2012 National Research Report
Why Did They Enroll?
The Factors Influencing College Choice
An analysis of traditional-aged students
What matters to students when deciding where to enroll?
There are a variety of factors that influence a student’s decision to enroll. Factors such as
cost and the availability of financial aid are universally important at all types of institutions.
However, other factors can vary widely by institution type, demographics, class level, and
whether the student enrolled at his or her top choice.
Every year, hundreds of campuses administer the Noel-Levitz Student Satisfaction Inventory™
(SSI) to their students. In addition to more than 70 items rated for importance and satisfaction
on the general student experience, the SSI includes nine items that address factors in a
student’s decision to enroll.
During the fall of 2011, more than 55,000 students from more than 100 public and private fouryear and two-year institutions completed the SSI. These students rated the factors to enroll
items on a scale of one (meaning not important at all) to seven (very important). This report
details the responses from the nationwide pool of data.
In particular, this report has a special emphasis on the nearly 22,000 first-year students who
responded in order to see which items scored higher with ratings of important or very
important (a ranking of six or seven on the answer scale). Comparisons with upperclass
students and between students at their first-choice institution versus those attending their
second- or third-choice institution are also provided. In addition, the report highlights trend
results in enrollment factors as originally reported in our recent 15-year satisfaction
trend reports.
About the study
The study is based on data gathered from students who completed the Student Satisfaction
This study
Inventory during the fall of 2011 at colleges and universities nationwide.
includes a
comparison
Table 1: Participants
between
Number of
first-year
Institution type
institutions
students and
Four-year private colleges and
students who
63
universities
have been
Four-year public colleges and
9
enrolled
universities
two years
Community, junior, and technical
14
colleges
or more
(upperclass
Two-year career and private
32
schools
students).
Total
Total number of
student records
118
25,070
11,277
11,859
7,607
55,813
TM
The full list of contributing institutions can be found in the appendix.
These schools provide a cross section of the student experience. The focus of the data is from the
fall semester because that is when enrollment factors are likely to be most current in the minds of
students, especially first-year students.
This year’s study provides comparisons between first-year students and students who have been
enrolled two years or more (upperclass students). There is also a comparison between two groups
of first-year students: those who perceive themselves to be at their first-choice institution and those
who identify the institution as their second or third choice.
This report focuses on traditional college students. A separate study is available on the factors to
enroll for students in adult learner undergraduate or graduate programs and students enrolled in
online learning programs.
2 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice
Demographic mix of respondents
Institutional choice
(first-year students only)
Class level for all students
at all institutions
36%
42%
58%
64%
TM
TM
First-year students
First-year, first-choice students
Upperclass students
First-year, second- and third-choice students
Specific information regarding the demographic distribution by institution type is included in the appendix.
What factors are considered?
The following list describes each available factor that students rate on the Student Satisfaction
Inventory.
• Cost: Addresses how important tuition was in the student’s decision to enroll.
• Financial aid: Takes into consideration the financial aid package that was offered to the student.
• Academic reputation: Reflects what the student thinks he or she knows about the academic quality
of the institution.
• Size of the institution: Indicates how important the size of the institution, either large or small, was
to the student.
• Recommendations from family and friends: Reflects the importance of comments and
encouragements from family members.
• Geographic setting: Addresses campus location as a factor because of distance from home as well as
the setting of the school (urban, rural, etc.).
• Campus appearance: Considers how the campus looks to the student and may also reflect
perceptions of campus maintenance.
• Personalized attention prior to enrollment: Indicates the student’s perception of how he or she was
treated through the admissions process.
These factors may also have influence for specific institutions:
• Opportunity to play sports: For four-year and community college campuses, examines how critical
the opportunity to compete athletically was to the student.
• Employment opportunities: Reveals a factor unique to the career and private school version of the
Student Satisfaction Inventory and indicates the student’s perceptions regarding career options with
a degree from the institution.
© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 3
Factors to enroll: First-year students
90%
80%
83%
81% 81%
79%
84%
86%
80%
78%
84%
79%
75%
71%
70%
70%
68%
68%
63%
58%
50%
50%
Four-year public
first-year students
75%
72%
64%
63%
60%
Four-year private
first-year students
82%
56%
62% 63%
Community college
first-year students
61%
59%
Career school
first-year students
54%
49%50%
45%
40%
30%
20%
10%
TM
0%
Cost,
financial
aid, and
academic
reputation
were the
top factors
across all
institution
types.
Cost
Financial
aid
Academic
reputation
Size of
institution
Recommend
from family
Geographic
setting
Campus
Personalized
appearance attention prior
to enrollment
This chart lists the eight enrollment factors that are consistent on the Student Satisfaction Inventory across
all four institution types. The percentage reflects students indicating that the item is important or very important.
What is most important to first-year students?
Cost, financial aid, and academic reputation were the top enrollment factors across all institution types.
These three variables appear to play a critical role in influencing students’ enrollment decisions. The
other factors included in the list of choices were all more important to students at career schools
than they were to students at four-year private and public colleges or community colleges, especially
personalized attention prior to enrollment. It should be noted that employment opportunities, which
is a unique item on the career-school survey and is not included in the chart above, was the top
enrollment factor for these institutions, with 89 percent of students indicating it was important or very
important to their decision.
Certainly the cost of attending a college—regardless of the type of institution attended—played a role
in enrollment decisions. With students attending public four-year and two-year campuses, cost was the
dominant factor. At four-year private colleges, it ranked third behind academic reputation. At two-year
career schools, cost—while still important with an 81 percent score—was fifth behind employment
opportunities, financial aid, academic reputation, and personalized attention.
Financial aid joined cost at the top of the enrollment factors and was the top issue for students at
four-year private campuses. At two-year private institutions, financial aid was a close second behind
employment opportunities, with nearly 86 percent saying it was important. Clearly, economic issues—
how much will their educations cost, how will they pay for it—weigh heavily on the minds of students.
Even the top enrollment factor from students at career schools, future career opportunities, indicates a
strong economic concern.
Academic reputation was also a strong factor, ranking as one of the top three enrollment factors across
all institution types, with at least 70 percent of students indicating it was important or very important.
4 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice
Factors to enroll: Comparison of first-year students and upperclass students
While enrollment factors may be top of mind to first-year students, it is also interesting to observe the
perceptions of upperclass students (sophomores, juniors, and seniors at four-year institutions and secondand third-year students at two-year institutions). It should be noted that upperclass responses could reflect
either students’ original decision to enroll or their current decision to continue their enrollment into the
coming year—the survey does not specifically ask if they are ranking their original enrollment factors. Either
way, the responses provide an indication of the relative importance of these factors to upperclass students.
Four-year private institutions: First-year students vs. upperclass students
80%
78.5%
76.2%
83.9%
83.8%
Four-year private
first-year students
79.1%
77.8%
70%
Four-year private
upperclass
students
68.1%
62.9%
60%
62.4%
62.7%
57.7%
56.4%
50%
48.9%
48.7%
51.6%
53.9%
40%
33.7%
29.0%
30%
20%
10%
TM
0%
Cost
Financial
aid
Academic
reputation
Size of
institution
Personalized
Opportunity Recommend Geographic Campus
setting
appearance attention prior
from
to play
to enrollement
family
sports
At four-year privates, the factors of financial aid and family recommendation were relatively
unchanged as enrollment factors when comparing class levels. All of the factors were as or more
important to first-year students. Campus appearance had the biggest movement between first-year
and upperclass students with an 8.5 percentage point shift down in importance, followed by a 6.5
percentage point shift down in importance for institution size for upperclass students.
