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Through tough times, recruitment still high

By Patrick Denison

deni0038@algonquincollege.com

For today’s high school graduates, the choices for post secondary studies are constantly expanding.

One need go no further than Algonquin to see how community colleges have grown in the last 2 decades. Algonquin has expanded from a small community college to one of the most cutting edge technology and trade institutes in the country. One of the keys to Algonquin’s steady growth in the last two decades has been its recruiting department.

Recruiters are in constant contact with high schools and arrange tours of the campus several times per week for prospective students. Anne Kalil, Algonquin’s recruitment director, says that feedback from the tours is generally positive and that a large number of people who tour the campus end up coming back to study here.

“Our recruitment teams go out to schools in the fall, and we’re always working to build relationships with schools and the greater community,” says Kalil. “I think young people today are more savvy than they were in the past. You wouldn’t buy a car without test driving it first, and there’s a lot more choice out there for students today. We have to find ways attract them to the school.”

In addition to recruiting activities in schools and campus tours, Algonquin holds an open house twice a year, in October and during March break. Potential students get to meet professors and speak with students about the programs they are interested in. “Most people have a general Idea of what they want to see when they come for a tour or to the open house,” Says Kalil. “But when they get to the school, it’s usually different than they imagined. There’s an excitement, a buzz that draws them in. We want people to come and experience that.”