Creating Compelling Marketing Campaigns for Postgraduate Study: The Art of Audience Segmentation
Data on the current market for postgraduate student recruitment in UK higher education paints an interesting picture. Some of the key contextual factors affecting the postgraduate study market in the UK are:
Frozen undergraduate tuition fees in England
The effects of Brexit on EU students
The aftermath and impact of Covid-19
Recent changes to UKRI funding, which now makes international students eligible for doctoral studentships
The introduction of the Graduate Route visa
These complex circumstances have made way for some trends in the recruitment market. Most salient among these are:
Universities increasingly turning to postgraduate students, from home and abroad, as a source of revenue
A decrease in EU postgraduate students, mirrored by an increase in students from non-EU countries, particularly China, India and Nigeria
Increased interest in postgraduate study as the labour market stalls post-Covid
A growth in older prospective students or those with professional experience enrolling in postgraduate study
A greater number of international PhD candidates enrolling in UK universities
These trends indicate that, not only is postgraduate study essential to the financial stability of HEIs in the UK, but also there is increasing demand for these courses. So, how can HE marketing teams maximise postgraduate recruitment in this context?
HE marketers won’t be unfamiliar with the concept of audience segmentation. However, the diversity and complex makeup of the postgraduate recruitment market makes it especially important when trying to increase leads and conversions in this field.
In this article, we explore how you can successfully segment your audience to deliver messaging and campaigns that are impactful with the varying audiences you are targeting with your postgraduate recruitment campaigns.
1. Current Undergraduates
If you’re looking to develop postgraduate recruitment, current undergraduate students are a logical first target for any marketing campaign. Impactful messaging to undergraduate students already within your institution can be well received as these students already have a connection with your brand identity.
It’s crucial to think about what channels and messaging will have the greatest effect on these students. To help you navigate this, we’ve put together a list of 5W questions you can reflect on to support you in devising your recruitment push:
What – What incentives can you offer to current undergraduate students to make postgraduate study an attractive option? Discounts for alumni have proven particularly popular among this cohort, but other incentives might include early access to popular accommodation options, access to certain facilities or eligibility for studentships and bursaries.
Where – What platforms will be most useful for reaching these students? It’s unlikely that these students will actively seek out prospectuses, so digital channels might be more impactful. Email marketing campaigns, digital or micro prospectuses, in addition to place marketing with posters in faculty buildings and libraries are good options to explore.
When – What point in the student lifecycle is best to target these students? First years may be a bit too early in their journey and unsure about next steps, whereas final year students might be too time poor to consider these options. Students in their 2nd year or the middle of their degree are likely to be more responsive and less time poor than those in their final year.
Why – Why should current undergraduate students be interested in postgraduate study? You could highlight it as an opportunity for them to increase their employability through specialisation and developing transferable skills, continue studying if they have enjoyed it, or to retrain and try something new. By encouraging prospective students to build a sense of connection to your institution from the outset, you also set them up well for developing a sense of belonging on arrival – fundamental to a positive student experience.
How – How does postgraduate study work and how will students afford it? It seems that many undergraduate students have trouble in particular with understanding how finance and funding works on these programmes. Having comprehensive guidance on this topic is crucial so as not to put off any students, and using real life examples of how alumni have funded their studies can be helpful.
When devising your postgraduate recruitment campaign for current undergraduate students, it’s important to make sure your messaging is well aligned to your brand identity. For students who are already part of your university, hearing the same words and messaging they associate with the institution will give them a sense of continuity – and hopefully of brand loyalty. This can make them a key focus group in your audience segmentation.
2. PGT vs PGR
The postgraduate student community is not a monolith. Perhaps the clearest way we can see this is by acknowledging the difference between the Postgraduate Taught (PGT) and Postgraduate Research (PGR) experiences.
PGT students may have an experience that is a bit more similar to the classic undergraduate one. They will enrol and receive teaching as part of a cohort, even if the academic work they produce is more self-directed.
PGR students, on the other hand, have a more different relationship with the university community. Their study is largely independent, oriented around a specific project, but they may work more closely with academic staff.
By segmenting your audience into PGT and PGR prospects, you can consider the different kinds of support and experiences that will appeal to these different groups in the recruitment journey. For example, Open Day events may be useful to prospective PGT students to help them understand the course structure and logistics. They may also find taster seminar events a helpful way of understanding what they can expect.
