Leap Quarterly: Upcoming Events, New Partnerships & Key Insights!
Latest industry news and insights from Leap, the world’s leading end-to-end study abroad platform.
Welcome to the newest issue of Leap Quarterly!
You may or may not have noticed that a Q1 newsletter never made it to your inbox … we hope you missed us, and that absence has only made the heart grow fonder!
The lack of a newsletter doesn’t mean we weren’t busy, though. Rather, 2024 kicked off with a bang, with five new Leap Advantage programs and continued expansion of our services across the world with a variety of institution types.
This edition brings us up to speed with the latest developments and provides information on upcoming events where you can see our team in person. Also, read to the end for some valuable tips developed in collaboration with some of our university partners!
All the best,
Simona Campbell
VP, University Relations
Like the newsletter? Share it with your network. For feedback and inquiries, write to me at simona.campbell@leapfinance.com.
Meet us at Upcoming Events
Leap is excited to be a part of global industry events! Our team would love to see you at any of these upcoming opportunities in North America.
Connect with us!
ICEF North America: Upesh Savla and Mayank Gupta (Can be scheduled through the ICEF platform)
NAFSA 2024 Annual Conference and Expo: Vaibhav Singh, Simona Campbell, Ryan Astor, Dawn Harris Wooten, Sujal Kale, Tam Nguyen
Welcoming New Partnerships with Leap Advantage
In 2024, we’re pursuing our mission faster than ever. We were excited to start the year with five new programs with leading universities to achieve our goal of bringing affordable education to international students.
Find out more:
Colorado State University: MBA, Master’s in Computer Engineering, and MS in Computer Science.
SUNY Poly: MS in Data Science and Analytics
Indiana Tech: Master of Science in Information Systems
To learn more about how you can partner with Leap, contact Ryan Astor, Director of University Partnerships, at ryan.astor@leapfinance.com.
Pro Tips from the Field
Over the last few months, we have had the honor of presenting at various conferences with a few university partners. In case you weren’t able to attend one of those sessions, we have included below some key tips that particularly resonated with our audiences.
Newsletters: Do they really work? 📩
Newsletters are a great way to keep in touch with students. But how do you make it work without spamming them? Consider the following tips shared by both agents and institutional partners at the AIRC Annual Conference last December and The PIE Live Europe in March:
Timely updates on changes to admissions criteria, important deadlines, enrollment procedures, and available scholarships are the most critical for agents and students.
Details about upcoming events and travel arrangements are useful for knowing when counselors and students can meet you in person.
If possible, consider customizing newsletters for each major geographic region. This ensures that students receive relevant, specific information that is more applicable to their needs. If regional customization is impossible, consider highlighting specific initiatives and opportunities in the regions where your recruitment efforts are most focused.
What’s less helpful:
While it’s fun to celebrate previous interactions, recaps of past events or travel are of less interest to counselors and students than when announcing future events.
Marketing and branding points about your institution are better received during training and information sessions, as they tend to be overwhelming in a newsletter format.
And yes, we recognize that we’re advising on newsletters … in the content of a newsletter.
Does decision timing for applications make a difference? ⏲️
Institutions worldwide know that quick turnaround times for admissions decisions are critical for achieving your enrollment goals. But why? And what can you do if it’s not possible?
With international student numbers continuing to rise and limited capacity at consular offices, visa slots are increasingly difficult to obtain. Students are more likely to accept the first admission offer they receive so that they can be ready to book a visa appointment as soon as they are made available.
If quick decision-making is not possible at your institution, you can still ensure a positive experience for students by providing expected timelines. Expectation setting is critical for students when evaluating their options and deciding whether to wait for your institution or proceed with an offer they already have in hand.
Agent portals, when used effectively, can both alleviate the workload for an institution and provide greater transparency for students by empowering counselors to look up student application statuses. Don’t have the resources for a portal at this time? Even a simple regular report downloaded in Excel can go a long way in helping agents streamline processes, proactively track applications, and remove roadblocks to completing a file.
Interested in more strategies for effective recruitment? Connect with us to discuss!
That’s a wrap for this edition of Leap Quarterly. We’ll see you again in the next quarter with the latest updates and hope to see you in person at an upcoming event! Until then…