Four-year public institutions: First-year students vs. upperclass students
80%
80.5%
79.2%
79.6%
77.5%
70%
Four-year public
first-year students
75.2%
74.9%
66.2%
63.1%
64.2%
60.5%
60%
63.4%
55.6%
50%
Four-year public
upperclass
students
61.3%
56.3%
49.7%
45.5%
40%
33.2%
30%
23.0%
20%
10%
TM
0%
Cost
Financial
aid
Academic
reputation
Size of
institution
Campus Personalized
Opportunity Recommend Geographic
setting
appearance attention prior
from
to play
to enrollement
family
sports
For students at four-year publics, the perception of academic reputation was unchanged based
on class level. Geographic setting actually became more important to upperclass students by 3.1
percentage points. The opportunity to play sports had the biggest drop in importance between firstyear students and upperclass students with a 10.2 percentage point shift down, followed by campus
appearance with a 7.8 percentage point decrease in importance to upperclass students.
© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 5
Community colleges: First-year students vs. second- and third-year students
80%
83.0%
83.0%
78.1%
76.3%
70%
Community college
first-year students
71.2%
71.0%
60%
60.2%
55.8%
50%
49.9%
49.3%
53.6%
53.6%
Community college
second- and thirdyear students
59.1%
57.5%
45.3%
44.8%
40%
30%
23.7%
22.1%
20%
10%
TM
0%
Cost
Financial
aid
Academic
reputation
Size of
institution
Personalized
Opportunity Recommend Geographic Campus
setting
appearance attention prior
from
to play
to enrollement
family
sports
With a potentially shorter span of time for first-year students at community colleges to students in
their second or possibly third year, there were fewer shifts in perceptions for factors in the decision to
enroll, with many items maintaining the same percentage. The one exception is geographic setting,
which was slightly more important by 4.4 percentage points for second- and third-year students as
compared with first-year students.
Career and private schools: First-year students vs. second- and third-year students
90%
80%
81.0%
76.5%
85.7%
83.5%
70%
Career school
first-year students
89.2%
86.1%
83.5%
80.7%
81.7%
77.7%
69.6%
66.8%
60%
68.0%
63.7%
72.0%
69.8%
Career school
second- and thirdyear students
74.6%
71.5%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
TM
0%
Cost
Financial
aid
Academic
reputation
Size of
institution
Recommend Geographic
Future
setting
from
employment
family
opportunities
Campus
Personalized
appearance attention prior
to enrollement
First-year students at two-year career and private schools indicated slightly higher importance
scores on all items, with the recommendations from family and friends as well as personalized
attention prior to enrollment reflecting the greatest difference by 4 percentage points compared
with second- and third-year students. Again, the percentages stayed relatively consistent across the
class level designations.
6 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice
Factors to enroll: Comparison for first-year students at their firstchoice institution vs. second and third choice
Students who perceived themselves to be at their first-choice institutions were typically more satisfied
with their overall experience than students who perceived themselves to be at their second- or thirdchoice institution. While we don’t know why an institution was a first or second choice for a student,
we can see which factors may have influenced enrollment when we slice the data for just first-year
students with the additional indicator of institutional choice.
Four-year private institutions: First-year students, first choice vs.
first-year students, second and third choice
80%
80.6%
77.4%
84.1%
83.7%
Four-year private
first-year, firstchoice students
81.4%
74.5%
70.1%
70%
64.4%
60.1%
60%
57.9%
57.5%
62.5%
62.2%
Four-year private
first-year, secondand third-choice
students
64.3%
50.5%
50%
45.6%
40%
39.4%
30%
30.6%
20%
10%
TM
0%
Financial
aid
Cost
Academic
reputation
Size of
institution
Campus
Personalized
Opportunity Recommend Geographic
setting
appearance attention prior
from
to play
to enrollement
family
sports
Interestingly, the perception of financial aid as a factor in the decision to enroll was basically the same for
students at their first choice and those at their second or third choice. The opportunity to play sports was 8.8
percentage points more important to students at their second- or third-choice school, followed by cost with a
higher importance of 3.2 percentage points. Academic reputation was 6.9 percentage points more important to
students at their first-choice institution followed by the personalized attention prior to enrollment, which was
more important by 5.8 percentage points.