Yet for PGR students, this is a little different. Instead of an opportunity to meet other prospective students and experience what their programme might be like, they may be more interested in opportunities to network with academic staff or workshops that can guide them through the application process, such as writing a research proposal.
Ensuring that you have outreach and marketing activities that appeal to both PGT and PGR students is crucial. By segmenting your audience like this, you can provide the right kind of information to the right kind of students that can help to turn prospects into conversions.
International Students
International students are increasingly becoming an important source of revenue for universities as home student undergraduate fees are frozen. This is even more so the case with postgraduate study, where tuition fees tend to be significantly higher for international students – so they deserve serious attention as you segment your audience.
So, how can you deliver a recruitment drive that appeals to international prospects?
Firstly, international students frequently cite careers and employability as a crucial factor in their choice of institution. Similarly, studies have shown that the most popular subjects among international students in the UK are Business & Management Studies, Engineering and Technology, Computing, and Social Sciences – many of which are strongly aligned with careers and employability. So, your messaging for an international audience should be clear in how studying a postgraduate qualification at your institution can enhance prospects’ career options.
For example, you might publish a series of blogs or social media posts with success stories from past international students, who have gone on to have successful graduate careers in the UK or elsewhere after undertaking a postgraduate qualification at your institution.
Secondly, and on a related note, a great way to incentivise international postgraduate study in the UK is by highlighting the introduction of the Graduate Visa route. With this new visa, which was introduced in July 2021, international students have the option to continue studying in the UK for up to 2 years (or 3 years for Doctoral students).
Finally, where exactly your prospects are based will be key to designing the campaign. For example, what channels will be most successful in reaching prospects given that popularity can vary by region? In China, for instance, social media usage is radically different as many apps that are typically popular in the Western world aren’t used. So, make sure to account for this in strategic planning.
Wherever you are directing your international prospects for IAG, guidance on the Graduate Visa route should be prominent and clear. Blogs and testimonials from students who have followed this path can be helpful and reassure prospects that they will have plenty of options open to them once they complete their course.
A Mature Audience
A recent study by FindAUniversity found that, following the pandemic, postgraduate students are getting older. This means prospects with more life and professional experience – a sensibility that a recruitment drive for postgraduate students should respond to and is easily identified by segmenting your audience.
When devising your postgraduate recruitment campaign, think about the kind of things students at later stages in life will be looking for. These might include:
Flexibility – Older students are more likely to have commitments beyond their studies such as part-time work or dependents. It’s important for them to know that their studies can be delivered flexibly. Providing information such as mock timetables and breakdowns of contact hours can be helpful in supporting them to plan their studies.
Accommodation – Mature students are more likely to have dependents. Do you offer a range of accommodation options that can support this and are they well signposted? If not, can you direct them to helpful information and services elsewhere?
Skills support – If a student is returning to education to pursue a postgraduate qualification after a hiatus, they may require more support with study skills or have low confidence in this arena. Highlight how you intend to support them with this by pointing them towards study skills modules.
Employability – Professional education is becoming increasingly important across the sector. It’s likely that many mature prospects are looking to pursue postgraduate study in order to upskill, reskill or retrain. How can your recruitment campaign address this? Cardiff University oriented a campaign around their conversion courses with clear messaging that invited prospects to ‘fast track’ their career.
Facilities – Are there facilities your institution offers that might be of interest to mature students? If so, highlight them! This could be anything from a daycare support centre to a swimming pool or discounted gym membership.
When segmenting your audience to identify mature prospects, it’s important to highlight how they can have the ‘full’ student experience even if they are returning to education after a hiatus. Thinking about their specific needs and desired outcomes when it comes to postgraduate study will be essential in devising a recruitment campaign that really resonates with them.
The Future of HE Marketing
As the UK postgraduate student community becomes increasingly diverse, so too must the work of HE marketing teams seeking to drive recruitment on these programmes. Segmenting your audience to ensure the messaging you’re delivering is relevant and impactful is a crucial step to ensuring success in your marketing campaigns for postgraduate programmes.
On HE Professional, we are constantly exploring the latest trends, evidence and ideas on driving enhancement in marketing and admissions. To find out more, explore our upcoming events for HE marketing leaders and professionals across the sector.
