PORTLAND, (AP) — Maine’s public universities are trying new tactics in an effort to boost enrollment at a time when the number of high school graduates in the state is shrinking.
The seven-campus University of Maine System is going after more nontraditional students, including out-of-state students, transfers and international students.
The Portland Press Herald (http://bit.ly/1a26Mwc) reported that between 2008 and 2012, system-wide enrollment dropped almost 5 percent. Enrollment dropped 8 percent at the flagship campus in Orono alone.
Schools are pushing the more affordable in-state tuition rates.
The University of Maine is using data-mining software that tracked how prospective students clicked around on UMaine websites, allowing the school to follow up with personalized letters that reflected that person’s interests.
University of Southern Maine has sent recruiters to college fairs in Chicago and Virginia.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