Four-year public institutions: First-year students, first choice vs.
first-year students, second and third choice
83.8%
80%
78.3%
83.8%
76.8%
70%
Four-year public
first-year, firstchoice students
75.5%
73.7%
67.5%
65.5%
61.8%
60%
60.3%
56.2%
50%
Four-year public
first-year, secondand third-choice
students
65.4%
61.4%
61.1%
51.1%
47.6%
40%
38.7%
30%
29.6%
20%
10%
TM
0%
Cost
Financial
aid
Academic
reputation
Size of
institution
Personalized
Opportunity Recommend Geographic Campus
setting
appearance attention prior
from
to play
to enrollement
family
sports
For students at four-year public institutions, the perceptions of academic reputation and personalized
attention prior to enrollment were the same across institutional choice, but geographic setting was
© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 7
more important to students at their first choice by 11.3 percentage points, with campus appearance
having the next biggest difference of 5.1 percentage points. For students at their second or third
choice, the opportunity to play sports was more important by 9.1 percentage points, financial aid more
important by 7 percentage points, and the perception of cost more important by 5.5 percentage points.
Community colleges: First-year students, first choice vs.
first-year students, second and third choice
80%
83.0%
82.9%
79.4%
75.7%
70%
Community College
first-year, firstchoice students
73.7%
66.3%
60%
51.3%
47.0%
50%
48.4%
40%
50.7%
Community College
first-year, secondand third-choice
students
61.0%
58.5%
55.0%
50.8%
55.3%
39.2%
30%
27.1%
21.9%
20%
10%
TM
0%
Cost
Financial
aid
Academic
reputation
Size of
institution
Personalized
Opportunity Recommend Geographic Campus
setting
appearance attention prior
from
to play
to enrollement
family
sports
First-choice students at community colleges placed a higher importance on the recommendations
from their family and friends by 9.2 percentage points, followed by geographic setting (7.8 percentage
points) and academic reputation (7.4 percentage points). The one area that was more important to
students at their second or third choice is the opportunity to play sports by 5.2 percentage points.
Career and private schools: First-year students, first choice vs.
first-year students, second and third choice
90%
80%
82.5%
78.5%
87.3%
83.1%
90.6%
87.1%
85.7%
79.9%
71.7%
70%
65.8%
60%
Career school
first-year, firstchoice students
83.5%
74.4%
70.2%
76.7%
78.7%
Career school
first-year, secondand third-choice
students
71.1%
67.7%
64.3%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
TM
0%
Cost
Financial
aid
Academic
reputation
Personalized
Recommend Geographic Campus
Size of
Future
setting
appearance attention prior
from
institution employment
to enrollement
family
opportunities
At career and private schools, first-choice students all had higher importance scores than students
who indicated that they were at their second- or third-choice institution. Geographic setting had the
highest importance difference between the two groups with 6.7 percentage points.
8 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice
Fifteen-year trends on enrollment factors
In 2011, Noel-Levitz published a series of reports focusing on the importance and satisfaction trends
on institutions over the past 15 years. These reports included a review on the shifts in enrollment factor
perceptions over the course of that period. The relevant findings include:
Four-year private institutions: Students in 2009-2010 indicated much higher importance scores on cost
(6.8 percentage points), campus appearance (5.6 percentage points), and financial aid (5.1 percentage
points) than students in 1994-1995.
Four-year public institutions: All factors increased in importance between 1994-1995 and 2009-2010,
with the biggest jumps coming for financial aid (15.1 percentage points), personalized attention prior to
enrollment (10.9 percentage points), and recommendations from family and friends (10.3 percentage
points).
Community colleges: All of the factors increased in importance for students between 1994-1995 and 20092010, with financial aid reflecting the largest jump at 8.7 percentage points, followed by the opportunity to
play sports (8.1 percentage points) and recommendations from family and friends (7.8 percentage points).
