A deep dive into Clearing using the latest real-time data insights Stuart Smith

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2 A deep dive into Clearing using the latest real-time data insights Stuart Smith Director of Product, Hotcourses Group

3 A deep dive into Clearing using the latest real-time data insights Stuart Smith, Director of Product Hotcourses Group

4 Overview 2018 UCAS Cycle UCAS Clearing Headlines Hotcourses Clearing Website Trends Challenges and Opportunities Discussion

5 2018 UCAS Cycle 2.5% decrease in 18 years old in the UK population 426,730 students placed, UCAS forecasting a 2-3% decrease via the 2018 cycle Decline forecast to continue until 2020 when a sharp recovery is expected Ongoing decline in the adult market cohort depletion and debt adversity Higher tariff institutions actively recruiting via Clearing for the first time to meet target Lower tariff institutions squeezed Challenge for institutions to shape recruitment to maintain provision and capacity until 2020 Source: DataHE

6 UCAS Clearing Headlines 4% decrease in maincycle applicants seeking a place via Clearing (UCAS, 17 August 2018) 60,100 people placed via Clearing (c. 14% of all placed students at 20 Sept) 0.25% increase compared to the same point in 2017, a new UCAS record 45,690 also applied via the main scheme 1.4% decreased compared to the same point in ,410 applied directly to Clearing 5.6% increase compared to the same point in 2017 DataHE forecast this may increase to 10% by the end of cycle, a significant trend Source: UCAS News Release, 20 September 2018

7 Hotcourses Clearing Traffic 263,677 pageviews on A level results day to the WhatUni website 3.15% increase on 2017 Whatuni app launched providing a clearing matching service which reached 5,903 users across 15,050 session on A level results day alone Universities with strong student satisfaction led, reflecting the sites focus on student reviews

8 Hotcourses Clearing Traffic New comprehensive Clearing Search launched in June million pageviews on A level results day alone, 24% increase on 2017 Strong traffic for higher tariff institutions up until A level results day Medium tariff institutions with strong brands led from A level results onwards

9 A Level Results Day by Device Most engaged users are on desktop and tablet Users by Device Pages / Session Average Session Duration Tablet Desktop Mobile Tablet Desktop Mobile Tablet Desktop Mobile 0.00% 10.00% 20.00% 30.00% 40.00% 50.00% 60.00% % of Users Pages Seconds Mobile is the leading device Decrease = impact of launching the WhatUni app

10 Pageviews Whatuni Clearing Course Search WhatUni Clearing Course Searches A Level Results (Thurs-Fri): 27.1% of all searches (+1.0 vs 2017) /07/ /07/ /07/ /07/ /07/ /08/ /08/ /08/ /08/ /09/ /09/ /09/ /09/2018 Early Clearing: 26.7% of all searches (-4.4 vs 2017) Late Clearing: 39.8% of all searches (+4.6 vs 2017)

11 Pageviews A Level Results Day WhatUni Clearing Course Searches A Level Results Day: +50.7% vs /08/ /08/ /08/ /08/ /08/ /08/ /08/ /08/ /08/ /08/ /08/ /08/ /08/ /08/2018

12 A Level Results Day by Hour

13 A Level Results Day by Hour

14 Whatuni Pre A level Results WhatUni Early Clearing Users Subject Group Rank Rank YOY D Users YOY % D Health and Medicine , % Social Studies and Media , % Applied and Pure Sciences , % Creative Arts and Design , % Business, Management, Marketing , % Humanities and Languages , % Engineering and Technology , % Travel, Tourism, Hospitality and Leisure , % Computing and Mathematical Sciences , % Education , % Architecture, Building and Planning , % Agriculture and Related Subjects , % Law , % Environment , % Subject rankings by volume largely stable year on year Largest growth in terms of volume in Health and Medicine subject area Significant growth in most subject areas Significant decline in Creative Arts and Design and Education subject areas

