14 Strategies to Help You Increase College Enrollment in 2027
Why Is Enrollment Declining in Canada?
A major driver of declining enrollment at Canadian colleges is the federal cap on new international study permits, which started in January 2024.
1. Find Your Leaks First
If you’re asking how to increase student enrollment in college, start by finding where students drop out. Track these five rates by program and by source.
Most schools watch only the first step (inquiries) and the last (enrolled students). A Search Influence benchmark post, based on a 2024 survey with UPCEA of professional, continuing, and online education units, found that fewer than half track cost per inquiry (46%) or cost per enrolled student (43%).
Fix the biggest drop first. Then write a one-page marketing plan to increase enrollment: the rate you’re fixing, the target, the owner, and the date. There’s no universal “good” rate, so compare against your own results from last year.
2. Review Your Program Mix
Many students pick a program first and a school second, so your program mix sets a ceiling on enrollment. Compare each program’s applications with local job demand.
Their answers tell you more than a survey of students who said yes.
Be careful with cuts. Since the cap, Ontario colleges have suspended programs, and Global News reported that Sheridan suspended 40 and Mohawk 16. Check domestic demand before you cut anything.
3. Improve Your Value Proposition
Your value proposition is the reason a student should pick you over the next school. If a family can’t repeat it after visiting your site, your ads and emails have nothing to build on.
Write it as one sentence: who it’s for, what you offer, and the proof. Lead with outcomes like jobs and placements, not facilities. Then use that sentence on every program page, ad, and email.
For the full process, see our higher education branding guide.
4. Build Program Pages That Rank
Many students search for programs, not colleges. They type things like “paramedic program near me,” and if your program has no page of its own, another school gets the click.
This applies whether you’re working on how to increase student enrollment in university programs or in college diplomas.
Test the page on a phone. Then check Google Search Console each month for program searches that get impressions but few clicks. Those pages usually need a better title or a clearer answer. Also keep your Google Business Profile current for each campus, and ask graduates for reviews.
5. Run Paid Search for Programs
Of all the marketing strategies to increase student enrollment, paid search is one of the easiest to measure. You reach students when they search for a program, and you can trace each click to an application.
Run one campaign per priority program, with its own keywords, ads, and landing page. Put your school name in a separate campaign, so you can protect that spot when other schools bid on your name.
Judge results by cost per application and cost per enrolled student, not clicks. Treat the benchmarks as a sanity check, not a target. We cover the setup in our Google Ads guide for educational institutions.
6. Reach Students on Social and Video
Some students first meet a program through a short video, long before they search for it. Match the platform to the audience.
These marketing ideas to increase college enrollment cost little. Post short phone videos of current students showing a day in the program, a lab, or a work placement. Answer what families ask most: cost, where graduates work, housing, and aid.
Retarget people who viewed a program page but didn’t inquire. Follow your privacy policy and each platform’s rules. Put tracked links on everything, so you can see inquiries and applications, not just likes. End every post with a next step, like a program page, a virtual open house, or an inquiry form.
7. Widen Your Audience: Adult, Transfer, and Mature Students
With international intake falling, domestic adult learners, transfer students, and career changers matter more. They respond to different offers than high school graduates do.
Pick one group, build the page, offer, and follow-up for them, and measure before you add the next.
8. Build Pathways With High Schools, Employers, and Colleges
Some of your best students come from relationships you build long before they apply. Partners also give you a steady flow of applicants that doesn’t depend on one ad campaign.
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Count the applications each partner sends every year, and drop partnerships that never produce students.
9. Respond to Inquiries Fast
A student who fills out your form is often comparing you with other schools the same evening. First, test yourself: submit an inquiry for three programs from a personal email and phone number.
This is the cheapest fix on the list, because you’ve already paid for the inquiry. Set a response target you can keep, like one business hour, and check it monthly. Give each program an owner. A shared inbox belongs to nobody.
Answer the actual question, whether it’s cost, a deadline, or the program, not just “thanks for your interest.” Cover evenings and weekends with an auto-reply that gives real answers, or a chat tool. Offer text replies, since many students answer a text faster than an email.
After a few months, compare your inquiry-to-application rate for fast and slow replies. That shows you what speed is worth.
10. Nurture Leads With Email and Text
Many students don’t apply the day they inquire. They wait, compare, and talk to family. If you go quiet, the school that keeps in touch wins. Build four automated flows, one for each drop-off from strategy 1.
Use text for short reminders and email for longer information. Split your lists by program and student type, so a working adult doesn’t get a message written for a high school graduate. Stop a flow as soon as the student takes the next step.
Get consent before you send. In Canada, Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) requires consent, your identity in the message, and a working unsubscribe link.
11. Offer Virtual Open Houses and Campus Visits
Families want to picture themselves in a program before they commit. Run a virtual open house for each program, not one general session.
A visit, in person or online, can help student yield, because it lets students meet a faculty member or a current student before they decide.
For campus visits, let students book online for the program they care about, with a tour of that department and time with a current student. Follow up within a day with the next step.
Track registrations, attendance, and applications. Then compare the application and yield rates of attendees and non-attendees. If attendees convert much better, you have a case for running more events.
12. Remove Application Friction
Application friction is anything that makes a student stop partway through applying: too many fields or documents, a confusing login, a fee, or a slow decision.
Each one drags down your inquiry-to-application rate, and some of the students who quit were interested. Check your analytics for the step where people quit. One confusing question can cause most of the drop.
Test waiving the application fee on one program. Watermark points to research that waiving fees can increase the number of applicants. Fix the biggest drop-off first, then recheck your application completion rate next month.
13. Make Cost and Financial Aid Clear
Cost makes many families hesitate. When students can’t find a price, they may assume it’s high or move on to a school that shows it.
Watermark cites US research that cost is the largest barrier to access. Publish the full cost for each program in one plain table, and explain aid: who qualifies and when to apply.
Put the price next to graduate outcomes, so students judge value and not only the sticker price. Let families book a short call with an aid advisor, and remind them of deadlines by email and text.
If you keep losing offers at the deposit stage, survey the students who said no. They’ll tell you whether cost is the reason.
14. Reduce Enrollment Melt and Keep the Students You Have
Enrollment melt is when students who accepted your offer, or even paid a deposit, don’t show up on day one. You’ve already won them, so they’re the cheapest students to keep.
Calculate melt by program with the formula from strategy 1. McKinsey’s examples included faculty and staff calling students and parents.
Retention counts too. Keeping 5 more students out of every 100 gives you the same headcount as winning 5 new ones, without the ad spend. Watch the first six weeks, flag students who miss classes, and connect them to advising early.
Final Thoughts
If you want help, Pro Marketer’s higher education marketing agency team works with colleges and universities across Canada. We start with your funnel data, find where students slip away, and build the plan around that. Comparing partners? Read our list of the best higher education marketing agencies.
Book a consultation →FAQs
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Ami Okorie
Content Writer
Ami Okorie
Content Writer
Ami Okorie is a content writer at Pro Marketer. She helps e-commerce and DTC brands blend strategic copywriting with storytelling. With an eye for strategy and storytelling, she builds content engines that boost visibility, engagement, and sales.
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