Do we really need to re-structure marketing and admissions departments in Omani HEIs ? I think yes and soon for some universities and colleges.

1. Re-structure
Proposal
to stay competitive
SALIM AL ARAIMI

2. WHO ?
Who is doing what ?
WHAT ?
What is the proposed new structure ?
WHY ?
Why to change ?
The Idea’s
Sequence
TABLE OF CONTENTS
A Preface
The current structure
How ?
The current structure
WHEN ?
Project TimeLine

3. Do we care ?!
Decisions
Admissions and marketing
decisions are made ad hoc
or planned ?
RoI and Marketing Cost
Measuring the impact of promotional
campaigns (return on Investment)
and marketing cost per student.
Efficiency
(Cost, Time, Effort) ?
Data Accuracy
Availability of accurate data/
statistics in admissions which
leads marketing initiatives
and actions ?
Level of Coordination
Internal communication and
interaction between
Admissions and Marketing.
Effectiveness
Impact (best marketing
approaches) ?
Customer orientation of
Admissions service
Customer orientation while delivering
admissions service. Applicants,
prospects and sponsors are satisfied ?

4. WHAT ?
What is the new
proposed structure ?

5. Private HEIs in Oman adopt the
Organisational Chart of governmental HEIs
Although
the objectives are not the same, and
financial income plays a major role
to survive for Private HEIs
BUT
marketing functions were not
aligned perfectly with admissions
operations. Instead, marketing
function is distracted by public
relations tasks.
Copied
the traditional organisational structure
of admissions and registry departments
of HEIs
Realised
the importance of marketing
and promotion

6. Main Extremes in Higher Education in Oman
1 2
Marketing departments are working
on institutional goals like branding
and are removed from day-to-day
promotion.
Marketing departments play the
role of internal agency and creative
service provider to admissions.
In either case, there’s often a sense that
Either Or
ADMISSIONS are doing the
“real work” of recruiting
students and driving
revenue,
While:
MARKETING is playing more of
a supporting role to drive
campaigns, creative, and brand
efforts.

7. 321
What ?
It’s time for Private HEIs in Oman to create and follow a structure in
which marketing and admissions form one department that produces a
more efficient recruitment and enrolment system.
WHY ?
(A) Better Decisions, (B) use budget and staff more wisely, and (C) make
decisions in real-time.
And together, they can help (E) provide critical internal/market data that
ensures the private HEIs are developing the right programs and offerings.
HOW ?
(A) Breaking Down Barriers Between Marketing and Admissions by
forming the Admissions and Student Recruitment Department.
(B) Reinventing the admissions process for ASU to leverage digital
(requires reimagining how admissions and student recruitment and
IT work together).
(C) Identify efficient work-process flow charts which are based on
clear job descriptions.
The Idea (1)

8. Tasks Division
between Admissions
and Registry
Merging Marketing
and Admissions
functions
Establishment of
Media and Public
Relations
Admissions and
Student Recruitment
(ASR)
Registry and
Students Records
(RSR)
The new formed department:
Admissions and
Student
Recruitment
(ASR)
Marketing focus on promoting
the HEI’s programmes and
increase enrollment.
Admissions and
Student Recruitment
Registry and
Students Records
Media and Public
Relations
Departmental Job
Description for new
Departments
Release Marketing
function from the
continues disturbance of
events management.
MPR reports directly to
VC or Deputy VC.
The Idea (2)

