Student Recruitment and the World Wide Web

Abstract

Despite consensus that a World Wide Web (WWW) presence is crucial for any academic program, there has been very little investigation into the supply of information by Web sites and the demand for information by prospective students. This is a gap in the literature that this article attempts to fill. Two data sets lie at the heart of this work: (1) a census of the WWW sites of Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning (ACSP)-accredited planning programs and (2) a student survey of online information preferences. Findings indicate that the supply of information reflects demand rather well, with only a few existing gaps in online information. Despite this, a number of shortcomings remain concerning online information provision by planning programs. Web sites should emphasize content, but organization, connectivity, and style all play important roles in effective recruitment as well.