Best practices for graduate recruitment on the web
Set a clear priority for your site.
Demonstrate that priority by placing it first on any list and repeating it often throughout your site. (Apply Now. Apply Now. Apply Now!)
Make your page easier to scan.
Decrease your word count by half, use relevant headings and bulleted lists. Let prospective students click for full text if they are interested in reading more - don't bog them down.
Leverage the "F" scanning pattern.
Place your most important and interactive content in the center area just below your banner.
Prioritize your content to maximize the window.
75% of people don't scroll down to see what is below the first screen, so prioritize your content to have the most important information viewable. The UNL template allows for precious little content "above the fold" so you need to provide a compelling reason for a visitor to scroll down.
Avoid "marketese" language.
Everyone has world-class faculty and cutting edge facilities. What makes your program unique? Why should a prospective student choose you over your competitors? Try to articulate that to prospective students in a genuine way.
Eliminate clicks.
The average surfing session consists of 35 page views lasting an average of 27 seconds each (although I suspect the average time shrinks every year). Treat your site as if it is the 33rd page they've visited and you only have 2 pages to recruit them!
Anticipate questions and make the answers easy to find.
When is your application deadline? Do you require the GRE? What funding is available?
Use the UNL Template.
We have compelling reasons.
Demonstrate that priority by placing it first on any list and repeating it often throughout your site. (Apply Now. Apply Now. Apply Now!)
Make your page easier to scan.
Decrease your word count by half, use relevant headings and bulleted lists. Let prospective students click for full text if they are interested in reading more - don't bog them down.
Leverage the "F" scanning pattern.
Place your most important and interactive content in the center area just below your banner.
Prioritize your content to maximize the window.
75% of people don't scroll down to see what is below the first screen, so prioritize your content to have the most important information viewable. The UNL template allows for precious little content "above the fold" so you need to provide a compelling reason for a visitor to scroll down.
Avoid "marketese" language.
Everyone has world-class faculty and cutting edge facilities. What makes your program unique? Why should a prospective student choose you over your competitors? Try to articulate that to prospective students in a genuine way.
Eliminate clicks.
The average surfing session consists of 35 page views lasting an average of 27 seconds each (although I suspect the average time shrinks every year). Treat your site as if it is the 33rd page they've visited and you only have 2 pages to recruit them!
Anticipate questions and make the answers easy to find.
When is your application deadline? Do you require the GRE? What funding is available?
Use the UNL Template.
We have compelling reasons.
References:
Presentations by Professors Barney McCoy and Jerry Renaud to the UNL Campus Communicators Group, Fall 2006
Presentation by Seth Meranda and Michelle Howell Smith to department staff, Fall 2006
Mike's Eight Web Design Principles by Mike Mathieu, published in NAGAP Perspectives, Winter 2005
Presentations by Professors Barney McCoy and Jerry Renaud to the UNL Campus Communicators Group, Fall 2006
Presentation by Seth Meranda and Michelle Howell Smith to department staff, Fall 2006
Mike's Eight Web Design Principles by Mike Mathieu, published in NAGAP Perspectives, Winter 2005
Why use the template?
Build on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln brand
The public identity of each department is strengthened by a strong association with the UNL brand. Very few units at UNL can afford to build their own recognizable brands.
The entire university community helped to design it
All students, faculty, staff and alumni were invited to provide feedback on the template design.
Benefit from the work of others
There are over 150 members of the UNL Web Developer Network dedicated to the continuous improvement of the UNL website. The template is on the cutting edge of accessibility, code compliance and design and by using the template you leverage the expertise of the entire university's resources.
Make your web page accessible to everyone
The law requires us to be accessible. Using the template according to the guidelines is the easiest way to achieve the highest standards for accessibility. It is in Triple-A conformance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines as formulated by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
The public identity of each department is strengthened by a strong association with the UNL brand. Very few units at UNL can afford to build their own recognizable brands.
The entire university community helped to design it
All students, faculty, staff and alumni were invited to provide feedback on the template design.
Benefit from the work of others
There are over 150 members of the UNL Web Developer Network dedicated to the continuous improvement of the UNL website. The template is on the cutting edge of accessibility, code compliance and design and by using the template you leverage the expertise of the entire university's resources.
Make your web page accessible to everyone
The law requires us to be accessible. Using the template according to the guidelines is the easiest way to achieve the highest standards for accessibility. It is in Triple-A conformance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines as formulated by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
Keep up with the latest advances
The template is future-proof. Not only is it compliant with accessibility requirements, it's constructed of valid code. Browsers are becoming less tolerant of errors in the HTML and CSS code that makes up a web page. UNL's is done according to Hoyle.
Easy access to the online calendar
The easiest way to publish a calendar online is through events.unl.edu, and that calendar is in the templates. The UNL templates include a mechanism that allows your unit to display its upcoming events as a feed out of the UNL calendar.
Benefit from the recognition of the template design
Sites based on the templates have won awards (Admissions, specifically) and other major research universities have noticed our work and are developing sites heavily influenced by our site.
Oh, and because Harvey said so.
The template is future-proof. Not only is it compliant with accessibility requirements, it's constructed of valid code. Browsers are becoming less tolerant of errors in the HTML and CSS code that makes up a web page. UNL's is done according to Hoyle.
Easy access to the online calendar
The easiest way to publish a calendar online is through events.unl.edu, and that calendar is in the templates. The UNL templates include a mechanism that allows your unit to display its upcoming events as a feed out of the UNL calendar.
Benefit from the recognition of the template design
Sites based on the templates have won awards (Admissions, specifically) and other major research universities have noticed our work and are developing sites heavily influenced by our site.
Oh, and because Harvey said so.
References:
Personal email from Robert Crisler, UNL Webmaster, December 2006
Personal email from Robert Crisler, UNL Webmaster, December 2006