Recruiting high-achieving, high school students to colleges continues to pick up speed and sophistication.

In the nineties, many universities implemented admissions call centers: current students phoned high school juniors and, especially, seniors. It was an attempt to create a more personal relationship with those who had inquired or, mostly, applied to the school. It worked and continues to work. It’s tough to create a meaningful, lasting relationship with a brochure or two, a viewbook, and a web site.

Technology has its limits.

Today, some universities recruit parents of current students to call parents of prospective students. Other parent-to-parent strategies include boutique events, such as coffees in targeted communities with boatloads of high achieving applicants. Again, parents of current students speak to parents of applicants.

After one such event, a mom of a high school senior said to me, “When I talked to the parent of a current student at this university, it made the whole process personal for me. I began to envision my student attending the campus.”