Career and private schools: Several factors had double-digit increases in importance between 1996-1997
and 2010-2011: Recommendations from family and friends (16.0 percentage points), school appearance
(15.7 percentage points), geographic setting (13.5 percentage points), and size of institution (12.2
percentage points).
For more information on how the priorities of students have changed over time, please see the 15-year
reports, available at: www.noellevitz.com/benchmark15years
How these findings impact your work in student recruitment and retention
What do these results signify for campus professionals? The results suggest three priority action items:
1. Prospective and current students want to know how much their education will cost. Your Web site and
other campus communications should make this information accessible. If you are changing tuition,
communicate this clearly to current students, as well as why tuition is changing and how students will
benefit from the change. Be sure to make full use of federally mandated tuition calculators to provide
complete, current information to prospective and current students on your Web site.
2. Make financial aid information easy to obtain. This goes beyond the first year of enrollment—students
likely want to know how much financial assistance will be available during their entire campus careers.
Information on other financial resources, such as scholarships, is also important.
3. Use your academic reputation to express the value of your educational offerings. Students need to know
that an education from your institution is worth the investment. Making the strengths, features, benefits,
and outcomes of your academic offerings clear will go a long way toward helping prospective students
decide to enroll with you, as well as convincing current students to persist and graduate. Your faculty and
staff should also express your institution’s academic excellence in their interactions with students.
In addition, keep in mind that personalized attention prior to enrollment also plays an important role,
especially at private institutions. Delivering personalized attention at every point of contact—in the mail,
online, over the phone, and on campus—can make a big difference in persuading a student to enroll and
to persist. It’s also an area where your campus has a unique opportunity to differentiate itself from other
institutions.
Location, size and setting, while not unimportant, do not rank nearly as high as these other factors. Tell
students what it will cost, what financial assistance will be available, and the value of your educational
offerings, and you address these top three elements that impact enrollment decisions.
© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 9
Appendix I: List of institutions
Four-year private institutions
Abilene Christian University, TX
Azusa Pacific University, CA
Bethel College, IN
Bethel University, MN
Bethune-Cookman University, FL
Biola University, CA
Bryan College, TN
California Baptist University, CA
Cedarville University, OH
Coker College, SC
Concordia University Texas, TX
Corban University, OR
Cornerstone University, MI
Covenant College, GA
Cox College, MO
Crown College, MN
Eastern University, PA
Evangel University, MO
Fresno Pacific University, CA
Geneva College, PA
Gordon College, MA
Goshen College, IN
Grace College and Seminary, IN
Graceland University, IA
Greenville College, IL
Hope International University, CA
Houston Baptist University, TX
Huntington University, IN
Indiana Wesleyan University, IN
John Brown University, AR
LeTourneau University, TX
Lincoln College, IL
Lipscomb University, TN
Manhattan Christian College, KS
McPherson College, KS
Mid-America Christian
University, OK
Milligan College, TN
Milwaukee Institute of Art &
Design, WI
Mississippi College, MS
Montreat College, NC
Northwest Christian University, OR
Northwest Nazarene University, ID
Northwest University, WA
Northwestern College, MN
Ohio Dominican University, OH
Pacific Northwest College of
Art, OR
Palm Beach Atlantic University, FL
Rockhurst University, MO
Siena College, NY
