If someone were to ask you, a college student in today’s world why you chose a particular institution of higher learning in preparation for future career pursuits, would it be odd for your answer to be “because of the school’s brand image”?
I recently read an article that made a valid argument concerning the power of a university’s brand. The opinion was that if viable businesses understand the necessity for strategic branding, then why shouldn’t educational institutions understand and engage using similar strategies? Setting your institution apart from competitors in the education realm, academically and socially, is crucial to staying afloat in the shallow economic state of our nation. Competition is greater than ever with a rising enrollment for higher education. According to the Institute of Education Sciences, during the fall semester of 2012, 4.8 million students will attend private four-year institutions in the United States and another 7.7 million students are expected to attend public four-year institution throughout the U.S.
However, the possibility of booming admissions and student probing has found its way into several institutions, meaning that more and more emphasis is being placed on the importance of their post-college opportunities, as some of the latest research indicates.
Critics argue that branding is not necessarily as important as academic programs. I would say generally the consensus is that most institutions rely strictly on their academic standards and national rating scores more so than the power of their brand image.
So how important is the brand at Harding University? As with any brand, there are typically consumers involved who help to define the essence of the brand’s image, personality and overall culture. For most universities, the alumni serve as an extension of that brand by using their voice, experiences and positions in the marketplace.
For the average Harding student today, one key question might be: Will this diploma become a commodity in the marketplace chosen largely because of convenience and price, or have I become a member of a larger secular club that provides endless job opportunities and networking? A number of private colleges have struggled in developing programs and alliances with their constituencies and alumni as a doorway to graduating students seeking those extensions of the school’s brand in the pursuit of a career.
Harding continues to maintain a strong enrollment level and has proven over the last decade that it is growing. Persuasion is crucial when Harding finds itself competing against 1,800 other American private colleges and universities for student’s enrollment. And I am convinced that the definition of our brand should include a component that reaches out and has a presence in today’s marketplace. Future prospective students are placing the highest degree priority on not just a “degree,” but on what the brand can do for their future.