15 Whatuni A Level Results + 1 WhatUni Clearing - A Level Results Day +1 Users Subject Group Rank Rank YOY D Users YOY % D Health and Medicine , % Applied and Pure Sciences 2 0 7, % Social Studies and Media 3 0 6, % Business, Management, Marketing 4 0 4, % Creative Arts and Design 5 0 3, % Humanities and Languages 6 0 3, % Computing and Mathematical Sciences 7 0 2, % Engineering and Technology 8 0 2, % Law 9-1 2, % Travel, Tourism, Hospitality and Leisure , % Architecture, Building and Planning , % Education , % Agriculture and Related Subjects , % Environment % Subject rankings by volume largely stable year on year Largest growth in terms of volume in Health and Medicine and Applied and Pure Sciences subject areas Significant growth in many subject areas Significant decline in Creative Arts and Design (continuing early clearing trend) and Social Studies and Media subject areas

16 Whatuni 18 Aug 30 Oct WhatUni Late Clearing Users Subject Group Rank Rank YOY D Users YOY % D Health and Medicine , % Social Studies and Media , % Applied and Pure Sciences , % Creative Arts and Design , % Business, Management, Marketing , % Humanities and Languages , % Travel, Tourism, Hospitality and Leisure , % Computing and Mathematical Sciences , % Engineering and Technology , % Education , % Architecture, Building and Planning , % Agriculture and Related Subjects , % Law , % Environment , % Subject rankings by volume largely stable year on year Largest growth in terms of volume in Health and Medicine subject area Significant growth in most subject areas

17 Whatuni All Clearing WhatUni Clearing Overall Users Subject Group Rank Rank YOY D Users YOY % D Health and Medicine , % Social Studies and Media , % Applied and Pure Sciences , % Creative Arts and Design , % Business, Management, Marketing , % Humanities and Languages , % Computing and Mathematical Sciences , % Travel, Tourism, Hospitality and Leisure , % Engineering and Technology , % Education , % Architecture, Building and Planning , % Agriculture and Related Subjects , % Law , % Environment , % Subject rankings by volume stable year on year Largest growth in terms of volume in Health and Medicine subject area Growth in most subject areas Notable growth in the Environment subject area Slightly decline in Creative Arts and Design (due to early clearing and A level results) and Education

18 CUG Top 10 Subjects CUG Subject Early Clearing A Level Results +1 Late Clearing Law Business Management Computer Science Economics Medicine Psychology Biological Sciences Accounting and Finance Mechanical Engineering Mathematics

19 Sector Discussions Higher Tariff Institutions using clearing to meet target, some for the first time Challenge to balance brand considerations with the need to recruit and entry standards Lower Tariff Pressure from higher tariff institutions recruiting via clearing with lower entry requirements Pressure from peers offering lower tariffs, incentives and three year vs four year degrees Challenge to scale and accurately target campaigns and operations

20 Summary Clearing is growing in significance and will be an strategic recruitment tool for more institutions A level results day is important and increasingly fast paced Students know the ball is in their court Early engagement is critical, students appear to be researching online more prior to clearing Digital is critical to scale reach and numbers without significantly scaling marketing and operational costs Fast paced environment poses a risk to securing a return on investment

21 Discussion How do we support students to make considered decisions in a limited timeframe? How do institutions respond to and take advantage of demand trends as they emerge in real-time? How do institutions reach, engage and influence students who applying directly via Clearing and making quick decisions? How do institutions scale to maximise numbers, particularly around A level results, without incurring large cost and risk? Are bigger and better campaigns and call centres the answer? How could digital platforms such as WhatUni and the Complete University Guide evolve to help you meet your recruitment goals?

22 Whatuni Student Choice Awards Below: Point Blank Music School celebrate their 2018 win with Alex Proudfoot (Chief Executive, IHE) and host Katherine Ryan The Whatuni Student Choice Awards are an alternative to traditional university ranking systems and are based on student reviews. Our Independent HE category aims to reflect the diversity of HE in the UK, offer prospective students insight into a range of different institutions and celebrate student satisfaction across the board. Students submit reviews via. The deadline to hit the review threshold is 28 th February It s completely free to feature in the awards, and open to all UK independent providers who are eligible to feature on Whatuni. Contact WUSCA@hotcourses.com for more info & to get involved.

23 Thanks