9. 01
0306
08
07
0405
TASK 2
Management of student’s registry applications/ status such
as withdrawal, changing majors, postponement,
scholarship extension and student’s registry status such as
class attendance (absenteeism) and discontinuation.
TASK 4
Coordination with academic faculty and deal with students for all academic relations
(such as grades, attendance, exams timetable and appeals) and grant lecturers the
access in the system.
TASK 1
Monitoring student’s registration in courses (add and drop), manage sections,
timetables and create academic tab for students from foundation to bachelor.
TASK 3
Receiving/ serving the HEI’s stakeholders (eg. students,
applicants, parents, sponsors); and advise them regarding
registry requirements, academic programmes, and any
enquiries related to registry process or data.
TASK 7
Coordination with MoHE, HEAC, sponsors and HEI’s stakeholders in
all aspects related to students registry status and academic affairs.
TASK 5
Management of grade transcripts, letters and course descriptions given to students upon request,
Preparation of notification of graduation, academic certificates and related documents required
for attestation of the Ministry of Higher Education.
TASK 8
Management of graduation ceremonies in coordination with the Events
Committee and concerned departments in the HEI.
TASK 6
Management and ownership of students files, the academic data and
registry status in the Students Information System and generating
the related statistics/ reports.
02
Departmental Job Description
Registry and Students Records Department

10. 01
02
03
04
05
06
07
08
Admissions
Tasks
Task 01
Receive, process and reply to all new enrollment applications
(international and local) using the Student Management
Systems, ASU website, phone and emails.
Task 02
Receive the HEI’s specific stakeholders (ex. students,
applicants, parents, scholarship providers); and advise them
regarding admissions requirements, academic programmes,
and any enquiries related to enrollment process.
Task 03
Task 04
Organizing admissions events (ex. HEAC admissions days) and marketing/
promotional events such as open days, school visits and exhibitions
Task 08
Initiate the annual marketing and promotion budget to cover all
aspects of the marketing & advertising plan that year and carry
out Marketing activities, internally and externally.
Task 07
Preparing, Designing and supervising the production of
publicity brochures, handouts, direct mail leaflets, articles,
reports etc. required for the events.
Admissions and Student Recruitment Department
Task 05
Coordination with MoHE, HEAC, and the HEI’s departments in all aspects
related to the admissions and marketing tasks (Student Recruitment).
Departmental Job Description
Ensure a successful implementation of admissions events’ plan
and smooth workflow (ex. Enrollment required documents,
admissions’ requirements, deadlines, timings, event’s floor map,
admissions/ placement tests with CLFS, and handle special cases
with an advice from colleges.
Task 06
Management of branded Souvenirs for the schools visits,
exhibitions and other promotional events.

11. 02
05
01
04
03
06
07
Task 7
Maintaining and updating information on the HEI’s website (news and
events) by coordinating with the other departments.
Task 6
Management of VIP visits, protocol and VIP gifts, and
corporate gifts for internal staff incentives, stakeholders
rewards and farewell events.
Task 5
Follow-up with the media about the news clips/ articles
published about the HEI, and coordinating and inviting the press
representatives and media officials etc. to the HEI for covering
the events and activities.
Task 4
Responsible for receiving guests, organizing the visits program, coordinating with
concerned department about the program, providing the hospitality etc.
Task 1
Plans, coordinates and implements an effective internal and external program
designed to keep the public informed of the programs and achievements of
the HEI.
Task 2
Production and design of media artworks and production of
video clips related to events and advertisements.
Task 3
Planning and organizing the necessities required for conducting the
events and activities.
Departmental Job Description
Media and Public Relations

12. What is after
merging the
functions
Admissions and
Marketing ?
01
COMMON BUSINESS GOAL
Both groups must agree that the
business goal is to reach students
and generate revenue. Example:
“Increase student applications by
4%”.
0302
MORE DATA IS AVAILABLE
Both groups need to more frequently
analyse the data and change course
accordingly. For most schools, data
reporting happens “after-the-fact.” In the
new digital world, data review happens in
real time before the admissions cycle
ends.
MORE EFFICIENT
By partnering to reduce admissions’
risk of falling short of their
numbers, both departments can
become more efficient and learn
more about their “customer.”
A QUICKER TEMPO
Put data tracking in place from end-to-
end. Marketing and admissions need to
know the impact of a recruitment
campaign on recruitment. Currently, most
marketing groups know how many clicks
the campaign generated, but not how
many applicants were created.
3 Cultural shifts leads to efficiency

13. Marketing and Admissions
The same funnel

14. The Conversion Marketing Funnel
Through Customers Eyes
Traditional Marketing Funnel
What do you do ?
Why should I care ?
Why should I buy?
Product/ Service is bought