Simpson University, CA
Southern Nazarene
University, OK
Southern Virginia University, VA
Southwestern Adventist
University, TX
Spring Arbor University, MI
St. Edward’s University, TX
Tabor College, KS
Taylor University, IN
Trinity Christian College, IL
University of Tampa, FL
Valley Forge Christian College, PA
Warner University, FL
Waynesburg University, PA
Williams Baptist College, AR
Four-year public institutions
Dakota State University, SD
Mississippi State University, MS
Montana Tech - North, MT
Salem State University, MA
South Carolina State
University, SC
South Dakota State University, SD
University of MichiganDearborn, MI
University of Minnesota
Duluth, MN
University of Nebraska, NE
Community colleges
Augusta Technical College, GA
Bucks County Community
College, PA
Coffeyville Community
College, KS
Cypress College, CA
Eastern Idaho Tech College, ID
Fox Valley Technical College, WI
Heartland Community College, IL
Highland Community College, IL
Kilian Community College, SD
Lanier Technical College, GA
Montana Tech - South, MT
Piedmont Technical College, SC
Spokane Falls Community
College, WA
Tri-County Technical College, SC
Career and private schools
Anthem Career CollegeMemphis, TN
Anthem Career CollegeNashville, TN
Anthem College-Atlanta, GA
Anthem College-Dallas, TX
Anthem College-Denver, CO
Anthem College-Fenton, MO
Anthem CollegeKansas City, MO
Anthem College-Maryland
Heights, MO
Anthem College-Milwaukee, WI
Anthem College-Minnesota, MN
Anthem College-Orlando, FL
Anthem College-Phoenix, AZ
Anthem College-Portland, OR
Anthem CollegeSacramento, CA
Anthem InstituteCherry Hill, NJ
Anthem InstituteJersey City, NJ
Anthem Institute-Las Vegas, NV
Anthem InstituteManhattan, NJ
Anthem InstituteNorth Brunswick, NJ
Anthem InstituteParsippany, NJ
Anthem Institute-Springfield, PA
The Bryman School of
Arizona, AZ
City College of Altamonte, FL
City College of
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
City College of Gainesville, FL
City College of Hollywood, CA
City College of Miami, FL
Laurel Business Institute, PA
Morrison University, NV
Pima Medical InstituteMesa, AZ
Salter College, MA
Taylor Business Institute, IL
Note: This list reflects only the institutions which administered the Student
Satisfaction Inventory between September 1 and December 31, 2011.
10 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice
Appendix II: Demographics
Table 2: Class level by institution type
First-year
student counts
Upperclass
student counts
Four-year private colleges and
universities
8,023
16,145
Four-year public colleges and
universities
2,709
7,608
Community, junior, and technical
colleges
5,600
5,147
Two-year career and private
schools
5,519
1,784
Total
21,851
30,684
Institution type
TM
Table 3: Institutional choice by institutional type (first-year students only)
First-year, first-choice
student counts
First-year, second- and thirdchoice student counts
Four-year private colleges and
universities
5,166
2,798
Four-year public colleges and
universities
1,652
1,045
Community, junior, and technical
colleges
3,588
1,947
Two-year career and private
schools
3,495
1,970
Total
13,901
7,760
Institution type
TM
Note: Overall student counts reflect all students in the data set, but not all students indicated a class level or
an institutional choice.
© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 11
Appendix III: Complete tables for each data set
Table 4: Comparison across institution type for first-year students only
Four-year
private
first-year
students
Four-year
public
first-year
students
Community
college
first-year
students
Career
school
first-year
students
Cost
78.5%
80.5%
83.0%
81.0%
Financial aid
83.9%
79.6%
78.1%
85.7%
Academic reputation
79.1%
74.9%
71.2%
83.5%
Size of institution
62.9%
64.2%
49.9%
69.6%
Recommendations from family
48.9%
49.7%
45.3%
68.0%
Geographic setting
57.7%
63.1%
55.8%
72.0%
Campus appearance
62.4%
63.4%
53.6%
74.6%
Personalized attention prior to enrollment
68.1%
61.3%
59.1%
81.7%
Enrollment factors
TM
Table 5: Four-year private institutions: First-year students vs. upperclass students
