Masters Theses

Amy A. James

Date of Award

8-1985

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Major

Communication

Major Professor

M. Mark Miller

Committee Members

Jerry Morrow, Trude Banta

Abstract

University recruitment efforts have become increasingly competitive because of a recent decline in the traditional college age population. Consequently, university admissions and public relations officers are realizing a new need to use formal research when planning recruiting message strategies. This study uses a formal research method to attempt to identify the messages The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK) could most effectively use in communications with prospective students.

The innovative public relations and market research method, Galileo (TM), was employed for this investigation. Data were collected in two phases. First, 23 high school juniors and seniors state-wide answered open-ended questions about college life and college selection. Results from these data were compiled into a list of salient university attributes which retained the vernacular used by the high school students. A Galileo questionnaire was then constructed using eight of these salient attributes or concepts, plus the concepts "UTK," "your first choice college," and "yourself" (the respondent). In the second phase of data gathering, a sample of 52 high school students visiting the UTK campus for a conference volunteered to participate in the Galileo survey. The questionnaire asked respondents to make direct magnitude estimates of the distances between all possible concept pairs.

A multidimensional map was developed from the data that showed the relationships between all 11 concepts in cognitive space. Additional mathematical calculations within the Galileo computer program's "Automatic Message Generator" produced the message strategies that would be most effective to attract these high school students to DTK. Several combinations of concepts were generated. The most effective strategy suggested was the combination of UTK with "high academic standards," "strong courses in your field of study," and "your first choice college." Other concepts found to be effective in some combination included: "pleasant surroundings," "opportunity for personal independence," "meeting new people," and "lots of extracurricular activities."

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