15. Traditional Admission Funnel The Conversion Admission Funnel
Through HEI’s Prospects
ENROLLED
PROSPECTS
ENQUIRIES
APPLICANTS
ADMITS
1
5
4
3
2
What does the University offer me ?
Why should care/ ask/ enquire?
Why should I apply ?
I have applied, what comes next ?
Enrolled – End of Funnel

16. New Admissions Funnel
Stealth Applicants
- Students applying without prior contact.
- Introduced into database as “applicant”.
- Traditional enrollment funnel dissolving.
- Accept lack of complete control of your
institutional message.

17. New Admissions Funnel
- Stealth Applicants is increasing all the time.
- First point of contact with the HEI is actually the online
application.
- The true cost is greater than zero, but we can’t identify
those costs accurately, because:
so much is going on OFF of our radar screens, for example on social
networking sites.
- These “stealth applicants” introduce yet another
quantifiably elusive factor in our quest to measure Return on
Investment in student recruitment.

18. Suspect
Prospect
Applicant
Admitted
Enrolled
Graduate
Who HEI contact and are the specific activities (ex.
Exhibition) successful
Who contacts the HEI and do they become
applicants
Who do we convert to applicants
Who do we admit
Who enrolls
Who is successful
Registrations
MarketingAdmissions
Filling the gab between Marketing and Admissions
StudentRecruitment

19. New Structure
WHY
Why to change

20. What Are the BENEFITS of
Marketing and Admissions Working as one department?
(1) Save money
If a program or region is
not producing results,
resources can be
redirected to more
productive regions.
(2) Save time
Staff have better
data to prioritize
one-on-one phone
calls or emails.
(3) Test ideas
Collaboration allows
marketing and
admission teams to
test ideas and
measure the impact.

21. (6) Right students
Admissions can succeed
in recruiting the right
students and hitting
their numbers.
(4) Immediate feedback
from the market
HEIs in Oman start graduate
programs based on the
interest of a faculty
member. A digital first and
data-driven approach can
market test programs.
(5) Marketing not
anymore a cost centre
Marketing can be
transformed from a cost-
centre into a critical portion
of the revenue generating
process because they can
prove their impact.
What Are the BENEFITS of
Marketing and Admissions Working as one department?

22. What Are the BENEFITS of
Marketing and Admissions Working as one department?
(7) Customer Service
Orientation
Focus on the way of quality
of receiving students,
parents and sponsors
requirements/ needs easily
(one department).
(8) Easier process workflow
for advertisements
The owner of admissions
criteria and process is the
designer of the advertisement.
9) More focus for admissions
Admissions are receiving
students but not bothered with
registry tasks (such as marks,
students files, already enrolled
students enquiries, certificates
etc).

23. What Are the BENEFITS of
Marketing and Admissions Working as one department?
(11) For Registry: On-time
management of Registry applications
and enquiries.
Handling students enquiries such as
withdrawals, major change and transfers
from/to the HEI, postponement is not
disturbed during admission’s peak-time
periods.
(12) For Registry: More
time/ chance to organize
students files.
(10) For Registry: No late
graduation documents.
Admissions events does not
cause late preparations of
graduation notifications,
awarding certificates.

24. Continues DISTURBANCE !
Continuous work stress on admissions and
Registrations team every admissions period.
Continues DISTURBANCE !
No Focused promotional campaigns, and no
effective students recruitment as no time for data-driven
decisions or basic market research can be done due to
time and effort given to other tasks which are not the
core business of marketing.
In case we do not go for the re-structure :
Every admissions period, admissions and
Registrations staff members face a hassle and a
stress to manage receiving new students while
they are busy with enrolled students enquiries,
applications, subjects registrations, timetabling
issues, etc.
During each event, marketing function is
stopped to serve public relations and media
tasks such as management if invitations,
hospitality and other arrangements (events
which are not related to attract new students).

25. END OF
PRESENTATION
Detailed job descriptions, workflow charts, procedures
to be drafted in case requested.
SALIM AL ARAIMI