The first thing to do is to present your schools catalog throughly discussing the features and benfits of your program. In addition, ask the prospective student what their goals are what are they looking for and ask if they saw the other school. If they did interview with the other school ask how they feel about the other school. Present only facts about your school and do not discredit another institution. Help the prospect make the best decision based on their needs.
Kimberly,
It appears that you are using the catalog as a guideline to stay on track and to ensure that you are representing your college with integrity.
Cindy Bryant
We would direct the prospective student to our website as well as provide them with a school handbook. A tour of the facility is always avaliable and encouraged. We believe in being open and honest in every aspect of the school and welcome any questions. We would suggest taking some time on their own to reflect and make the best decision for themself.
Brandy,
Transparency is a key indicator of ethical practices in any school. The fact that you encourage students to reflect on their decision shows that you have the utmost confidence in your school and it's ability to fulfill the student's goals.
Cindy Bryant
When a prospective student asks about other schools, I encourage them to visit them and make their own assessment after touring all the schools and reading through the schools catalogs. I make sure they have a thorough understanding of my school's catalog and important parts of it along with the facility. They should have gained knowledge of my school and generally have an idea of what to look for at another institution and come to their own decision.
I would suggest that the student make an appointment with someone in our academic department. I would explain to the student, we have a large academic department, with staff who are more qualified to answer their question better than I could.
Jeanne,
Referring prospective and active students to the right department is a great way to ensure compliance. Any time you can refer to an expert in the field I recommend to do so. Bravo!
Cindy Bryant
Nelson,
Encouraging students to complete their own research does two things; 1) allows them to see what other schools or doing and 2) indicates that you have confidence in your school and what it offers. thanks for postining in the forum.
Cindy Bryant
I would let the student know the only knowledge I can offer is about our program and they should contact the other institution for information.
I would say that since I am not a representative of that school and not familiar, I have no point of reference and it would be best for them to gather all the information to make an informed decision for themselves.
Whatever information I present to prospective students when they ask how our program is different from other programs is objective and factual. The major difference between our program and other programs is our format. I encourage the students to check with other schools so that they can make their own decision about which format better meets their needs.
For example other schools offer a 2 year format; the student is placed on a waiting list and is admitted to the specific program after a period of time (the prospective student must check with the other school as to the waiting time which may be up to 5 years). Our school offers a 1 plus 1 schedule for the same major. This means that the student can begin immediately, and is directed to take courses toward entrance into the program. All gen ed English, math, and science classes are included in the first year's schedule. The student then applies to the specific program after taking the prerequisite courses. The program is a limited enrollment program so not all students will be admitted at this time. The students know this up front. However our school provides many health science programs, some of which are limited enrollment and other which are not limited enrollment. Therefore even if the student is not accepted into the limited enrollment program, they have taken courses which will meet requirements for our other health science related programs.
Patricia,
Wow! It sounds as if you have been doing this for a while. This is a wonderful way to have the students determine the best school for them to attend.
Cindy Bryant
We have all of our disclosure information listed online under each program. If you would like to use that as your guide to comparing our institution you are most certainly welcome to do so. The information that I can give you is only based on our institution because that is what I am knowledgeable about, I would not want to give you information about another school.
I will suggest that the student evaluates due to our pass record and finds any mistake we had from the past and see if it has been corrected and see if the student has any concern about our institution wrongdoing and promise to correct it.
Hi Marc,
Thank you for joining the forum. It is important for all of us to remember that a mistake takes time to correct and even longer to forgive. No matter how much we promise it becomes a "show me" issue.
Cindy Bryant
I would refer them to the handout they were given prior to enrolling in our school that tells what our graduate, employment and placement rates are and encourage them to compare our rates to other schools.
Janet,
Thank you for participating in the forum. Having students used published "hard" data in as their tool of comparison is a good idea. Generally these numbers can be backed up with additional documentation and can be proven.
Cindy Bryant
it is very important to know the strengths and weaknesses of the competition for power so use it in our favor.
Comparisons to other schools should not be made. Refer to what is documented study about your school only. Speculation should not be made about your own school or any other school.
I would tell the student that this is a great question and that it is important that they research both institutions to determine which one more fully lmeets their needs. I would offer my assistance in helping them evaluate my institution so they can make the best possible choice for themselves.
