A welcoming environment is undoubtedly important to attract prospective students and engage current students. But many campus leaders do not realize the full impactful of the physical environment.
EAB’s Enrollment Services surveyed over 200,000 students in 2017 and found that the campus environment is the number one reason students chose to enroll at a different institution. More so than academic reputation (12.9%) and cost (11.5%), it’s the campus environment (13.6%) that drives students away—or draws them in.
To learn more about how campuses are creating compelling environments, we explored some of the most iconic campus landscapes—and the impact each one has on students, faculty, staff, and visitors.
1. The cherry trees at University of Washington (Seattle, WA)©2007 Punctured Bicycle (Wikipedia Creative Commons)
Background: UW has 30 cherry trees that bring thousands of picnicking visitors from across the globe, typically during the third week of March each year as the trees bloom.
Staffing needs: Three gardeners to prune the trees and inspect for hazards.
Impact: From Sara Shores, UW’s urban forest specialist: “A professor at Washington State who studied the appearance of North American campuses found that students evaluate a college after only 10 minutes of being on campus, and 62% base their ultimate college decision on the appearance of the buildings and landscape. If a student visits during cherry blossom time they will see the one of the prettiest urban areas in Washington State. I think it adds a lot to people’s decisions about choosing UW!”
2. The flower “M” at the University of Maryland (College Park, MD)©2016 John T. Consoli/University of Maryland
Background: The flower M welcomes…