FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 22, 2007

Instant Messaging Keeps Sherman College Connected to Prospective Students

Today’s prospective students are demanding more than just printed viewbooks, brochures and phone calls, says Sherman College Director of Admissions Lisa Hildebrand, M.A. They expect immediate, personal contact.

In fact, nationwide trends show that these millennial students (born after 1981) are revolutionizing the way colleges communicate. Even interactive higher education recruiting firms like TargetX say schools that ignore the revolution will risk undermining their marketing efforts.

Therefore, to help meet the needs of this new generation and to continue building the future of the chiropractic profession, Sherman College has launched an instant-messaging program to interact with prospective students. Admission representatives began using instant messaging this spring and have found it a useful tool in the enrollment process.

“Prospective students are much more interactive than in years past,” Hildebrand says. “They wantto ask questions and get quick answers. With instant messaging, we can meet those expectations.” While more traditional methods like e-mail correspondence and phone calls also keep admission counselors in touch, instant messaging (IM) allows, well, instant contact when students are looking for immediate answers.

Sherman’s IM program makes an admission representative available online weekday afternoons to answer questions about admission requirements, application status, transcripts, financial aid, college visits and more. The program is promoted on the college’s web site and blogs.

Admission counselor Lanette Dinkins says the IM initiative is going well and allows Sherman staff to interact with students in a new way. “During one conversation with a student, I answered a few of her general questions, and she registered for a Career Day while we were online chatting,” Dinkins says. The office has also fielded questions about application and transcript status, three-plus-one agreements, upcoming college events, scholarship availability, scheduling a campus visit and more.

And while instant messaging does mean more work for the Admission Office, Hildebrand says it’s absolutely necessary. “We try to do all we can to meet our prospective students’ needs. If they’re looking for instant contact, we’re going to do everything we can, within reason, to give it to them.”

For details or to chat online with an admission representative, go to www.sherman.edu/IM.

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