Sustaining student numbers in the competitive marketplace

The climate of competition for students in the higher education sector makes it imperative that institutions increase their marketing efforts, both domestically and internationally, to help sustain student numbers. In Australia, the Bradley Report and the government response, which will do away with quotas, allows for a much freer market than previously, including the entry of private providers into the undergraduate degree market. It will become more critical than ever before to improve student attraction. Added to this, the increasing pressure from European and US universities in the Asian market requires Australian universities to improve their marketing and student recruitment in the international space. This paper draws on the large volume of material related to marketing universities that exists. The literature has changed its scope over time, originally focusing on the publications universities produced, then the branding effort, and more recently, relationship marketing. This paper provides a meta-analysis of the literature in an attempt to suggest some possible improvements that institutions could implement to have an impact on student recruitment and help sustain, or even improve, student numbers.