Is it worth it?

Eduardo is intrigued by the value of recruitment fairs for institutions without branding.

I attended another student recruitment fair last week. I take the selection of my future alma mater very seriously and hope to gain different insights from the engagement channels I use. 

At a student recruitment fair, I hope to meet graduates from the university who established themselves successfully in my country. Hearing their stories is a great motivator. I have attended several fairs in the past, and the information provided by the university is easily searchable online, so the connection with alums is the only differentiator. 

As I'm curious, I always try to talk to institutions with little draw. They might be from a less-known study destination or a New Kid on the Block. They don't have alumni (just yet), as everybody has to start at some stage. Nothing wrong with this...

However, I'm wondering if it's worth the effort to travel across the world (at a reasonably high cost) and offer a program without a clear differentiation or unique selling points that would make me rethink my list of potential target schools. 

Eduardo has a point. Attending student recruitment fairs is the first step toward internationalization. They explore the market potential or see whether they can convince anybody to join their programs. 

Capturing the market potential by solely attending a student recruitment fair might provide the wrong signal. Here are some potential signals: 

• Signal 1: Eduardo's visit, driven by curiosity rather than a concrete intention to enroll, could mistakenly label the market as high potential when true potential may not exist.
• Signal 2: No attendees engaged with the fair representative besides other institutions scoping out the new competitor. As a result, there was no post-event follow-up outreach as the university has chosen not to participate in this market again.
• Signal 3: Through discussions with fellow fair representatives and the organizer, the university discovered that decision-making processes in these markets tend to be slow due to financial constraints. A lack of immediate outreach does not equate to a lack of interest, as attendees often conduct online research on the institution post-event.

It's not easy to develop new markets. Before jumping on recruitment fairs, it's good to explore the markets in-depth to understand the learner's behaviors and evaluate their potential. 

If you are in this situation, eduALTO offers bespoke advisory services on internationalization and focused upskilling workshops for you and your team.