Study Maps Student-Recruitment Path for Catholic Colleges

In their outreach to prospective students, Roman Catholic colleges and universities should highlight their academic strengths and their focus on service learning, and clarify the role of religion on their campuses.

Those are among the suggestions made in a new report from Eduventures, an education consulting firm.

The report is based on a survey that compared the perceptions of Catholic colleges held by respondents who expressed interest in attending one with the views of those who did not. Respondents who were not Catholic and had not attended a Catholic school were least likely to express interest in attending a Catholic college.

More than a third of those who expressed only limited interest in attending a Catholic college chose as the reason “Not my religion/values” or “Not religious/Don’t believe religion should be part of education.”

Catholic colleges must understand the perceptions of students who are not initially interested in Catholic higher education and work to correct any misunderstandings, said Kim A. Reid, a program director and senior analyst at Eduventures. That is especially true, she said, for Catholic colleges in the Northeast, many of which are experiencing a decline in their usual pool of interested students.

Respondents who were interested in attending a Catholic college and those who were not generally agreed that such institutions are stronger than non-Catholic ones in terms of community service and spirituality, but less diverse and fun than other colleges.

But they disagreed when it came to academics: While students who were interested in Catholic colleges believed they have stronger academic programs, those who were not interested said non-Catholic colleges did.

The report is based on a nationwide survey of more than 4,300 prospective college students conducted in November and December 2008. The survey was sent to students on lists provided by 13 colleges, 11 of them Catholic. —Beckie Supiano