How to Talk about Financial Aid with Prospective Students and Parents
One of the top questions that undergraduate students (and their parents) are asking when they consider your school is this one: Can I afford it? With the significant investment that college requires, it’s critical that your school is answering this question clearly, completely, and promptly. Looking for a college can be stressful, so working to ease concerns when it comes to the issue of paying for school can pay off huge in winning over prospective students and their parents.
Here are some things to keep in mind when communicating to prospective students and their parents about the options available to help them afford your school.
Be clear, helpful, and honest.
The financial aid process can be confusing and difficult to navigate, so it’s all the more important that you offer information about paying for school as clearly as you can. Not only will this ease the burden of your office by having less people call to ask questions that are already answered on your website, but it also keeps prospective students/parents from becoming frustrated and overwhelmed with the process (and potentially removing your school from their list of considered schools.)
Some schools tend to only provide the per-unit cost for a program rather than a rough yearly tuition amount. Instead, it’s helpful to provide detailed and easy-to-follow breakdowns of what tuition will look like and all of the possible aids available. For example, Pepperdine University does a good job of displaying all anticipated costs for the year broken down clearly, and Westmont College uses a compelling graphic to break down average aid based on GPA and SAT scores.
Clarity also means paying attention to your website architecture. Make financial aid information easy to find on your website and as detailed as needed. Clearly display contact information for your financial aid office. Ensure that all terminology is defined (such as FAFSA, work-study, subsidized versus unsubsidized loans, etc.). Considering that some in your audience are just beginning this learning curve, take the time to make the web experience as pleasant as possible.
Be available.
Sometimes prospective students or parents need to talk to a human being on the phone or in person, no matter how detailed or explanatory your website and marketing materials are. In other words, while it’s important to make sure financial aid information is clearly outlined and detailed, it’s also important to be available to answer questions. Learning about loans, work study, grants, and scholarships can be nuanced depending on the customized financial situation of each family.
One way to be available is to make your financial aid contact info easy to find on your website (Gordon College does a good job of this on their website). You can also encourage people to contact you via email or through a webform. The key is to make sure you provide a quick turnaround (one to two business days is standard). You can also consider using chat software, which allows your financial aid counselors to address questions instantly online during business hours. Eastern Nazarene University does this on their financial aid website. Of course, this requires having the available staff to field such questions online promptly, but it can be another way to make yourself readily available for “human-to-human” customer service.
Consider content marketing.
Since navigating the financial aid process can be stressful, it may be beneficial to offer bonus content to help prospective students and parents understand the process. Can one or two of your financial aid counselors offer a webinar on how to complete your FAFSA? Can you provide an e-book that helps prospective students with a comprehensive list of available scholarships and how to make their application stand out from the crowd? Can you provide a blog written by students sharing ideas for how they have been able to pay for school?
Mercy College offers a "Guide to Financial Aid" video, for example, that provides a detailed walk-through for students (and their parents) for completing the FAFSA application. Check out this testimonial from Seattle Pacific University, which details how one of their students applied for scholarships and used the university's RaiseMe program (which allows students to earn scholarship money for volunteering, earning good grades, and more) to make college affordable.
Again, the more content you can provide to help ease concerns and make it clear how prospective students and parents can pay for school, the more likely they are to continue considering your school when they are ready to apply and, eventually, make a deposit. Content marketing (done well!) that is dedicated to financial aid can reflect that your institution is genuinely committed to helping students pay for school (you’re showing, and not just telling).
Communicate using multiple channels.
It’s important to communicate about financial aid beyond info on your website. Consider how you can work in the information on campus tours, email campaigns, or campus fairs. If you craft an e-book to help students navigate college, then make sure you’re also emailing this to new prospective students or handing it out at college events. If you have a testimonial of someone who has had a positive experience working with your financial aid office, make sure you’re including that in your print material and on your website.
By continually reminding prospective students and parents of financial aid resources in different channels, you can help communicate that your school really is willing to do everything it can to help make college affordable.
Making college affordable is part of your school’s story. At 5°, our specialty is helping you tell that story.
