Dive Brief:
- Many schools are experimenting with new strategies for campus tours to increase the number of applications and yield.
- University Business reports that campuses are giving nontraditional tours — including by bicycle, boat, golf cart, and Segway — and sometimes to nontraditional visitors, including local middle schoolers and high school counselors.
- Experts recommend letting tour guides go off-script and coaching them about how to do so, as well as fostering intimacy through smaller tours, customized elements like language, and meetings with faculty members.
Dive Insight:
Colleges and universities in cities packed with higher education opportunities may have the hardest time making their campuses stand out. Families often tour multiple schools in one day. As the ambassadors of their institutions, tour guides are very important and training cannot be emphasized enough. Tour guides should be able to answer a wide variety of questions in authentic ways. They shouldn’t be trained to avoid serious topics like safety. And campuses should always elicit feedback from tourgoers. Some of the best innovations could come from suggestions from students themselves.