Enrollment factors
First-year students
Upperclass students
Cost
78.5%
76.2%
Financial aid
83.9%
83.8%
Academic reputation
79.1%
77.8%
Size of institution
62.9%
56.4%
Opportunity to play sports
33.7%
29.0%
Recommendations from family
48.9%
48.7%
Geographic setting
57.7%
51.6%
Campus appearance
62.4%
53.9%
Personalized attention prior to enrollment
68.1%
62.7%
TM
Table 6: Four-year public Institutions: First-year students vs. upperclass students
Enrollment factors
First-year students
Upperclass students
Cost
80.5%
79.2%
Financial aid
79.6%
77.5%
Academic reputation
74.9%
75.2%
Size of institution
64.2%
60.5%
Opportunity to play sports
33.2%
23.0%
Recommendations from family
49.7%
45.5%
Geographic setting
63.1%
66.2%
Campus appearance
63.4%
55.6%
Personalized attention prior to enrollment
61.3%
56.3%
TM
12 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice
Table 7: Community colleges: First-year students vs. second- and third-year students
First-year
students
Second- and third-year
students
Cost
83.0%
83.0%
Financial aid
78.1%
76.3%
Academic reputation
71.2%
71.0%
Size of institution
49.9%
49.3%
Opportunity to play sports
23.7%
22.1%
Recommendations from family
45.3%
44.8%
Geographic setting
55.8%
60.2%
Campus appearance
53.6%
53.6%
Personalized attention prior to enrollment
59.1%
57.5%
Enrollment factors
TM
Table 8: Career and private schools: First-year students vs. second- and third-year students
First-year
students
Second- and third-year
students
Cost
81.0%
76.5%
Financial aid
85.7%
83.5%
Academic reputation
83.5%
80.7%
Size of institution
69.6%
66.8%
Future employment opportunities
89.2%
86.1%
Recommendations from family
68.0%
63.7%
Geographic setting
72.0%
69.8%
Campus appearance
74.6%
71.5%
Personalized attention prior to enrollment
81.7%
77.7%
Enrollment factors
TM
© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 13
Table 9: Four-year private institutions: First-year students, first-choice campus vs. first-year
students, second- and third-choice campus
First
choice
Second or third
choice
Cost
77.4%
80.6%
Financial aid
84.1%
83.7%
Academic reputation
81.4%
74.5%
Size of institution
64.4%
60.1%
Opportunity to play sports
30.6%
39.4%
Recommendations from family
50.5%
45.6%
Geographic setting
57.5%
57.9%
Campus appearance
62.5%
62.2%
Personalized attention prior to enrollment
70.1%
64.3%
Enrollment factors
TM
Table 10: Four-year public institutions: First-year students, first-choice campus vs. first-year
students, second- and third-choice campus
First
choice
Second or third
choice
Cost
78.3%
83.8%
Financial aid
76.8%
83.8%
Academic reputation
75.5%
73.7%
Size of institution
65.5%
61.8%
Opportunity to play sports
29.6%
38.7%
Recommendations from family
51.1%
47.6%
Geographic setting
67.5%
56.2%
Campus appearance
65.4%
60.3%
Personalized attention prior to enrollment
61.4%
61.1%
Enrollment factors
TM
14 © 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • 2012 National Research Report: Why Did They Enroll? The Factors Influencing College Choice
Table 11: Community colleges: First-year students, first-choice campus vs. first-year students,
second- and third-choice campus
First
choice
Second or third
choice
Cost
83.0%
82.9%
Financial aid
79.4%
75.7%
Academic reputation
73.7%
66.3%
Size of institution
51.3%
47.0%
Opportunity to play sports
21.9%
27.1%
Recommendations from family
48.4%
39.2%
Geographic setting
58.5%
50.7%
Campus appearance
55.0%
50.8%
Personalized attention prior to enrollment
61.0%
55.3%
Enrollment factors
TM
Table 12: Career and private schools: First-year students, first-choice campus vs. first-year students,
second- and third-choice campus
First
choice
Second or third
choice
Cost
82.5%
78.5%
Financial aid
87.3%
83.1%
Academic reputation
85.7%
79.9%
Size of institution
71.7%
65.8%
Future employment opportunities
90.6%
87.1%
Recommendations from family
70.2%
64.3%
Geographic setting
74.4%
67.7%
Campus appearance
76.7%
71.1%
Personalized attention prior to enrollment
83.5%
78.7%
Enrollment factors
TM
© 2012 Noel-Levitz, Inc. • www.noellevitz.com 15
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