This university wanted to know how to stand out to prospective traditional undergraduate degree seekers amid competition from other universities. To do so, the university had to know what was driving student choice and how that compared to key competitors.

Research showed that the most important factors were the same across segments. Program availability, financial aid/scholarship availability, affordability, excellent academic reputation, and great career development were some of the factors that were found to be essential to brand growth.

When compared to key competitors, prospective students who decided to attend another university seemed to find importance in the same factors as above when looking at other universities, however there were some factors that were unmet that this university could capitalize on. Affordability, highly ranked degrees, and family/friends’ recommendations were unmet needs in both the university and its key competitors.

Misconceptions about the university’s pricing were apparent as pricing was one of the factors that was a decision driver for prospective students. Communicating cost differently was key to driving undergraduate enrollment growth as this university was one of the lower cost providers in the market.