an institution-wide strategy owned by each member of the community. This is best achieved through lateral communication where open and frequent communication becomes part of the culture. Hossler, Bean, and associates (1990) said it well when they wrote “The more people involved in decision making, the greater the commitment to implementing the decision” (p. 35).

One of the best ways to do this is to adopt a systems thinking approach. Peter Senge (2006) described systems thinking as “…a discipline for seeing wholeness rather than parts, for seeing patterns of change rather than static snapshots, and for understanding the subtle interconnectedness that gives living systems their unique character” (pp. 68-60). Systems thinking allows SEM practitioners to create a fully embedded enrolment management system that engages campus leadership, faculty, the SEM steering committee, and operational working groups. We have long known that enhanced integration and participation of all key campus stakeholders is a necessary pathway to achieving enrolment management effectiveness on our campuses (Smith, 2000).

If you want to learn more about SEM and systems thinking, consider joining me for the “Systems Thinking is the Key to SEM Success” pre-conference workshop at this year’s SEMM Forum in Toronto on Tuesday, November 7th, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m, at the Mariott Downtown at Toronto Eaton Centre. In this workshop, participants will learn and discuss the basics of systems thinking and how institutions can introduce and support the implementation of an enrolment management ecosystem.

-Clayton Smith

References:

Hossler, D., Bean, J. & Associates (1990). The strategic management of college enrollments. Jossey-Bass.

Kerlin, C. (2008). A community college roadmap for the enrollment management journey. College and University, 83(4), 10-14.

Senge, P. M. (2006). The fifth discipline: The art and practice of the learning organization. Doubleday. https://www.seeing-everything-in-a-new-way.com/uploads/2/8/5/1/28516163/peter-senge-the-fifth-discipline.pdf

Smith, C. (2000). The perceptions of college and university enrollment managers on the relationship between institutional enrollment performance and enrollment management effectiveness. College and University, 76(1), 15-19. https://doi.org/10.2190/DJCF-Q6MB-35AV-EBW